Minor League Baseball Players

[PinsonHOF]

Here is one of my favorite players of my youth. I would make expansion teams on paper when I first took an interest in baseball. Living in Texas for a brief time I added to the 1977 expansion with the Dallas Pilots. My dad gave me a 1973 Baseball Almanac and there I found that Leon Ferguson had won 20 games for Yucatan of the Mexican league in 1972. Leonardo Sereze Ferguson was a wiry Panamanian of 5'11 and 150 lbs. He pitched in the Yankees organization from 1957 to 1966. His best season was in '63 when was equally outstanding for AA Columbus and AAA Richmond. Overall his record was 12-2 with a 1.87 ERA. That was his high water mark. It appears Ferguson had electric stuff particularly out of the bullpen but his Achilles heel was ball four. In 1.321 innings he walked 595 yet gave up only 57 home runs. Ferguson pitched at many levels for 18 seasons from 1957 and leaving statistical accountability in 1974 at age 35. I like to think he continued to hurl in Panama or in the winter leagues. At any level that is the mark of a man who is hard to hit. The image I have enclosed is from Leon Ferguson's brief stint with the Amarillo Gold Sox in 1962. Found on Ebay after I Googled Don Gile ...

[PinsonHOF]

Does anyone have any record or image of Ferguson in a Yankee uniform as a spring training invitee?

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=fergus002leo

[PinsonHOF]

I found this image of former Pirates farmhand Ron Gray. He was a southpaw who hurled from 1954 to 1957. He won 19 games at age 19 for the Brunswick Pirates of the Class D Georgia Florida league. It looks like Gray developed arm trouble as he would pitch only 36 games in the next three seasons. I have enclosed the link where I found the photo. It includes an image of Ron Gray at age 85 pitching to a young man in his driveway. Perhaps his grandson.

https://www.rawchili.com/2250667/mlb...-1950s-and-he/

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=gray--001ron

[PinsonHOF]

Here is a photo of Strichek when he played for the Albuquerque Dukes of the Western league in 1956. At the time Albuquerque was an A ball affiliate of the New York Giants. Don Strichek started his professional career in the Phillies organization in 1953 and ended his playing days for the Springfield Giants in 1960. From Ebay where he was identified as Don Strich.

[PinsonHOF]

Here is a right handed hitting lefthander who pitched one game for the Kansas City A's in 1960. Buddy Blemker was an outstanding baseball and basketball player at Georgia Tech making the All SEC team in both sports. Blemker pitched and played first base for the the Yellow Jackets. Here is an image of Buddy Blemker as a member of the Shreveport Sports who he pitched for in 1959 , 1960 and 1961.

[PinsonHOF]

This outfielder played in the Tigers and White Sox organizations from 1956 to 1967 reaching AAA for the first time in 1961. He did not make it to the show despite some excellent minor league seasons.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=queen-001jac

[Cusick]

This player's formal name was Jackson P. Queen. That was the name under which I found this photo. It's from the Lancaster (PA) New Era of April 21, 1958. The accompanying text confirms that the player is an outfielder who graduated from Thos. Jefferson HS in Elizabeth, NJ, and who played for Jamestown in the PONY Lg. in 1956. It also says he likes to be called Jess.

[PinsonHOF]

This is the father of former Cardinals shortstop and Dodger Tripp Cromer, who also played one game with the Astros hitting his only triple. Tripp was the Cardinals regular shortstop in 1995 but only because Ozzie Smith was injured. Roy Cromer is also the father of former Reds first baseman D.T. Cromer and Blue Jays first round draft pick Brandon Cromer. A fourth son Burke pitched briefly for the Braves organization. The images I am sharing are of Cromer in his Lake City (SC) high school uniform and as an older man.




https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=cromer002roy

https://issuu.com/lexingtonlifemagaz.../lexlifemar14_

[PinsonHOF]

Roy Silver was a minor league outfielder and occasional third baseman in the St. Louis Cardinals organization from 1984 to 1991. The switch hitting Silver was a contact hitter .291 with little power. After his playing career Roy Silver managed in the minors for Cardinals and then Devil Rays farm teams. The image I have posted is from a spring training appearance in St. Pete. I am not certain of the year. I have included a link to Roy Silver's Eckerd College hall of fame page. .


https://eckerdtritons.com/honors/eck.../roy-silver/43


https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=silver001roy

[Cusick]

Thomas J. "Tom" Sharkey died on June 7, 2020. A pitcher, he appeared on the Detroit Tigers' spring roster in 1955, 1956, and 1957. He was a graduate of Seton Hall Prep School and Seton Hall University. Later, he went through the Harvard Executive Program. He founded Meeker Sharkey, an insurance broker firm in Cranford, NJ, in 1962. He was on the Boards of Directors of several corporations, and the Seton Hall University Board of Regents for 30 years. He is in the Seton Hall HOF. He was born on 4/17/1933.

