Topper Rigney

Who was Topper Rigney?

Emory Elmo "Topper" Rigney was a Major League Baseball shortstop who played six seasons with the Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, and Washington Senators. Rigney had speed and a good sense of the strike zone. He was four times among the American League leaders in sacrifice hits, three times among the league leaders in walks, twice among the league leaders in triples and once among the league leaders in stolen bases. He had an on-base percentage of .388.

Born in Groveton, Texas, Rigney attended Texas A&M University playing for the Aggies from 1915 to 1918. After graduating from Texas A&M, Rigney played for the 1921 Fort Worth Panthers team that finished the 1921 season 107–51; Rigney hit .292, drew 63 walks, scored 91 runs, hit 81 RBIs, 12 triples, and 10 home runs. In his only season with the Panthers, Rigney also led all Texas League shortstops with a .946 fielding percentage and 547 assists.

In 1922, Rigney joined the Detroit Tigers at age 25, hitting .300 with a .380 on-base percentage while playing alongside Harry Heilmann and Ty Cobb. Rigney and his former Texas A&M Aggie teammate Rip Collins both played together for the Tigers from 1923 to 1925.