St. Louis Brows' infielder/pinch hitter, Floyd Baker, was born on October 10, 1916 in Luray, Virginia. Baker would spend 57 years in professional baseball moving up from a prospect, through the minors and majors, an MLB coach, and finally a scout for the final thirty years. Although his offensive production was never headline material, Fl
St. Louis Brows' infielder/pinch hitter, Floyd Baker, was born on October 10, 1916 in Luray, Virginia. Baker would spend 57 years in professional baseball moving up from a prospect, through the minors and majors, an MLB coach, and finally a scout for the final thirty years. Although his offensive production was never headline material, Floyd Baker did hold one of the more dubious records in MLB history.
Floyd Baker was a standout player at Luray High School, before playing five years in semipro baseball. In the summer of 1935-37 he would play for Harrisonburg of the Valley League. He was invited to Washington to workout with the Browns, and was signed as an amateur free agent prior to the 1938 season. He would spend five seasons moving throughout the Browns minor league organizations. He played for the Mayfield Clothiers (1938), Youngstown Browns (1939-40), Springfield browns (1941), San Antonio Missions (1942), and Toledo Mud Hens (1943).
Floyd Bakers made his MLB debut with the St. Louis Browns on May 4, 1943. He entered the game as a pinch hitter for Don Gutteridge in the sixth inning, but was replaced by Don Heffner the following inning. Baker would appear in just 22 games for the Browns in 1943. He played in nine straight game in May of 1943, as a substitute for an injured Vern Stephens at shortstop. He would also appear in 11 games as a pinch hitter and one game at third base. After splitting time between the Browns and Toledo Mud Hens in 1943, Baker found himself on the Browns active roster during the 1944 season.
During World War II, he received a "4F" classification from the War Department which disqualified him from active duty. Baker would appear in 44 games in 1944, seeing action in 16 games at shortstop, 17 games at second base, and 17 games as a pinch hitter. In two years with the Browns, Baker would have 163 plate appearances in 66 games, tallying 25 hits, two doubles, and six extra-base hit games.
Floyd Baker's contract would be sent to the Chicago White Sox on December 30, 1944. He would become a solid member of the ChiSox infield for the next six seasons. He would then go on to play for the Washington Senators (1952-53), Boston Red Sox (1953-54), and the Philadelphia Phillies (1954-55).
Floyd Baker would join the coaching ranks after retiring from baseball. He would coach with the Minnesota Twins from 1961-64, and then begin a long career as one of the Twins primary scouts from 1965-95. He would also remain active in his local community of Youngstown, Ohio. He would be involved in his local Methodist Church, Baseball Oldtimers Association, Curbstone Coaches, and the YMCA.
GREAT FLOYD BAKER TRIVIA - Floyd Baker would hold the MLB record for the fewest home runs for a player with over 2,000 plate appearances. He had just one homer in 2,280 plate appearances. This would hold until Duane Kuiper broke this record in 1984.
TRANSACTIONS
1940 - Browns acquired OF Bobby Estalella from the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association in the Rule 5 Draft. Estalella would only play in 46 games for St. Louis in 1941. He would hit.241, with six doubles, a triple, and 14 runs RBIs.
1945 - Browns traded 1B George McQuinn to the Philadelphia Athletics for 1B Dic
TRANSACTIONS
1940 - Browns acquired OF Bobby Estalella from the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association in the Rule 5 Draft. Estalella would only play in 46 games for St. Louis in 1941. He would hit.241, with six doubles, a triple, and 14 runs RBIs.
1945 - Browns traded 1B George McQuinn to the Philadelphia Athletics for 1B Dick Siebert. After a heated salary dispute, Siebert decided to retire rather than play for the Browns
1952 - Browns traded RHP Duke Markel and $35,000 to the Syracuse Chiefs of the International League for RHP Bobo Holloman. Holloman would make history in his brief MLB career with the Browns in 1953
1952 - Browns traded LHP Tommy Byrne and SS Joe DeMaestri to the Chicago White Sox for OF Hank Edwards and SS Willy Miranda. Hank Edwards would play in his 11th and final MLB season with the Browns in 1952. He appeared in 65 games where he hit .198, with three double, and nine RBIs. Willy Miranda would play in just 17 games with the Browns. He had just one hit in seven plate appearances.
BROWNS BIRTHDAYS ON THIS DAY
1900 - LF Goose Goslin (1930-32)
1924 - LHP Bob Cain (1952-53)
1904 - RHP Boom-Boom Beck (1924, 27-28)
The 1939 St. Louis Browns would be one of the weakest teams in the history of the franchise. At 43-111-2, they would have one of the worst records in the history of baseball.
The St. Louis Browns have often been remembered with the old saying "First in beer, First in Shoes, Last in the American League", and this often cried out by the peo
The 1939 St. Louis Browns would be one of the weakest teams in the history of the franchise. At 43-111-2, they would have one of the worst records in the history of baseball.
The St. Louis Browns have often been remembered with the old saying "First in beer, First in Shoes, Last in the American League", and this often cried out by the people who loved the Browns. This team could easily be the reason for that infamous saying. Even the biggest optimist would have a hard time spinning the statstics or story lines around this team to show any success. This team only won 18 games at home, 13 one-run games, 12 games by more than five runs, four games in extra innings, and the pitching staff recorded only four saves all season (which cannot be understood).
If there was a silver lining in the cloud of this season it would come with the production of first baseman George McQuinn. The second-year first baseman would lead the team in almost every offensive category. The Browns acquired him in the Rule 5 draft from the Yankees in 1937, and the Yankees had attempted to reacquire the left-handed hitter to replace Lou Gehrig. McQuinn would make his first of four all-star games, but would not get a chance to play with Jimmie Foxx, Hank Greenberg, and Lou Gehrig on the same roster. McQuinn would lead the Browns into the next decade and a championship in 1944. The lasting impact of the 1939 Browns, came with the fact that it closed out the dismal 1930s chapter of this franchise.