1973 Profile: Jim Ray Hart

"A solid hitter for five-and-a-half seasons with the Giants before a shoulder injury sidetracked him in 1969. Hart's injury eventually required corrective surgery and left his throwing arm suspect.
His bat isn't through, though. He hit a healthy .323 with 18 homers and 77 RBIs in the Pacific Coast League last year, and .304 in his brief time with the Giants. Five of his 24 hits for the Giants last year were for homers, giving him 157 for his career, second on the club only to Willie McCovey.
Born in Lenoir, North Carolina, Hart tied a major league record when he drove in six runs in a single inning on July 8, 1970. He came up as a third baseman but also has played some outfield.
Jim's arm is a problem and he may wind up as the club's top pinch hitter."

-Hal Bock, The Complete Handbook of Baseball, 1973 Edition

"Watch Jim Ray Hart's bat uncoil. Rip - line drive. Slam - base hit. One after another, the hits keep coming, as the pop radio stations like to say.
The Yankees purchased Jim from the Giants in April to fill a need for a right-handed designated hitter, and Jim responded quickly with a deluge of hits. He was getting his first look at the American League after 1,001 games with the Giants and was clearly winning the first rounds between pitcher and hitter.
Jim is now 31 years old and comes from Lenoir, North Carolina. He holds the all-time Giant record for home runs by a rookie with 31 and brings a lifetime .282 average to the Yankees. It may turn out to be the best purchase in the league when they measure the designated hitter's effect come October."

-The New York Yankees Official 1973 Yearbook

"The designated hitter slot in the Yankee batting order received a big charge with the purchase of Jim Ray Hart from the Giants in April. Jim, a veteran of 1,001 games in the National League, offered immediate signs that his potent bat was still very much alive by pounding opposing pitchers at nearly a .400 pace in his first few weeks with the club."

-1973 New York Yankees Scorecard & Official Program