Happy Birthday to the late and great Hall of Famer Bill Terry. In a playing career that lasted 14 years, all with the New York Giants, Terry established himself as one of the best all-around First Basemen of his time. Also, he served as the team’s Manager during the final five years of his playing career and for another five seasons after his playing career ended. 

Career Statistic/Accolades (1923-1936):

.341 BA 2,193 HITS 154 HR 1,078 RBI .393 OBP 1,120 RUNS

  • 3x All-Star
  • 1930 NL Batting Champion
  • 1933 World Series Champion
  • Managing Career (1932-41) 823-661 W-L 
  • 2x Pennant Winner as Manager

I’ll start with the offensive side of his game. As a Left-Handed hitter, Terry was a contact hitter who hit for power at times. Eleven times, he batted over .300; nine of them, he batted .320 or higher consecutively. In 1930, arguably the greatest offensive season for individual players in baseball history, he batted .401, being the last NL batter to ever hit for .400. While there wasn’t an MVP named that year, had there been one, Bill Terry deserved some severe consideration.

.401 BA 254 HITS 23 HR 129 RBI 139 RUNS .452 OBP (154 Games)

While he only hit 20 or more HRs three times in his career, six times, he recorded 200 or more Hits and 100 or more RBIs. While he wasn’t a huge base stealer, he had good enough speed to score 100 or more Runs seven times, as well as leading the majors with 20 Triples in 1931. Also, at the plate, Terry Walked more in his career than he struck out; career-wise, he drew 537 Walks to 449 Strikeouts.

Defensively, during his career, he was regarded as one of the best fielding First Basemen of his era and of all time. There was a limit to where Terry could play, with him being a left-handed thrower, but First Base was perfect for Terry. Spending 13,945 Innings there, he recorded a lifetime .992 Fielding Percentage. His Fielding Percentage was consistently above the league average for First Basemen all around the league.

In mid-1932, he succeeded his longtime Manager, John McGraw, in which, despite having a frosty relationship, he learned how to lead. The following year, in 1933, his first full year as the Manager, the Giants won the Pennant and the World Series, defeating the Washington Senators in five games. Spending ten years as the team’s Manager, he led the Giants to another pennant in 1936 and a combined record of 823-661.

His lifetime .341 average is currently the highest among left-handed hitters in the National League. I would take Bill Terry over Willie McCovey as the greatest First Basemen in Giants franchise history when you factor in that Terry was not only a better fielder but also hitting for both contact and power. In 1954, Bill Terry was inducted into his rightful place in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Giants also have his #3 jersey retired. In 1999, he was also ranked #59 on The Sporting News list of 100 Greatest ballplayers. 

References:

  1. Bill Terry via Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Terry#
  2. Bill Terry Career Statistics via Baseball-Reference: https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/terrybi01.shtml
  3. The NATIONAL BASEBALL HALL of FAME ALMANAC 2017 Edition: pgs 448-449