Hob Hiller

Hiller was born in East Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, on May 12, 1893, to George Hiller, a railroad engineer, and his wife Elizabeth Hiller. The younger Hiller had seven years of education and did not attend high school. ==Professional career==

Minor league career Hiller first played professional baseball in the North Carolina State League with the Durham Bulls as a third baseman. He had 113 hits (including four home runs) in 468 at bats, producing a .241 batting average. Hiller began the season with the Columbia Comers of the South Atlantic League. In 40 games there, he batted .293, stole 13 bases, and scored 21 runs. In a June 1st game against the Jacksonville Roses, Hiller was struck in the head by a pitch, which put him into a semiconscious state but did not fracture his skull. Later that year, Hiller hit .262 over 17 games with the Scranton Miners of the New York State League. in a game against the Washington Senators as a midgame substitution. He played right field and went 0-for-2 at the plate. Hiller recorded his first major league hit in a May 12, 1920 game against the Cleveland Indians, singling to center in the bottom of the 9th inning against Indians pitcher Guy Morton. However, he went hitless throughout the rest of May and all of June. Hiller appeared in the last game of the season on September 28, 1920, as a pinch runner, and finished the game in center field. It was his only appearance in the major leagues that season, and the last of his career. Boston dealt him to the Rochester Colts of the International League shortly afterward. Later career Hiller hit exactly .300 in 114 games with Rochester in 1921 while playing mainly second base. In , he moved to the San Antonio Bears of the Texas League. As their third baseman, Hiller played in 122 games and got 104 hits, including 18 doubles, three triples, and two home runs, for a batting average of .259 and a slugging percentage of .336. After the 1922 season, Hiller did not participate in professional baseball until , when, at age 35, he was signed by the Beaumont Exporters. In 16 games there, he batted .218 with a .273 slugging percentage. In , Hiller managed the Hazleton Mountaineers of the Interstate League for part of the season until he was released on June 10. ==Post-playing career==

While still playing, Hiller worked as a brakeman during the off-season. After his baseball career ended, he continued to work on the railroad until November 6, 1940, when, while working for the Central Railroad of New Jersey, Hiller fell off the top of a caboose and had his right leg amputated. The next year, Hiller was awarded $65,000 as the result of a lawsuit over the incident. Subsequently, he served as the register of deeds and the registrar of wills in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. ==Personal life and death==

Hiller married Jessie Rebecca Wildoner on March 20, 1913, and had four children with her. He died of a heart attack on December 27, 1956, at a hospital in Lehighton, Pennsylvania. ==References==