Jack Paepke (August 28, 1922 – November 7, 2014) was an American minor league baseball

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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 ...

and

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...

who became a

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), ...

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 scout.

Playing career

A native of Provo, Utah, Paepke had a 15-year playing career as a combination

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

and

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

, with three seasons missed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He threw and batted right-handed and was listed as tall and . He began his career in the Brooklyn Dodgers' organization with Santa Barbara in the California League during the season. He had nine wins and five losses with a 3.44

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. This led to his promotion to the International League in , where he played for

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

. Before the season ended, Paepke joined the military, where he remained for the duration of the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

. In , he returned to Montreal and also played for the

Fort Worth Cats The Fort Worth Cats was a professional baseball team based in Fort Worth, Texas, in the United States. The Cats were a member of the South Division of the now disbanded United League Baseball, which was not affiliated with Major League Basebal ...

in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

where he posted a 2.17 ERA. Paepke spent the and seasons in 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 ...

playing for

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

. After a brief stint back in Santa Barbara, Paepke played for the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles-based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars (192 ...

in the Pacific Coast League through the campaign. In he joined the Pittsburgh Pirates' organization, appearing for the New Orleans Pelicans in the

Southern Association The Southern Association was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class A (1902–1935), Cla ...

Manager and coach

Paepke became a player-manager in and led his

Brunswick Pirates The Brunswick Pirates were a minor league baseball team based in Brunswick, Georgia. The team was a member of the Georgia–Florida League and a Class D affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1951 to 1956. In 1957 the team played as the Brunsw ...

to the

Georgia–Florida League The Georgia–Florida League was a minor baseball league that existed from 1935 through 1958 (suspending operations during World War II) and in 1962–1963. It was one of many Class D circuits that played in the Southeastern United States during ...

championship in his first year as skipper. He helped his own cause quite a bit by hitting .318 with 21 HRs and 109 RBI while compiling a 4–1 record on the mound. He was equally successful the following year when he led his Waco Pirates to

Big State League The Big State League was a mid-level, Class B level circuit in American minor league baseball that played for 11 seasons, from 1947 through 1957. Its member clubs were exclusively based in Texas. The Corpus Christi Clippers (1955-1956), Texark ...

crown. This Waco team won 105 games and has been named one of the top 25 minor league teams of all time by minor league baseball's official website. As he wound his way through the Pirate farm system, Paepke saw no more postseasons as a manager. Along the way he made stops as skipper of the

Billings Mustangs The Billings Mustangs are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Billings, Montana, and have played their home games at Dehler ...

Salinas Packers Salinas may refer to: People *Salinas (surname) Places Americas Latin America * Salinas (ancient lake), in the Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia * Salinas, Minas Gerais, a municipality in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil * Playa Grande, Costa Ri ...

, Kinston Eagles,

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Grand Forks Chiefs The Grand Forks Chiefs were a minor league baseball team from Grand Forks, North Dakota. They played in the Northern League from 1934 to 1964, with a couple breaks in between. History Minor league baseball first began in Grand Forks when the 18 ...

, San Jose Pirates and Las Vegas Wranglers. He ended his playing and managing career after the season. Following his playing career, Paepke became a major league coach for the Los Angeles / California Angels from , their maiden season, to . He was later a scout for the Angels and eventually the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

. His son Dennis, a

, played in all or parts of four seasons in the major leagues for the Kansas City Royals.

References

External links

*
Coach's page
from

Retrosheet Retrosheet is a nonprofit organization whose website features box scores of Major League Baseball (MLB) games from 1906 to the present, and play-by-play narratives for almost every contest since the 1930s. It also includes scores from every major ...

Article on Waco team
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paepke, Jack 1922 births 2014 deaths Baseball coaches from Utah Baseball player-managers Baseball players from Utah Billings Mustangs managers Billings Mustangs players Brunswick Pirates players California Angels coaches California Angels scouts Fort Worth Cats players Grand Forks Chiefs players Jamestown Falcons players Las Vegas Wranglers (baseball) players Los Angeles Angels coaches Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Montreal Expos scouts Montreal Royals players New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players St. Paul Saints (AA) players San Jose Pirates players Santa Barbara Dodgers players Santa Barbara Saints players Sportspeople from Provo, Utah Waco Pirates players