Leonard Preston Gilmore 'Meow''(November 3, 1917 – February 18, 2011) was a

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 ...

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), ...

who appeared in one game for 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 ...

in the 1944 season. Listed at , , Gilmore batted and threw right-handed. He was born in

Fairview Park, Indiana Fairview Park is a town in Clinton Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, Clinton Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, Vermillion County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 1,386 at the 2010 census. History Fairview Park was platted ...

and graduated from Clinton High School, also in Indiana. His father worked in the mines and his mother was a native of Austria. After high school, Gilmore played freshman baseball at

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

before embarking on an intermittent minor league baseball career. Gilmore expected to be drafted during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

but was found to be physically unfit for service. In 1943, he tried out for the Pirates during

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 ...

at their camp in

Muncie, Indiana Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the county seat, seat of Delaware County, Indiana, Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs ...

and was signed to a contract. He spent the 1943 and 1944 seasons in the minors with the

Albany Senators The Albany Senators was a name used by multiple minor league baseball teams representing Albany, New York, that existed between 1885 and 1959. The mid-20th century club played at Hawkins Stadium (Albany), Hawkins Stadium. The various editions of t ...

. He was called up to the majors for the first time after the 1944 Eastern League season ended. On the last day of the 1944 season, he got the opportunity to start the second game of a doubleheader against 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 ...

Shibe Park Shibe Park, known later as Connie Mack Stadium, was a ballpark located in Philadelphia. It was the home of the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League (AL) and the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League (NL). When it opened April 12, 1 ...

. Gilmore was credited with the loss, as he allowed seven

earned runs 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 ...

on 13 hits, without walks or

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in eight innings of work. Following the season, he was traded to the Oakland Oaks of 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

Ken Gables Kenneth Harlin Gables (January 31, 1919 – January 2, 1960) was a Major League Baseball pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1945 to 1947. The right-hander stood and weighed . Gables interrupted his time in the minor leagues when he served ...

. In Oakland, he was managed by

Casey Stengel Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel (; July 30, 1890 – September 29, 1975) was an American Major League Baseball right fielder and manager, best known as the manager of the championship New York Yankees of the 1950s and later, the expansion New York ...

who he would later describe as the only man he ever hated. Gilmore also pitched eleven minor league seasons, playing between 1938 and 1952 for nine teams in nine different leagues. He posted a combined 128–94 record and a 3.66

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

in 332 pitching appearances. Gilmore several of the final seasons of his professional career in Oklahoma and eventually made his home in

Jones, Oklahoma Jones is a town in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma. It is named after Charles G. Jones, a three-time mayor of Oklahoma City. The population was 2,692 at the time of the 2010 census. History Early history Jones was plotted as a townsite on April 22, ...

. Following his baseball career, Gilmore worked for the Oklahoma City Fire Department, retiring as a captain in 1970. Gilmore married his wife, Virginia, in 1950 and had two daughters with her. Gilmore died in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

on February 18, 2011, at the age of 93. At the time of his death, he was one of the oldest living major leaguers.

References

External links

Major League Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players Albany Senators players Bisbee Bees players IUP Crimson Hawks baseball players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Oakland Oaks (baseball) players Oklahoma City Indians players Refugio Oilers players Seminole Ironmen players Shawnee Hawks players Tucson Cowboys players Baseball players from Indiana Baseball players from Oklahoma City 1917 births 2011 deaths 20th-century American firefighters American people of Austrian descent {{Oklahoma-sport-stub

See also

References

External links