George Kelly (1973)


Date of Birth: 9/10/1895
Date of Death: 10/13/1984
Birthplace: San Francisco, California

George Kelly, also known as "High Pockets" Kelly, started his professional baseball career in 1914 in the minor leagues. He played in the Northwestern League until the New York Giants purchased his contract in July, 1915.

New York Giants

Kelly made his first start in the major leagues with the Giants in 1915 but in his first two seasons, he moved back and forth between the minors and the Giants, playing in less than 50 games each season with the Giants.

After 11 games with the Giants in 1917, he moved to the Pittsburgh Pirates but he only played in eight games with them and then went again to the Giants who sent him back to the minors. In 1918, he served in the US military. When he returned to the Giants in 1919, they again sent him to the minors and he played in just 32 games with the Giants that season.

Kelly had his first full season in the major leagues in 1920, playing in a career high 155 games with the Giants. That season he led the NL in RBIs. He batted .266 and he had 157 hits, 22 doubles, a career high 11 triples, and 94 RBIs. Defensively, he led the NL in putouts with 1,552, and he led all NL first basemen in assists with 103 and in double plays with 115.

Kelly led the NL in home runs in 1921 with a career high of 23. He finished the season with 181 hits, 42 doubles, 122 RBIs, 73 strikeouts to 40 walks, and a .308 batting average in 149 games. He again led the NL in putouts with 1,552, and he led NL first basemen in assists with 115 and in double plays with 132.

In 1922, Kelly had career highs in hits with 194 and batting average with .328. He had 33 doubles, 17 home runs, and 107 RBIs in 151 games. He led all NL first basemen in assists with 103. The following season, he batted .307 with 172 hits, 23 doubles, 16 home runs, and 103 RBIs in 145 games. He led the NL in putouts with 1,568.

Kelly's best season was perhaps 1924, when he batted .324 with 185 hits, 37 doubles, and 21 home runs. He again led the NL in RBIs, this time with a career high 136.

Kelly continued to play well in 1925 and 1926. He batted .309 with 181 hits, 29 doubles, 20 home runs, and 99 RBIs in 147 games in 1925. The next year, he batted .303 with 151 hits, 24 doubles, 13 home runs, and 80 RBIs in 136 games.

Cincinnati Reds

Prior to the 1927 season, Kelly was traded to the Cincinnati Reds. He played in just 61 games in his first season with the Reds, and he batted .270. In 1928, he played in 116 games. He finished the season with 33 doubles, 58 RBIs, and a .296 batting average.

Kelly had a full season with the Reds in 1929, batting .293 in 147 games. He had 169 hits, a career high 45 doubles, and 103 RBIs.

Final Years as a Player

In 1930, after playing in 51 games with the Reds, Kelly was traded to the Chicago Cubs. He played in 39 games with the Cubs that year. He had 109 hits and a .308 batting average for the season.

Kelly spent 1931 in the minor leagues, but he returned to the majors the following year, ending his major league playing career with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He batted .243 with 49 hits in 64 games in 1932.

Awards and MLB Records

  • Led the NL in RBIs (2 times)
  • Led the NL in putouts (3 times)

Career Statistics

Batting statistics for Kelly in 16 seasons (1915-1932) in the major leagues include:

  • 7 seasons with over 150 hits, with a high of 194 in 1922
  • 5 seasons with over 30 doubles, with a high of 45 in 1929
  • 3 seasons with 20 or more home runs, with a high of 21 in 1924
  • 5 seasons with over 100 RBIs, with a high of 136 in 1924
  • 7 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .324 in 1924

Career batting statistics for Kelly include:

  • 1,622 games played
  • 1,778 hits
  • 337 doubles
  • 148 home runs
  • 1,020 RBIs
  • 694 strikeouts to 386 walks
  • .297 batting average
  • .342 on-base percentage
  • .794 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Kelly at first base include

  • 1,373 games played
  • 121 errors
  • 861 assists
  • 1,113 double plays
  • 14,232 putouts
  • .992 fielding percentage

Postseason statistics for Kelly include:

  • 4 postseasons
  • 26 games played
  • 101 at-bats
  • 25 hits
  • 2 doubles
  • 1 home run
  • 11 RBIs
  • 23 strikeouts to 5 walks
  • .248 batting average

Post Playing Career

After retiring as a major league player, Kelly returned to the minor leagues in 1932, playing with the International League that year and with the Pacific Coast League the next year.

From 1935 through 1937, Kelly was a coach with the Cincinnati Reds. He followed that with a coaching position with the Boston Braves from 1938 through 1943. He then returned to the Reds to coach in 1947 and 1948. He ended his coaching career in the minor leagues in 1949 with a Pacific Coast League team.

Kelly finished his baseball career with a managerial position in the Western International League in 1954.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - George Kelly
ESPN - George Kelly
Baseball Reference - George Kelly

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