Andy Oyler
| Andy Oyler | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Infielder / Outfielder | |
| Born: May 5, 1880 Newville, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| Died: October 24, 1970 (aged 90) East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 8, 1902, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 21, 1902, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .221 |
| Home runs | 1 |
| Runs batted in | 6 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
Andrew Paul "Pepper" Oyler (May 5, 1880 – October 24, 1970) was an American professional baseball player who played one season in Major League Baseball for the Baltimore Orioles in 1902. In 27 games as a third baseman, shortstop, and outfielder for the Orioles, he had 77 at-bats with 17 hits and one home run.
He was born in Newville, Pennsylvania and attended Washington & Jefferson College.[1] He batted and threw right-handed. He was small in stature and was an excellent fielder, but not a good hitter.[2] Even so, he was difficult to pitch to, since he would crouch "pretzel-like" in the batter's box to make his strike zone smaller.[2] He died in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania.
Shortest home run in history
[edit]In 1953, sportswriter Jocko Maxwell published an article in Baseball Digest and item in Catholic Digest describing the shortest home run in baseball history.[2] Maxwell described a baseball game where Oyler, as a shortstop for the Minneapolis Millers, was crouched in the batters' box in the bottom of the ninth inning and ducked to avoid a high pitch thrown at his head.[2] The ball hit Oyler's bat, still resting on his shoulder, and became stuck in approximately 24 inches of mud in front of home plate.[2] Oyler was then able to complete an inside-the-park home run before any opposing players were able to find the ball.[2] Maxwell's article indicated the story was originally told by WWRL radio station in Woodside, New York.[2] This story was repeated by sportswriter Bill Bryson Sr. in Baseball Digest in 1958.[3] Another version of the story, as told by Halsey Hall, had Oyler chopping at a low pitch and sticking the ball into the mud 2 feet from home plate.[4]
Controversy
[edit]Baseball historian Stew Thornley is skeptical of the story of Oyler's home run, pointing out there was no contemporary news report which described the incident.[5] Other modern reference sources recount the story without caveat.[6]
In popular culture
[edit]The story was the subject of a book of baseball lore by Michael G. Bryson called The Twenty-Four-Inch Home Run.[7] It was also the inspiration for the children's book, Mudball by Matt Tavares, which won the 2005 Parents' Choice Awards Gold Award.[8] In the "Author's Note" Tavares describes the story of Oyler's home run as being folklore*.[8]
Antiques Roadshow
[edit]Oyler's grandson appeared on Antiques Roadshow on January 20, 2020. He brought his grandfather's ball from that game to which his grandfather had attached a postage stamp and mailed to his grandmother. A vestige of the stamp was still stuck to the ball. Oyler followed up with a letter to his wife that recounted the entire game and the fact that he had made a 24-inch home run. The grandson said he still had the letter although that is not the case.[9] The ball's value was assessed at $3,000 to $5,000.[10]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Andy Oyler". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved May 18, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f g Maxwell, Jocko (April 1953). "Inch-hit Homer!". Baseball Digest. pp. 29–30.
- ^ Bryson, Bill (October 1958). "The World's Shortest Home Runs". Baseball Digest. pp. 67–68.
- ^ Thornley, Stew (September 1991). "Halsey Hall: Baseball's Consummate Story Teller". Baseball Digest. p. 77.
- ^ Thornley, Stew (2006). Short Home Runs: Mythical and Real. Minnesota Historical Society. p. 51. ISBN 9780873515511.
{{cite book}}:|newspaper=ignored (help) - ^ Stewart, Mark; Mike Kennedy (2006). Long ball: the Legend and Lore of the Home Run. Milbrook Press. p. 49. ISBN 9780761327790.
- ^ Bryson, Michael G. (1990). The Twenty-Four-Inch Home Run. Contemporary Books. ISBN 9780809243419.
- ^ a b Tavares, Matt (2005). Mudball. Candlewick Press. ISBN 9780763623876.
- ^ Thornley, Stew (February 2020). "Andy Oyler's Two-Foot Home Run: Is It Okay to Destroy a Legend? – Baseball Research Journal". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
- ^ Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, Hour 3 (video). 24. PBS. January 20, 2020. Event occurs at 30:09.
External links
[edit]
- Career statistics from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet