St. Louis Browns catcher, Leo Dixon, was born on Septmember 4, 1894 in Chicago, Illinois. He would play three of his four MLB seasons in St. Louis, as he was looked upon to replace one of the greatest catchers in the American League. Even though he would develop into a solid defender behind the plate, his offensive production lagged behin
St. Louis Browns catcher, Leo Dixon, was born on Septmember 4, 1894 in Chicago, Illinois. He would play three of his four MLB seasons in St. Louis, as he was looked upon to replace one of the greatest catchers in the American League. Even though he would develop into a solid defender behind the plate, his offensive production lagged behind his skills with the glove.
Leo Dixon did not start his professional baseball career until he was 25 years old. There are no records of him playing college or semipro baseball before signing with the local Rock Island Islanders in 1920. He would go on to play three seasons with the Indianapolis Indians (1921-23) and one with the St. Paul Saints. It was with the Saints in 1924 that he batted .272 with 123 hits, 27 doubles and ten home runs. The Browns were so impressed that on January 3, 1925, they sent RHP Ray Kolp, INF Norm McMillan, catcher Pat Collins, a player to be named later, the rights to Cedric Durst, and cash to the Saints for Leo Dixon.
The Browns were looking for a young catcher to replace the legendary Hank Severeid, who had been a solid cather for 10 seasons. Dixon would make his MLB debut on April 14, 1925 as a pinch hitter for Dixie Davis against the Cleveland Inidans. He would become the Browns starting catcher as St. Louis traded Severeid to the Washington Nationals in June of 1925. Dixon would reach a .224 average which would be the best among Browns 'baskstops' that season. Unforetunately for Dixon, his offensive skills would keep him from playing time over the next two seasons.
With the introduction of catcher Wally Schang to the Browns, Dixon would only appear in 33 games in his sophomore season. His .191 batting average in 1926 did not help with his playing time. In his third season with St. Louis (1926), he would continue to struggle with the bat (.194 average) and also in the field (.937 fielding percentage, 11 errors). The Browns would eventually trade Dixon to the Baltimore Orioles of the International League on January 10, 1928. They sent him, RHP Stew Bolen, and cash to Baltimore for RHP Jack Ogden.
Dixon would return to the major leagues with the Cincinnati Reds in 1929, before finishing his career with the Columbus Senators in 1930. After retiring from baseball Leo Dixon would return to Chicago and go to work in his family's Hardware store.
Leo Dixon's final statistics with the Browns included a disappointing 83 hits in 462 plate appearances, with 17 doubles, three triples, one home run, 39 RBIs, 40 runs scored, and a batting average of .209.
FUN TRIVIA - Leo Dixon's difficulties at the plate is remembered as part of a level struggling hitters hope to never reach. The combination of Jim Mason and Leo Dixon's career batting average of .204 is often referred to as the infamous "Mason-Dixon Line" for its ineptitude at the plate. It is lower that the often cited "Mendoza Line" of .215.
HEADLINES
"GEORGE SISLER DOMINATES THE CHISOX AS HE SCORES SEVEN RUNS IN A DOUBLE HEADER"
FEATURED GAME
1922 - In the best single day of the season, the Browns pounded the White Sox for 22 runs on 30 hits as they take two from Chicago.
GAME 1 - Browns 1B Georg Sisler would lead the Browns offense with eight total bases, by going a perfect 4-
HEADLINES
"GEORGE SISLER DOMINATES THE CHISOX AS HE SCORES SEVEN RUNS IN A DOUBLE HEADER"
FEATURED GAME
1922 - In the best single day of the season, the Browns pounded the White Sox for 22 runs on 30 hits as they take two from Chicago.
GAME 1 - Browns 1B Georg Sisler would lead the Browns offense with eight total bases, by going a perfect 4-for-4, which included two doubles and a triple. He would score three runs while driving in two more. He would not be the Browns slugger to get involved in the route. LF Ken Williams would have three hits, including his 33rd home run of the season. He would also drive in three runs and scored two more. CF Baby Doll Jacobson and catcher Hank Severeid would both have two hits and two RBIs. Jacobson would add two RBIs, while Severeid cracked his 28th double of the year. Meanwhile Urban Shocker was on the way to his 23rd win of the season.Browns win game 1, 10-3
GAME 2 - The combination of crushing offense and dominating itching continued in to Game 2 as the browns won 12-1. George Sisler would score four runs while tallying three hits and an RBI. Hank Severeid would go 2-for 5 with four RBIs. The outfield combination of Baby Doll Jacobson and Ken Williams would combine for three hits (including a double by Williams), four runs, and 2 RBIs. The Browns infield combination of 2B Marty McManus and SS Wally Gerber would also add three hits a run, and four RBIs. Browns RHP Elam Vangilder would pitch a complete game, where he added a home run in the fourth inning. His pitching line for the game would include giving up 12 hits and just one walk. After this game the Browns found themselves just 0.5 games behind the Yankees for first place.
BROWNS RECORD ON THIS DAY
Overall Record on SEPTEMBER 4
28 Wins, 20 Losses Two Ties (.560)
1902-09: 5-1
1910-19: 3-7
1920-29: 7-2
1930-39: 2-7-2
1940-49: 8-2
1950-53: 3-1
DOUBLE HEADERS
Sweeps: 3
Splits: 5
Swept: 2
TRANSACTIONS
There were no transactions made on this day
DEBUTS
1913 - LHP Hal Schwenk would pitch a 11-inning, complete game victory over the Chicago White Sox. He would scatter four runs on ten hits, four walks, while striking out four White Sox. The amazing thing about this performance is that it would be his only game in his Major League career.
BROWNS BIRTHDAYS ON SEPTEMBER 4
1887 - INF Red Corridon (1910)
1887 - 2B Tillie Walker (1913-15)
1894 - Catcher Leo Dixon (1925-27)
The impact of the 1915 St. Louis Browns was subtle on the field, but huge after the season was over. On the field the team finished in sixth place with a 63-91 record. Playing within the American League, the team had only one winning record over other American League teams (16-6 over Philadelphia). In the seven month season, they only rec
The impact of the 1915 St. Louis Browns was subtle on the field, but huge after the season was over. On the field the team finished in sixth place with a 63-91 record. Playing within the American League, the team had only one winning record over other American League teams (16-6 over Philadelphia). In the seven month season, they only record two months of over .500 baseball - July 16-15 and September 16-13.
The offense was lead by Del Pratt, but compared to the rest of the league he was not reaching superstar status. He did have the second most doubles (31), tied with the legendary Ty Cobb.
The pitching staff as a group was not very impressive. Browns manager Branch Rickey, tried 23 pitchers on the mound and only five had over 130 innings pitched. The staff was led in almost every category by third-year pro, RHP Carl Weilman. Although he did not have winning record, 18-19, he was the anchor of the staff and only one to appear in the top 10 of the "Good" pitching categories.
Manager Branch Rickey was finding himself out of his league as the leader of this team. He may have been one of the few managers who were too smart and analytical to impact his own team
After the 1915 season was over, the Browns ownership would change from Robert Hedges to Phil Ball. Ball was the owner of the St. Louis Terriers of the recently folded Federal Baseball League. Ball would bring over 11 of his best players from the FBL, and the team felt an immediate impact. th team would win 16 more games in 1916 than they did in 1915. Under Ball and new General Manager Branch Rickey, the future was looking bright for the Browns.