Frank Joseph "Lefty" Hoerst (August 11, 1917 – February 18, 2000) 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), ...

pitcher. He pitched all or part of five seasons for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

. He made his MLB debut in 1940, pitching in six games with the Phillies while spending most of the season with the minor league Pensacola Pilots. Hoerst played the entire 1941 and 1942 seasons in the majors before serving with the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

during World War II. Hoerst returned to pitch for the Phillies in 1946. He then spent most of the 1947 season back in the minors with the

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 ...

, pitching in just four major league games. After spending all of 1948 with Memphis, Hoerst's professional career was over. A 1935 graduate of

Northeast Catholic High School Northeast Catholic High School opened in 1926 as Northeast Catholic High School for Boys, and was located at 1842 Torresdale Avenue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was under the administration of the high school system of the Roman Catholic Arch ...

and 1939 graduate of

La Salle University La Salle University () is a private, Catholic university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The university was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and named for St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle. History La ...

, Hoerst was a two-sports stand out in baseball and basketball. He won championships in both sports while at North (baseball in 1934 and basketball in 1935). He also coached North Catholic basketball for three years in the 1940s and

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 ...

at LaSalle after his retirement from Major League Baseball. He was inducted into both the North Catholic Alumni Hall of Fame and the LaSalle University Athletic Hall of Fame. He died on February 18, 2000 and was interred at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in

Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania Cheltenham Township is a Home Rule Municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule township (Pennsylvania), township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. Cheltenham's population density ranges from over 10,000 per square mile (25,900 per squa ...

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1917 births 2000 deaths Burials at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery Major League Baseball pitchers Philadelphia Phillies players Cambridge Cardinals players Mayodan Millers players La Salle Explorers baseball coaches La Salle Explorers baseball players La Salle Explorers men's basketball players Pensacola Pilots players Memphis Chickasaws players High school basketball coaches in the United States Baseball players from Philadelphia {{US-baseball-pitcher-1910s-stub