St. Louis Browns slugging left fielder, Jeff Heath, was born on April 1, 1915 in Fort William, Ontario, Canada. Throughout most of his career, Heath would establish many "firsts" in baseball that would help propel him into the record books. He would be the only MLB to come from Fort William, and the first graduate from Garfield High Schoo
St. Louis Browns slugging left fielder, Jeff Heath, was born on April 1, 1915 in Fort William, Ontario, Canada. Throughout most of his career, Heath would establish many "firsts" in baseball that would help propel him into the record books. He would be the only MLB to come from Fort William, and the first graduate from Garfield High School in Seattle Washington to reach the big leagues. He would be the most successful player from the University of Washington, leading all Husky alums in Major League games played, runs, hits, double, triples, home runs, stolen bases, walks, and OPS+. Jeff Heath was the first player in Major League Baseball history to hit a home run in every National League and American League ball park. With all of this success, he was often abrasive and confrontational to both his teammates and opponents.
Jeff Heath began his baseball career with a semipro team in Yakima, Washington, before touring Japan with the Les Mann's amateur baseball team in 1935. Heath signed with the Cleveland Indians upon returning from Japan in 1936, and was assigned to the Zanesville Greys. After just 124 games batting, Heath was batting .383 with 28 home runs and 187 RBIs. He would make his MLB debut with Cleveland on September 13, 1936. He would spend the next ten seasons (1936-45) with the Indians, earning two all-star appearances (1941, 43) and leading the league in triple twice (1938, 41).
After the 1945 season, Heath had worn out his time with Cleveland and was dealt to the Washington Nationals for outfielder George Case. Although he was one of the best hitters on the team, the Nationals would trade Jeff Heath to the Browns on June 15, 1946, for outfielder Joe Grace and right-handed pitcher Al LaMacchia.
Heath was exactly what the Browns needed in their lineup. In 86 games with St. Louis, he would tally 87 hits, 20 doubles, four triples, 12 home runs, 57 RBIs, and a .275 batting average. Jeff Heath's 1947 season with the Browns was even better. He would lead the team in runs scored (81), home runs (27), RBIs (85), walks (88), and strikeouts (87). In comparison to the rest of the American League, Heath would finish in the top 10 in slugging percentage, total bases, home runs, RBIs, walks, OPS+, extra base hits, putouts from LF, assists, fielding percentage, and led the league in double plays from the outfield.
With all this success, Jeff Heath had his issues as a member of the Browns. His confrontations with John Berardino and Willard Brown, as well as issues with team procedures, tarnished his time in St. Louis. His contract was purchased by the Boston Braves, where he played his last two seasons in the Major Leagues (1948-49).
Jeff Heath would finish his career with the Seattle Rainiers in 1950, and later become a fixture in the "Emerald City" as a member of the Rainiers broadcast team. He would remain a supporter of baseball in Seattle, but was outspoken against the construction of the Seattle Kingdome.
Jeff Heath was a powerful hitter, but his rough personality may have placed a shadow over his impressive career.
TODAY'S BROWNS' QUOTE
“He was a mixture of gentleness and brute strength, angel and devil, but withal an exciting fellow for what he might have been as well as for what he was.”
~ Howard Preston, Cleveland News, as written in the obituary of Jeff Heath
BROWNS' BIRTHDAYS ON THIS DAY
1876 - UTIL Bill Friel (1902-03)
1889 - RHP Tom Phillips (191
TODAY'S BROWNS' QUOTE
“He was a mixture of gentleness and brute strength, angel and devil, but withal an exciting fellow for what he might have been as well as for what he was.”
~ Howard Preston, Cleveland News, as written in the obituary of Jeff Heath
BROWNS' BIRTHDAYS ON THIS DAY
1876 - UTIL Bill Friel (1902-03)
1889 - RHP Tom Phillips (1915)
1915 - LF Jeff Heath (1946-47)
1914 - CF George Bradley (1946)
1912 - LHP Jake Wade (1939)
TRANSACTIONS
1951 - The Browns traded infielders Merrill Combs and Snuffy Stirnweiss to the Cleveland Indians for Fred Marsh and $35,000. Merrill Combs was traded away before ever playing a game for the Browns. St. Louis picked him up in the Rule 5 draft on November 16, 1950. He would go on to play 71 games for Cleveland over the 1951-52 season, recording a .168 batting average. Snuffy Stirnweiss had already been an MLB veteran when he came to St. Louis for the last half of the 1950 season. He had won a batting title, been to two All-Star Games, and three World Series titles with the New York Yankees. In the time he was with the Browns, he took on the role of utility infielder, appearing in 93 games and batting .218. The Browns received third baseman Fred Marsh and $35,000 from Cleveland. Marsh played with the Oklahoma City Indians of the Texas League where he hit .300 with 10 home runs. Marsh would play in 130 games at third base in 1951, hitting four home runs, driving in 43, with a .243 average. Marsh would spend most of the next two seasons with the Browns, while being involved in four trades in less than two years.
The strength of the Browns in 1940 was spread throughout the lineup with established veterans and new power hitters. The overall offensive numbers did not change much from the 1939 season, but there were more players getting involved in the offensive production. The previous season had 1B George McQuinn leading in eight of the 11 primary
The strength of the Browns in 1940 was spread throughout the lineup with established veterans and new power hitters. The overall offensive numbers did not change much from the 1939 season, but there were more players getting involved in the offensive production. The previous season had 1B George McQuinn leading in eight of the 11 primary offensive categories. In 1940, there were four separate leaders who topped the batting categories for the Browns. The All-Star game was played in Sportsman's Park and the only Browns All-Star this season was 1B George McQuinn.
Batting Leaders from the 1940 season with A.L. rankings in (#)
Team Statistics:
Player Statistics