Henry Merchant

Center Fielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records

Henry Merchant was a center fielder who played in Major League Baseball for 4 teams, including the Chicago American Giants. In 129 career games, he hit .237 with 90 hits, 1 home runs, and 34 RBI. His totals include Negro Leagues seasons, which MLB recognized as major league in 2020. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 455.2.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

AVG .237
HR 1
RBI 34
H 90
OPS .617
PIV -579
Position
Center Fielder
Bats / Throws
L / L
Height / Weight
6'3" / 180 lb
Born
2/17/1918 in Birmingham, AL, USA
Died
8/23/1982 in Cincinnati, OH, USA

Full name: Henry Lewis Merchant

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Negro Leagues Career Statistics

Batting

Henry Merchant — Batting
PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
553.0 481.0 78.0 137.0 14.0 12.0 1.0 42.0 60.0 4.0 9.0 .285 .364 .370 .734

Pitching

Henry Merchant — Pitching
W L GS CG GF SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA WHIP
6 7 17 8 8 1 106.1 82 50 1 2 11 3 0.09 0.88

Negro Leagues (season totals). Additive Retrosheet-digitized totals for seasons not already in the logs above; they are not summed into the career line. No team/league breakdown is available, and coverage may be partial.

Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting

Henry Merchant — Negro Leagues Season-by-Season Batting
Season PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS
1949 80.0 72.0 12.0 18.0 3.0 1.0 0 8.0 8.0 0 0 .250 .325 .319 .644
1950 5.0 5.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 .000
1952 3.0 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 .000 .333 .000 .333
Listed seasons · 3 88 79 12 18 3 1 0 8 9 0 0 .228 — — —

Career Batting Statistics

Henry Merchant — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
129 379 58 90 10 3 1 34 8 50 2 .237 .329 .288 .617 -579

Career AVG .237 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — 8.8% below league average.

Career OBP .329 vs. league average .331 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .288 vs. league average .365 across their career seasons — 21.2% below league average.

Career OPS .617 vs. league average .696 across their career seasons — 11.3% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Henry Merchant Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1940 CAG NAL 9 19 0 4 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 .211 — — — — 0.0
1941 CAG NAL 8 13 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 .231 — — — — 0.0
1942 CAG NAL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1943 CC NAL 6 14 2 4 0 1 0 2 2 2 0 .286 — — — — 0.0
1944 CIC NAL 20 69 13 17 2 2 0 8 2 11 0 .246 .261 (-6%) .325 (+10%) .357 (-7%) .683 (+1%) 42.8
1945 CIC NAL 20 63 6 15 1 0 0 7 2 9 0 .238 .260 (-9%) .328 (+1%) .354 (-28%) .683 (-14%) -104.3
1946 CIC NAL 11 38 8 12 1 0 0 3 1 5 0 .316 — — — — 0.0
1947 CIC NAL 27 94 18 23 1 0 1 8 0 11 0 .245 .262 (-7%) .336 (-2%) .376 (-24%) .712 (-13%) -167.1
1948 IC NAL 26 69 10 12 4 0 0 4 1 8 1 .174 .263 (-34%) .340 (-24%) .379 (-39%) .719 (-32%) -349.9
Career · 9 seasons 129 379 58 90 10 3 1 34 8 50 2 .237 — — — — -579

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Pitching Statistics

Henry Merchant — Career Pitching Statistics
W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
3 2 13 4 2 0 1 41.2 46 17 1 12 9 3.67 455.2

Career ERA 3.67 vs. league average 3.79 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Henry Merchant — Season-by-Season Pitching
Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1940 CAG NAL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 0 0.00 — 0.0
1941 CAG NAL 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 9.1 10 6 6 3 5.79 3.94 (-47%) 0.0
1942 CAG NAL 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 2.0 3 2 0 1 9.00 — 0.0
1944 CIC NAL 1 1 2 2 2 0 0 18.0 16 2 2 4 1.00 3.57 (+72%) 455.2
1945 CIC NAL 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 5.1 9 4 0 1 6.75 — 0.0
1946 CIC NAL 1 0 2 1 0 0 1 5.0 4 1 3 0 1.80 — 0.0
1947 CIC NAL 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.0 4 2 1 0 18.00 — 0.0
Career · 7 seasons 3 2 13 4 2 0 1 41.2 46 17 12 9 3.67 — 455

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (156 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Henry Merchant — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home52751632011.427
Away831893143113.228

Pitching — Home / Away

Henry Merchant — Pitching — Home / Away
SplitGIPHERBBSOERA
Home1254.0411420.17
Away929.1170310.00

