Jocko Halligan

William E. Halligan

• Bats Left, Throws Unknown
• Height 5' 9", Weight 166 lb.

• Debut May 13, 1890
• Final Game August 3, 1892
• Born December 8, 1868 in Avon, NY USA
• Died February 13, 1945 in Buffalo, NY USA

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Biographical Information

William "Jocko" Halligan played three seasons in the majors, primarily as a right fielder. He was an above-average hitter in 1891-92 in the National League.

Halligan was born in Avon, NY, which is located south of Rochester, NY and about 50 miles east of Buffalo, NY. He played in the minors for Binghamton, Canandaigua and Buffalo, all in the State of New York, in 1888-89.

The 1890 Buffalo Bisons became an entry in the Players League and Halligan became a major leaguer. Although he appeared in only 37 games in right field for the team, that was more than anyone else.

The 1891 season was split between Omaha and the 1891 Cincinnati Reds. Lefty Marr had 72 games in right field, and Halligan had 61. Halligan's .312 batting average for the Reds was far above the team average of .242.

Jocko split the 1892 season between two major league teams, the 1892 Reds and the 1892 Baltimore Orioles. A teammate on the Orioles was 19-year-old John McGraw, in his first season in the National League. Halligan's batting average at .264 was ordinary, but his OBP of .376 was well above the team average and his SLG of .399 was also far over the team average.

Halligan later played in 1900-01 again for the minor-league Bisons, and from 1902-07 he was with the Jersey City Skeeters. The 1903 Skeeters were one of the great minor-league teams, going 92-33. Halligan had the second-highest batting average on the team, behind Moose McCormick.

According to a site about the 1903 Skeeters, Halligan was the oldest player on the team. He had been dropped from the National League in 1892 for breaking another player's jaw. While with Jersey City in 1902, he led the Eastern League in batting with a .351 average. He was a minor league umpire from 1911-14.

He was not the first nor even the second major league player with the name Jocko. Jocko Milligan, who came up in 1884, was the first, while Jocko Flynn was second and Jocko Fields was third.