Batting average .260 Role Baseball player Name Jerry Denny | Runs 714 Hits 1,286 | |
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Died August 16, 1927, Houston, Texas, United States | ||
Jeremiah Dennis Denny (Jeremiah Dennis Eldridge; March 16, 1859 in New York City – August 16, 1927 in Houston, Texas) was a third baseman in Major League Baseball. Denny holds the distinction of being the last Major League position player (non-pitcher) to play his entire career on the diamond without wearing a fielding glove.
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Over 13 professional seasons he played for the Providence Grays (1881–1885), St. Louis Maroons (1886), Indianapolis Hoosiers (1888–1889), New York Giants (1890–1891), Cleveland Spiders (1891), Philadelphia Phillies (1891), and Louisville Colonels (1893–1894). After leaving the Major Leagues, Denny continued playing Minor League baseball until 1902.
Unconventional fielding technique
At the time Denny began his professional career, fielding gloves had not yet become standard equipment, other than padded mitts for catchers and first basemen. Fielding gloves gradually gained acceptance between 1885 and the mid-1890s, but Denny refused to adapt. He was one of the few ambidextrous major league players; although he threw primarily with his right arm, he could also toss with his left. This gave him a defensive advantage at his customary field position—in ranging to his left on a ground ball, if he saw a play at second base, instead of having to transfer the ball to his right hand while pivoting and repositioning his body (as third basemen would customarily do), Denny could dispatch the ball to second with his left hand. This skill contributed to his refusal to wear a glove in the field, long after most players considered gloves essential.
Professional achievements
In 1884, Denny helped the National League champion Grays defeat the New York Metropolitans of the American Association in the major leagues' first post-season championship match-up. That season, he was the Grays' leader in home runs (six, and one in the championship series) and runs batted in (59), and second in extra base hits (37).
His career totals are 1,237 Games and 4,946 At Bats, 714 Runs, 1,286 Hits, 238 Doubles, 76 Triples, 74 Home runs, 667 RBI, 130 Stolen bases, 173 Walks, a Batting average of.260, an On-base percentage of.287, a Slugging percentage of.384, and 1,898 Total bases.
Denny holds the Major League record for most chances by a third baseman in a single game, handling 16 chances during an 18-inning match on August 17, 1882.
He led the National League in Games (85) in 1881 and Strikeouts (79) in 1888.
Use of name "Jerry Denny"
Eldridge attended St Mary's College, Phoenix in the late 1870s, and wanted to play semi-professional baseball during the summer months, when he wasn't playing for the college as an amateur. He used the pseudonym "Jerry Denny" to hide his professional play from the college.