Bill Nicholson

Position: Rightfielder
Bats: Left • Throws: Right 6-0, 205lb (183cm, 92kg)
Born: December 11, 1914 in Chestertown, MD
Died: March 8, 1996 in Chestertown, MD
Buried: Old St. Paul Episcopal Church Cemetery, Chestertown, MD
High School: Chestertown HS (Chestertown, MD)
School: Washington College (Chestertown, MD)
Debut: June 13, 1936 (8,016th in major league history) vs. CLE 1 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Last Game: September 19, 1953 vs. BRO 1 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Full Name: William Beck Nicholson
Nicknames: Swish
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

Nine Players Who Debuted in 1936

Johnny Mize
Joe DiMaggio
Bill Nicholson
Eddie Joost
George McQuinn
Jeff Heath
Bob Feller
Nels Potter
Birdie Tebbetts

All-Time Teammate Team

Coming Soon

Notable Events and Chronology

June 13, 1940

Bill Nicholson of the Chicago Cubs becomes the first major league player to hit a home run at Doubleday Field

July 11, 1944

Phil Cavaretta sets an All-Star Game record by reaching base five consecutive times in the NL’s 7-1 victory

July 23, 1944

Bill Nicholson is walked with bases loaded during power serge

October 3, 1945

Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs face each other in the World Series for the fourth time. Hank Borowy pitches a six-hitter and Hal Newhouser is demolished with eight runs in three innings as the Cubs win, 9 – 0.

October 5, 1945

Claude Passeau of the Chicago Cubs pitches a one-hitter, beating the Detroit Tigers, 3 – 0, in Game 3 of the World Series.

August 8, 1947

At Wrigley Field‚ Bill Nicholson breaks up a pitching duel between Johnny Schmitz and Ewell Blackwell with an 11th-inning solo homer

April 24, 1948

Bill Nicholson of the Chicago Cubs makes his bid to become the first player in Wrigley Field’s 34 years of existence to reach its distant right centerfield scoreboard

July 19, 1950

Vern Stephens crashes a 3-run home run, his 200th career homer, in the 1st off Fred Hutchinson.

May 17, 1959

Roberto Clemente barely misses becoming the only batted ball ever to strike Wrigley Field’s distant right centerfield scoreboard

Biography

Whenever Nicholson took one of his tremendous swings, fans would yell, “Swish!” Started by Brooklyn fans, it was a sign of respect, because the big cut often resulted in a home run. Nicholson was struck out his share of times, as sluggers are; he led the league with a modest 83 strikeouts in 1947. The muscular outfielder struggled as Athletics property after signing out of Washington College. Sent to the minors, he was helped by Hall of Famer Kiki Cuyler, his manager at Chattanooga (Southern League) and later a Cub coach. Cuyler instructed him to open his stance, get set for each pitch, and stop lunging at the ball. During 1939, Nicholson’s second straight season as a minor league home run champ, he was purchased by the Cubs. During talent-starved WWII Nicholson’s batting feats became legend. He once hit a ball that just missed the Wrigley Field scoreboard; only Roberto Clemente came as close. After hitting four consecutive homers in a July 23, 1944 doubleheader at the Polo Grounds, he was intentionally walked with the bases loaded in the seventh inning, on orders from Giants manager Mel Ott. (Up 12-9 at the time, the Giants won 12-10.) He led the NL with 29 HR and 128 RBI in 1943 and with 33 HR and 122 RBI in 1944, when he scored a league-high 116 runs and lost MVP honors by one vote to Marty Marion. Although Nicholson helped the Cubs to the 1945 pennant, his failing eyesight resulted in a slip in production. He was aided somewhat when the seats in Wrigley’s centerfield were blocked off. Cubs fans were furious when he was traded to the Phillies after the 1948 season for Harry “The Hat” Walker. After he became weak and lost weight, it was disclosed on Labor Day, 1950, that Nicholson was diabetic. He was unable to play in the World Series with his “Whiz Kids” teammates. He hung on until 1953, primarily as a pinch hitter. He retired with eight pinch homers, and as one of the game’s toughest men to double up – he hit into double plays only once every 90.7 at-bats.