Hack Wilson

Lore & Background

Wilson made his major league debut with the Giants on September 29, 1923, at the age of 23, and became the starting left fielder the following season. By mid-July he was ranked second in the National League in hitting. He ended the season with a .295 average, 10 home runs, and 57 RBIs as New York won the NL pennant. In the 1924 World Series he averaged only .233 in a seven-game loss to the Washington Senators. Multiple stories exist to explain the origin of Wilson's nickname. By one account, a New York newspaper held a nicknaming contest; the winning entry was "Hack" because he reminded many fans of another stocky athlete, the popular wrestler Georg Hackenschmidt. In another version, McGraw is said to have remarked that Wilson's physique was reminiscent of a "hack" (slang for taxicab in that era). Giants teammate Bill Cunningham claimed that the nickname was based on Wilson's resemblance to Hack Miller, an outfielder with the Chicago Cubs. The New York Times printed the first documented usage of "Hack" on June 10, 1924. Early in the 1925 season, Wilson hit the longest home run on record at Ebbets Field against the Brooklyn Robins, but fell into a slump in May, and was replaced in left field by Irish Meusel. On July 2, Wilson hit two home runs in one inning, tying Ken Williams' major league record set in 1922, but his hitting slump continued. In August, McGraw told reporters that he had "... made the mistake of rushing [Wilson] along," and sent him to the Giants' minor league affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens of the American Association. At season's end, a front office oversight — or possibly, deliberate inaction — left him unprotected on the Toledo roster, and the last-place Chicago Cubs acquired him on waivers. "They let go the best outfielder I ever played alongside," said Giants right fielder Ross Youngs, "and they're going to regret it." During the 1925 World Series, Wilson's son, Robert, was born.

In Their Own Story

The summer of 1930 baked Chicago in a suffocating heat that shimmered off the wooden bleachers at Cubs Park. In the bottom of the ninth, with two runners on and the bases loaded, the crowd didn't just watch; they held their breath until the air felt thin. Hack Wilson stepped into the box, adjusting his cap, his massive silhouette blocking out the afternoon sun like a battering ram. The pitcher wound up, delivering a fastball that seemed to hang in the humid air for an eternity. Wilson didn't just swing; he erupted from the dirt. The crack of the bat sounded like a gunshot, sending the ball screaming deep into the right-field bleachers, vanishing before it could even be tracked. As the runners crossed home plate, adding another RBI to his historic total, Wilson trotted around the bases—not with a sprinter's grace, but with the heavy, confident stride of a man who knew he had just rewritten history.

Reader's Guide

Wilson regained his form as the Cubs' center fielder in 1926, and he quickly became a favorite of Chicago fans. On May 24, he hit the center field scoreboard with one of the longest home runs in Wrigley Field history as the Cubs came from behind to defeat the Boston Braves. Later that evening, he made news again when he was arrested during a police raid of a Prohibition-era speakeasy while trying to escape through the rear window and was fined $1 (equivalent to $18 in 2025). He ended the season with a league-leading 21 home runs along with 36 doubles, 109 RBIs, a .321 batting average, and a .406 on-base percentage. The Cubs improved to fourth place, and Wilson ended the year ranked fifth in voting for the NL's Most Valuable Player Award. Another strong performance followed in 1927 as Wilson once again led the league in home runs. Although the Cubs were in first place heading into the final month of the season, the team faltered and again finished fourth. Wilson posted a .318 average with 30 home runs and 129 RBIs and led NL outfielders with 400 putouts. He led the NL in home runs for a third consecutive year in 1928 with 31, along with 120 RBIs and a .313 average as the Cubs improved to third place. Wilson had a combative streak and sometimes initiated fights with opposing players and fans. On June 22, 1928, a near-riot broke out in the ninth inning at Wrigley Field against the St. Louis Cardinals when Wilson jumped into the box seats to attack a heckling fan. An estimated 5,000 spectators swarmed the field before police could separate the combatants and restore order. The fan sued Wilson for $20,000, but a jury ruled in Wilson's favor. The following year, Wilson took offense at a remark by Cincinnati Reds pitcher Ray Kolp, and — upon reaching first base after hitting a single — he charged into the Reds dugout, punching Kolp several times before they could be separated. Later that evening at the train station, Wilson exchanged words and blows with Cincinnati pitcher Pete Donohue. In late 1929, he signed a contract to fight Art Shires of the Chicago White Sox in a boxing match, but reneged after Cubs president William Veeck, Sr. enlisted Wilson's wife Virginia to dissuade him, and then Shires lost a fight to George Trafton of the Chicago Bears. There was nothing to gain, Wilson said, by fighting a defeated boxer. Wilson's "penchant for festivities" is also we

Did You Know?

• Wilson's 191 RBIs in 1930 remain the highest single-season total in MLB history, and the closest any player has come was Lou Gehrig's 185 in 1931.
• Wilson was born in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, and his unusual physique—large head, tiny feet, short legs, and broad, flat face—is now recognized as hallmarks of fetal alcohol syndrome.
• He was arrested in 1926 during a police raid of a Prohibition-era speakeasy while trying to escape through a rear window and was fined $1.