Batting average .231 Role Baseball player Name Harry Lochhead | Runs batted in 45 Home runs 1 | |
Died August 22, 1909, Stockton, California, United States | ||
Robert Henry "Harry" Lochhead (March 29, 1876 – August 22, 1909) was a Major League Baseball shortstop in 1899 and 1901. Lochhead was born and died in Stockton, California.
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Cleveland Spiders (1899)
As a rookie, Lochhead was the starting shortstop for the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, widely regarded as the worst baseball team in history. The 1899 Spiders had a 20–134 record (.130 winning percentage), scoring 529 runs and allowing 1,252. Lochhead has the dubious distinction of sometimes being referred to as the worst regular player on the worst team in history. His .238 batting average was 43 points lower than the league average (.281) and among the lowest among all starters in the National League in 1899. His 81 errors was by far the highest on the Spiders, though his .909 fielding percentage was on par with other National League shortstops that year. He led the team in appearances, playing in 148 of the Spiders' 154 games.
Detroit Tigers (1900–1901)
In April 1900, the Detroit Tigers, then a minor league team in the Western League, purchased Lochhead from the St. Louis Cardinals. In an article published on January 13, 1900, Lochhead received praise in The Sporting News: "In the past few years the patrons of Recreation Park have much admired the quick, snappy, aggressive playing of [Harry] Lockhead (sic) at "short." The big fellow from Stockton, who so closely resembles Bill Lange, has certainly acquired a showy dash and finish as a result of this season's association with the stars of the major league." (The Sporting News, January 13, 1900)
After the Tigers became a major league team in 1901, Lochhead played only one more game for the team. In 4 at-bats, Lochhead had 2 hits, was hit by a pitch, and scored 2 runs for the Tigers, for a .500 batting average and .600 on-base percentage. Nevertheless, the Tigers sold Lochhead to the Philadelphia Athletics on April 29, 1901. Lochhead batted .088 in 9 games for the Athletics. He played his last major league game on May 15, 1901.
Death at 33 after being lost in the desert
Lochhead died at age 33 at his mother's home in Stockton, California, reportedly from a long-lasting liver complaint, a month after suffering overexposure when he was lost in the desert near Bakersfield, California.