Jimmie Reese (born James Herman Solomon; October 1, 1901 – July 13, 1994) was an American
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), ...
(MLB)
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. ...
. He played
second base,
third base
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...
, and then
coached at several professional levels. His
Los Angeles Angels No. 50 was retired, and he was inducted into the
Angels Hall of Fame
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 ...
.
Early life
Reese was born James Herman Solomon and was Jewish, born in New York City, and was brought up in Los Angeles where he attended Rolling Hills Prep.
In order to avoid the brunt of
prejudice
Prejudice can be an affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classification of another person based on that person's per ...
against
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
baseball players, he adopted the name of Jimmie Reese, which he used throughout his baseball career.
Playing career
Much of his career was spent in the
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...
, beginning as a
batboy
In baseball, a batboy or batgirl is an individual who carries baseball bats to the players on a baseball team. Duties of a batboy may also include handling and preparing players’ equipment and bringing baseballs to the umpire during the game. ...
with the
Los Angeles 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 ...
from 1919 (at least one source claims 1917
[) to 1923.]
Oakland Oaks
In 1924 he signed a contract to play second base with the Oakland Oaks.
The Oaks won the PCL pennant in 1927, with Reese batting .295 in 191 games. He had a league-leading fielding percentage of .984 that year.
New York Yankees
In September 1927 he was traded by Oakland to 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 ...
with Lyn Lary
Lynford Horbart Lary (January 28, 1906 – January 9, 1973), nicknamed "Broadway", was an American professional baseball shortstop. He played twelve seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Washington Sena ...
and US$100,000 (US$ today).
He was called up to the American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
in 1930. Reese played for the Yankees in 1930 and 1931, and was most noted for being the roommate of Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
.
In 1930 he batted .346 in 188 at bats, striking out only 8 times. Only Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis Gehrig (born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941) was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was renowned f ...
and Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
hit for higher averages on the team. He was the primary back-up at second base (48 games) behind Tony Lazzeri
Tony may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer
* Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leag ...
(77 games).
St. Paul Saints
In November, 1931, he was sent by the Yankees to the St. Paul Saints
The St. Paul Saints are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and have played their home games at CHS Field since 2015. They prev ...
(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 ...
), to complete an earlier deal made in June, 1931, for Johnny Murphy
John Joseph Murphy (July 14, 1908 – January 14, 1970) was an All-Star American right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball (1932, 1934–43, 1946–47) who later became a front office executive in the game.
Yankees' relief ace
After ...
, Jack Saltzgaver
Otto Hamlin "Jack" Saltzgaver (January 23, 1903 – February 1, 1978) was an American professional baseball player. The native of Croton, Iowa, as an infielder, appeared in 278 Major League Baseball games for the New York Yankees (1932; 193 ...
, cash, and 2 players to be named.
St. Louis Cardinals
Reese played the 1932 season with the 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 ha ...
, who had selected him off of waivers in June.
Los Angeles Angels (PCL)
The Los Angeles Angels (PCL)
The Los Angeles Angels were a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles that played in the "near-major league" Pacific Coast League (PCL) from 1903 through 1957.
The Angels were formed in 1903 as charter members of the PCL. In 1958, they w ...
purchased Reese's contract from the Cardinals in February, 1933. He missed most of the season due to injuries and illness, but hit .330 in 104 games. The following year he batted .311 with 12 triples, and had a fielding percentage of .972 (the best among second basemen that season). He continued to play for the Angels in 1935 and 1936.
San Diego Padres (PCL)
In 1937, he was traded to the San Diego Padres (PCL)
The San Diego Padres were a minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1936 through 1968. The team that would eventually become the Padres was well traveled prior to moving to San Diego.
Franchise history
It began it ...
, where he hit .314. The Padres won the Governor's Cup that year.
Semi-retirement as player
He all-but retired as a player after the 1938 season, spending the 1939 season with two Western International League
The Western International League was a mid- to higher-level minor league baseball circuit in the Pacific Northwest United States and western Canada that operated in 1922, 1937 to 1942 and 1946 to 1954. In 1955, the Western International League ev ...
teams and playing just 2 games for the 1940 Angels
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles incl ...
