Andy Seminick

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Andy Seminick
Andy Seminick in 1947
Catcher
Born: (1920-09-12)September 12, 1920
Pierce, West Virginia, U.S.
Died: February 22, 2004(2004-02-22) (aged 83)
Palm Bay, Florida, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 14, 1943, for the Philadelphia Phillies
Last MLB appearance
September 21, 1957, for the Philadelphia Phillies
MLB statistics
Batting average.243
Home runs164
Runs batted in556
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Andrew Wasal Seminick (September 12, 1920 – February 22, 2004) was an

1955, when he rejoined the Phillies for the rest of his career until his release at the end of the 1957 season. Seminick was an integral part of the 1950 "Whiz Kids" Phillies team that won their first pennant since 1915.[2][3]

Playing career

Seminick was born in

Knoxville Smokies of the Class-A Southern Association, and was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies.[2][8]

At the age of 23, Seminick made his major league debut on September 14, 1943. By 1945, the Phillies were using Seminick in a platoon system alongside veteran catcher Gus Mancuso. While he could hit for power, his defensive skills were below average, as he led the National League in errors in 1946, 1948 and 1949.[2] Phillies manager Eddie Sawyer assigned Phillies coach and former catcher Cy Perkins to tutor him, which helped improve his defensive skills.[2] He was voted by baseball fans to be the starting catcher for the National League in the 1949 All-Star Game, mostly for his reputation as a hitter.[2][9]

On June 2,

extra bases
total to 18, still a record. Seminick collected three home runs overall.

With his defensive and

Philadelphia baseball writers nicknamed Seminick "Grandpa Whiz."[11]

On August 12, 1950, in a game against the Giants, Seminick became irritated after Eddie Stanky repeatedly waved his arms while Seminick was batting. Stanky was eventually ejected from the game, but Seminick took out his frustrations on Bill Rigney, Stanky's replacement at second base. After he reached base on an error in the fourth inning, he slid hard into second base, crashing into Rigney and causing him to fall over. A nearly ten-minute brawl erupted between the teams, which required police intervention and resulted in the ejection of Seminick and Rigney from the game. The Phillies went on to win 4–3.[12][13]

Seminick enjoyed his best season in 1950, hitting for a .288 batting average with 24 home runs and 68 runs batted in. Seminick broke his ankle late in the season, but continued to play with the injury until the Phillies lost to the

Hall of Fame pitcher, Robin Roberts said of Seminick,"If you had to pick a guy in the clubhouse who was our leader that year, it would be Andy. He always played hard, and that was his best year by far".[4]

Seminick in 1951

In

1955 season.[6] In 1955, he was once again traded for Burgess, returning to the Phillies, where he led National League catchers with a .994 fielding percentage.[6][15] He played two more years before ending his playing career at the age of 36 after the 1957
season.

Career statistics

In a 15-year major league career, Seminick played in 1,304

base runners who tried steal a base on him, 16th on the all-time list.[16] Seminick led National League catchers twice in baserunners caught stealing and once each in putouts, assists and fielding percentage.[1] At the time of his retirement, he ranked seventh all-time in home runs by catchers.[17]

Managing and coaching career

After retiring as a player, Seminick worked for the Philadelphia organization for the rest of his life. He was a

scout and as a roving minor-league instructor for the Phillies (1974–mid-1980s). Notably, ninety of the players he managed or coached eventually played in the major leagues, including Mike Schmidt, Ferguson Jenkins, Greg Luzinski and Bob Boone.[4] Seminick helped to convert Boone from a third baseman
to one of the best defensive catchers in baseball.

In the 1990s, Seminick served as a catching instructor for Philadelphia in

Florida Instructional League
.

Andy Seminick died in Palm Bay, Florida, at 83 years of age.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c Andy Seminick at Baseball Reference
  2. ^
    ISSN 0005-609X
  3. ^ a b c Goldstein, Richard (24 February 2004). "Andy Seminick, 83, Catcher for Whiz Kids (Published 2004)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2015-02-16.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rogers, C. Paul III. "Andy Seminick". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  5. ^ "Orthodox Christian Journal". Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  6. ^ a b c Andy Seminick Trades and Transactions at Baseball Almanac
  7. ^ 1942 Appalachian League Batting Leaders Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ 1943 Southern Association Batting Leaders at Baseball Reference Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ 1949 All-Star Game at Baseball Reference
  10. ^ Home Runs in a Game by a Team Records at Baseball Almanac
  11. ^ Spink, C.C. Johnson, editor.Official 1967 Baseball Register. St. Louis: The Sporting News, 1967
  12. ^ Rogers, C. Paul III. "August 12, 1950: The day Andy Seminick took out the Giants' infield". SABR. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  13. ISBN 0-525-23264-8
    .
  14. ^ 1950 World Series at Baseball Reference
  15. ISSN 0005-609X
  16. ^ Catchers Caught Stealing Percentage at The Encyclopedia of Catchers
  17. ^ Co, Lakeside Publishing (October 1977). Most Home Runs By Catchers. Retrieved 26 October 2011. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  18. ^ Andy Seminick Minor league manager statistics Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine

External links

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