Frank Thomas Zak (February 22, 1922 – February 6, 1972) was a

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. The

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 ...

played all or part of three seasons 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), ...

from 1944 to 1946. Zak played for 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 ...

his entire MLB career, his main position being

. For his career, Zak hit for a .269

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

, with 56 total

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(including five doubles and one

triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * ...

in 123 big-league

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Basebal ...

Minor leagues

Born in

Passaic, New Jersey Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 70,537, ranking as the 16th largest municipality in New Jersey and an increase of 656 from the 69,78 ...

, Zak threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed . He was a gifted athlete, but had little interest in playing baseball for a living. In the spring of 1941, he visited a high-school friend, Ed Sudol, who had been signed by the Tarboro Orioles of the Class D Coastal Plain League. The Orioles were in need of a shortstop and gave Zak a tryout. He had not played the position before, but showed enough to earn a contract for the summer. Zak played at the Class D level for 1941 and 1942, then moved up to top-level

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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 ...

in 1943. He earned an invitation to the Pirates' camp in 1944, and made the club. In an interesting coincidence, his manager was named Frankie (Frisch) as was the player with whom he competed for the starting shortstop job (Gustine). Sudol, meanwhile, never made it to the majors as a player, but he would spend 21 years as an

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in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

All-Star selection

Zak never had a lot of playing time: his highest number of

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

s was 160. Even so, he still managed to become an All-Star in the wartime

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

season. When shortstop Eddie Miller of 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 ...

was injured, Zak was named as his roster replacement, possibly because the game was being held at

Forbes Field Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland (Pittsburgh), Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to June 28, 1970. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball (MLB) team, and the first home of t ...

, home of the Pirates, and selecting Zak allowed MLB not to have to purchase an extra train ticket. Zak never appeared in the contest (

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 hav ...

' standout

Marty Marion Martin Whiteford "Mr. Shortstop" Marion (December 1, 1917 – March 15, 2011) was an American Major League Baseball shortstop and manager. Marion played for the St. Louis Cardinals and the St. Louis Browns between 1940–1953. He was a defensive s ...

played the full game), won by the National League, 7–1."National League 7, American League 1"

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Zak played his last

MLB 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), ...

game on June 10, 1946. He returned to

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

and left baseball after the 1949 season.

Death

Zak died suddenly from a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

on February 6, 1972, just 16 days before his 50th birthday.

Notes

External links

1922 births 1972 deaths Baseball players from New Jersey Hornell Maples players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Major League Baseball shortstops National League All-Stars Newark Bears (International League) players Oklahoma City Indians players Pittsburgh Pirates players Portland Beavers players San Diego Padres (minor league) players Sportspeople from Passaic, New Jersey Tarboro Orioles players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players {{US-baseball-shortstop-stub