| Heinie Heltzel | |
| Position: | Third baseman, shortstop |
| Bats: | Right |
| Throws: | Right |
| Birth Date: | December 21, 1913 |
| Birth Place: | York, Pennsylvania |
| Death Place: | York, Pennsylvania |
| Debutleague: | MLB |
| Debutdate: | July 23 |
| Debutteam: | Boston Braves |
| Finalleague: | MLB |
| Finaldate: | August 6 |
| Finalteam: | Philadelphia Phillies |
| Statleague: | MLB |
| Stat1label: | Batting average |
| Stat1value: | .157 |
| Stat2label: | Home runs |
| Stat2value: | 0 |
| Stat3label: | Runs batted in |
| Stat3value: | 5 |
| Teams: |
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William Wade "Heinie" Heltzel (December 21, 1913 – May 1, 1998) was an American baseball player. He played professional baseball as a shortstop and third baseman from 1935 to 1947, including stints with the Boston Braves in 1943 and the Philadelphia Phillies in 1944.
Heltzel was born in 1913 in York, Pennsylvania.[1] [2]
He began playing professional baseball in 1935 with the Harrisburg Senators of the New York–Penn League.[1] Over the next eight seasons, he continued in the minor leagues, playing for the Trenton Senators (1936-37), Greenville Spinners (1938), Montgomery Rebels (1938), Orlando Senators (1939), Reading Chicks (1940-41), Bridgeport Bees (1941), and Hartford Bees (1942-43).[1]
In 1943, Heltzel made his major league debut on July 27, 1943, with the Boston Braves.[1] [3] He appeared in twenty-nine games with the Braves during the 1940 season. He had thirteen hits and seven walks, scored six runs, and tallied five RBIs, eighteen putouts, forty-eight assists, and nine errors.[1]
In 1944, he appeared in eleven games for the Philadelphia Phillies.[1] [4]
He appeared in his final major league game on August 6, 1944. His career fielding percentage in twenty-nine games at third base was .880 – 68 points below the league average of .948 for third basemen during the years he played.[1]
Heltzel continued to play in the minor leagues for the Indianapolis Indians (1944-45), Seattle Rainiers (1946), and York White Roses (1946-47).[1]
In May 1998, Heltzel died at the age of eighty-three in York, Pennsylvania.[5]