Spud Murray

Last updated February 23, 2019

Meredith Warrington "Spud" Murray^[1] (October 28, 1928 – September 15, 2011^[2]) was an American minor league baseball player and Major League Baseball (MLB) batting practice pitcher. Murray was possibly the first full-time batting practice pitcher in Yankees history.^{[ citation needed ]}

Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization, the oldest of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. A total of 30 teams play in the National League (NL) and American League (AL), with 15 teams in each league. The NL and AL were formed as separate legal entities in 1876 and 1901 respectively. After cooperating but remaining legally separate entities beginning in 1903, the leagues merged into a single organization led by the Commissioner of Baseball in 2000. The organization also oversees Minor League Baseball, which comprises 256 teams affiliated with the Major League clubs. With the World Baseball Softball Confederation, MLB manages the international World Baseball Classic tournament.

Career

Murray attended Media High School, where he starred in baseball and basketball, ranking among the best players in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. He signed with the Cleveland Indians. However, an arm injury limited his playing career.^[3] The Indians sold Murray to the independent Montgomery Rebels of the South Atlantic League in 1954.^[4]

Baseball is a bat-and-ball game played between two opposing teams who take turns batting and fielding. The game proceeds when a player on the fielding team, called the pitcher, throws a ball which a player on the batting team tries to hit with a bat. The objectives of the offensive team are to hit the ball into the field of play, and to run the bases—having its runners advance counter-clockwise around four bases to score what are called "runs". The objective of the defensive team is to prevent batters from becoming runners, and to prevent runners' advance around the bases. A run is scored when a runner legally advances around the bases in order and touches home plate. The team that scores the most runs by the end of the game is the winner.

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one or more one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated.

Delaware County, Pennsylvania County in Pennsylvania, United States

Delaware County, colloquially referred to as Delco, is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. With a population of 562,960, it is the fifth most populous county in Pennsylvania, and the third smallest in area. The county was created on September 26, 1789, from part of Chester County, and named for the Delaware River.

Mayo Smith, the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies, hired Murray as his batting practice pitcher in 1958.^[3] He joined the New York Yankees in the same role two years later.^[1]^[3]

Edward Mayo "Catfish" Smith was an American Major League Baseball player, manager, and scout. He had a 38-year career in professional baseball from 1933 to 1971. He is also the namesake of the "Mayo Smith Society", the Detroit Tigers international fan club that awards the "King Tiger Award" each year.

Manager (baseball) someone who manages a baseball team

In baseball, the field manager is the equivalent of a head coach who is responsible for overseeing and making final decisions on all aspects of on-field team strategy, lineup selection, training and instruction. Managers are typically assisted by a staff of assistant coaches whose responsibilities are specialized. Field managers are typically not involved in off-field personnel decisions or long-term club planning, responsibilities that are instead held by a team's general manager.

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Personal

Murray lived in Waterloo, Pennsylvania. He enjoyed hunting and fishing, often going fishing with Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford.^[3]

Mickey Charles Mantle, nicknamed The Commerce Comet and The Mick, was an American professional baseball player. Mantle played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees as a center fielder and first baseman, from 1951 through 1968. Mantle was one of the best players and sluggers, and is regarded by many as the greatest switch hitter in baseball history. Mantle was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 and was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.

Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford, nicknamed "The Chairman of the Board", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who had his entire 16-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.

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References

1 2 Bradbury, Wilbur (September 9, 1961). "Yank Pitcher Befriends M Squad; Murray Loosens Up Batters in Drills Before Games Maris, Mantle Have Hit 280 Homers Off Hurler". The New York Times . p. 22. Retrieved October 22, 2012. (subscription required)
↑ "In Memory of Meredith W. "Spud" Murray 1928 - 2011". Brown Funeral Homes, Inc. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
1 2 3 4 Gebhart, Ed (January 18, 2009). "Mickey Mantle, Marilyn Monroe ... if only Spud would write that book". Delco Times. Retrieved October 22, 2012.
↑ "Indians Sell Spud Murray, Also Catron". Reading Eagle . February 23, 1954. p. 21. Retrieved October 22, 2012.

External links

Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference (Minors)

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[nyt-1] 1 2 Bradbury, Wilbur (September 9, 1961). "Yank Pitcher Befriends M Squad; Murray Loosens Up Batters in Drills Before Games Maris, Mantle Have Hit 280 Homers Off Hurler". The New York Times . p. 22. Retrieved October 22, 2012. (subscription required)

[2] "In Memory of Meredith W. "Spud" Murray 1928 - 2011". Brown Funeral Homes, Inc. Retrieved 14 November 2014.

[delco-3] 1 2 3 4 Gebhart, Ed (January 18, 2009). "Mickey Mantle, Marilyn Monroe ... if only Spud would write that book". Delco Times. Retrieved October 22, 2012.

[4] "Indians Sell Spud Murray, Also Catron". Reading Eagle . February 23, 1954. p. 21. Retrieved October 22, 2012.