Henry Richard Camelli (December 9, 1914 – July 14, 1996) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player. A

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

, he appeared in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

between and for the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

and

Boston Braves The Boston Braves were a Major League Baseball club that originated in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, and played from 1871 to 1952. Afterwards they moved to History of the Atlanta Braves#Milwaukee, Milwaukee (and became the Milwaukee Braves). ...

. The native of

Gloucester, Massachusetts Gloucester ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It sits on Cape Ann and is a part of North Shore (Massachusetts), Massachusetts's North Shore. The population was 29,729 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census. ...

, stood tall, weighed and threw and batted right-handed. Camelli’s professional baseball career stretched over 16 seasons (1935–48; 1950–51), with 13 years in

minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

as a player and playing manager, including 1940 when at age 25 he was the catcher/manager of the Saginaw Athletics of the Class C

Michigan State League The Michigan State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in various seasons between 1889 and 1941. The league franchises were based exclusively in Michigan, with the league forming on six different occasions. Twenty two different ...

. During one stretch that season, Camelli caught six doubleheaders in a row. He appeared in single games for the 1943 and 1945 Pirates, the latter because of military service in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. His best MLB season was , when he batted .296 with 37

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

and one

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

in 63 games and 125

at bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, b ...

. Overall, he appeared in 159 games in all or parts of five Major League campaigns. On September 30, 1946, he was included in a multiplayer trade that sent him to his hometown Braves with

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

Bob Elliott for future

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

Billy Herman William Jennings Bryan Herman (July 7, 1909 – September 5, 1992) was an American second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) during the 1930s and 1940s. Known for his stellar defense and consistent batting, Herman still holds many ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

Elmer Singleton,

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

Stan Wentzel Stanley Aaron Wentzel (January 13, 1917 – November 28, 1991) was an American professional baseball player. A longtime minor league baseball, minor league outfielder and, later, a manager (baseball), manager, Wentzel's only stint in Major League ...

and

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

Whitey Wietelmann William Frederick "Whitey" Wietelmann (March 15, 1919 – March 26, 2002) was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager. He was an infielder in the Major Leagues from – 47 for the Boston Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates. The na ...

. Herman was promptly named playing manager of the 1947 Pirates, but he was aghast at the cost — Elliott — the Pirates had paid for him. "Why, they've gone and traded the whole team on me", he said.Boston Braves Historical Association Newsletter, Vol. 19, No. 3, Autumn 2010 Elliott would win the

National League Most Valuable Player National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

award and lead Boston to the 1948 National League pennant. Herman's 1947 Pirates lost 92 games and finished tied for seventh in the NL, and he resigned before the season's final game. Camelli was Boston's second-string catcher (behind

Phil Masi Philip Samuel Masi (January 6, 1916March 29, 1990) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1939 to 1952, most prominently for the Boston Braves where he was a four-time All-Star player an ...

) in 1947, his final season in the Majors. The Braves then sent him to the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

of the AAA

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

for 1948. He died in

Wellesley, Massachusetts Wellesley () is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Wellesley is part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The population was 29,550 at the time of the 2020 census. Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of M ...

, at the age of 81.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Camelli, Hank 1914 births 1996 deaths Abbeville A's players Albany Senators players Boston Braves players Chattanooga Lookouts players Major League Baseball catchers Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Sportspeople from Wellesley, Massachusetts Pittsburgh Pirates players Portsmouth Cubs players Saginaw Bears players St. Hyacinthe Saints players San Diego Padres (minor league) players Selma Cloverleafs players Sportspeople from Gloucester, Massachusetts Baseball players from Essex County, Massachusetts Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Tyler Trojans players United States Army personnel of World War II Williamsport Grays players Saginaw White Sox players 20th-century American sportsmen