1952 St. Louis Browns Manager Rogers Hornsby returned to the city where he made baseball history with his high batting averages
The 1951 Browns compiled the lowest team batting average of any of the 16 major league teams, .247, were tied for the poorest fielding pct .971 and they were the only major league team to post an earned run average over 5.00, going 5.18 ERA. Owner Bill Veeck was counting on Rogers Hornsby to teach the Browns players how to hit, and hopping coaches Bob Scheffing, Bill Norman and Marty Marion how to pitch and field. Note the St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore prior to 1954 and changed its nickname to Orioles 1952 St. Louis Browns Infielders Dick Kryhoski, first baseman. Bats LH Throws RH. A line drive hitter he came over in a trade from Detroit. For Tigers Dick Kryhoski hit .289 and belted 12 homers and collected 57 RBI. He was figured to hit well in Sportsman Park because of the short 310 foot wall. And, in 1952 with Browns he lined 11 home runs and drove in 42 in 111 games. Hank Arft, first baseman. Bats and T LH. In 1951 he played 112 games and batted .261 with 42 RBI, second highest on team. Hank Arft will battle for the first baseman job in 1952 and is a solid fielder. Mike Goliat, Second Baseman. Righthanded. Split 1951 with Phillies, .261 in 41 games and .282 in minors, Came to Browns after the season via a trade. Rates high. Mike Goliat was the starting second baseman for the NL pennant winning Phillies in 1950. Fred Marsh, Infielder. RH. AS a rookie last year, he posted a .243 batting average in 130 games. He needs experience on defense and Hornsby is hoping he can play top defense in 1952. Stan Rojek, Shortstop. RH. Hit .267 combined in 59 with Pirates and Cards in 1951. A noted hustling baseball player, he was sold to Browns and looked good in spring training this year, 1952. Stan Rojek broke into the majors with Brooklyn in 1941 and proudly served in US Military from 1942 thru 1945. Bob Young, Third baseman. Bats LH, T RH. He had a very solid rookie season in 1951 , hitting .260 with 23 extra base hits in 147 games and was swell on defense. Bob Young is slated to be Hornsby third baseman for the next few seasons. Bill Jennings, Infielder. RH. Hit a meager .179 in 64 games as a rookie in 1951. Valuable to his team because he plays three infield positions. Joe DeMaestri, Shortstop. Batted .203 in 74 at bats for ChiSox as a rookie in 1951. Les Moss, Catcher. RH. The veteran backstop was outstanding, as usual on defense, however his hitting was off in 1951, .184 in 87 games. Clint Courtney, Catcher, Bats LH, T RH. An aggressive all around player, Clint Courtney put up solid stats in the minors in 1951. Leo Thomas, Third Baseman RH. For Portland, minors, in 1951 Leo Thomas batted .310 and blasted 27 homers, had 106 RBI. With Browns in 1952 batted .234, 12 RBI in 41 G. George Schmees Outfielder LH. A power hitter during his days in minors In 1951 with Hollywood of the PCL he batted .328 whacked 28 homers and had 100 RBIs. In 1952 with Browns George Schmees hit .131, 3 RBI in 34 G. 1952 St Louis Browns Outfielders Jim Delsing, Bats LH, T RH. A popular guy among Brownie fans, he led the team last season with 8 homers and 45 RBIs. The media called him a first class outfielder. Jim Delsing started his career in 1948 with ChiSox. Bob Nieman, RH. Has a power swing and played in minors last year, 1951, with Tulsa. Bob Nieman went on to play in majors thru 1962 and compiled a very fine .295 career batting average in 3452 at bats, hitting over 330 extra base hits. Earl Rapp, Bats LH, T RH. Started year in minors in 1951 in the PC League. Played in 26 games and hit a hefty .327 for Browns in 1951. Scouts note Earl Rapp is a very fast base runner. Jim Rivera. LH. He was the Pacific Coast League batting champion and 1951 MVP. He hit .256 with 23 extra base hits in 96 games for St. Louis then was traded to the White Sox. Manuel Rivera, nicknamed Jungle Jim by ChiTown fans. Roy Sievers, Outfielder. RH. He was the 1949 AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR for the Browns, hitting .306 with 28 doubles and 16 homers, 84 Runs and 91 RBI plus he walked 70 times and struck out just 70 times in 140 games. Roy Sievers was raised in St. Louis just a couple of blocks from the baseball park. Sportsman Park and inked a contract with baseball scout Jack Fournier. However the next two weeks he struggled in the batters box. Dick Dyck Outfielder. RH. 1952 was his second time in majors and he put together solid stats, hitting .269, his 15 homers were second highest on team as were his 