Raymond Leo Jablonski (December 17,1926 –November 25,1985) was an American third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for all or parts of eight MLB seasons between 1953 and 1960. A 1954 National League All-Star,Jablonski appeared in 812 games for the St. Louis Cardinals,Cincinnati Redlegs,New York / San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Athletics. The native of Chicago,Illinois,threw and batted right-handed and was listed as 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and 175 pounds (79 kg).
Jablonski's pro career began in the Boston Red Sox organization in 1947. After two seasons at the Class D level,the Cardinals acquired him in the 1948 minor league draft. In 1951,he was the Most Valuable Player of the Class B Carolina League after he won the league's Triple Crown. Then,after one season in Triple-A,Jablonski broke into the 1953 Cardinals' starting lineup. He started all 157 games for the Redbirds at third base,and set career bests in home runs (21) and runs batted in (112),finishing third in the National League's Rookie of the Year Award balloting (behind Jim Gilliam and teammate Harvey Haddix). In 1954,he drove in over 100 runs for a second straight season and batted a career-high .296. Selected to the 1954 Major League Baseball All-Star Game,he started at third base for the National League and contributed a fourth-inning single off Sandy Consuegra to help the Senior Circuit overcome a four-run deficit and take a 5–4 lead. But the rival American League ended up winning the slugfest,11–9,at Cleveland Stadium. [1]
His 1953–54 seasons constituted the high-water marks of his big league career. Although he led NL third-basemen in assists in 1954,Jablonski committed 27 and 34 errors in successive seasons,and with hard-hitting and slick-fielding Ken Boyer poised to break onto the varsity roster,the Cardinals traded Jablonski to the Redlegs along with pitcher Gerry Staley for Cincinnati relief ace Frank Smith after the 1954 campaign. Then Jablonski suffered through two sub-par seasons in Cincinnati,batting only .240 and .256 and spending part of 1955 back in the minor leagues. The Reds traded him to the Chicago Cubs after 1956,but Jablonski would never appear in a regular-season game for his hometown team. Chicago sent him to the New York Giants on the opening day of the 1957 season. Jablonski was the Giants' regular third baseman during their final New York season and batted .289,but the following year he lost the starting job to rookie Jim Davenport and hit only .230 in part-time duty.
Sent back to the Cardinals just prior to opening day in 1959,Jablonski backed up Boyer and served as a pinch hitter through August 20,before being claimed off waivers by the Kansas City Athletics. After he closed the 1959 campaign with Kansas City,the A's demoted him to the Triple-A Dallas-Fort Worth Rangers for most of 1960 before giving him one last MLB trial in the closing weeks of the season. In his final big-league game on September 17,he pinch hit against Jack Harshman of the Cleveland Indians and flied out. [2] All told,Jablonski had 687 hits as a big-leaguer,with 126 doubles,11 triples and 83 home runs,batting .268 with 438 runs batted in.
His professional career continued through 1964 at the Triple-A level. Ray Jablonski died at age 58 in Chicago. [3] He was buried at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery in Justice,Illinois.
Robert Charles Nieman was an American professional baseball player and scout. An outfielder,he spent all or parts of a dozen Major League Baseball seasons with the St. Louis Browns (1951–52),Detroit Tigers (1953–54),Chicago White Sox (1955–56),Baltimore Orioles (1956–59),St. Louis Cardinals (1960–61),Cleveland Indians (1961–62) and San Francisco Giants (1962). He also played one season in Japan for the Chunichi Dragons (1963). He threw and batted right-handed,stood 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m) tall and weighed 195 pounds (88 kg).
William Harold Terry was an American professional baseball first baseman and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Giants from 1923 to 1936 and managed the Giants from 1932 to 1941. Terry was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1954. In 1999,he ranked number 59 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players,and was a nominee for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. The Giants retired Terry's uniform number 3 in 1984;it is posted on the facade of the upper deck in the left field corner of Oracle Park. Nicknamed "Memphis Bill",he is most remembered for being the last National League player to hit .400,a feat he accomplished by batting .401 in 1930.
The following are the baseball events of the year 2003 throughout the world.
Grady Edgebert Hatton Jr. was an American professional baseball second baseman,third baseman,coach and manager. He played in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Reds / Redlegs,Chicago White Sox,Boston Red Sox,St. Louis Cardinals,Baltimore Orioles and Chicago Cubs. Hatton is most identified with his native Texas:he was born in Beaumont,attended the University of Texas at Austin,managed minor league teams in Houston and San Antonio,and was an important contributor to the early years of Major League Baseball's Houston Astros.
