| Hank DeBerry | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born:(1894-12-29)December 29, 1894 Savannah, Tennessee, U.S. | |
| Died: September 10, 1951(1951-09-10) (aged 56) Savannah, Tennessee, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 12, 1916, for the Cleveland Indians | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 28, 1930, for the Brooklyn Robins | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .267 |
| Home runs | 11 |
| Runs batted in | 234 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
John Herman DeBerry (December 29, 1894 – September 10, 1951), was anAmerican professionalbaseball player, andscout.[1] He played as acatcher inMajor League Baseball, most notably for theBrooklyn Robins during the 1920s.[1] DeBerry was known for his defensive skills and for being the catcher forBaseball Hall of Fame pitcherDazzy Vance.[2][3]
DeBerry was born in Savannah, Tennessee and attended theUniversity of Tennessee.[1] He began hisprofessional baseball career in1914 at the age of 19 with the Paducah Indians of theKentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League.[4] DeBerry made his major league debut with theCleveland Indians on September 12,1916, at the age of 21.[1] DeBerry appeared in 25 games for the Indians in1917, but spent most of the season playing for theMilwaukee Brewers of theAmerican Association.[1][4] He joined theUnited States Navy in1918 during the First World War.[5] DeBerry returned to professional baseball after the war, playing for theNew Orleans Pelicans of theSouthern Association from1919 to1921.[4]
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DeBerry returned to the major leagues in1922 when the Brooklyn Robins purchased his contract from the Pelicans.[6] Ironically, the Robins wanted to acquire DeBerry, but the Pelicans would not complete the deal unless Vance was included in the transaction.[6] He was expected to be a backup catcher forOtto Miller however, Miller only appeared in 33 games and DeBerry caught the majority of the Robins' games that season.[7] He finished the year with a career-high .301batting average and was third amongNational League catchers inrange factor.[1] From1923 to1925, he shared catching duties withZack Taylor.[1]
It was during the 1920s that DeBerry developed his association with pitcher, Dazzy Vance and, the two players became known as one of the greatestbatteries of their era.[8] With DeBerry as his catcher, Vance led the National League instrikeouts for seven consecutive seasons between1922 and1928.[9] Vance also twice led the league inwins.[9] DeBerry caught theno hitter thrown by Vance on September 23,1925.[10] By1930, the 35-year-old DeBerry was in decline andAl López had emerged as his successor.[11] He played in his final major league game on September 28,1930.[1]
On January 19, 1931, the Robins traded DeBerry along withEddie Moore to theOakland Oaks of thePacific Coast League for future Hall of Fame catcher,Ernie Lombardi.[12] Later that year he signed to play for theDallas Steers, but only appeared in five games and was released in July of that same year at the age of 36.[4][13]
In an eleven-year major league career, DeBerry played in 648games, accumulating 494hits in 1,850at bats for a .267 career batting average, along with 11home runs, 234runs batted in and anon-base percentage of .323.[1] He ended his career with a .982fielding percentage, which was 7 points higher than the league average during his playing career.[1]
After his active playing career had ended, DeBerry became amanager inminor league baseball before becoming a scout for theNew York Giants.[5] He served as a scout for the Giants until his death on September 10,1951 at the age of 56 in Savannah, Tennessee.[5]