# Hod Ford
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{{Short description|American baseball player (1897–1977)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Hod Ford
|image=Hod Ford Cincinnati.jpg
|position=[Shortstop](/source/Shortstop) / [Second baseman](/source/Second_baseman)
|birth_date={{birth date|1897|7|23}}
|birth_place=[New Haven, Connecticut](/source/New_Haven%2C_Connecticut), U.S.
|death_date={{Death date and age|1977|1|29|1897|7|23}}
|death_place=[Winchester, Massachusetts](/source/Winchester%2C_Massachusetts), U.S.
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate= September 8
|debutyear= 1919
|debutteam= Boston Braves
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=May 8
|finalyear=1933
|finalteam=Boston Braves
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[Batting average](/source/Batting_average_(baseball))
|stat1value=.263
|stat2label=[Home run](/source/Home_run)s
|stat2value=16
|stat3label=[Runs batted in](/source/Run_batted_in)
|stat3value=494
|teams=
* [Boston Braves](/source/Boston_Braves_(baseball)) ({{mlby|1919}}–{{mlby|1923}})
* [Philadelphia Phillies](/source/Philadelphia_Phillies) ({{mlby|1924}})
* [Brooklyn Robins](/source/Brooklyn_Robins) ({{mlby|1925}})
* [Cincinnati Reds](/source/Cincinnati_Reds) ({{mlby|1926}}–{{mlby|1931}})
* [St. Louis Cardinals](/source/St._Louis_Cardinals) ({{mlby|1932}})
* [Boston Braves](/source/Boston_Braves_(baseball)) ({{mlby|1932}}–{{mlby|1933}})
}}
'''Horace Hills "Hod" Ford''' (July 23, 1897 – January 29, 1977) was an American professional [baseball](/source/baseball) [second baseman](/source/second_baseman) and [shortstop](/source/shortstop). He played in [Major League Baseball](/source/Major_League_Baseball) (MLB) for the [Boston Braves](/source/Boston_Braves_(baseball)), [Philadelphia Phillies](/source/Philadelphia_Phillies), [Brooklyn Robins](/source/Brooklyn_Robins), [Cincinnati Reds](/source/Cincinnati_Reds), and [St. Louis Cardinals](/source/St._Louis_Cardinals) between 1919 and 1933.[[https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/fordho01.shtml "Hod Ford Statistics and History"]. "baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2017-05-14.]
==Amateur career==
A native of [New Haven, Connecticut](/source/New_Haven%2C_Connecticut), Ford attended [Somerville High School](/source/Somerville_High_School_(Massachusetts)), where he played on the school's baseball team.[{{cite web|author=Ellen Knight |url=https://www.winchester.us/DocumentCenter/View/3302/Hod-Ford?bidId= |title=Horace Hills Ford |publisher=winchester.us |accessdate=June 11, 2020}}] He went on to attend [Tufts University](/source/Tufts_University), where he studied mechanical engineering, and was considered by some as the "premier shortstop in college ball".[{{cite web|url=http://130.64.212.216/catalog/tei/tufts:UA069.005.DO.00001/chapter/B00013 |title=Concise Encyclopedia of Tufts History |publisher=Tufts University |accessdate=June 11, 2020}}] While at Tufts in 1915[{{cite news | title = Baseball at Heights | pages = 7 | newspaper = Falmouth Enterprise | location = Falmouth, MA | date = July 10, 1915 | url = http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/APA/Falmouth/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=FEN%2F1915%2F07%2F10&id=Ar00708&sk=E149EACF&viewMode=image }}][{{cite news | title = Baseball Season Opens | pages = 2 | newspaper = Falmouth Enterprise | location = Falmouth, MA | date = July 1, 1916 | url = http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/APA/Falmouth/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=FEN%2F1916%2F07%2F01&id=Ar00205&sk=51335831&viewMode=image }}] and 1916,[{{cite news | title = Oak Bluffs 2, Falmouth 0 | pages = 8 | newspaper = Falmouth Enterprise | location = Falmouth, MA | date = July 22, 1916 | url = http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/APA/Falmouth/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=FEN%2F1916%2F07%2F22&id=Ar00807&sk=DD9BC20F&viewMode=image }}] he played shortstop for [Falmouth](/source/Falmouth_Commodores) in what is now the [Cape Cod Baseball League](/source/Cape_Cod_Baseball_League).