Harry Kingman


Henry Lees "Harry" Kingman was a first baseman in Major League Baseball. He played for the New York Yankees in 1914. He was the first major league player to have been born in China, and is one of only two Major League Baseball players born in China, along with Austin Brice. Kingman stood at 6'1" and weighed 165 lbs.

Early life

Harry Kingman was born in Tianjin to two western missionaries. In 1899, his father became a chaplain at Pomona College, and Harry eventually attended school there, becoming a star in five sports: baseball, basketball, tennis, track, and swimming. He signed his first major league contract, with the Washington Senators, in June 1914.

Major League Baseball

Before making his major league debut, Kingman was traded to the New York Yankees. He was originally a first baseman, but manager Frank Chance attempted to convert him into a pitcher. That did not work out and Kingman eventually appeared in only one game in the field and three as a pinch hitter during July and August 1914. He went 0-for-3 at the plate with two strikeouts and one walk.
Until 2016, Kingman was the only MLB player to have been born in China. Austin Brice, who debuted in 2016, was born in British Hong Kong in 1992. Kingman was the only Asian-born player from any country to appear in MLB until Japanese pitcher Masanori Murakami pitched for the San Francisco Giants in 1964.

Later life

Kingman left baseball after the season was over and got a job in Stiles Hall at the University of California, Berkeley. From 1921 to 1927, he traveled to China and Japan and worked as a missionary, while also playing and coaching baseball. He returned to Berkeley in 1927. He helped found the Berkeley Student Cooperative in 1933. For the next 30 years, he worked at Stiles Hall and also coached the university's junior varsity baseball team.
Kingman was married and had one daughter. He died in 1982, at the age of 90, in Oakland, California.