Chicago Cubs: The Heroes of Wrigley Series presents Hack Wilson

One of the first true Chicago Cubs legends, hitting machine Hack Wilson was a hard luck hero who dominated on the field but battled his demons off.

There are a lot of former baseball stars that can be labeled a “hard luck hero.”  A few that come to mind are the likes of Addie Joss, a superb right-handed pitcher from the beginning of the 1910s who died of tuberculosis at the age of 31 after playing just nine seasons.  Jones won 160 games and holds the second lowest career ERA (1.89) ever.  Then there is Ross Youngs, an outfielder for the New York Giants in the ‘20s and lifetime .322 hitter, who lost a battle with Bright’s Disease at the age of 30.  Dizzy Dean’s on-field foot injury, Sandy Koufax’s chronic arm problems, and Roy Campanella’s auto accident that left him crippled are more instances of hard luck players.  Hack Wilson could be labeled as such, as well.

Lewis Robert Wilson was born on April 26, 1890, in the steel mill town of Elwood City in Pennsylvania.  His mother was an unemployed drifter and his father was a steelworker.  They never married and both drank heavily.  His mother eventually died of appendicitis at the age of 24 and his father all but abandoned young Lewis after her death.  He then be raised by his grandmother who introduced him to the game of baseball.

In 1916, he would left school to take a job at a locomotive factory, swinging a sledgehammer for four dollars a week.  He was an odd-looking young man, standing just 5’6” and a size 6 shoe size but weighing 195 pounds with an 18-inch neck.  His unique frame and physique were likely a result of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.

Chicago Cubs: Wilson’s unique physique and swing helped him

Wilson began his baseball career began when he moved to West Virginia to play Class “D” ball in the Blue Ridge League for the Martinsburg Mountaineers. His stout frame made him a perfect fit for catcher, where he played until he suffered a broken leg while attempting to slide into home plate.

After his recovery, he moved to the outfield. He quickly moved up the ranks and, by 1923, was playing the Class “B” division for the Portsmouth Truckers and leading the Virginia League in hitting with a .388 batting average. Late in that season, New York Giants manager, the legendary John McGraw, purchased his contract from the team for $10,500.

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Wilson made his Major League debut at the end of that season on September 29, 1923, playing in three games. In just those three appearances, Wilson showed flashes of power and speed in the outfield which amazed observes and was a sign of what was to come for the young outfielder.

By mid-July the following season, he ranked second in the National League in hitting, ending the year with a .295 average with 10 home runs and 57 RBI as New York won the NL Pennant before eventually falling to the Washington Senators in seven games in the 1924 World Series.

By ’24, he was known by his nickname, “Hack.” There are multiple reports as to the origin of this name. One variation is fans comparing his stocky build to a popular wrestler named, George Hackenschmidt. The other comes from McGraw remarking that his physique was reminiscent of a “hack,” which was a slang term for a taxi cab in that era.

He hit the longest home run in Ebbets Field history in 1925 but Wilson fell into a deep slump and was soon after benched. On July 2, he managed to hit two home runs in one inning but his hitting woes continued and the Giants sent him down to their minor league affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens, which left him unprotected. The last-place Chicago Cubs promptly claimed him off waivers. It was a belief that this was less of a “clerical error” that allowed him to become a free agent and more of a cover story for McGraw’s fervent desire to rid himself of Wilson and his off-field antics.

Chicago Cubs: Brawling, partying – Hack had his demons

He was in the midst of what would be the best seasons of his career and during these glory years, Wilson was known for his combative streak and initiating fights with opposing players and fans, never the one to duck away from a confrontation.

On June 22, 1928, a near-riot broke out in the ninth inning at Wrigley Field while the Cubs were taking on the St. Louis Cardinals. He jumped into the box seats to attack a fan that had been heckling him over the course of the ballgame. An estimated 5,000 spectators in attendance flooded the field until the police were able to separate the combatants and restore order.

The following season, he took offense at a remark made by Cincinnati Reds pitcher, Ray Kolp. Wilson reached first base after a single then charged the Reds dugout, punching Kolp several times before they could be separated.

In late 1929, he signed a contract to fight Art Shires of the Chicago White Sox in a boxing match. He reneged on the deal only after Cubs president William Veeck, Sr. dissuaded Wilson with the help of Hack’s wife. “You have nothing to gain by fighting a defeated boxer,” Veeck added. Shires eventually lost that fight to Wilson’s replacement, George Trafton of the Chicago Bears.

Along with his frequent brawling, his penchant of festivities was also well documented. During the Roaring ‘20s, his love of drinking and partying did not endear him to Cubs owner William Wrigley, who abhorred alcohol consumption. Cubs manager Joe McCarthy acted as Wilson’s guardian angel, frequently bailing him out of trouble and stating his case to Wrigley. Wilson would insist that he never played drunk. “Hungover, yes… but never drunk,” he would tell the owner and reporters who led the exposes of Wilson’s personal life.

Chicago Cubs: A season for the history books

1930 marked the thunderous peak of Hack Wilson’s career, in what is still considered one of the best offensive seasons in Major League history. By mid-July, Wilson had accumulated 82 RBI and by September 15, he had 176, already breaking Lou Gehrig’s single-season record of 173 that was established just three years before.

He ended the season with an astonishing 190 runs batted in. However, in 1999, an error was discovered in a box score from a doubleheader and was officially increased to 191. It remains one of baseball’s most enduring records that seems untouchable. Only Lou Gehrig (185 in 1931) and Hank Greenberg (1984 in 1937) ever came close to reaching the feat. The most recent best effort came in 1999 when Manny Ramirez drove in 165.

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Wilson also ended the season with an NL-record 56 home runs, a league-leading .723 slugging percentage, a .454 on-base percentage, and a .356 batting average. Wilson’s home run total of 56 persevered until 1998, when it was broken by both Sammy Sosa (66) and Mark McGwire (70).

His 1930 success only fueled his drinking habits more and, by spring training the following season, he reported 20 pounds overweight. Major League Baseball also introduce a heavier ball after the entire league batted over the .300 mark. MLB also raised the stitching to allow pitchers to gain a better grip and throw sharper curveballs.

Along with his struggles adapting to the new ball, Wilson also complained to new Cubs manager (and former teammate) Rogers Hornsby for not allowing him to “swing away” as his old manager Joe McCarthy did before leaving the team to pilot the New York Yankees. He managed to hit his 200^th career home run that season at his old stomping grounds, Ebbets Field, becoming only the fourth player to ever accomplish that feat behind Babe Ruth, Cy Williams and Hornsby.

However, his prolonged slump continued and he was benched by late May. William Wrigley began to express interest in trading the depleted slugger. After a physical tussle with Cincinnati reporters on Sept. 6, he was suspended, without pay, for the remainder of the season. At the time of his suspension, he was only hitting .261 with 13 home runs in 112 games, which was the production he had in the month of August 1930 alone. In addition to his suspension of that season, he amassed nearly $6,500 in fines throughout the year.

Chicago Cubs: His vices finally catch up to him

In December of 1931, the Cubs traded Wilson to the St. Louis Cardinals. Less than a month after they acquired him, the Cards shipped him to Brooklyn in exchange for a minor leaguer. As a member of the Dodgers, he had a resurgent 1932 season, batting .297 with 23 home runs and 123 RBI.

By 1934, his offensive totals substantially dropped off and he was hitting just .262 when Brooklyn released him mid-season. He played one more season in Class “A” for the Albany Senators in the New York-Pennsylvania League before retiring from the game at the age of 35.

His life after baseball was just as raucous as his last days of playing. His wandering years saw Wilson encounter many financial problems due to failed business ventures from this short-lived bar, all the while further drifting from his wife and son, Robert. Like his mother, he became an aimless drifter, working odd jobs up and down the East coast, of course, drinking every step of the way.

Wilson frankly admitted to drinking his life away during his later years and sadly looked back at his prime years: “There are kids, in and out of baseball, who think because they have talent, they have the world by the tail. It isn’t so. In life, you need things like good advice and common sense. Kids, don’t be too big to take advice. Be considerate of others. That’s the only way to live”

Once the highest-paid player in all of the National League, Wilson’s alcohol-ravaged barrel of a body couldn’t take the toll from the many years of battling with the bottle and died, penniless, on Nov. 23, 1948.

His body went unclaimed for three days. His son, Robert, refused to accept responsibility for his estranged father’s corpse. It wasn’t claimed until his drinking buddies from various taverns in Baltimore, tossed funds into a hat, in order to help pay for the funeral service and a gravestone. National League President Ford Frick sent a check for $350 to cover the rest.

Chicago Cubs: A Hall of Famer, despite his hardships and battles

During his 12-year Major League career, Wilson played 1,348 games and accumulated 1,461 hits for a career batting average of .307 and a .395 on-base percentage. He hit 244 home runs and batted in 1,063 runs. He led the National League in home runs four times and surpassed 100 RBI six times. He also finished his career with a .965 fielding percentage, highlighting his defensive ability and range.

Known for his unique build and having one of the strangest swings in history, he always swung it with mighty clout. Despite his small stature, his incredible upper body strength helped him lead the National League in home runs every year from 1926 to 1930, a period in which he averaged 35 home runs and 142 RBI per season. His claim for a place among the baseball immortals rests on the seasons he had while playing with the Chicago Cubs.

His election into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown eluded Wilson for 40 years until he was inducted in 1979 by the Veteran’s Committee.

His chronic alcoholism ravaged and killed his baseball career and eventually the man himself. He suffered many hardships during the entirety of his life but managed to string together a Hall of Fame career. If Hack Wilson doesn’t deserve the title of being a “hard luck hero,” a place alongside Campanella, Joss, Koufax, and Youngs – who does?