Rollin Joseph Lutz (February 18, 1925 – October 20, 2008) was an American professional

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 fielding tea ...

player and coach, who was the first

Caucasian Caucasian may refer to: Anthropology *Anything from the Caucasus region ** ** ** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus region * * * Languages * Northwest Caucasian l ...

to manage a team in Japanese professional

Life

Lutz was born on February 18, 1925, in

Keokuk, Iowa Keokuk is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States, along with Fort Madison. It is Iowa's southernmost city. The population was 9,900 at the time of the 2020 census. The city is named after the Sauk chief Keokuk, who is ...

. Lutz was a high school baseball standout and signed a professional contract the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

in 1941. After the US became involved in World War II, Lutz enlisted in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

after graduating from high school and served in the South Pacific theater.Zaloudek, Mark
"Former ballplayer served as mentor in a varied career"
''

Sarasota Herald-Tribune The ''Sarasota Herald-Tribune'' is a daily newspaper, located in Sarasota, Florida, founded in 1925 as the ''Sarasota Herald''. History The newspaper was owned by The New York Times Company from 1982 to 2012. It was then owned by Halifax Media ...

'', October 25, 2008. Accessed November 6, 2008.

Baseball career

After returning from military service, Lutz was signed by the St. Louis Browns as an amateur free agent before the 1946 season. He played for minor league teams in

Elmira, New York Elmira () is a city and the county seat of Chemung County, New York, United States. It is the principal city of the Elmira, New York, metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses Chemung County. The population was 26,523 at the 2020 cens ...

and

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

in the Brown's farm system, while earning bachelor's and master's degrees in science. His only major league experience was when he appeared with the Browns in the , playing first base and going 6-for-36 in 14 games, with one triple and 2 RBI in 14 games with the team for a .167 batting average. The Browns traded him on July 24, 1951 to the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

together with

Johnny Bero John George Bero (December 22, 1922May 11, 1985) was an American professional baseball player, a shortstop who played a total of 65 games in the Major Leagues for the Detroit Tigers and the St. Louis Browns during 1948 and 1951. Bero was a na ...

and cash in exchange for Ben Taylor.

Coach

Following his major league career, Lutz coached high school baseball, football and basketball in

Argyle, Iowa Argyle is an unincorporated community in southwestern Lee County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 91. It lies along the concurrent Iowa Highways 27 and 394 southwest of the city of Fort Madison, the county se ...

and

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

, where he led Davenport's baseball to a state championship, and was an athletic coach at

Parsons College Parsons College was a private liberal arts college located in Fairfield, Iowa. The school was named for its wealthy benefactor, Lewis B. Parsons Sr., and was founded in 1875 with one building and 34 students. Over the years new buildings were cons ...

in Iowa. Lutz became the head coach of the

Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of Tr ...

baseball team, leading the Salukis to the 1968 College World Series, in which they lost the final game 4-3 in nine innings to the

University of Southern California Trojans The USC Trojans are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC), located in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ' ...

, after finishing the regular season with a 34-12 record. Lutz was selected as the National Coach of the Year in 1968 by the American Association of College Coaches. The following season, Lutz led the #1 nationally ranked Salukis to a 36-7 regular season record and the

1969 College World Series The 1969 NCAA University Division baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1969 NCAA University Division baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the Col ...

. Having played in the major leagues for

Bill Veeck William Louis Veeck Jr. ( ; February 9, 1914 – January 2, 1986), also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was an American Major League Baseball franchise owner and promoter. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Br ...

, Lutz adopted some of his flourishes, including female batgirls, giveaway contests for fans and skydivers landing on the pitching mound. Through the 1969 season, Lutz had coached the team to a 149-48 record (plus two ties) in four seasons as coach.McGowen, Deane
"N.C.A.A. NINE WINS GAMES AND FANS; Lutz of Southern Illinois Is Veeck-Minded Coach"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', June 15, 1969. Accessed November 6, 2008. The

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

named Lutz as their first-base coach in 1971, after he had been coordinator of its minor league teams. He was on the team's coaching staff in 1972 and 1973. He was hired by the

Hiroshima Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda ...

in 1974 as a batting instructor. The following season, Lutz became the first foreigner to manage a team in Japanese professional baseball, when he was selected to manage the Carp.

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

pitcher

Warren Spahn Warren Edward Spahn (April 23, 1921 – November 24, 2003) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed pitcher, Spahn played in 1942 and then from 1946 until 1965, most notabl ...

was hired to serve as the team's temporary pitching coach, after having worked together with Lutz on the Indians' coaching staff. As manager, Lutz had the team change the colors of its caps to red to represent the team's fighting spirit. Lutz left the team after 15 games due to an umpiring dispute, but the Carp went on to win its first-ever

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consist ...

championship under replacement manager

Takeshi Koba was a professional baseball player and manager in Japan, and the manager of Tokyo International University's baseball team. Early life Because baseball was popular in the city, Koba started playing it when he was in primary school. Soon he drea ...

.Staff
"Former Carp manager Lutz dead at 83"
''

Yomiuri Shimbun The (lit. ''Reading-selling Newspaper'' or ''Selling by Reading Newspaper'') is a Japanese newspaper published in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and other major Japanese cities. It is one of the five major newspapers in Japan; the other four are t ...

'', October 28, 2008. Accessed November 7, 2008.

Retirement

Lutz had moved with his family to

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sout ...

in 1969 while he was part of the Cleveland Indians organization. He spent 12 years as the executive director of the Boys Club in Sarasota, until he left in 1988 following concerns regarding the financial management of the organization. He died at age 83 on October 20, 2008, after years of declining health resulting from a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

and

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lutz, Joe 1925 births 2008 deaths Akron Yankees players American expatriate baseball people in Japan Baseball coaches from Iowa Baseball players from Iowa Cleveland Indians coaches Eau Claire Bears players Elmira Pioneers players Expatriate baseball managers in Japan Gloversville-Johnstown Glovers players Hannibal Pilots players Hiroshima Toyo Carp managers High school baseball coaches in the United States High school basketball coaches in Iowa High school football coaches in Iowa Hot Springs Bathers players Major League Baseball first basemen Minor league baseball managers Montreal Royals players Parsons Wildcats baseball coaches Parsons Wildcats football coaches People from Keokuk, Iowa Pocatello Bannocks players Richmond Virginians (minor league) players San Antonio Missions players Southern Illinois Salukis baseball coaches Springfield Browns players St. Louis Browns players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Williston Oilers players Youngstown Browns players United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II