Sam Chapman
Sam Chapman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Runs batted in | 773 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Samuel Blake Chapman (April 11, 1916 – December 22, 2006) was an American two-sport athletic star who played as a center fielder in Major League Baseball, spending nearly his entire career with the Philadelphia Athletics (1938–1941, 1945–1951). He batted and threw right-handed, leading the American League in putouts four times. He was previously an All-American college football player at the University of California.
Early life
Born in Tiburon, California, Chapman graduated from Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley, California in 1934, with letters in football, baseball, basketball and track.
College career
Going to the university at the suggestion of Tamalpais football coach
Professional career
Turning down a pro football career after being
He joined the
After baseball
After leaving baseball, Chapman became an inspector for the Bay Area Air Pollution Control District.[10] He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1984, and to the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1987. In 1999, he was named to the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame. In 2006, the Tiburon Town Council voted to commission a statue of Chapman to be installed at the Tiburon ferry landing.[11] That plan was later adjusted, and in 2012, a plaque honoring Chapman was dedicated at Point Tiburon Plaza.[12]
Chapman died at an assisted-living residence in Kentfield, California, at the age of 90, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease for several years.[13]
See also
References
- ^ "Stub Allison Makes Five Shifts". Oakland Tribune. September 11, 1936. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Cohn, Art (October 13, 1937). "Sam Chapman Greater Than Red Grange, Claims Allison". Oakland Tribune. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "1938 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-03-25.
- ^ "Sam Chapman Signs Contract With Philadelphia Athletics". Los Angeles Times. AP. May 3, 1938. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Philadelphia Athletics 10, St. Louis Browns 5". Retrosheet. May 5, 1939.
- ^ "Sam Chapman To Join Navy". The Honolulu Advertiser. October 30, 1941. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- The Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. AP. February 5, 1943. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Chapman Wins Wings and a Commission". Abilene Reporter-News. Abilene, Texas. March 3, 1943. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sam Chapman Rejoins A's; Discharged From Navy". The Morning News. Wilmington, Delaware. UP. September 11, 1945. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Smog Ban Bringing Few Howls In Marin". Daily Independent Journal. San Rafael, California. January 17, 1970. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "A fitting honor for a Tiburon legend". Marin Independent Journal. Marin County, California. August 8, 2006.
- ^ Jason, Will (June 8, 2012). "Former big leaguer Sam Chapman honored in Tiburon". Marin Independent Journal. Marin County, California. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
- ^ "Sam Chapman, former Philadelphia Athletics outfielder, dies at 90". The Sentinel. Carlisle, Pennsylvania. AP. December 30, 2006. Retrieved November 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
Further reading
- Sam Chapman at the College Football Hall of Fame
- Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
- Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society via Wayback Machine
- Sam Chapman at Baseballbiography.com
- Albee, Dave (December 26, 2006). "Sam Chapman, former top athlete, dies at 90". Marin Independent Journal.
- Noland, Claire (December 29, 2006). "Sam Chapman, 90; halfback on last Cal team to win Rose Bowl". Los Angeles Times.
- Chapin, Dwight (December 30, 2006). "SAM CHAPMAN: 1916-2006 / Marin star was 5-sport letterman". San Francisco Chronicle.
- Dep, Alan (June 9, 2012). "Former big leaguer Sam Chapman honored in Tiburon". Marin Independent Journal. (photo gallery)
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Sam Chapman plaque in Tiburon, California via Google Maps