Pinky Higgins - Playing Career

Playing Career

Higgins was born in Red Oak, Texas. He was nicknamed "Pinky" as a baby, and according to some reports detested it. Alternatively, he was called by either of his given names. He signed some autographs as Frank Higgins, but was predominantly known as Mike, especially later in his career. Higgins graduated from W. H. Adamson High School in Dallas where he played on the 1926 state championship runner-up team. He attended the University of Texas at Austin before beginning his career with the Philadelphia Athletics on June 25, 1930. After only 24 at bats that year, he did not play in the majors again until 1933, when he finally began to play full-time for the A's. In his rookie season of 1933, he batted .314 with 13 home runs and 99 RBIs. He hit for the cycle on August 3 in a 12–8 win over the Washington Senators. The A's of that year finished third in the American League.

By 1938, when he was traded to the Boston Red Sox for fellow third baseman Billy Werber, he was not only considered one of the better-hitting third basemen in the league but led them in batting average in 1933 and 1934. In his first two years with the Bosox (1937 and 1938), he hit over .300 with a career-high 106 RBIs in both years. In June 1938, he set (and still holds) a major league record with base hits in 12 consecutive at bats, accomplishing the feat over 14 plate appearances because he also received two bases on balls during that streak. His mark was tied by Walt Dropo in 1952, who made his 12 straight knocks in 12 appearances, with no bases on balls in between.

He would next head to the Detroit Tigers in a trade for submarine pitcher Elden Auker, where he would spend the majority of his playing career. It was also where his hitting numbers dropped while his power numbers still stayed fairly strong, but not in the same realm as his career-high of 23 homers with Philadelphia in 1935.

Boston got Higgins back in mid-1946 as the team's regular third baseman, winning the AL pennant by 12 games (but losing the 1946 World Series to the Cardinals in seven). The Red Sox then released him, and he retired to become a manager in the Red Sox farm system. His final numbers included a .292 batting average with 140 home runs and 1,075 RBIs. He accumulated 1,941 career hits in 6,636 at bats, and made the All-Star team three times (1934, '36, '44).