Robert Fogle Milliken (August 25, 1926 – January 4, 2007) was a reliever and spot starter in Major League Baseball who played for the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

(1953–54). Milliken batted and threw right-handed. He was born in Majorsville, West Virginia. Milliken pitched in the minor leagues with

Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

(1948–49) and Montreal (1950) before joining the military from 1951 to 1952. After being discharged, he helped the Brooklyn Dodgers to clinch the 1953 National League pennant with an 8–4 mark, 65

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s, 117

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is bot ...

, and a 3.37 ERA in 37 appearances, including 10 starts. He faced the New York Yankees in the World Series of that year and pitched two innings of shutout relief. In 1954 he went 5–2 with two saves in 24 games, three as a starter, as he recorded a 4.02 ERA in a league where the pitchers averaged 4.07. After that, he suffered arm problems and did not return to the major leagues. From 1955 to 1956 Milliken divided his playing time between Fort Worth and Montreal. Following his playing retirement, he returned to the majors as a batting practice pitcher (1963–1964) and bullpen and pitching coach with the St. Louis Cardinals (1965–70, 1976). He is given credit in the ''SABR'' biography of

Jim Willoughby James Arthur Willoughby (born January 31, 1949) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1971 through 1978 for the San Francisco Giants, Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox. Listed at 6' 2" , 185 lb. , he batted and threw ri ...

for straightening out his delivery in 1975, while Milliken served as the Redbirds' minor-league pitching instructor and Willoughby was with the Triple-A Tulsa Oilers. Later, he was a St. Louis

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

. In 61 major league appearances, Milliken posted a 13–6 record with a 3.59 ERA, four saves, and 90 strikeouts in 180 innings, including 13 starts and three

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

s. Milliken died in

Clearwater, Florida Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, northwest of Tampa and St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2020 census, the city had a populat ...

, at the age of 80. According to his obituary, he had spent 58 years in baseball.

References

External links

Baseball Almanac
{{DEFAULTSORT:Milliken, Bob 1926 births 2007 deaths Atlanta Crackers players Baseball players from West Virginia Brooklyn Dodgers players Danville Dodgers players Fort Worth Cats players Macon Dodgers players Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches Memphis Chickasaws players Montreal Royals players People from Marshall County, West Virginia Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides players Rochester Red Wings players St. Louis Cardinals coaches St. Louis Cardinals scouts St. Paul Saints (AA) players Spokane Indians players

See also

References

External links