George Daniel Crowe was an American professional baseball player who appeared in 702 games in the major leagues as a first baseman and pinch hitter between 1952 and 1961. Before joining minor league baseball in 1949,Crowe played with the Negro National League's (Rochester) New York Black Yankees in 1947 and 1948,and he also played professional basketball.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1956 throughout the world.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1958 throughout the world.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1953 throughout the world.
Robert Henry Adams was an American professional baseball third baseman and second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball from 1946 through 1959 for the Cincinnati Reds / Redlegs,Chicago White Sox,Baltimore Orioles and Chicago Cubs. He batted and threw right-handed,stood at 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed 160 pounds (73 kg). He was born in Tuolumne County,California.
Norman Leroy Siebern was an American professional baseball player and scout. He appeared in 1,406 games over a 12-year career in Major League Baseball as a first baseman and left fielder for the New York Yankees,Kansas City Athletics,Baltimore Orioles,California Angels,San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox between 1956 and 1968. A two-time World Series champion and four-time American League All-Star,his best season came in 1962 with the Athletics when he hit 25 home runs,with 117 runs batted in and a .308 batting average. He might be most remembered,however,as being one of the players the Yankees traded for Roger Maris on December 11,1959.
Philip Joseph Gagliano was an American professional baseball player who forged a 12-season,702-game career in Major League Baseball as a utility infielder/outfielder and pinch hitter for four clubs between 1963 and 1974. He threw and batted right-handed,and was listed as 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and 180 pounds (82 kg).
Saturnino Escalera Cuadrado was a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player and scout whose playing career extended for 14 seasons (1949–1962). The outfielder and first baseman appeared for one full season,1954,in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Redlegs and was the first player of African descent to appear in an MLB game for the Cincinnati franchise. He threw and batted left-handed,stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and 165 pounds (75 kg).
Glenn Richard"Rocky"Nelson was an American professional baseball first baseman who played in Major League Baseball for all or parts of nine seasons between 1949 and 1961 for the St. Louis Cardinals,Pittsburgh Pirates,Chicago White Sox,Brooklyn Dodgers and Cleveland Indians. A native of Portsmouth,Ohio,Nelson batted and threw left-handed,stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed 175 pounds (79 kg). He signed his first professional contract in 1942 with the Cardinals' organization. He then missed three seasons (1943–1945) while serving in the United States Army during World War II.
The 1957 Cincinnati Redlegs season consisted of the Redlegs finishing in fourth place in the National League,with a record of 80–74,15 games behind the NL and World Series Champion Milwaukee Braves. The Redlegs were managed by Birdie Tebbetts and played their home games at Crosley Field,where they attracted 1,070,850 fans,fourth in the eight-team league.
The 1954 Cincinnati Redlegs season was a season in American baseball. The team finished fifth in the National League with a record of 74–80,23 games behind the New York Giants.
Charles William Smith was an American professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball for the Los Angeles Dodgers,Philadelphia Phillies,Chicago White Sox,New York Mets,St. Louis Cardinals,New York Yankees,and Chicago Cubs from 1960 to 1969.
The 1960 Major League Baseball season was played from April 12 to October 13,1960. It was the final season contested by 16 clubs and the final season that a 154-game schedule was played in both the American League and the National League. The AL began using the 162-game schedule the following season,with the NL following suit in 1962.
Kermit Emerson Wahl was an American professional baseball player. An infielder,he played all or parts of five seasons in Major League Baseball between 1944 and 1951 for the Cincinnati Reds,Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns,getting into 231 games. Wahl threw and batted right-handed,and stood 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m) tall and weighed 170 pounds (77 kg).
Joe Cephus Taylor was an American baseball player whose 18-year semi-pro and professional career included 119 games over parts of four seasons in organized Major League Baseball. Born in Chapman,Alabama,and raised in Pittsburgh,he threw and batted right-handed,stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg).
Foster Ephraim Castleman was an American professional baseball player. The native of Nashville,Tennessee,appeared in 268 games played over all or part of five seasons in Major League Baseball,from 1954 to 1958,for the New York Giants and Baltimore Orioles,mostly as a third baseman or shortstop. He threw and batted right-handed and was listed at 6 feet (1.83 m) tall and 175 pounds (79 kg).