Ham Hyatt Explained

Ham Hyatt
Position:First baseman / Outfielder
Bats:Left
Throws:Right
Birth Date:1 November 1884
Birth Place:Buncombe County, North Carolina, U.S.
Death Place:Liberty Lake, Washington, U.S.
Debutleague:MLB
Debutdate:April 15
Debutyear:1909
Debutteam:Pittsburgh Pirates
Finalleague:MLB
Finaldate:September 2
Finalyear:1918
Finalteam:New York Yankees
Statleague:MLB
Stat1label:Batting average
Stat1value:.267
Stat2label:Home runs
Stat2value:10
Stat3label:Runs batted in
Stat3value:146
Teams:
Highlights:

Robert Hamilton Hyatt (November 1, 1884 – September 11, 1963) was an American professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1909 to 1918 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, and New York Yankees.

Hyatt started his professional baseball career with the Vancouver Beavers of the Northwestern League. In 1908, he hit .323 with 15 home runs; he led the league in hits, home runs, and runs scored.[1] He was purchased by the Pittsburgh Pirates after the season.

From to, Hyatt served mostly as a pinch hitter for the Pirates; Steve Treder of The Hardball Times credits him as baseball's first pinch-hitting specialist. His 181 OPS+ in is the highest for a single season of any player deployed in this role.[2] Hyatt also had one-year stints playing for the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees.[3] After his time in the major leagues ended, Hyatt played in the minors. He spent – with the Pacific Coast League's Vernon Tigers, hitting over .300 each year.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ham Hyatt Minor Leagues Statistics & History . . . 5 January 2022 . en.
  2. Web site: Treder . Steve . Pinch-Hitting Specialists: A History . . . 5 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201221054736/https://tht.fangraphs.com/pinch-hitting-specialists-a-history/ . 21 December 2020 . 7 February 2006 . live.
  3. Web site: Ham Hyatt Stats . . . 5 January 2022 . en.