George Watkins (baseball)

George Archibald Watkins (June 4, 1900 – June 1, 1970) was a Major League Baseball player, born in Freestone County, Texas who owns the National League record for the highest batting average in his rookie season, batting .373 in his rookie year of 1930, with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Watkins went on to play until the 1936 season with the New York Giants (1934), the Philadelphia Phillies (1935-1936), and Brooklyn Dodgers (1936), never again posting a batting average over .312. On June 24, 1931, he hit three home runs in one game.

In 894 games played, Watkins compiled a .288 batting average (925-3207) with 490 runs scored, 73 home runs, 420 RBI, a .347 on-base percentage and a .443 slugging percentage in seven major league seasons. He posted a career .956 fielding percentage. In nine World Series games, he batted .231 (6-26), scoring six runs, with two home runs and three RBI.