Johnnie Monroe Chambers (September 10, 1911 – May 11, 1977) was an American professional baseball

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 ...

who appeared in two games 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 ...

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), ...

in 1937. He also played in the

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

from 1931 to 1945.

Early life and career

Chambers was born on September 10, 1911, in

Copperhill, Tennessee Copperhill is a city in Polk County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 443 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Cleveland Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Copperhill is located in a geological region known as the Copper Basi ...

. Chambers attended and played baseball at Technological High School in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. A right-handed

, he began his professional baseball career in 1931 playing in

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

with the

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

of 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), Cl ...

. and was scheduled that season to try out for the

Blue Ridge League The Blue Ridge League was the name of two minor league baseball organizations that operated in the first half of the twentieth century in the United States. History The first league operated for the better part of sixteen years, from 1915 throu ...

, but the league disbanded. Chambers had brief stints with the Huntington Boosters of the

Middle Atlantic League The Middle Atlantic League (or Mid-Atlantic League) was a lower-level circuit in American minor league baseball that played during the second quarter of the 20th century. History The Middle Atlantic League played from 1925 through 1951, with t ...

and the Southern League's

Atlanta Crackers The Atlanta Crackers were Minor League Baseball teams based in Atlanta, Georgia, between 1901 and 1965. The Crackers were Atlanta's home team until the Atlanta Braves moved from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1966. History Atlanta played its first ...

and

Knoxville Smokies Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...

before being signed by the

and reporting to their

Piedmont League The Piedmont League was a minor league baseball league that operated from 1920 through 1955. The league operated principally in the Piedmont plateau region in the eastern United States. Teams The following teams were members of the Piedmon ...

affiliate, the

Greensboro Patriots Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte and Raleigh, the 69th-most populous city in the Un ...

, in 1933. He finished the season with a 23-8 win-loss record in 38 games for Greensboro. He was purchased by the

Houston Buffaloes The Houston Buffaloes, Houston Buffalos, or Buffs were an American minor league baseball team, and were the first minor league team to be affiliated with a Major League Baseball, Major League franchise, which was the St. Louis Cardinals. The clu ...

in April 1934, but returned to Greensboro in May after going winless in six games. During a game against the

Richmond Colts The Richmond Colts were a minor league baseball team based in Richmond, Virginia that existed on-and-off from 1894 to 1953. They played in the Virginia League in 1894, and in another Virginia League in 1900, and another Virginia League from 1906 ...

, he struck out 22 batters in 13 innings. Chambers joined the

Columbus Red Birds The Columbus Red Birds were a top-level minor league baseball team that played in Columbus, Ohio, in the American Association from 1931 through 1954. The Columbus club, a member of the Association continuously since 1902, was previously known as ...

in 1934, winning five games in 45 games pitched. The Cardinals transferred Chambers to the

Sacramento Solons The Sacramento Solons were a minor league baseball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Pacific Coast League during several periods (1903, 1905, 1909–1914, 1918–1960, 1974–1976). The current Sacramento River Cats began pl ...

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 ...

for 1936.

Major leagues

After going 17-19 for Sacramento in 1936, the Cardinals purchased his contract on January 7, 1937. Chambers made his major league debut on May 4, entering a game against 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 ...

in the eighth inning and allowing one hit and one walk while striking out one of the five batters he faced. His second and final game came on May 14 against 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 ...

, where he once again entered in the eighth inning and allowed four hits and

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an err ...

s while facing eight hitters as the Pirates beat St. Louis 14–4. He was optioned to back to Columbus on May 21 and would remain with the club for the remainder of 1937, ending the year with a 12–7 record and 3.78 ERA. After the season ended, Cardinals

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

Branch Rickey Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...

told Sid Keener of the ''

St. Louis Star-Times The ''St. Louis Star-Times'' was a newspaper published in St. Louis. It was founded as ''The St. Louis Sunday Sayings'' in 1884. The newspaper ended in 1951 when it was purchased by the ''St. Louis Post Dispatch The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' ...

'' that he believed Chambers had the best chance of the club's pitching prospects to make the team in 1938.

Return to minor leagues

Chambers battled for a roster spot with the Cardinals in spring training 1938 before he was sent down to Columbus on April 4. On July 19, he was obtained on waivers by 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 ...

for $6,000. The Dodgers optioned Chambers to the

Minneapolis Millers The Minneapolis Millers were an American professional minor league baseball team that played in Minneapolis, Minnesota, through 1960. In the 19th century a different Minneapolis Millers were part of the Western League. The team played first in ...

on August 12 after the club acquired Lee Rogers from the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

. Chambers dealt with a sore arm for much of the 1938 season. After the minor league season ended, he was among eight players recalled to the Dodgers on September 4. He did not appear in a game before the season ended on October 2. On January 4, 1939, he returned to the Chattanooga Lookouts as the

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

in an August 23 trade that sent

Fred Sington Frederic William Sington (February 24, 1910 – August 20, 1998) was an American football and baseball player. Sington was also an accomplished saxophonist. Sington was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and was Jewish. He attended Phillips High Sch ...

from the Lookouts to the Dodgers. Named the opening day starter for Chattanooga, Chambers battled more arm trouble in 1939 and was ultimately placed on the

injured list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

before returning on May 9. He was sold to the

Selma Cloverleafs The Selma Cloverleafs were a baseball team based in Selma, Alabama. The original Cloverleafs played in the Southeastern League and Alabama–Florida League at various times between 1928 and 1962. Independent League In 2002 a new version of the t ...

of the

Southeastern League The Southeastern League was the name of four separate baseball leagues in minor league baseball which operated in the Southeastern and South Central United States in numerous seasons between 1897 and 2003. Two of these leagues were associated wit ...

on July 24. Chambers remained with Selma for the remainder of 1939 and all of 1940, ending the 1940 season with a 9–14 record and 3.70 ERA. After beginning the 1941 season with Selma, Chambers was acquired by the

in the Piedmont League On May 6. However, he failed to report to Richmond and instead joined the

Charleston Rebels The Charleston Rebels were a minor league baseball club that existed between 1940 and 1952 in Charleston, South Carolina. The club was a member of the South Atlantic League and played its home games at College Park. The club was affiliated with ...

of the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

. He then was signed by the Southern Association's

Memphis Chickasaws Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memphis ...

on August 31. He did not play organized baseball from 1942 to 1944 due to arm issues, but returned in May 1945 when he signed with the Minneapolis Millers. Chambers split the season with the Millers and the

Little Rock Travelers The Little Rock Travelers were an American minor league baseball team located in Little Rock, Arkansas, and members (1902–1910, 1915–1958, 1960–1961) of the Southern Association, which as a Class A, A1 or Double-A (baseball), Double-A circuit ...

before ending his professional career.

Post-playing career and death

Following his playing career, Chambers worked as a college and professional

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

for 18 years. He worked in the Southern League,

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 ...

and

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

and served as president of the Atlanta Baseball Umpires Association. He retired from umpiring in 1971 to work as a fishing guide in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. While working as a boat guide for an elderly woman, Chambers drowned on May 11, 1977, in Lake George after his fishing boat was tipped by waves and he fell overboard. His body was recovered two days later.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chambers, Johnnie 1911 births 1977 deaths Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Tennessee Charleston Rebels players Chattanooga Lookouts players Columbus Red Birds players Galveston Buccaneers players Greensboro Patriots players Houston Buffaloes players Little Rock Travelers players Memphis Chickasaws players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Sacramento Solons players Selma Cloverleafs players St. Louis Cardinals players Deaths by drowning in the United States