Andy Oyler
From BR Bullpen
Andrew Paul Oyler (Pepper)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Weight 138 lb.
- School Washington & Jefferson College
- Debut May 8, 1902
- Final Game July 21, 1902
- Born May 5, 1880 in Newville, PA USA
- Died October 24, 1970 in East Pennsboro Township, PA USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Andy Oyler was at Washington & Jefferson College in 1900-01, with the 1902 Orioles and then from 1903-09 was with the Minneapolis Millers.
He is famous for "the 24-inch home run", when he hit a ball into the mud in front of home plate on a rainy day, and circled the bases while the opposing team tried to find it. A book by that title appeared in 1990, chronicling unusual baseball plays. However, since Oyler hit few home runs, the truth of the story is unclear. The children's book Mudball covers the same topic.
He is in a photo of the 1905 Millers in the book Baseball in Minnesota.
Many references state that Oyler was the shortest man on his Minneapolis team in 1903, but while the 1905 photo shows him as likely shorter than most of the 1905 team, it isn't clear that he was the shortest man at that time.
