Derrill Burnham "Del" Pratt (January 10, 1888 – September 30, 1977) was a star running back for the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

before becoming a professional baseball player. Pratt signed with the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...

in . He was a star second baseman in the American League for over a decade, but also saw some action at first base, shortstop, third base and the outfield.

Baseball career

In his rookie season, in , Pratt batted .302 for the Browns. In he led the American League with 103

RBIs A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

In , the Browns were struggling. Owner Phil Ball accused some of the players of intentionally playing poorly so that they could be traded. Ball said, "Every $1,000 I lose on the Browns this season will cost the ballplayers $100. Salaries will be cut next season." Pratt was offended. He and teammate

Doc Lavan John Leonard "Doc" Lavan (October 28, 1890 – May 29, 1952) was an American professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Athletics, Washington Senators, and St. Louis Cardinals ...

sued Ball for slander.

The Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

went so far as to call Pratt the Browns'

Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian M ...

. The suit was eventually settled in 1918, and Pratt was traded to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

. After the 1920 season, the Yankees traded Pratt to the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

for

Waite Hoyt Waite Charles Hoyt (September 9, 1899 – August 25, 1984) was an American right-handed professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for seven different teams during 1918–1938. He was one of the dominant pitchers of the 19 ...

, but he decided to retire. He was hired as the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

baseball coach to replace Carl Lundgren (with a recommendation from Branch Rickey) and served as an assistant football coach and freshman basketball coach. He began preparing the 1921 team, but the Red Sox coaxed him out of retirement before the first game of the season. Upon his return to the Sox in 1921, Pratt batted over .300. He ended his career with the Detroit Tigers. Derrill Pratt (1920)

His career batting average was .292 over twelve seasons, with an on-base percentage of .345. He had a total of 979 RBIs and 857 runs scored. Pratt hit better than .300 six times.

Death

Pratt died in

Texas City, Texas Texas City is a city in Galveston County in the U.S. state of Texas. Located on the southwest shoreline of Galveston Bay, Texas City is a busy deepwater port on Texas's Gulf Coast, as well as a petroleum-refining and petrochemical-manufacturin ...

on September 30, 1977 at age 89.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Del 1888 births 1977 deaths St. Louis Browns players New York Yankees players Boston Red Sox players Detroit Tigers players American League RBI champions Major League Baseball second basemen Baseball players from South Carolina Michigan Wolverines baseball coaches Michigan Wolverines football coaches Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets baseball players Alabama Crimson Tide football players University of Alabama alumni Minor league baseball managers Hattiesburg Timberjacks players Montgomery Climbers players Montgomery Billikens players Waco Cubs players Galveston Buccaneers players People from Walhalla, South Carolina

Baseball career

Death

See also

References

External links