Frank John Oceak (September 8, 1912 – March 19, 1983) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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 ...

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who is ...

and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He 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. ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

in minor league baseball and served as a coach 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), ...

for 11 seasons between and . A trusted confidant of four-time

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 ...

manager

Danny Murtaugh Daniel Edward Murtaugh (October 8, 1917 – December 2, 1976) was an American second baseman, manager, front-office executive, and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). Murtaugh is best known for his 29-year association with the Pittsburgh Pirat ...

, Oceak was coaching at third base on October 13, 1960, during Game 7 of the

1960 World Series The 1960 World Series was played between the 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates season, Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League (NL) and the 1960 New York Yankees season, New York Yankees of the American League (AL) from October 5–13, 1960. In Game 7, ...

, when Pirate second baseman

Bill Mazeroski William Stanley Mazeroski (born September 5, 1936), nicknamed "Maz" and "The Glove", is an American former second baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1956 to 1972. A 7-time All-S ...

hit his dramatic

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not ...

to clinch the Series against the

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

. Oceak, wearing uniform #44, can be seen in many of the films and still photos of the historic event, celebrating with Mazeroski as he rounds third base and following him to home plate. Frank Oceak was born in

Pocahontas, Virginia Pocahontas is a town in Tazewell County, Virginia, United States. It was named for Chief Powhatan's daughter, Pocahontas, who lived in the 17th-century Jamestown Settlement. The town was founded as a company mining town by the Southwest Virginia ...

. He batted and threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

, and stood tall and weighed . Primarily a second baseman and

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...

, Oceak spent his entire playing career (1932–40; 1942–43; 1946–47) in the lower minor leagues, briefly as a member of the Yankees'

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

. He became a player-manager at age 25 in 1938 with the Lafayette White Sox of the Class D

Evangeline League The Evangeline League began in 1934 in baseball, 1934 as a six–team Class D (baseball), Class D level minor league baseball, minor league with teams based in Louisiana, United States, later adding Mississippi and Texas based franchises. In 1935, ...

—which was, despite its nickname, an affiliate of 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 ...

. Two years later, as manager of the Beaver Falls Browns of the Class D

Pennsylvania State Association The Pennsylvania State Association was a class D level league of minor league baseball that existed from 1934 until 1942. The league franchised were entirely based in Western Pennsylvania. History The Pennsylvania State Association was compose ...

, Oceak was suspended by

Commissioner of Baseball The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive officer of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the associated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) – a constellation of leagues and clubs known as "organized baseball". Under the direction of the Commiss ...

Kenesaw Mountain Landis Kenesaw Mountain Landis (; November 20, 1866 – November 25, 1944) was an American jurist who served as a United States federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death. He is remembered for his h ...

for the entire 1941 season for an assault on an umpire.Marcin, Joe, ed., ''The Baseball Register'', St. Louis: The Sporting News: 1970 However, Oceak resumed his playing and managing careers in 1942 with the

Oil City Oilers The Oil City Oilers was a minor league baseball team located in Oil City, Pennsylvania between 1940 and 1951. The team played in the Pennsylvania State Association from 1940 to 1942, and later moved to the Middle Atlantic League after World War I ...

of the PSA, his first assignment in the Pirates' organization, where he would spend most of the rest of his baseball life. The bulk of his managing career, as in his playing days, took place in the lower minors, until 1957 when he was named skipper of the

Columbus Jets The Columbus Jets were a Minor League baseball team that played in Columbus, Ohio, from 1955 to 1970. The team moved from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada where they were known as the Ottawa Athletics. The Jets were a member of the Triple-A (baseball), Tr ...

of the Triple-A

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 ...

, one of the Pirates' two top-tier farm clubs. The following season, he was named to Murtaugh's coaching staff, serving for seven seasons as the Bucs' third base coach before Murtaugh resigned because of ill health at the close of the campaign. Oceak then spent one season, , with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

as a coach under

Dick Sisler Richard Alan Sisler (November 2, 1920 – November 20, 1998) was an American player, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball. The son of Hall of Fame first baseman and two-time .400 hitter George Sisler, Dick Sisler's younger brother Dave was ...

before returning to Pittsburgh as a minor league manager at the Class A and Double-A levels from 1966–69. In , Murtaugh returned to the dugout as manager of the Pirates, and Oceak rejoined him as third-base coach. He served through another

world championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

with the 1971 Pirates. When Murtaugh retired in the days after the 1971 World Series, Oceak stayed on for one more season as a coach under

Bill Virdon William Charles Virdon (June 9, 1931 – November 23, 2021) was an American professional baseball outfielder, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). Virdon played in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1955 t ...

before leaving baseball. He died in

Johnstown, Pennsylvania Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 18,411 as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Located east of Pittsburgh, Johnstown is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropol ...

, at the age of 70. His career record as a minor league manager was 1,285 victories, and 1,386 defeats (.481).

References

* Marcin Joe, ed., ''The Baseball Register, 1970 edition.'' St. Louis:

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 ...

, 1970. * Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball'', third edition. Durham, North Carolina:

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...

, 2007.

External links

Coach's page from Retrosheet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oceak, Frank 1912 births 1983 deaths Akron Yankees players Baseball players from Virginia Beaver Falls Browns players Binghamton Triplets players Cincinnati Reds coaches Clarksburg Generals players Fayetteville Angels players Hornell Maples players Johnstown Johnnies players Keokuk Pirates players Lafayette White Sox players Major League Baseball third base coaches Minor league baseball managers Norfolk Tars players Oil City Oilers players People from Pocahontas, Virginia Pittsburgh Pirates coaches Selma Cloverleafs players Wheeling Stogies players York White Roses players