James Roberson Brown (April 25, 1910 – December 29, 1977) was 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), ...
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. ...
and
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 ...
.
Early life
Born in
Jamesville, North Carolina
Jamesville is a town in Martin County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 491 at the 2010 census.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land.
Demographics
As of the census of 2 ...
, he played
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...
for the
North Carolina State College
North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...
(now North Carolina State University)
Wolfpack.
Brown was a
switch-hitter
In baseball, a switch hitter is a player who bats both right-handed and left-handed, usually right-handed against left-handed pitchers and left-handed against right-handed pitchers.
Characteristics
Right-handed batters generally hit better aga ...
who threw
right-handed
In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...
; he was listed as tall and .
Career
He signed 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 hav ...
afterwards and made his major league debut two days before his 27th birthday. He made an immediate impact, not only scoring 9 triples his rookie year, but also leading the league in sacrifice hits with 26.
His 1938 season was not as impressive, but he did manage to increase his
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 ...
over .300.
[ Brown had a career year in , not only leading the league in ]at-bats
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 ...
with 645, but finishing 6th in MVP voting.[ He began being known as a reliable leadoff hitter and as an infielder that the Cardinals could put anywhere, having played primarily as a second baseman, as a ]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 ...
, and as a third baseman
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 ...
.[
After a decent season in 1940, he came back with another great year in 1941, tying a career high in triples with 9, earning a career high batting average with .306, and finishing 4th in MVP voting.][ This, however, was still not enough to earn an all-star appearance. In 1942 he managed to earn his lone all-star appearance and finish 13th in MVP voting.][ Despite this and leading the league in at-bats with 606, his batting average dipped to .256, a career low.][ Despite this, during the ]1942 World Series
The 1942 World Series featured the defending champion New York Yankees against the St. Louis Cardinals, with the Cardinals winning the Series in five games for their first championship since and their fourth overall.
The 1942 Cardinals set a f ...
, he led all Cardinals' hitters in batting average with .300 en route to their World Series victory.
Brown enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
after playing 34 games during the season. When World War II ended, his contract was sold for $30,000 on January 5, 1946, to 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 ...
; he played the season as a utility infielder before being released by the Pirates on November 15.
In 890 games over eight seasons, Brown posted a .279 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 ...
(980-for-3512) with 465 runs, 146 doubles, 42 triples
TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...
, 9 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 ...
, 319 RBI and 231 bases on balls
A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Se ...
. He finished his career with a .959 fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...
playing at second and third base and shortstop. In the 1942 World Series
The 1942 World Series featured the defending champion New York Yankees against the St. Louis Cardinals, with the Cardinals winning the Series in five games for their first championship since and their fourth overall.
The 1942 Cardinals set a f ...
, he hit .300 (6-for-20) with 2 runs, 1 RBI and 3 walks.
Upon retirement, he became a manager in the Pittsburgh 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 ...
, with the Indianapolis Indians
The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...
in 1947 and the New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division and play their hom ...
in 1948. Brown then returned to 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 ...
as a coach for the Boston Braves
The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta.
During it ...
, working for three seasons (1949–51) under his old Cardinal skipper, Billy Southworth
William Harold Southworth (March 9, 1893 – November 15, 1969) was an American outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). As a player in and and from to for five big-league teams, Southworth took part in almost 1,200 games, fell j ...
.
Later life
After leaving Boston in 1952, he was a manager for minor league teams in the farm systems of the Cardinals, Braves and 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 ...
. He died December 29, 1977 in Bath, North Carolina
Bath is a town in Beaufort County, North Carolina, United States. Located on the Pamlico River, it developed a trade in naval stores, furs, and tobacco. The population was 249 as of 2010. North Carolina’s first town and port of entry, it w ...
.
References
External links
Jimmy Brown at Baseball Almanac
*
Guide to the James Roberson "Jimmy" Brown Program and Newsclipping 1977
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Jimmy
1910 births
1977 deaths
United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II
Baseball players from North Carolina
Boston Braves coaches
Greensboro Patriots players
Indianapolis Indians managers
Indianapolis Indians players
Major League Baseball infielders
NC State Wolfpack baseball players
New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players
People from Martin County, North Carolina
Pittsburgh Pirates players
Rochester Red Wings players
St. Louis Cardinals players
United States Army Air Forces soldiers