Wiltsey, Harold James 'Hal'

1903 - 1983  (80 years)

• Name	Wiltsey, Harold James 'Hal'
  Birth	6 Aug 1903	Clay City, Clay County, Illinois   [1]
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	Pitcher, Major League Baseball  [2]
  Reference Number	WILT.H002
  _FGRAVE	40416097
  Death	2 Nov 1983	Bunkie, Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana   [3]
  	Cause: Self-inflicted gunshot wound
  		Obituary, Wiltse, Cotton
  Burial	Pythian Cemetery, Bunkie, Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana
  Person ID	I26364	Carl Wayne Gray Research
  Last Modified	9 Jun 2025

  
  

  Father	Wiltsey, Loren James,   b. 19 Aug 1882, Illinois d. 8 Dec 1931 (Age 49 years)
  Mother	Harrison, Myrtle Marie,   b. 1887, Illinois d. 1976 (Age 89 years)
  Marriage	Y  [1, 4]
  Family ID	F8839	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Sutherlin, Eleanor Elizabeth,   b. UNKNOWN   d. 3 Jan 1981
  Children	1. Wiltse, Larry
  Family ID	F18535	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	21 Oct 2026

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 6 Aug 1903 - Clay City, Clay County, Illinois Death - Cause: Self-inflicted gunshot wound - 2 Nov 1983 - Bunkie, Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana Burial - - Pythian Cemetery, Bunkie, Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Photos

  Harold James 'Hal' Wiltsey (1903-1983) Photo compliments of Mike Ragan

  
  

• Notes

  Professional Baseball Pitcher; Honored in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Retired in 1937 and went to work in the oil fields. From Wikipedia: Harold James Wiltse (August 6, 1903 – November 2, 1983) nicknamed "Whitey", was a professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of four seasons in Major League Baseball between 1926 and 1931 for the Boston Red Sox (1926–28), St. Louis Browns (1928) and Philadelphia Phillies (1931). Listed at 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), 168 lb., Wiltse batted and threw left-handed. He was born in Clay City, Illinois. Wiltse, nicknamed "Whitey", posted a 20–40 record with 134 strikeouts and a 4.87 ERA in 102 appearances, including 65 starts, 23 complete games, two shutouts, one save, and 500+1/3 innings pitched during his major league career. He also had an extensive minor league baseball career, spanning fifteen seasons from 1923 until 1937. Wiltse died at the age of 80 in Bunkie, Louisiana. Hal Wiltse Pitcher Born: August 6, 1903 Clay City, Illinois Died: November 2, 1983 (aged 80) Bunkie, Louisiana Batted: Left Threw: Left MLB debut April 13, 1926, for the Boston Red Sox Last MLB appearance April 20, 1931, for the Philadelphia Phillies MLB statistics Win–loss record 20-40 Strikeouts 134 Earned run average 4.87 Teams: Boston Red Sox (1926–28) St. Louis Browns (1928) Philadelphia Phillies (1931)

  
  

• Sources

  [S1508] Ancestry.com, 1920 United States Federal Census, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois, Enumeration District 3, Page 10B, (http://search.ancestry.com/content/viewer.aspx?dbid=6061&iid=4300174_00627&sid=&gskw=) (Reliability: 2). [S13315] Society for American Baseball Research, (https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/hal-wiltse/?fbclid=IwAR0cyCankZHaePbYgm5qGfVY9Py6hy7mC8lQl_HWxABc__G4vs3yjmmfROQ) (Reliability: 2). [S4061] https://www.findagrave.com, Obituary, Sunday, Bernice, 91, (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7325556/bernice-sunday), none. (Reliability: 2). [S7377] http://www.findagrave.com, Headstone, Wiltsey, Loren and Myrtle, (http://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSsr=2561&GScid=105163&GRid=24056436&), none. (Reliability: 2).