Earl Homer Sheely – Major League Baseball Player / Manager
Earl Homer “Whitey” Sheely was born on February 12, 1893 in Bushnell, Illinois. Sheely entered baseball as a first baseman and made his professional debut for the Chicago White Sox on April 14, 1921. He was a major leaguer for 10 seasons with eight of them for the White Sox (1921–27), Pittsburgh Pirates (1929) and Boston Braves (1931).
Sheely finished sixth in voting for the 1925 American League MVP, playing in 153 games with having 600 at-bats, 93 runs, 189 hits, 43 doubles, 3 triples, 9 home runs, 111 RBI, 3 stolen bases, 68 walks, .315 batting average, .389 on-base percentage, .442 slugging percentage, 265 total bases and 26 sacrifice hits. He currently ranks 92nd on the MLB list for career sacrifice hits (189).
Over nine seasons, Sheely played in 1,234 games and had 4,471 at-bats, 572 runs, 1,340 hits, 244 doubles, 27 triples, 48 home runs, 747 RBI, 33 stolen bases, 563 walks, .300 batting average, .383 on-base percentage, .399 slugging percentage, 1,782 total bases and 189 sacrifice hits. Defensively, he recorded a .991 fielding percentage at first base.
On May 21, 1926 Sheely hit three doubles and a home run against the Boston Red Sox for the White Sox. Sheely had doubled in each of his last three at-bats the previous day to give him seven consecutive extra-base hits, tying a major league record. The six doubles in the two games also tied a major league record.
Sheely also served as a scout for the Boston Red Sox. From 1944 to ‘ 46 he coached in the minors for the Pacific Coast League‘s Sacramento Solons and was general manager of the PCL’s Seattle Rainiers, both of which lead to his induction into the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame.
He died in Seattle, Washington at the age of 59. Earl Sheely’s son Bud was a catcher for the White Sox from 1951-53.