Cincinnati Reds Helms appeared briefly with the Reds in 1964, playing only in two games. He made his major league debut on September 23, 1964, against the
Philadelphia Phillies with one plate appearance that year. He also had a short stint with the Reds in 1965, hitting .381 in 46 plate appearances. Helms's first full season in the majors was 1966. A natural shortstop, Helms was ultimately moved to
third base by the Reds his rookie season, with
Leo Cárdenas firmly entrenched at short since 1962. Cardenas was second in the National League in fielding percentage among shortstops in 1965, and would lead the league in 1966. Helms originally played second base to start the season, where
Pete Rose had played the previous three years, with Rose moving to third base. This did not work for Rose, so he returned to second base, with Helms moving to third base, where he had never played before. Helms clubbed nine
home runs, batted .284, and provided sparkling defense at his new position. He was second in the NL among third basemen in fielding percentage, .961, just behind
Bob Aspromote's .962 fielding percentage. Helms was selected as the 1966
National League Rookie of the Year. In 1967, the Reds shuffled their line-up, moving budding superstar
Tony Pérez to third, Helms to second, and
Pete Rose from second base to
left field. As a
second baseman, Helms was a member of the National League
All-Star Team in 1967 and 1968. In 1967, he was called up for
U.S. Marines reserves duty during the summer, and had to get a
furlough to participate in the
1967 All-Star Game. In 1968, he started the
All-Star Game, with one hit and a
base-on-balls in three
at-bats. He was 25th in
Most Valuable Player MVP voting in 1968. Helms started all five games of the
1970 World Series, with four hits and one walk in 19 plate appearances as the Reds fell to the
Baltimore Orioles. He won the National League
Gold Glove award at second base in 1970 and 1971. During his Gold Glove season of 1971, Helms set a Reds record turning 130
double plays, which led all major league second basemen that year. He also led all National League second basemen in double plays in 1970, and led all second basemen in putouts in 1971. While with the Reds, he led the National League's second basemen in fielding percentage in 1970 (.983) and 1971 (.990). In his autobiography,
Charlie Metro shares this anecdote about
Morganna "The Kissing Bandit" and Helms: "At first the players were shy and would kind of run. But after a while, heck, the guys all loved it. One time in Cincinnati, she ran out there toward Tommy Helms. She ran right out beyond the infield, and Tommy was the type of guy who wouldn't run from her. He just opened up his arms and said, 'Come here, baby.'"
Houston Astros On November 29, 1971, Helms was part of a blockbuster trade that brought
Joe Morgan,
Denis Menke,
César Gerónimo,
Ed Armbrister, and
Jack Billingham from the Houston Astros for Helms,
Lee May and
Jimmy Stewart. 1974 would be his last season as a full time starting player. He played in only 62 games, with less than 100 at-bats, and was used at second base, shortstop, and third base. Helms appeared in only 15 games for the Pirates, playing sparingly, and just three months after reacquiring Helms the Pirates released him. He signed with the Boston Red Sox for the remainder of the 1977 season, serving primarily as a
designated hitter before calling it a career. ==Career statistics==