Heinie Beckendorf

Henry Ward "Heinie" Beckendorf (June 15, 1884 – September 15, 1949) was a Major League Baseball catcher from 1909-1910. He was born in New York, New York, and died in Jackson Heights, New York.

Playing career

Heinie Beckendorf debuted on April 16, 1909 for the Detroit Tigers, and played his final game on September 10, 1910 for the Washington Senators. In 1910, he reportedly caught three of the eight shutouts thrown by Walter Johnson that year. In 55 major league games (53 as a catcher), Beckendorf had a .182 batting average with no home runs and 13 RBIs. His abilities as a catcher brought him to the major leagues, but his 1910 fielding percentage of .988 (20 points above league average) and Range factor of 6.39 (25 points higher than league avearage) were not enough to keep him in the big leagues. Weighing against his fine fielding was his 1910 batting average of .164 (81 points below league average) and his slugging percentage of .173 (143 points lower than league average). As a result, Beckendorf did not play in the major leagues again after 1910.

Detroit Tigers 1909 Cuban Tour

In November 1909, a group of players from the 1909 pennant winning Tigers toured Cuba and played 12 exhibition games against two integrated Cuban teams, Habana and Almendares. Beckendorf was among the Tigers players who toured Cuba. The tour drew wide attention in Cuba, where baseball was already very popular. Demonstrating the high level of play in Cuba, the Tigers lost 8 of the 12 games to the integrated Cuban baseball teams. To take advantage of the interest in the tour of the American baseball players, the Cabañas Company printed a series of baseball cards showing the members of the Almendares, Habana and Detroit baseball teams.

The Detroit roster, from a game played on November 18, 1909, consisted of the following players: Davey Jones, Charley O'Leary, George Moriarty, Matty McIntyre, Boss Schmidt, George Mullin, Heinie Beckendorf, R. Hopke and W. Lelivelt.

Major League Heinie's

"Heinie" was a popular nickname for German baseball players in the early part of the 20th Century. Beckendorf was one of 22 Major League Heinie's in the first half of the 20th century. They include Heinie Manush, Heinie Groh, Heinie Zimmerman, and Heinie Schuble. In the 60-plus years since the end of World War II, there has not been a single Heinie in Major League Baseball.

Beckendorf's Death

Heinie Beckendorf died in 1949 at age 65 in Jackson Heights, New York. He was buried at Long Island National Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York.

Sources

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Baseball Almanac
• Article on Tigers 1909 Visit to Cuba and Cabanas Cards