William Henry Keeler (March 3, 1872 – January 1, 1923), nicknamed "Wee Willie" because of his small stature, was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1892 to 1910, primarily for the Baltimore Orioles and Brooklyn Superbas in the National League, and the New York Highlanders in the American League. Keeler, one of the best hitters of his time, was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939. One of the greatest contact hitters of all time and notoriously hard to strike out, Keeler has the highest career at bats-per-strikeout ratio in MLB history: throughout his career, on average he went more than 60 at bats between individual strikeouts. Early life William Henry O'Kelleher Jr. (he later Americanized the name to Keeler) was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 3, 1872, the son of William O'Kelleher Sr., a trolley switch man. He played baseball from an early age, and as a freshman served as captain of his high school team. He quit school the following year, and played semiprofessional baseball in the New York City area. Professional baseball career In 1892, after beginning the season playing his second year with the Plainfield Crescent Cities of the Central New Jersey League, he joined the minor league team in Binghamton, New York, and he was called up to the New York Giants at the end of the season. After a trip back to the minors because of an injury at the start of the 1893 season, he returned to the Giants later that year. Initially a third baseman, he later moved to the outfield. He quickly established himself as a star, and played until retiring in 1910. Keeler's advice to hitters was "Keep your eye clear, and hit 'em where they ain't"—"they" being the opposing fielders. His .385 career batting average after the 1898 season is the highest average in history at season's end for a player with more than 1,000 hits (1,147 hits). He compiled a .341 career batting average, tied for 11th with Bill Terry and Pete Browning as of 2022. He hit over .300 16 times in 19 seasons, and hit over .400 once. He twice led his league in batting average and three times in hits. Keeler had an amazing 206 singles during the 1898 season, a record that stood for more than 100 years until broken by Ichiro Suzuki. Additionally,