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Harry Simpson

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For other people named Harry Simpson, see Harry Simpson (disambiguation).
Harry Simpson
Simpson in about 1953
Outfielder / First baseman
Born: (1925-12-03)December 3, 1925
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Died: April 3, 1979(1979-04-03) (aged 53)
Akron, Ohio, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Right
Professional debut
NgL: 1946, for the Philadelphia Stars
MLB: April 21, 1951, for the Cleveland Indians
Last MLB appearance
September 27, 1959, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
MLB statistics
Batting average.266
Home runs73
Runs batted in381
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams
Negro leagues
Major League Baseball
Career highlights and awards

Harry Leon "Suitcase" Simpson (December 3, 1925 – April 3, 1979) was an American outfielder and first baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Athletics, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, and Pittsburgh Pirates in his eight-year career. He played in the World Series with the New York Yankees in 1957, which they lost.

Career

Simpson as a member of the San Diego Padres, circa 1950.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Simpson began his professional career with the Philadelphia Stars of the Negro National League, where he played from 1946 to 1948.[1][2] Simpson became one of the earliest black players in the American League, playing first with the Cleveland Indians in 1951. Casey Stengel once called him the best defensive right fielder in the American League.[3]

That his nickname of "Suitcase" came from his being frequently traded during his playing career is a common misconception. According to the 1951 Cleveland Indians Sketch Book, he was called "Suitcase" by sportswriters after the Toonerville Folks character, Suitcase Simpson, because of his size 13 shoe with feet as large as suitcases. This is years before his many trades. His real nickname was "Goody", which came from his willingness to run errands and help neighbors in his hometown of Dalton, Georgia.[4][5]

In 888 games over eight seasons, Simpson compiled a .266 batting average (752-for-2829) with 101 doubles, 41 triples, 73 home runs, 381 RBI, 271 base on balls, .331 on-base percentage and .408 slugging percentage. He finished his career with a .984 fielding percentage playing at all three outfield positions and first base. In the 1957 World Series, he batted .083 (1-for-12) with 1 RBI.

Simpson died in Akron, Ohio in 1979 at age 53. He is buried in West Hill Cemetery in Dalton, Georgia, where a section of the cemetery and the road leading to that section are named in his honor.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Harry Simpson". seamheads.com. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  2. ^ Cort Vitty. "Harry Simpson". sabr.org. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  3. ^ Cleveland Indians Official 1952 Sketch Book.
  4. ^ Cleveland Indians Official 1951 Sketch Book.
  5. ^ Jackson, Kelly (2009-10-25). "Dalton honors sports pioneer 'Suitcase' Simpson". Chattanooga Times Free Press. Archived from the original on 2018-05-13.
  6. ^ Oliver, Charles (18 January 2020). "Part of West Hill Cemetery named for 'Suitcase' Simpson". The Daily Citizen. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
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