Wirts was born on October 30, 1897 (or 1898) in Forks of the Cosumnes, California. He was the son of James Ambros Wuertz and Mary Jane Simpson. Wirts played sandlot ball with future major leaguer Earl Kunz in Sacramento, California during his youth. Wirts attended Saint Mary\'s College of California.\n', '

In 1918, Wirts played for the Class-B Spokane Indians along with Cy Neighbors, a former major league player. After a one-year hiatus from professional baseball, Wirts made his return in 1920 with the Class-B Calgary Bronchos of the Western Canada League. He batted .335 that season, with 108 hits in 322 at bats. In 1921, Wirts split the season between the Class-A Dallas Submarines of the Texas League, and the Double-A Rochester Colts of the International League. With the Submarines, Wirts batted .213 with 17 hits, 4 doubles, and 1 triple in 34 games. With the Colts, he batted .354 with 4 doubles, 3 triples, and 1 home run in 28 games.\n', '

Wirts made his major league debut with the Chicago Cubs on July 20. In that game, against the Philadelphia Phillies, Wirts did not get a hit in 2 at-bats. On July 26, in a game against the Brooklyn Robins, Wirts got his first major league hit. On the season, Wirts batted .182 with 2 hits, and 1 RBI in 7 games. He played five games at the catcher position and committed no errors in 16 total chances. In 1922, Wirts continued to play for the Cubs. He hit his first major league home run on June 27, against the Pittsburgh Pirates. That season, Wirts batted .172 with 10 hits, 2 doubles, 1 home run, 6 RBIs, and 12 bases on balls in 31 games. Defensively, Wirts played 27 games at the catcher position and committed 2 errors in 63 total chances. In his final season with the Cubs, 1923, Wirts got 1 hit in 5 at-bats. Behind the plate, Wirts caught a total of 3 games and committed no errors in 10 total chances.\n', '

Return to Kettle Wirts Autograph Profile