William Patrick Purtell (January 6, 1886 – March 17, 1962) was an American

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

. He played professional baseball for 19 seasons between 1904 and 1928, including five seasons in

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), ...

with the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

from 1908 to 1910,

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

from 1910 to 1911, and

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

in 1914. Purtell compiled a .227

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 is ...

in 335 major league games.

Early years

Purtell was born in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, in 1886. His father Patrick Purtell (born 1849), aka Pere Purtell, was an Irish immigrant who played professional baseball in the late 1860s and early 1870s and later worked as a foreman in a cracker bakery in Columbus. His mother Emma (born 1854) was an Ohio native.Census entry for Patrick Purtell and family. Son William P. born Jan. 1886. Census Place: Columbus Ward 10, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: 1268; Page: 4B; Enumeration District: 0086; FHL microfilm: 1241268. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census atabase on-lineCensus entry for Patrick Purtell and family. Son William, age 24, a ball player. Census Place: Columbus Ward 5, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: T624_1181; Page: 5A; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1375194. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census atabase on-line

Professional baseball

Minor leagues

Purtell began playing professional baseball in 1904 at age 18 with the

Columbus Senators The Columbus Senators Minor league baseball team was created in as a founding member of the Tri-State League. After that, the Senators played in the Western League (1897-1899), Interstate League (1900), Western Association (1901), and America ...

and

Decatur Commodores The Decatur Commodores were a professional minor league baseball team based in Decatur, Illinois that played for 64 seasons. The Commodores are the primary ancestor of today's Kane County Cougars. They played, with sporadic interruptions, from ...

. He spent the next three seasons from 1905 to 1907 playing for Decatur.

Chicago and Boston

Purtell made his major league debut in April 1908 with the

. He appeared in only 28 games with Chicago in 1908, compiling a .130 batting average. He remained with the White Sox in 1909, appearing in 103 games and batting .258. Purtell had the best season of his career in 1910. He began the season with the White Sox. On May 10, he became the first player in major league history to strike out twice in the same inning, suffering the indignity at the hands of

Walter Johnson Walter Perry Johnson (November 6, 1887 – December 10, 1946), nicknamed "Barney" and "The Big Train", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in Major League Baseball as a right-ha ...

. On August 9, 1910, Purtell was traded by the Chicago White Sox with Frank Smith to the Boston Red Sox for

Harry Lord Harry Donald Lord (March 8, 1882 – August 9, 1948) was an American professional baseball player who played for the Boston Americans/Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and Buffalo Blues from 1907 to 1915. Early life and education Harry Lord was ...

and

Amby McConnell Ambrose Moses McConnell (April 29, 1883 – May 20, 1942) was an American baseball second baseman who played four seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Midget" due to his stature, he played for the Boston Red Sox and Chicago White S ...

. During the full 1910 season, Purtell appeared in 151 games, 143 as a third baseman. He also led the American League in

assist Assist or ASSIST may refer to: Sports Several sports have a statistic known as an "assist", generally relating to action by a player leading to a score by another player on their team: *Assist (basketball), a pass by a player that facilitates a ba ...

s (320) and

error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'. In statistics ...

s (49) by a third baseman in 1910. Purtell in 1910 also set a major league record for the fewest doubles (six) by a major league player appearing in 150 or more games. He also ranked third in the league with 32 sacrifice hits. He compiled a .210 batting average and collected 51 RBIs in 1910. Purtell remained with Boston in 1911, but appeared in only 27 games, 15 at third base, and compiled a .280 batting average.

Jersey City and Detroit

Purtell spent the 1912 and 1913 seasons playing for the

Jersey City Skeeters The Jersey City Skeeters were a minor league baseball team which operated in Jersey City, New Jersey. The club started in the 1860s and by 1870 joined the National Association of Base Ball Players. By 1885, Jersey City had joined the Eastern Le ...

in the

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 ...

. In 1914, Purtell returned to the major leagues with the

. He appeared in 28 games, 16 at third base, and compiled a .171 batting average.

Minor leagues

After playing in the major leagues, Purtell continued to play in the minor leagues through the 1928 season, including stints with the

Vernon Tigers The Vernon Tigers were a Minor League Baseball team that represented Vernon, California in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) from 1909 to 1925. The team won back-to-back PCL pennants in 1919 and 1920. The Tigers, together with the Sacramento Solons, ...

of the

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 ...

in 1915, the

Montreal Royals The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team in Montreal, Quebec, during 1897–1917 and 1928–1960. A member of the International League, the Royals were the top farm club (Class AAA) of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939; pi ...

of the

in 1917, the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

of the International League in 1918 and 1919, the

Toledo Iron Men Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Orur ...

of the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

in 1918, the

Akron Buckeyes Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city ...

of the International League in 1920, the

Vancouver Beavers The Vancouver Beavers were a Class-B minor league baseball team based in Vancouver, British Columbia that played on and off from 1908 to 1922. The team played in the Northwestern League (1905–1917), Northwestern League, Pacific Coast International ...

of the

Pacific Coast International League The Pacific Coast International League was a minor league baseball league that played between 1918 and 1922. The Class B level league franchises were based in the Northwest United States and British Columbia. History The Pacific Coast Internati ...

as player-manager in 1921, the

Columbia Comers The Columbia Comers were a minor league baseball team, based in Columbia, South Carolina and played in the South Atlantic League. Columbia's first professional team was known as the Senators and played in the short-lived first South Atlantic Le ...

of the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

in 1926, and the

Hagerstown Hubs The Hagerstown Hubs were a Minor League Baseball team based in Hagerstown, Maryland, United States. The team played predominantly in the Blue Ridge League (1915–1930) and briefly in the Middle Atlantic League (1931). Their home (sports), home ...

of the

Blue Ridge League The Blue Ridge League was the name of two minor league baseball organizations that operated in the first half of the twentieth century in the United States. History The first league operated for the better part of sixteen years, from 1915 throu ...

as a player-manager in 1928. In 1918, he was the starting third baseman for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 1918 Maple Leafs have been rated as one of the top fifty minor league teams of all time. The team compiled an 88–39 record, and Purtell hit .311 in 101 games.

Later years

After retiring from baseball, Purtell worked as a grip in a motion picture studio in 1920, a bartender at a club in 1930,Census entry for William P. and Myrtle Purtell. Census Place: Columbus, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: T627_3248; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 93-234. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census atabase on-line and later a landscape engineer. In the late 1950s, he moved to

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...

. Purtell died in 1962 at age 76 at a rest home in Bradenton. He was buried at Mansion Memorial Park in

Ellenton, Florida Ellenton is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Manatee County, Florida, United States. The population was 4,129 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Bradenton–Sarasota–Venice Metropolitan Statistical Ar ...

References

External links

SABR biography of Purtell
by Bill Nowlin {{DEFAULTSORT:Purtell, Billy 1886 births 1962 deaths Major League Baseball third basemen Boston Red Sox players Chicago White Sox players Detroit Tigers players Baseball players from Columbus, Ohio Columbus Senators players Decatur Commodores players Jersey City Skeeters players Venice Tigers players Vernon Tigers players Montreal Royals players Toledo Iron Men players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Akron Buckeyes players Vancouver Beavers players Columbia Comers players Hagerstown Hubs players Minor league baseball managers