(in addition to his coaching duties).
After his playing career
Reese served in the Army from November 1942 to July 1943 with the 12th Armored Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky
Fort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astride the Kentucky–Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Kentucky and Clarksville, Tennessee (post address is located in Kentucky). Fort Campbell is home to the 101st Airborne Divi ...
, where he managed the baseball team.
After the war, he worked as a scout for the Boston Braves for two years, and coached in San Diego from 1948 until 1960, when he was appointed manager. But he preferred to coach, so he resigned partway through the 1961 season. "I'm best suited as a liaison man, as a coach", he said. "I just am not suited to give a guy hell."
From 1963 until 1970 he coached at Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
, Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, and Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
; then, he scouted for 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 ...
.
He threw out the ceremonial first pitch
The ceremonial first pitch is a longstanding ritual of baseball in which a guest of honor throws a ball to mark the end of pregame festivities and the start of the game. Originally, the guest threw a ball from their seat in the grandstand to ...
at the 1989 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1989 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 60th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 11 ...
, played at Anaheim Stadium
Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium located in Anaheim, California. Since its opening in 1966, it has served as the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), and was also the home stadium to the Los Angel ...
.
Reese never married, had no children, and was mostly estranged from his extended family. In 1972, at age 71, he asked the Angels for a job, and was hired as conditioning coach, whose job was to get the players into shape. Reese's main specialty, however, was hitting fungos in practice, using a fungo bat he made himself. Numerous Angels players remarked on his seemingly uncanny ability to place fungos where he wanted. He even occasionally "pitched" batting practice with his fungo bat, standing at the pitcher's rubber and consistently hitting line drives over the middle of the plate. He was regularly called "the nicest man in baseball,” and had a friendship with Nolan Ryan
Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...
when he was with the team; Ryan would name one of his sons Reese in his honor.[ He was listed as an Angels coach for 22 years, until his death on July 13, 1994, in ]Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...
. He died peacefully of aspiration pneumonia and respiratory failure.
His uniform #50 was retired by the club in his memory. At his death, Reese was believed to be the oldest person ever to regularly wear a uniform in an official capacity in the history of organized professional baseball in North America.[ His record was surpassed in 2016 by ]Red Schoendienst
Albert Fred "Red" Schoendienst (; February 2, 1923 – June 6, 2018) was an American professional baseball second baseman, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB), and is largely known for his coaching, managing, and playing years wi ...
, who served as a special assistant coach for the 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 ha ...
, wearing a Cardinals uniform in that role, until his death in 2018 at age 95. Ted Radcliffe
Theodore Roosevelt "Double Duty" Radcliffe (July 7, 1902 – August 11, 2005) was a professional baseball player in the Negro leagues. An accomplished two-way player, he played as a pitcher and a catcher, became a manager, and in his old age ...
and Buck O'Neil
John Jordan "Buck" O'Neil Jr. (November 13, 1911 – October 6, 2006) was a first baseman and manager in the Negro American League, mostly with the Kansas City Monarchs. After his playing days, he worked as a scout and became the first Afric ...
made appearances in professional games at older ages, but those were one-off ceremonial events.
He was inducted into the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame in 2003.
See also
* List of select Jewish baseball players
In popular culture
In the Lee Child novel One Shot (2005), the hero Jack Reacher uses the alias Jimmie Reese. He confirms that whenever he uses an alias, he always uses the name of someone who played second base for the Yankees, such as Jimmie Reese.
Notes and references
External links
Jimmie Reese
at Baseball Almanac
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reese, Jimmie
1901 births
1994 deaths
Baseball players from California
Baseball players from New York (state)
Bellingham Chinooks players
Boston Braves scouts
Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
California Angels coaches
Jewish American baseball coaches
Jewish American baseball players
Jewish Major League Baseball players
Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players
Major League Baseball coaches with retired numbers
Major League Baseball second basemen
Montreal Expos scouts
New York Yankees players
Oakland Oaks (baseball) players
Sportspeople from New York City
St. Louis Cardinals players
St. Paul Saints (AA) players
San Diego Padres (minor league) players
Spokane Hawks players
20th-century American Jews