64 RBI. Francis Saucier, Outfielder. Bats LH. Won the Texas League batting title in 1950 and then, refused to report to Browns until Bill Veeck talked him into coming. However Francis Saucier hurt his arm and could not swing a bat, and he had the same problem in spring training. Time to wait and see if management needs an ailing outfielder. Tom Wright, Outfielder. Bats LH, T RH. In 1952 batted .242, with 1 Hr and 6 RBI in 29 G and Al Zarilla .238 batting, 1 Hr, 9 RBI in 48 G and Infielders, Outfielders, Catchers 1952 stats Marty Marion SS and Coach hit .242 with 2 Hr and 19 RBI in 76 G and Jack Crawford hit .182 in 7 games and Don Lenhardt OF hit .271 with 1 Hr and 5 RBI in 18G Willy Miranda Shortstop, hit .091 with 1 RBI in 7 G and Darrell Johnson hit .282 with 9 RBI in 29 G and Jay Porter hit .250 with 7 RBI in 33 G Vic Wertz OF and 1B. Posted a robust .346 batting average with 6 homers in and 19 RBIs in 37 G. Frank Kellert, Rookie First Baseman RH. For Oklahoma City in 1951 Frank Kellert put up big stats including .295 batting average, 15 homers and led the league with 42 doubles. 1952 ST. Louis Browns Pitchers Ned Garver, Righthanded. Ned Garver was the whole show among loyal Browns fans. Last season, 1951, he became just the seventh pitcher in baseball history to win 20 games for a last place team and was the first ever to win 20 games and bat .300 for a team that lost 100 games. His 1951 record was 20 wins 12 losses a 3.73 ERA. Bob Cain, Lefty. He was acquired by Browns after the 1951 season that he split with ChiSox and Tigers, going 12 and 12 with a 4.26 ERA. In 1952 with Browns Bob Cain chalked up a solid 12 and 10 record and pitched in major till 1954. Satchel Paige, RH. One of the best pitchers of all time, Leroy Satchel Paige, a Negro League star, used every trick pitch ever though, including flutter balls, lobes and of course one of the fastest fastball in baseball history. He made his major league debut in 1948 with Cleveland and came to Browns in 1951. He had a brilliant season in 1952, at who knows what age, going 12 and 10 plus 10 saves, a 3.07 ERA in 6 starts, and a team high 46 games. Satchel Paige is a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Duane Pillette, RH. The 6 ft 3, 195 pound. He relied on an assortment of pitches to eight full years. He started with the NY Yankees in 1949 then was traded to Browns in early 1950. A durable mound worker, Duane Pillette was 6 and 14 with a 4.99 ERA in 1951. He completed 6 of 24 starts plus worked in 11 relief jobs for a total of 191.1 innings. Gene Bearden, a 20 game winner for the 1948 World Series Champions Cleveland Indians, 20 and 9 with a stingy 2.43 ERA with 6 complete shutouts. Came to Browns in Feb of 1952 via a trade and posted a 7 and 8 record. A clutch pitcher he knew how to throw the right pitch at the right time. Lou Sleater, RH. He did not get and run support from his teammates in 1951 and so fell to 1 and 9 record in 20 games. Pitched in minors and showed scouts he belonged in the majors. Jim Suchecki RH, Relief Pitcher and Cliff Fannin RH pitched in minors in 1951 Earl Harrist went 2 w and 8 losses in 36 games in 1952 and Ken Holcombe was 0 and 2 in 12 games and Bobby Hogue was 0 and 1 in 8 G. Hal Hudson 0 and 0 in 3 G in 1952 for Browns in majors. Hal Hudson hurled in minors in 1951 and the burly lefty was one of the leading pitchers with a 16 and 5 record with Toronto, minors in 1952. John Hetki, RH. Posted a strong 19 wins and just 10 losses record in the minors for Toronto. Johnny Hetki had 4 shutouts and a solid 2.85 ERA. Bob Mahoney was traded to Browns from White Sox and fashioned a combined record of 2 and 5 with a 4.50 ERA in 33 games. Bill Kennedy who posted a 6 and 2 record with Louisville, joined Browns later in year and was 1 and 5 in 19 games. Tommy Byrne LH. A former starting pitcher with the Yankees he was traded to Browns prior to 1952. Dick Littlefield was 2 and 3 in 7 games with Browns in 1952. Marlin Stuart was 1 and 2 with a 4.15 ERA in 12 G with Browns in 1952. Harry Markell RH. Pitched with Oklahoma City in 1951 and struck out 211 would be hitters, going 13 and 19 with a very fine 2.77 ERA. Scouts rate his fastball in high 90s. Vern Taylor RH. Pitched for San Antonio and was 5 and 3 with a 3.16 ERA. Pete Taylor pitched in one game for St. L Browns in 1952. Dave Madison had a 4 and 2 record in 31 G and Stubby Overmire had a 0 and 3 mark in 17 G and Marlin Stuart had a 1 and 2 record in 12 G Marlin Stuart Pitcher posted a 1 and 2 record with a 4.15 ERA in 12 G St. Louis Browns Baseball Players and Baseball History |
