Bill Joyce

Scrappy Bill Joyce bounced from team to team in the 1890s, intimidating opponents with his ready fists and pitchers with his potent blue-tipped bat. After three undistinguished seasons in three different leagues, Joyce sat out 1893 in a contract dispute but returned with Washington in 1894 to hit a career-high .355, the first of four consecutive .300 seasons. Joyce’s 17 home runs in both ’94 and ’95 were one shy of the league lead, but he won the HR crown in 1896, edging Ed Delahanty 14-13. He hit three homers in one game August 20, 1894, hit for the cycle May 30, 1896, and set a ML record with four triples in a game May 18, 1897. He was also partly responsible for the term “Texas Leaguer” – a shallow pop fly that falls for a hit – when he and fellow Texas League alumnus Arthur Sunday debuted in Toledo with back-to-back bloopers.