Herman Smith

Herman Smith

• Height 5' 7", Weight 170 lb.

BR Minors page (1890)
BR Minors page (1894-1895)
BR Minors page (1895)

Biographical Information

Herman Smith was a catcher from New York City who played several seasons in the minor leagues in the 1890s, sometimes being referred to as Harmon Smith. After rising through the ranks of the local amateur scene, he opened the 1890 playing for William Primrose's Metropolitans, a semi-pro team formed by former members of the American Association team of the same name. When Primrose moved to become manager of the Albany Senators in the New York State League that July, Smith joined him, becoming Albany's primary catcher for the remainder of the season.

In the following years, Smith played for semi-pro and amateur teams around New York, including several years with the Middletown Asylums, where he played alongside future Hall-of-Famer Jack Chesbro in 1894. Earlier in 1894 he returned to the New York State League with the Poughkeepsie Bridge Citys, where he caught Adam Snyder, who would become a frequent battery-mate in the following years. In 1895 the pair were together with the Gloversville Glovers until the New York league folded in July, then Smith was recruited to play with the Petersburg Farmers in the Virginia League. In 1898, he signed to play with the Utica Pent-Ups, again in the New York league, but was not with the team when the season began.