Harry Albert Davis Jr. (March 7, 1908 – March 3, 1997), nicknamed "Stinky", was an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

. His playing career spanned 26 seasons from 1925 to 1950, including three 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), ...

(MLB) with the

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 ...

(1932–1933) and

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...

(1937).

Early years

Davis was born in 1908 in

Shreveport, Louisiana Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population of 393,406 in 2020, is t ...

. He attended

C. E. Byrd High School C. E. Byrd, a Blue Ribbon School, is a high school in Shreveport, Louisiana, United States. In continuous operation since its establishment in 1925, C. E. Byrd is also the eighth-largest high school in the United States of America as of Februa ...

and then Centenary College.

Professional baseball

Davis began his professional baseball career playing for the

Shamokin Shammies The Shamokin Shammies played baseball in the New York-Pennsylvania League (early 20th century), first New York-Pennsylvania League in 1925, going 54-77, last in the eight team league. They were formed when the Oneonta Indians relocated to Shamokin, ...

of the

New York-Pennsylvania League New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

from 1925 to 1927. He joined the Syracuse Stars of the same league in 1928. He next played for 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 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 ...

from 1929 to 1931. Davis was the

' starting

for 141 games in 1932. For the season, he had a .269

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 ...

with a .339

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

(OBP), 92

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

s scored, 159 hits, and 74

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 bat ...

(RBIs). The following year, Davis lost his starting job to future

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

inductee

Hank Greenberg Henry Benjamin Greenberg (born Hyman Greenberg; January 1, 1911 – September 4, 1986), nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank", "Hankus Pankus", or "The Hebrew Hammer", was an American professional baseball player and team executive. He played in Major Leagu ...

, as Davis made 40 starts at first base while Greenberg made 115. Davis' batting average fell to .214 with a .303 OBP and 14 RBIs in a total of 66 appearances. After leaving the Tigers, Davis returned to the minor leagues, playing for

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

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 1934, the

Portland Beavers The Portland Beavers was the name of separate minor league baseball teams, which represented Portland, Oregon, in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). The team was established in 1903, the first year of the PCL. Franchise history Many baseball teams ...

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 1935, and Toledo again in 1936. He batted .317, .314, and .298 during those three seasons, respectively. Davis was acquired from Toledo by the

in September 1936, in exchange for a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

; the Browns later completed the trade by sending outfielder Ed Coleman to the Mud Hens. Davis returned to the major leagues with the Browns in 1937; he played in 120 games and hit .276 with a .374 OBP and 35 RBIs. In December 1937, the Browns traded Davis to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

for pitcher

Vito Tamulis Vitautis Casimirus Tamulis (July 11, 1911 – May 5, 1974) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Phillies and Brooklyn Dodgers from 1934 to 1941. Biog ...

. Davis spent the 1938 season with the Yankees' Double-A affiliate, the Kansas City Blues, posting a .299 average. Davis continued playing in the minor leagues for 12 more seasons, including stints with the

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...

(1939–1942),

Columbus Red Birds The Columbus Red Birds were a top-level minor league baseball team that played in Columbus, Ohio, in the American Association from 1931 through 1954. The Columbus club, a member of the Association continuously since 1902, was previously known as ...

(1942), Toronto Maple Leafs (1943–1946),

Williamsport Grays The Williamsport Grays were a minor league baseball team in Williamsport, Pennsylvania between 1923 and 1962. The club began play in 1923 in the New York–Pennsylvania League and were a charter member of the Eastern League in 1938. The team was ...

(1946), Greenville Majors (1947), Marshall Tigers (1948),

Gadsden Pilots The Gadsden Pilots were a Minor League Baseball team based in Gadsden, Alabama, that played in the Southeastern League The Southeastern League was the name of four separate baseball leagues in minor league baseball which operated in the Southea ...

(1948–1949), and

Amarillo Gold Sox The Amarillo Gold Sox was the name of an American minor league baseball franchise that represented the city of Amarillo, Texas, in the Class D West Texas–New Mexico League, the Class A Western League and the Double-A Texas League at various t ...

(1950). For his career, Davis appeared in 327 major-league games (batting .264) and 2916 minor-league games (batting .292). He also served as a

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

for parts of five minor-league seasons, during 1945–1948 and 1950.

Personal life

After his playing career ended, Davis worked for the

Kansas City Southern Railway The Kansas City Southern Railway Company is an American Class I railroad. Founded in 1887, it operates in 10 midwestern and southeastern U.S. states: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and ...

and the Williams P&S. Davis married Cordie Evelyn Douglas in 1928. He died in March 1997.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Harry 1908 births 1997 deaths Amarillo Gold Sox players Baseball players from Shreveport, Louisiana Centenary College of Louisiana alumni Columbus Red Birds players Detroit Tigers players Gadsden Chiefs players Gadsden Pilots players Greenville Majors players Hazleton Mountaineers players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Major League Baseball first basemen Marshall Tigers players Portland Beavers players St. Louis Browns players Shamokin Indians players Shamokin Shammies players Syracuse Stars (minor league baseball) players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) managers Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Toledo Mud Hens players Williamsport Grays players Rochester Red Wings players American expatriate baseball players in Canada