Jim Pagliaroni
Jim Pagliaroni | |
---|---|
Catcher | |
Born: Dearborn, Michigan, U.S. | December 8, 1937|
Died: April 3, 2010 Grass Valley, California, U.S. | (aged 72)|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
August 13, 1955, for the Boston Red Sox | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 30, 1969, for the Seattle Pilots | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .252 |
Home runs | 90 |
Runs batted in | 326 |
Teams | |
James Vincent "Pag" Pagliaroni (December 8, 1937 – April 3, 2010) was an American professional baseball player.[1] He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1955 to 1969 for the Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Oakland Athletics and the Seattle Pilots.[1]
Playing career
Pagliaroni was born in
In
On November 20, 1962, Pagliaroni was traded by the Red Sox along with Don Schwall to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Jack Lamabe and Dick Stuart.[3] When the Pirates' regular catcher, Smoky Burgess, was sidelined by an injury, Pagliaroni alternated with catcher Ron Brand to fulfill the catching duties.[16] Pagliaroni himself was injured in June when, a fractured ring finger on his right hand made him miss three weeks of the season.[16] He ended the 1963 season with a .230 batting average, 11 home runs and 26 RBI in 92 games.[1]
In 1964, Pagliaroni would catch the majority of the Pirates' games, as the 36-year-old Burgess was used mostly as a pinch hitter.[17] He produced a .295 batting average along with 10 home runs and 36 RBI in 97 games.[1] Defensively, he ranked third among National League catchers in fielding percentage.[18] Pagliaroni set a Pirates team record for catchers when he hit a career-high 17 home runs in 1965 while playing his home games at the cavernous Forbes Field.[10] He also produced a career-high 65 RBI and finished second among the league's catchers in fielding percentage, helping the Pirates to a third-place finish in the National League.[1][19]
In July
In May 1967, reports surfaced that Pagliaroni was asking to be traded, citing criticism his catching abilities had received from unnamed sources.[25] He appeared in only 38 games with a .200 batting average for the Pirates in 1967, while Jerry May took over as the regular catcher.[1] On December 3, 1967, Pagliaroni's contract was purchased by the Oakland Athletics from the Pirates.[26] The Pirates stated that Pagliaroni was sold due to his physical condition, having undergone an operation to remove a disc from his spine.[26]
Pagliaroni won the Athletics' starting catchers job at the beginning of the 1968 season and caught Catfish Hunter's perfect game on May 8 of that year, the first perfect game in the American League since 1922.[27] Hunter only disagreed with Pagliaroni's pitch-calling decisions twice during the game.[28] As a measure of his appreciation for his catcher's contribution to the perfect game, Hunter rewarded Pagliaroni with a gold watch that he had inscribed on back.[29] He suffered a fractured wrist in June causing him to miss seven weeks of the season.[30][31][32]
Pagliaroni began the 1969 season hitting for just a .148 batting average and on May 27, 1969, his contract was sold to the Seattle Pilots during their inaugural season as a major league team.[1] He shared catching duties with Jerry McNertney in the season immortalized by the book Ball Four, written by his Seattle teammate, Jim Bouton.[8] Pagliaroni played in his final major league game on September 30, 1969 at the age of 31.[1]
Career statistics
In an eleven-year major league career, Pagliaroni played in 849
Later life
Pagliaroni later became an executive with a food distribution company.
On April 3, 2010, Pagliaroni died of cancer in Grass Valley, California.[2][8]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Jim Pagliaroni statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved December 26, 2011.
- ^ a b c "Lives Lived: Jim Pagliaroni". The Union. April 7, 2010. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ a b "Jim Pagliaroni Trades and Transactions". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved December 26, 2011.
- ^ "Sam Mele Sold To Cincinnati". The Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Associated Press. June 24, 1955. p. 9. Retrieved December 26, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ Gyurina, Scott (May 3, 2011). "The 20 Youngest MLB Players to Debut Since World War I". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ "There Was More to Do Than Bench-Sit". The Spokesman-Review. June 30, 1960. p. 11. Retrieved December 26, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "Rookie Bonus Catcher Works With Red Sox". The Victoria Advocate. UPI. March 21, 1958. p. 8. Retrieved December 26, 2011.
- ^ a b c d e Noland, Claire (April 7, 2010). "Former major league catcher Jim Pagliaroni dies at 72". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "1960 Jim Pagliaroni batting log". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ a b Emert, Rich (July 18, 2002). "Where Are They Now?: Jim Pagliaroni". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "1961 Boston Red Sox". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "June 18, 1961 Senators-Red Sox box score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. June 18, 1961. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "Bosox Sweep 1st Twin Bill". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Associated Press. June 19, 1961. p. 2. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News. [dead link]
- ^ "1962 Boston Red Sox". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "August 1, 1962 White Sox-Red Sox box score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. August 1, 1962. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ a b "Bucs Catcher Sidelined". Quebec Chronicle-Telegraph. Associated Press. June 19, 1963. p. 11. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "Pennant-Hungry White Sox Buy Burgess From Pirates". St. Petersburg Times. Associated Press. September 15, 1964. p. 1. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "1964 National League Fielding Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ "1965 National League Fielding Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ "Story Denied". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Associated Press. July 30, 1966. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "Pagliaroni Sues Writer For Million". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 11, 1966. p. 1. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "1966 Pittsburgh Pirates Schedule, Box Scores and Splits". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "Manager Harry Walker Feels His Pirates Can Win Pennant". Lewiston Evening Journal. Associated Press. March 17, 1967. p. 19. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "1966 National League Fielding Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ "Are Pirates Having Themselves A Mutiny?". Schenectady Gazette. Associated Press. May 5, 1967. p. 26. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ a b "Kline Returns To Pirates; Pagliaroni Sold". The Pittsburgh Press. Associated Press. December 3, 1967. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "May 8, 1968 Twins-Athletics box score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. May 8, 1968. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "Catfish Never Dreamed One Pitch Worth So Much". Sarasota Journal. Associated Press. May 9, 1968. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "Teammates reflect fondly on Catfish". Allegheny Times. Knight Ridder. September 9, 1999. p. 12. Retrieved December 29, 2011 – via Google News.
- ^ "Pagliaroni Put On The Disabled List". The Pittsburgh Press. UPI. June 11, 1968. Retrieved January 15, 2014 – via Google News.
- ^ "1968 Jim Pagliaroni batting log". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ "Minute Sports Page". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Associated Press & UPI. June 10, 1968. p. 28. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs
- Pagliaroni interview from 2009
- Where Are They Now?: Jim Pagliaroni Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 6, 2010