Dario Antonio Lodigiani

odi ODI may refer to: * Object Design, Incorporated, a defunct database software company * One Day International, cricket match * Open Data Institute, a UK not-for-profit company promoting open data * Open Data-Link Interface, an implementation of th ...

(June 6, 1916 – February 10, 2008) was an

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

in Major League Baseball who played for two different teams between

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

and

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

. Listed at 5'8", 150 lb., he batted and threw right-handed. He was born in San Francisco, California. Lodigiani enjoyed a 17-year baseball career (1935–1954), playing parts of six seasons in the majors (1938–42, 1946) and 14 in the minor leagues (1935–40; 1947–54), losing three years while serving in the military (1943–45).

Early life

He played second base for

Lowell High School (San Francisco) Lowell High School is a co-educational, public high school in San Francisco, California. History 1853-1893 In 1853, Colonel Thomas J. Nevins, San Francisco's first superintendent of schools, broached the idea of a free high school for boys ...

, as his

double play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Leag ...

partner was shortstop Joe DiMaggio. In 1935, he graduated from Galileo High School (SF), where he was an All-Star in the baseball, basketball and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

teams.

Professional career

At age 19, Lodigiani started his professional career with the

Oakland Oaks Oakland Oaks may refer to one of the following sport teams, listed chronologically: * Oakland Oaks (PCL), a minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1955 *Oakland Oaks (ice hockey), a professional ice hockey t ...

of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

(1935–37) and later joined the Williamsport Grays of the Eastern League (1938). He entered the majors in 1938 with the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oaklan ...

, playing for them until 1940 in one game before joining the Toronto Maple Leafs of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

(1940). He returned to major league action with the Chicago White Sox (1941–42), and later served in the US Army Air Force during World War II (1943–45). After discharge, he rejoined the ChiSox in 1946, his last major league season. In his rookie season with Philadelphia, Lodigiani posted a .280 batting average with six home runs and 44

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in 93

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

. The next year he recorded career-highs in games (121),

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(102), runs (46), doubles (22), and matched his numbers in home runs and RBI while hitting .260. In a six-season career, Lodigiani was a .260 hitter (355–for–1364) with 16 home runs and 156 RBI in 405 games, including 142 runs, 71 doubles, seven

triples TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...

, 12

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...

s, and a .338

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

. A disciplined hitter, he posted a solid 1.64 walk-to-strikeout ratio (141–to–86). On the field, he appeared in 275 games as a third baseman and 115 at second. He had an overall total of .948

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...

(82 errors in 1582

chances Chances may refer to: * ''Chances'' (TV series), an Australian soap opera * ''Chances'' (Philippine TV series), a prime-time soap opera * '' Chances: The Women of Magdalene'', a 2006 documentary film * ''Chances'' (novel), a 1981 novel by Jac ...

). Lodigiani returned to the Pacific Coast League with the Oakland Oaks (1947–49) and San Francisco Seals (1949–51). After that, he played and managed in the Western International League for Yakima (1952–53), and played with the Ventura Oilers (1953) and Channel Cities Oilers (1954) of the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leag ...

. Over 14 minor league seasons, he hit a .301 average with 74 home runs and 589 RBI. His best minor league season was with the 1937 Oaks, when he hit .327 with 35 doubles, 18 home runs and 84 RBI.

Later life

Following his playing career, Lodigiani

scouted ''Scouted'' is an American reality television series that chronicles the discovery process of the next big name in the modeling industry. The show premiered on Monday, November 28, 2011, on the E! cable network. Overview The series showcases lo ...

for the Chicago White Sox, discovering or signing players such as

Dave Frost Carl David Frost (born November 17, 1952) is an American former professional baseball player and a former Major League Baseball pitcher. The , right-hander was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 18th round of the 1974 Major League Baseb ...

, Rusty Kuntz, Jack McDowell, Rich Morales and Ken Williams. He also coached for the Cleveland Indians and Kansas City Athletics, and eventually gained induction to the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame in 2006.

Death

Lodigiani died in Napa, California on February 10, 2008.

References

External links