Hamilton, "Billy" (William R.)
Baseball
b. Feb. 16, 1866, Newark, NJ
d. Dec. 16, 1940
"Sliding Billy" was the premier base stealer of his era. He stole more than 100 bases in three consecutive seasons and scored a remarkable 1,690 runs in only 1,591 games.
A left-handed hitter and right-handed thrower, the 5-foot-6, 165-pound Hamilton joined the Kansas City team in the American Association, then a major league, during the 1888 season. He led the association with 111 stolen bases in 1889, his first full year.
In 1890, Hamilton joined the Philadelphia Phillies of the NL and led that league in stolen bases with 102. His best all-around year was 1891, when he was the league leader in five categories, with 141 runs scored, 179 hits, 102 walks, a .340 batting average, and 111 stolen bases.
He dropped off to 57 stolen bases in 1892. Despite missing more than 50 games with typhoid fever the following season, he led the league with a .380 batting average and stole 43 bases in just 82 games.
Hamilton had another outstanding season in 1894. He led the league in walks with 126, steals with 98, and set an all-time record for runs scored with 192. He also tied a major league record by stealing 7 bases in a game. In 1895, he won his fifth and final stolen base title with 97, again leading in runs scored with 166 and in walks with 96.
Philadelphia traded him to the NL's Boston Beaneaters (later the Braves) in 1896. His league-leading 105 walks and 152 runs scored helped lead Boston to the 1897 pennant. Leg injuries bothered him for the last four years of his career and his stolen base totals declined significantly, but he batted over .300 in three of those years. Hamilton left the major leagues after hitting only .287 in 1901, but he served as a playing manager in the minors through 1909.
In 14 major-league seasons, Hamilton had a .344 batting average with 2,158 hits, including 242 doubles, 94 triples, and 40 home runs. His 912 stolen bases was the major league record until 1978, when it was broken by Lou Brock.