Hugh Duffy, Hall of Fame rightfielder
Hugh Duffy was born November 26, 1866 in Cranston, Rhode Island. 5'7" and 165 pounds soaking wet, Duffy wasn't much to look at, but he had a great stance at the plate and speed to burn. Playing in the minor leagues, Hugh was spotted by Cap Anson, who helped sign him to the Chicago White Stockings of the National League.
After a half-season with the team, Hugh became the team's regular rightfielder, leading the league in at-bats and finishing fifth in home runs with 12. He also stole 52 bases, well on his way to his 574 career steals. The fleet-footed Duffy would often beat out infield singles and turn doubles into triples. Hugh was also known as something of a dandy, a sharp dresser who always attracted extra attendance on Ladies' Night.
In 1890 the 23 year old Duffy abandoned the National League for John Ward's Player's League. He remained in Chicago, playing for the Pirates squad of the PL, and there he batted .300 for the first time (.320) while collecting 78 steals. The following year he signed with the Boston Reds of the American Association, and continued his dominance at the plate, batting .336 and leading the league with 110 RBIs.
After the Boston squad joined the National League and became the Boston Beaneaters, Duffy went on a tear as perhaps the best rightfielder of the 1890s. From 1892 to 1897 he batted .300 or better, stole 40 bases or more every year except for 1896, when he "only" stole 39, and established himself as one of the best fielding outfielders in the game. In 1894, Hugh had his finest season, when he captured the National League Triple Crown by batting an astounding .440 to go with 18 homers and 145 runs batted in. His batting average remains the single season Major League record.
Hugh continued to play above the league level in 1898 and 1899, though he was beginning to wear down due to age. In 1900 he played only 55 games for the Boston club, and then jumped to the newly formed Milwaukee Brewers club for the start of 1901 season in the new American League, where he batted .302 and also served as manager (leading the team to a rather forgettable 48-89 finish). After two years coaching in the minor leagues, Hugh was again asked to manage in the majors, this time for the Philadelphia Phillies. Despite being 37 years old in 1904, Hugh played 18 games for the Phillies and batted .283. The next year he tacked on 15 more games, and the year after that made a cameo appearance in one game. Like his Brewers, he couldn't lead the Phillies anywhere near the pennant, and he quit following the 1906 season.
In 1910 he was picked up to manage by the Chicago White Sox. Two sub-.500 seasons later, he was out again. He spent the better part of the 1910s coaching at Harvard University, and after another dismal managing performance with the local Boston Red Sox in 1921 and 1922, became a full-time hitting instructor for the farm teams of the club. It was there that he helped instruct future Red Sox greats such as Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr, and Johnny Pesky.
In 1927, Hugh took on the job as coach of Boston College, but remained "headmaster emeritus" of the Red Sox' hitting school. He also owned a minor league baseball team in Portland, Maine for awhile in the 1930s. In 1945, the Veterans Committee enshrined Hugh in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. Hugh Duffy passed away October 19, 1954 in Boston.
Career Statistics
YEAR TEAM G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO BA
1888 CHC NL 71 298 60 84 10 4 7 41 13 9 32 .282
1889 CHC NL 136 584 144 172 21 7 12 89 52 46 30 .295
1890 CHI PL 138 596 161 191 36 16 7 82 78 59 20 .320
1891 BOS AA 127 536 134 180 20 8 9 110 85 61 29 .336
1892 BSN NL 147 612 125 184 28 12 5 81 51 60 37 .301
1893 BSN NL 131 560 147 203 23 7 6 118 44 50 13 .362
1894 BSN NL 125 539 160 237 51 16 18 145 48 66 15 .440
1895 BSN NL 130 531 110 187 30 6 9 100 42 63 16 .352
1896 BSN NL 131 527 97 158 16 8 5 113 39 52 19 .300
1897 BSN NL 134 550 130 187 25 10 11 129 41 52 .340
1898 BSN NL 152 568 97 169 13 3 8 108 29 59 .298
1899 BSN NL 147 588 103 164 29 7 5 102 26 39 .279
1900 BSN NL 55 181 27 55 5 4 2 31 11 16 .304
1901 MLA AL 79 285 40 86 15 9 2 45 12 16 .302
1904 PHI NL 18 46 10 13 1 1 0 5 3 13 .283
1905 PHI NL 15 40 7 12 2 1 0 3 0 1 .300
1906 PHI NL 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
CAREER 1737 7042 1552 2282 325 119 106 1302 574 662 211 .324
* Bold denotes led league.
Hall of Fame Index
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