Byron Ellis Browne (born December 27, 1942) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

, who played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

, and

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

, between and . He attended Central High School in St. Joseph, MO. Browne was signed by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

, on September 9, 1962, then was drafted by the Cubs from the Pirates in the 1963 first-year draft. In his first Major League Baseball at-bat, on September 9, 1965, Browne lined out in the second inning of

Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; born Sanford Braun; December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of t ...

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

. After a productive rookie season in , Browne played most of for the Double-A Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs. In all, he played in parts of three seasons with the Cubs, hitting .236, with 16

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

, in 134 games. Browne also led the league in strikeouts in 1966, with 143. Browne was traded by the Cubs to the Astros, on May 4, 1968, in return for Aaron Pointer but only played in 10 games with the Astros, totaling three hits in 19 at-bats. The Cardinals purchased Browne from the Astros, on February 12, 1969, where he appeared in 22 games, while hitting .226, spending most of the season with the Triple-A

Tulsa Oilers The Tulsa Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and play in the ECHL. The Oilers played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center until 2008 when they moved into the new BOK Center. For many years, the Tuls ...

. Browne was traded to the Phillies, along with

Curt Flood Curtis Charles Flood (January 18, 1938 – January 20, 1997) was an American professional baseball player and activist. He was a center fielder who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Redlegs, St. Louis Cardinals, ...

Tim McCarver James Timothy McCarver (born October 16, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to , most prominently as a member of the St. Louis Cardinal ...

, and

Joe Hoerner Joseph Walter Hoerner (November 12, 1936 – October 4, 1996) was an American professional baseball relief pitcher, who played 14 years in Major League Baseball (MLB), for seven different teams. A native of Dubuque, Iowa he grew up in nearby Key ...

, for

Dick Allen Richard Anthony Allen (March 8, 1942 – December 7, 2020) was an American professional baseball player. During his fifteen-year-long Major League Baseball (MLB) career, he played as a first baseman, third baseman, and outfielder, most notably ...

Cookie Rojas Octavio Víctor "Cookie" Rojas Rivas (born March 6, 1939), is a Cuban former professional baseball second baseman / outfielder, coach, and manager, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Lo ...

, and Jerry Johnson, on October 7, 1969. He played the rest of his MLB career for Philadelphia. Browne's son (Byron Browne, Jr.) played 10 years in the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

farm system.

External links

Byron Browne
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Byron Browne
at Baseball Almanac
Byron Browne
at Baseball Library

at Astros Daily {{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, Byron 1942 births Living people African-American baseball players Alijadores de Tampico players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Arizona Instructional League Cubs players Baseball players from Missouri Batavia Pirates players Chicago Cubs players Dallas–Fort Worth Spurs players Eugene Emeralds players Florida Instructional League Tigers players Houston Astros players Major League Baseball outfielders Mineros de Coahuila players Oklahoma City 89ers players Philadelphia Phillies players Salt Lake City Bees players Sportspeople from St. Joseph, Missouri St. Louis Cardinals players Tacoma Cubs players Toledo Mud Hens players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Wenatchee Chiefs players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople