Joe Riggert
Encyclopedia
Joseph Aloysius Riggert was an outfielder
in Major League Baseball
. He played for the Boston Red Sox
, Brooklyn Robins
, St. Louis Cardinals
, and Boston Braves
. Riggert also had a long minor league baseball
career and accumulated a total of 2,717 hits in the minors. He stood at 5' 9" and weighed 170 lbs.
. He started his professional baseball career in 1909, at the age of 22. The following season, he was the star of the Kansas State League
. Playing for the Lyons Lions, he batted
.362 and slugged .594 with 13 home run
s; those three stats were each league-leading totals. Riggert was drafted by the Boston Red Sox that fall. He made his major league debut on May 12, 1911, and spent the season as a reserve outfielder. He hit just .212.
Riggert played for the American Association
's St. Paul Saints
in 1912. He hit just .240 that season. In 1913, he rebounded with a big season, leading the AA in triples
(23), home runs (12), and total bases (280), while batting .292. One newspaper wrote that he was probably the fastest player in the league. This earned him another shot in the major leagues. However, Riggert again failed to stick; he hit just .203 in 1914 for the National League
's Brooklyn Robins and St. Louis Cardinals.
Riggert returned to the St. Paul Saints and played there from 1915 to 1919. He continued to put up big slugging numbers, even in the "dead-ball era
." In 1915, he led the league in home runs; in 1916, he led the league in triples; and in 1918, he led the league in hits, doubles
, home runs, and total bases. After his 1918 performance, Riggert was acquired by the Boston Braves. He had the best major league season of career in 1919, batting .283 in 63 games. However, he played his last game in July before returning to St. Paul and never played in the majors again.
In 1920, Riggert led the American Association in triples for the third time and helped the Saints win their second straight pennant. The 1920 St. Paul squad was named by minorleaguebaseball.com as the sixth-best minor league team of all-time. Around 1921, the live-ball era
arrived. Riggert was passed by other players and was no longer one of the premiere minor league sluggers. However, he continued to put up good numbers every year, and in 1924 he got his 2,000th minor league hit at the age of 37.
Riggert then went down a class to the Western League
's Tulsa Oilers
. In 1925, he hit .348, which was his highest batting average since 1910. He also stroked a league-leading 57 doubles. Riggert finished out his career with two seasons in the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League. In 1927, at the age of 40, he hit .314.
All in all, Riggert had a total of 2,717 hits in 2,403 minor league games. Most of those were accomplished during his 12 years with the St. Paul Saints of the Class AA American Association. Riggert hit just .240 in the majors but .301 in the minors. He holds the record for career minor league triples, with 228. In 2003, baseball writer Bill James
named Riggert as the best minor league baseball player of the 1910s.
Riggert died in 1973, in Kansas City, Missouri
.
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
. He played for the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, Brooklyn Robins
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
, St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
, and Boston Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
. Riggert also had a long minor league baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
career and accumulated a total of 2,717 hits in the minors. He stood at 5' 9" and weighed 170 lbs.
Career
Riggert was born in Janesville, WisconsinJanesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
. He started his professional baseball career in 1909, at the age of 22. The following season, he was the star of the Kansas State League
Kansas State League
Three different baseball leagues in the United States have used the name Kansas State League. All three leagues were based in the state of Kansas in the early 20th century...
. Playing for the Lyons Lions, he batted
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.362 and slugged .594 with 13 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s; those three stats were each league-leading totals. Riggert was drafted by the Boston Red Sox that fall. He made his major league debut on May 12, 1911, and spent the season as a reserve outfielder. He hit just .212.
Riggert played for the American Association
American Association (20th century)
The American Association was a minor league baseball league at the Triple-A level of baseball in the United States from to and to . Together with the International League, it contested the Junior World Series which determined the championship team in minor league baseball, at least for the...
's St. Paul Saints
St. Paul Saints
The St. Paul Saints are a professional baseball team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in the United States. The Saints are a member of the North Division of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
in 1912. He hit just .240 that season. In 1913, he rebounded with a big season, leading the AA in triples
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
(23), home runs (12), and total bases (280), while batting .292. One newspaper wrote that he was probably the fastest player in the league. This earned him another shot in the major leagues. However, Riggert again failed to stick; he hit just .203 in 1914 for the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
's Brooklyn Robins and St. Louis Cardinals.
Riggert returned to the St. Paul Saints and played there from 1915 to 1919. He continued to put up big slugging numbers, even in the "dead-ball era
Dead-ball era
The dead-ball era is a baseball term used to describe the period between 1900 and the emergence of Babe Ruth as a power hitter in 1919. In 1919, Ruth hit a then league record 29 home runs, a spectacular feat at that time.This era was characterized by low-scoring games and a lack of home runs...
." In 1915, he led the league in home runs; in 1916, he led the league in triples; and in 1918, he led the league in hits, doubles
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
, home runs, and total bases. After his 1918 performance, Riggert was acquired by the Boston Braves. He had the best major league season of career in 1919, batting .283 in 63 games. However, he played his last game in July before returning to St. Paul and never played in the majors again.
In 1920, Riggert led the American Association in triples for the third time and helped the Saints win their second straight pennant. The 1920 St. Paul squad was named by minorleaguebaseball.com as the sixth-best minor league team of all-time. Around 1921, the live-ball era
Live-ball era
The live-ball era, also referred to as the lively ball era, is the period in Major League Baseball beginning in , following the dead-ball era. During that year offensive statistics rose dramatically in what would be mistakenly attributed to the introduction of a new "lively" ball...
arrived. Riggert was passed by other players and was no longer one of the premiere minor league sluggers. However, he continued to put up good numbers every year, and in 1924 he got his 2,000th minor league hit at the age of 37.
Riggert then went down a class to the Western League
Western League (defunct minor league)
The Western League is a name given to several circuits in American minor league baseball. Its earliest progenitor, which existed from 1885 to 1899, was the predecessor of the American League...
's Tulsa Oilers
Tulsa Oilers (baseball)
The Tulsa Oilers, located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, were a minor league baseball team that existed on-and-off in multiple leagues from 1905 to 1976. For most of their history, they played at Oiler Park, which opened on July 11, 1934, and was located on the Tulsa County Fairgrounds at 15th Street and...
. In 1925, he hit .348, which was his highest batting average since 1910. He also stroked a league-leading 57 doubles. Riggert finished out his career with two seasons in the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League. In 1927, at the age of 40, he hit .314.
All in all, Riggert had a total of 2,717 hits in 2,403 minor league games. Most of those were accomplished during his 12 years with the St. Paul Saints of the Class AA American Association. Riggert hit just .240 in the majors but .301 in the minors. He holds the record for career minor league triples, with 228. In 2003, baseball writer Bill James
Bill James
George William “Bill” James is a baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball history and statistics...
named Riggert as the best minor league baseball player of the 1910s.
Riggert died in 1973, in Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
.