This photo appeared on eBay in 2011.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=sharke001tho

[Cusick]

This player caught my attention because he died in Pattaya, Thailand. We don't find minor league players meeting the end of their lives halfway around the world very often. He died recently on May 31, 2020.

Frank Layana was an outfielder in the Chicago White Sox system during the 1950's. His best year was in 1954 when he hit .357 in 85 games for the Class D Madisonville Miners. He is shown here with the Wisconsin Rapids White Sox in a photo from the Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune of June 29, 1953.

Frank was apparently the father of Tim Layana, the major league pitcher who died tragically in a car accident at age 35. Tim had a brother named Michael, who also died unexpectedly at an early age, 47. In Michael's obit, it said that his father was Frank. The obit also discussed how his family was associated with sports, and said that Michael's uncle was former major leaguer Jim McAnany.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=layana001fra

[PinsonHOF]

I have been looking for a minor league image of former Reds and White Sox farmhand Tom Perdue a member of the Ohio State Buckeyes hall of fame. As a senior the West Virginia native made the All America team hitting .469 , still a Buckeye record. He was also a starting defensive end on the '61 National Championship team at 5'11 and 190 lbs. Perdue was according to different websites a bible scholar and the author of eight books. Attached are a neat looking player card of Tom Perdue as a young football player and another of him in later years from his obituary page.

[rlumpkin1@tampabay.rr.com]

Any photos of 1. Jose Gonzalez 2. Stan Spencer 3. Kerwin Moore 4. Gene Walters 5. Chuck Jackson in a Marlins uni. 1993 Spring Training. Thx. in advance.

[Cusick]

Originally Posted by rlumpkin1@tampabay.rr.com

Any photos of 1. Jose Gonzalez 2. Stan Spencer 3. Kerwin Moore 4. Gene Walters 5. Chuck Jackson in a Marlins uni. 1993 Spring Training. Thx. in advance.

Not sure why these requests are on a minor league thread for major league players in a major league uniform, but I'm too old and too tired to care anymore.

The photo is from the South Florida Sun Sentinel of April 4, 1993.

[Cusick]

Photo is from the Miami Herald of Feb. 28, 1993.

[rlumpkin1@tampabay.rr.com]

Originally Posted by Cusick

Not sure why these requests are on a minor league thread for major league players in a major league uniform, but I'm too old and too tired to care anymore.

The photo is from the South Florida Sun Sentinel of April 4, 1993.

Wasn't paying attention and put here instead of General info. thread. sorry.

[PinsonHOF]

I'm looking for an individual image of this 60's Reds minor league shortstop. There is a group photo of the young Reds infielders posing with manager Fred Hutchinson on page 164 of this thread. All of the players shown enjoyed extended major league careers with varying degrees of success with the exception of Obregon who never made the show. Francisco Obregon, who I imagine was referred to as Frankie in fitting with that era, played 17 minor league seasons from 1957 to 1973 with 11 campaigns at AAA. He also played extensively in the Phillies and Braves organizations.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=obrego001fra

[PinsonHOF]

Breaking my pattern of 60's images and requests for same, here is Expos minor league outfielder/first baseman Ken Lake. Lake was a graduate of the university of Wyoming baseball program with the Expos taking him in the 39th round of the '88 draft. Ken Lake had power and speed hitting 16 home runs during his 1989 A ball season and stealing 24 bases. Alas,consistent contact was a problem with a .223 batting average compounded with 142 strikeouts. It looks like Ken Lake was a player with some tools who was never able to get over the hump. In 320 outfield games he amassed 27 assists with 14 errors. Not a bad ratio for a young minor league player. In any event here he is wearing the uniform of the Harrisburg AA Senators where Ken played a mere 6 games in his final season of professional ball in 1991.

[Home Free]

This image drew quite a buzz on our custom baseball card page today. A nicely colorized photo of John Olerud, Senior, who caught mostly in the Angels system from 1965-71. Knowing how teams bring up catchers by the busload at the onset of spring training and assume college vet catcher Olerud was a likely callup in or around 1967-68. A Card That Never Was, just for fun.

[Home Free]

Originally Posted by Cusick

The photo of Al Crawford is another one which came from the www.sportslot.com website in 2011.

Al Crawford was on the Reds' spring roster every year for four years in a row, 1969-1972. Whenever I come across a player who had been on a spring roster for four or five years, and not made the major leagues, it makes me wonder what was in the GM's mind to keep using a roster slot for the guy over and over like that, and yet not give him a shot at playing in the bigs. It had to be very frustrating for the player.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/r...d=crawfo001alf

;

Any time you can remove a photo like the one posted initially it's a good day. Here is Al Crawford, colorized image from a Reds Yearbook.