Joseph Patrick "Shags" Horan (September 6, 1895 – February 13, 1969) was an

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 c ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

. Horan played for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one o ...

in 1924, and he also spent 11 seasons in the minor leagues, winning two batting titles. He was 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighed 170 pounds."Shags Horan Statistics and History"
baseball-reference.com. Retrieved October 20, 2011.

Career

Horan was born in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, whic ...

, in 1895. He started his professional baseball career in 1914 in the

Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League The Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League (or ''KITTY League'') was a Class D level minor league baseball circuit that went through six different periods of play between 1903 and 1955. The League hosted teams in 29 cities from the states of Il ...

. That season, he played 124 games and had a

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average i ...

of .272. From 1915 to 1921, Horan had stints in several minor leagues but did not play more than 87 games during any of those years."Shags Horan Minor League Statistics & History"
baseball-reference.com. Retrieved October 20, 2011. Horan then joined the Western League's

Des Moines Boosters The Des Moines Boosters were a Western League minor league baseball team based in Des Moines, Iowa, United States that existed from 1908 to 1924. Des Moines fielded teams in the Western League from 1900-1937 and 1947–1958. Hall of Famers Geo ...

in 1922, batted over .300 for the first time, and hit 16

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...

s. The following season, he batted .411 with 23 homers to set career-highs in both categories. He also led the Western League in batting average and

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 ...

(256). In 1924, Horan started off with the Reading Keystones of the class AA

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

. He batted .376 to lead the league before his contract was sold to the New York Yankees in mid-season.Meany, Tom
"Life in the Switches"
''Baseball Digest''. February 1962. pp. 42-43. Horan appeared in 22 games for the Yankees in July, August, and September of that year. He hit .290 with seven

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

and no home runs. New York waived him after the season ended, and about his time in the majors, Horan later said:

"I don't care for those concrete fences. The ball hits them and you don't hear anything. In the minors you rattle 'em off those wooden fences and you stir up quite a racket."

Horan played in the Western League and

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 level, which is one grade below Major League Bas ...

for the next two seasons before his professional baseball career ended. He then settled in Los Angeles and worked as a guard for the L.A. Department of Water and Power."Shags Horan's Obit"
''The Sporting News''. May 24, 1969. p. 44. Horan died in

Torrance, California Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay region of the metropolitan area. Torrance has of beachfront on the Pacific Oc ...

, in 1969.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horan, Shags 1895 births 1969 deaths Major League Baseball outfielders New York Yankees players Cairo Egyptians players Dayton Veterans players Joplin Miners players Evansville Evas players Beaumont Exporters players Galveston Pirates players Chattanooga Lookouts players Des Moines Boosters players Reading Keystones players Denver Bears players Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players Vernon Tigers players Baseball players from St. Louis Streator Boosters players