[{{cite news | title = Falmouth Locals | pages = 11 | newspaper = Falmouth Enterprise | location = Falmouth, MA | date = August 13, 1927 | url = http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/APA/Falmouth/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=FEN%2F1927%2F08%2F13&id=Ar01118&sk=EB2545F2&viewMode=image }}][{{cite news | title = Tommy Murray, Umpire Of Old, Comes To Visit | pages = 5 | newspaper = Falmouth Enterprise | location = Falmouth, MA | date = August 19, 1958 | url = http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/APA/Falmouth/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=FEN%2F1958%2F08%2F19&id=Ar00514&sk=E949C90F&viewMode=image }}] Ford was signed to a professional contract in 1919 while still a student, forgoing his senior year of college baseball eligibility. He graduated from [Tufts University](/source/Tufts_University) in 1919.{{cn|date=June 2022}}
==Professional career==
===Boston Braves (1919–1923)===
Ford made his major league debut in September 1919 for the [Boston Braves](/source/Boston_Braves_(baseball)), where he was a teammate of the legendary [Jim Thorpe](/source/Jim_Thorpe). Ford appeared in ten games for Boston [that season](/source/1919_Boston_Braves_season), playing mainly at shortstop, where he backed up [Hall of Famer](/source/Baseball_Hall_of_Fame) [Rabbit Maranville](/source/Rabbit_Maranville). By 1921, Ford had become a regular in the Braves' lineup, knocking 155 hits that season, and another 140 in 1922. After the 1923 season, Ford was traded by the Braves to the [Philadelphia Phillies](/source/Philadelphia_Phillies).
===Philadelphia Phillies (1924), Brooklyn Robins (1925)===
Ford hit .272 in 145 games for the Phillies during the [1924 season](/source/1924_Philadelphia_Phillies_season), and was selected off waivers by the [Brooklyn Robins](/source/Brooklyn_Robins) early in the [1925 season](/source/1925_Brooklyn_Robins_season). At Brooklyn, Ford played alongside Hall of Famers [Burleigh Grimes](/source/Burleigh_Grimes), [Dazzy Vance](/source/Dazzy_Vance), and [Zack Wheat](/source/Zack_Wheat), but the team floundered and finished the season in a virtual three-way tie for last place in the [National League](/source/National_League_(baseball)).
===Cincinnati Reds (1926–1931)===
With the [Cincinnati Reds](/source/Cincinnati_Reds), Ford and second baseman [Hughie Critz](/source/Hughie_Critz) formed a stellar [double play](/source/double_play) combination that was responsible for the majority of the [1928 Reds'](/source/1928_Cincinnati_Reds_season) whopping 194 twin-killings.[{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/1928.shtml |title=1928 Cincinnati Reds Statistics |publisher=baseball-reference.com |accessdate=June 11, 2020}}] Ford batted a pedestrian .241 that season, but his defensive prowess accounted for his finishing 22nd in the 1928 [National League MVP](/source/National_League_MVP) voting.[{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/awards_1928.shtml#all_NL_MVP_voting |title=1928 Awards Voting |publisher=baseball-reference.com |accessdate=June 11, 2020}}]
[[File:HodFordGoudeycard.jpg |thumb|right|160px|Ford's 1933 [Goudey](/source/Goudey) baseball card]]
===St. Louis Cardinals (1932), Boston Braves (1932–1933)===
Prior to the 1932 season, Ford's contract was purchased from the Reds by the [St. Louis Cardinals](/source/St._Louis_Cardinals), but the Cards released him in April, after appearing in only a single game for the team. Ford signed as a free agent with his old team, the Boston Braves, and went on to bat .274 in 40 games for Boston during the remainder of the [1932 season](/source/1932_Boston_Braves_season). After starting the 1933 season with only one hit in his first 15 at bats for the Braves, Ford was released.
===Career totals===
In fifteen major league seasons, Ford hit .263 with 1,269 hits, 351 walks, and 494 RBI in 1,446 games. He never played on a pennant-winning team; the closest he came to a pennant was with the second-place [1926 Reds](/source/1926_Cincinnati_Reds_season). He played all but nine career games at either shortstop or second base, and committed 273 errors in 8,124 chances, for a .966 fielding percentage.
==Later years==
While still an active major leaguer, Ford and his uncle Benjamin Hills opened an ice cream shop in [Winchester, Massachusetts](/source/Winchester%2C_Massachusetts). After his playing career ended, Ford continued in the business.