Heinie Heltzel
{{short description|American baseball player (1913-1998)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Heinie Heltzel
|position=Third baseman, shortstop
|image=Heinie Heltzel.jpeg
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|birth_date={{Birth date|1913|12|21|mf=y}}
|birth_place=York, Pennsylvania, U.S.
|death_date={{death date and age|1998|5|1|1913|12|21}}
|death_place=York, Pennsylvania, U.S.
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=July 23
|debutyear={{Baseball year|1943}}
|debutteam=Boston Braves
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=August 6
|finalyear={{Baseball year|1944}}
|finalteam=Philadelphia Phillies
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=Batting average
|stat1value=.157
|stat2label=Home runs
|stat2value=0
|stat3label=Runs batted in
|stat3value=5
|teams=
- Boston Braves (1943)
- Philadelphia Phillies (1944)
}}
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.
Biography
Heltzel was born in 1913 in York, Pennsylvania.{{cite web|title=Heinie Heltzel|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|accessdate=June 20, 2022|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=heltze001wil}}{{cite web|title=Grave Story: Heinie Heltzel|publisher=RIP Baseball|accessdate=June 20, 2022|url=https://ripbaseball.com/2022/01/11/grave-story-heinie-heltzel-1913-1998/}}
He began playing professional baseball in 1935 with the Harrisburg Senators of the New York–Penn League. 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).
In 1943, Heltzel made his major league debut on July 27, 1943, with the Boston Braves.{{cite news|title=Heltzel Shows Speed at Third for Braves|newspaper=The Boston Globe|date=July 28, 1943|page=13|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104146407/heltzel-shows-speed-at-third-for-braves/|via=Newspapers.com}} 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.
In 1944, he appeared in eleven games for the Philadelphia Phillies.{{cite news|title=Phils Get Heltzel, To Play Tonight|newspaper=The Philadelphia Inquirer|author=Stan Baumgartner|date=July 14, 1944|page=21|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104146431/phils-get-heltzel-to-play-tonight/|via=Newspapers.com}}
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.
Heltzel continued to play in the minor leagues for the Indianapolis Indians (1944-45), Seattle Rainiers (1946), and York White Roses (1946-47).
Death
In May 1998, Heltzel died at the age of eighty-three in York, Pennsylvania.{{cite news|title=Heltzel never lost love for baseball; The former member of the Phillies and York White Roses died at age 83|newspaper=York Daily Record|author=Bill Rabinowitz|date=May 19, 1998|page=2D|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104146231/heltzel-never-lost-love-for-baseballl/|via=Newspapers.com}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Find a Grave}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heltzel, Heinie}}
Category:Major League Baseball third basemen
Category:Boston Braves players