Smead Jolley
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Smead Powell Jolley (b. January 14, 1902 in Wesson, Arkansas - d. November 17, 1971 in Alameda, California) was a Major League baseball player, an outfielder in the American League for four colorful seasons during the 1930s.
Jolley was raised in Arkansas. He was an impressive hitter, with a lifetime .305 average, with considerable power. But Jolley was a famously poor fielder, and in an era before the designated hitter, when all starting players had to play a defensive position, Jolley's stone glove was too great a liability to sustain a pro career.
As an outfielder, Jolley made 44 errors in 788 career chances, for a .944 fielding percentage, incredibly low for an outfielder. Jolley once committed three errors on one play. First, he let a ground ball roll through his legs; trying to play the ball off the wall, he let it roll through his legs; and finally he overthrew the cut-off man for error #3.
After just 473 Major League games, Smead Jolley was out of Major League baseball.
