Fred Carl Koenig (April 27, 1931 – January 12, 1993) was an American first baseman 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 a

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 ...

and

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 ...

director at the Major League level. A native of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

, Koenig threw and batted right-handed and stood 6'3" (190 cm) and weighed 210 pounds (95 kg) in his playing days. He graduated from St. Louis' Central High School and attended the University of Illinois. Koenig's baseball career began in 1951 with his hometown St. Louis Cardinals as a member of the

Hamilton Cardinals The Hamilton Cardinals is an amateur Canadian baseball team based in Hamilton, Ontario and playing in the Intercounty Baseball League. Founded in 1958, the club is the second oldest sports team in the city of Hamilton. Players range in age from 1 ...

of the Class D Pennsylvania–Ontario–New York League (PONY League). His career as a first baseman continued through 1961, but Koenig spent most of his career at the Double-A level, reaching Triple-A in 1959 for only 16 games and 49 at bats with the Omaha Cardinals of the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

. In his best minor league campaign, with the 1954

Allentown Cardinals The Allentown Cardinals were a minor league baseball team. Affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals, they played in the Class B Interstate League between 1944 and 1952; then in the Class A Eastern League from 1954 to 1956. Allentown had joined ...

of the Class A Eastern League, Koenig batted .287 with 11

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 ...

and 83 runs batted in in 484 at-bats. He also led the league's first basemen in putouts and

double plays In baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the ...

and was selected to the Eastern League all-star team. He became a manager in the Cardinal

in 1962, with the Winnipeg Goldeyes of the Class C

Northern League Northern League may refer to: Sport Baseball * Northern League (baseball, 1902–71), a name used by several minor leagues that operated in the upper midwestern U.S. and Manitoba from 1902 to 1971 * Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010), an indep ...

. Switching to the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

organization in 1965, he managed at the Rookie and Class A levels and won the 1968 Midwest League championship at the helm of the

Quad Cities Angels Quad as a word or prefix usually means 'four'. It may refer to: Government * Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, a strategic security dialogue between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States * Quadrilateral group, an informal group which inc ...

. Koenig then came to the Major Leagues as a coach for Angel skipper

Lefty Phillips Harold Ross "Lefty" Phillips (May 16, 1919 – June 12, 1972) was an American coach, manager, scout, and front office executive in Major League Baseball. As manager of the California Angels from May 27, 1969, through the season, Phillips was ...

for 1970–71. After Phillips' firing in Anaheim at the close of , Koenig returned to the Cardinals for two seasons as a minor league manager, sandwiched around two seasons (1973–74) as the Cardinals' director of player development. He then was a Major League coach for the Cardinals (1976), Texas Rangers (1977–82),

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 ...

(1983), and Cleveland Indians (1986). Koenig later worked in the Atlanta Braves' farm system as a roving coach and manager at the Rookie level. He died in Wagoner, Oklahoma, at age 61.

References

* ''1983 Chicago Cubs Organizational Record Book.'' St. Petersburg, Florida: The Baseball Blue Book, 1983.

External links

Coach's page
from Retrosheet {{DEFAULTSORT:Koenig, Fred 1931 births 1993 deaths Allentown Cardinals players Baseball players from St. Louis California Angels coaches Chicago Cubs coaches Cleveland Indians coaches Columbus Foxes players Columbus Red Birds players Hamilton Cardinals players Major League Baseball farm directors Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball third base coaches Minor league baseball managers Omaha Cardinals players Paducah Chiefs players St. Joseph Cardinals players St. Louis Cardinals coaches St. Louis Cardinals executives Texas Rangers coaches Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Winnipeg Goldeyes players Winston-Salem Red Birds players York White Roses players

See also

References

External links