Harry Niles
Hidden Home Run King?
Harry Niles
In my opinion, anybody who managed to hit a single home run in 1908 deserves a medal.
Harry Niles, who you’ve probably never heard of, hit a whopping 5.
Now, remember, this is 1908 we’re talking about. There was a grand total of 0.11 home runs per team per game in 1908, easily one of the lowest totals in baseball history:
The only post-1893 seasons that come close to 1908 are 1907, 1909, and 1906 — seasons that immediately surround 1908.
You’ll also notice that no seasons after 1919 show up anywhere on this list.
So what about Harry Niles? Well, it turns out that he played in those homerless seasons — and he played pretty well, as a matter of fact:
It turns out that Harry’s entire career took place in the heart of the home run drought. He didn’t have many in the surrounding years, but he somehow managed to hit 5 in 1908. And, even though Harry had already knocked 4 dingers in 400 plate appearances, the Highlanders apparently wanted to get rid of him anyway.
The Trade
Now, this isn’t just me projecting my hopes and dreams on some random old time baseball player. You already get enough of that in my other articles, after all.
Nope — there is reason to believe that Home Run Harry has been unjustly forgotten. From his SABR bio:
You know you did well when the New York Evening World writes this kind of headline about you:
Even The Sun, normally stoic, had some fun:
But, unfortunately, the good times don’t last forever.
The Highlanders were at 33-71 at this point, with a comfortable hold on last place in the American League. I suppose they were trying to do what they could with the talent they had, though trading Home Run Harry for an aging third baseman is questionable at best.
Anyway, as far as Niles goes, his 1908 Skeetersoft NPIII card isn’t exactly awe inspiring:
However, he’s doing much better in my replay than you’d think.