Last 10 Games — Batting

Henry Merchant — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1949-08-08 IN9NY6L 412110010
1949-08-07 IN9NY6L 300000000
1949-08-07 IN9NY6L 000000000
1949-08-06 IN9PH5L 401000000
1949-07-31 IN9LCBW 000000010
1949-07-31 IN9LCBW 011100000
1949-07-26 IN9PH5L 400000100
1949-07-25 IN9PH5W 300000010
1949-07-25 IN9PH5W 401000000
1949-07-24 IN9BLGW 503000000

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Henry Merchant — Last 10 Games — Pitching
DateTmOppDecIPHRERBBSOHR
1947-09-02 IN9CAG W 9.0620000
1947-08-19 IN9KCM — 1.0000000
1947-05-25 IN9BIR — 0.0000000
1946-06-05 IN9BIR L 9.0760000
1945-08-25 CIABIR L 5.1860011
1944-08-30 CIAMEM W 9.0010000
1944-08-22 CIACVB L 9.0971210
1944-08-03 CIAMEM — 3.0010000
1944-07-24 CIABIR — 4.0000000
1944-06-18 CIAKCM W 9.0710110

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Henry Merchant — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
1B 9 7 68 4 2 3
3B 2 1 2 5 0 1
OF 101 91 183 10 16 0
P 13 4 1 6 0 0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Henry Merchant — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1940 CAG OF 7 7 14 0 3 0
1940 CAG P 1 0 0 1 0 0
1941 CAG OF 4 3 6 0 0 0
1941 CAG P 4 0 0 2 0 0
1942 CAG P 2 0 0 0 0 0
1943 CC OF 6 5 9 0 1 0
1944 CIC OF 17 16 31 4 5 0
1944 CIC P 2 2 1 0 0 0
1945 CIC OF 18 17 33 0 1 0
1945 CIC P 1 1 0 2 0 0
1946 CIC 1B 3 2 17 2 1 1
1946 CIC OF 7 6 8 0 1 0
1946 CIC P 2 1 0 1 0 0
1947 CIC 1B 2 1 22 1 1 1
1947 CIC 3B 2 1 2 5 0 1
1947 CIC OF 25 23 44 3 2 0
1947 CIC P 1 0 0 0 0 0
1948 IC 1B 4 4 29 1 0 1
1948 IC OF 17 14 38 3 3 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Henry Merchant Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Pitcher 13
First Base 9
Third Base 2
Left Field 20
Center Field 53
Right Field 28

Henry Merchant: the record in brief

Henry Merchant's record on this page is drawn from the season tables, which run from 1940 to 1948. The season rows list, in order, the Chicago American Giants (1940 through 1942), the Cincinnati Clowns (1943), the Cincinnati-Indianapolis Clowns (1944 through 1947), and the Indianapolis Clowns (1948). At 6-foot-3 and 180 pounds, Merchant is listed as a center fielder. Merchant batted and threw left-handed, per the bio block. Merchant was born on February 17, 1918, in Birmingham, AL, USA. Merchant died on August 23, 1982, in Cincinnati, OH, USA. The given name on file is Henry Lewis Merchant.

Merchant finished with 90 hits from 379 at bats in 129 games, which works out to .237, plus 1 home run and 34 RBI. Reaching base at a .329 clip and slugging .288, Merchant finished with a .617 OPS. Set against a .260 league average for the same years, Merchant's .237 average sits 8.8% below it. 1947 produced Merchant's most hits, 23 of them for the Cincinnati-Indianapolis Clowns.

Frequently Asked Questions about Henry Merchant

Was Henry Merchant a pitcher?
No. Henry Merchant was a position player (Center Fielder), though he did pitch in 13 career games.
How many home runs did Henry Merchant hit?
Henry Merchant hit 1 career home run with 90 hits.
What teams did Henry Merchant play for?
Henry Merchant played for 2 teams: the Chicago American Giants (1940–1942) and the Indianapolis Clowns (1943–1948).
What were Henry Merchant's career stats?
In 129 games, Henry Merchant had 90 hits, 1 home runs, 34 RBI, 58 runs, and 8 stolen bases, with a .237 batting average.
What position did Henry Merchant play?
Henry Merchant played primarily as a center fielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Henry Merchant and how much did he weigh?
Henry Merchant was listed at 6 feet 3 inches and 180 pounds.
How many home runs did Henry Merchant hit each season?
Henry Merchant's home runs by season: 0 in 1940, 0 in 1941, 0 in 1943, 0 in 1944, 0 in 1945, 0 in 1946, 1 in 1947, and 0 in 1948. His most in one season was 1, in 1947.
What was Henry Merchant's career batting average?
Henry Merchant batted .237 over his career, with 90 hits in 379 at bats.
How many RBI did Henry Merchant have?
Henry Merchant drove in 34 runs in his career.
What was Henry Merchant's career ERA?
Henry Merchant finished with a 3.67 career ERA, going 3-2 with 9 strikeouts.
Is Henry Merchant in the Hall of Fame?
No. Henry Merchant has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.