Jimmie Ronald Schaffer (born April 5, 1936, at Limeport, Pennsylvania) is 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 ...

former

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), ...

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 an eight-year career from 1961 to 1968. He played 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 ...

, Chicago Cubs,

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds all of 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 ...

and the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

of 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 ...

Early life and education

Schaffer attended Coopersburg High School in

Coopersburg, Pennsylvania Coopersburg is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The population of Coopersburg was 2,447 as of the 2020 census. It is a suburb of Allentown and is located miles southeast of Allentown, north of Philadelphia, and west of New York City ...

, graduating in 1954.

Major League Baseball

Playing career

He was signed as an amateur free agent by the

in 1955 and spent six seasons in the minor leagues before making his major league debut at age 25 on May 20, 1961. In that game, he started at catcher and batted eighth for the Cardinals, and in his first major league at bat, he recorded his first career major league hit, a third-inning single off the Cubs' Dick Ellsworth in a 1-0 loss. In his major league career, Schaffer played in 304 games with 11 home runs, 56 runs batted in and a .223 batting average.

Coaching career

Schaffer also managed in the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

' farm system, spent one season (1978) as the bullpen coach of the Texas Rangers, and played a similar role for the Kansas City Royals from 1980 to 1988, serving on the Royals' 1980 AL champion and 1985 world champion coaching staffs. After retiring from coaching professional baseball in 1989, Schaffer returned to live in his hometown of Limeport, Pennsylvania. He and his wife Jeanne have five adult children and a 12-year-old grandson.http://articles.mcall.com/1990-06-30/sports/2736680_1_major-leagues-dave-linde-minor-leagues

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schaffer, Jimmie 1936 births Living people Baseball players from Pennsylvania Chicago Cubs players Chicago White Sox players Cincinnati Reds players Decatur Commodores players Indianapolis Indians players Kansas City Royals coaches Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball bullpen coaches New York Mets players Omaha Cardinals players People from Coopersburg, Pennsylvania Philadelphia Phillies players Portland Beavers players Rochester Red Wings players San Diego Padres (minor league) players Southern Lehigh High School alumni Spokane Indians players Sportspeople from Lehigh County, Pennsylvania St. Louis Cardinals players Texas Rangers coaches Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Winnipeg Goldeyes players Winston-Salem Red Birds players