Harry Spilman

William Harry Spilman (born July 18, 1954) is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds (1978–81), Houston Astros (1981–85, 1988–89), Detroit Tigers, and San Francisco Giants (1986–88). He was also known for his skill as a pinch hitter. He currently coaches in the Kansas City Royals feeder system, as a scout. He previously worked for the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros.

Playing career No one drafted Spilman in the 1974 Major League Baseball draft, and he attended several tryouts with teams before Bill Jameson signed him to a contract with the Cincinnati Reds. In 1977 with the Trois-Rivières Aigles, he won the Eastern League batting title with a .373 average, accruing 184 hits in only 133 games. His average hovered over .400 most of the season and was the highest for a Class AA team in 15 years.

He helped the Reds win the NL Western Division in 1979 and 1981 and the Giants win the NL Western Division in 1987.

Career statistics

In 12 seasons, he played in 563 games, with 392 of those appearances as a pinch hitter. His career totals in 810 at bats consisted of a triple split of 237/306/348, with 96 runs, 192 hits, 18 home runs, and 117 RBI. Spillman was almost exclusively used versus right-handed pitching, as noted by 91% of his plate appearances occurring versus them compared to 9% against left-handed pitchers.

While Spilman played first base and third base exclusively in the minor leagues, he had 23 appearances in the majors as an emergency/3rd catcher.

Coaching career

From 2007 to 2008, he served as hitting coach for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds.

Personal life His cousin is former White Sox first baseman, Greg Walker. Spilman is best friends with Ray Knight, former teammate on the Reds. The two grew up 20 miles from each other and spent $700 on a pitching machine to work on their hitting while in the Reds' system.