Lawrence William Milbourne (born February 14, 1951) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

utility infielder In baseball, a utility player is a player who typically does not have the offensive abilities to justify a regular starting role on the team but is capable of playing more than one defensive position. These players are able to give the various s ...

whose career spanned 15 seasons, 11 of which were spent in

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), ...

(MLB) with the Houston Astros (1974–76),

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

(1977–1980, 1984),

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

(1981–82, 1983), Minnesota Twins (1982),

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 Fi ...

(1982), and Philadelphia Phillies (1983). Although Milbourne spent most of his big league career playing second base, he also played

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 wh ...

third base 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 ...

, and

left field In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

. Milbourne compiled a career MLB

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 ...

of .254, with 71 doubles, 24 triples, 11

home run 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 ...

s, and 184

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

(RBI), in 989 games played. During his playing days, he stood tall, weighing . Milbourne was a switch hitter who threw right-handed.

Early life

Milbourne was born on February 14, 1951, in the Port Norris section of Commercial Township, New Jersey. He attended and played baseball at

Millville Senior High School Millville Senior High School is a comprehensive community public high school located in Millville, in Cumberland County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in eleventh grade and twelfth grade as part of the Millville Public Schools. ...

in New Jersey from which he graduated in 1969. His

improved from .263 as a sophomore to .439 as a senior. He attended

Cumberland County College Cumberland County College was a public community college in Vineland and Millville, Cumberland County, New Jersey. It became the Cumberland Campus of Rowan College of South Jersey (RCSJ–Cumberland) on July 1, 2019 as part of a merger with ...

in Vineland, New Jersey.

Professional career

Early career

On June 18, 1969, Milbourne signed as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

. Baltimore assigned him to their rookie-level minor league affiliate, the

Bluefield Orioles Bluefield may refer to: *Bluefield, Virginia, US *Bluefield, West Virginia, US *Nvidia BlueField, a line of computer hardware See also *Bluefields Bluefields is the capital of the South Caribbean Autonomous Region in Nicaragua. It was also the ...

of the Appalachian League. With Bluefield that season, Milbourne batted .305 with 75 hits, 10 doubles, six triples, and four

s in 68 games played. Defensively, he played

. On April 7, 1970, he was released by Baltimore. At the start of the 1971 season, after being out of professional baseball for a season, Milbourne was signed by the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

. The Giants assigned him to their Class-A affiliate, the

Decatur Commodores The Decatur Commodores were a professional minor league baseball team based in Decatur, Illinois that played for 64 seasons. The Commodores are the primary ancestor of today's Kane County Cougars. They played, with sporadic interruptions, from 1 ...

of the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

. In 123 games with the Commodores that season, he batted .301 with 69 runs scored, 156 hits, 23 doubles, five triples, five home runs, 38

(RBIs), and 21 stolen bases. In the field, Milbourne primarily played second base, but also saw limited time at shortstop and

. He led the league in hits, plate appearances (543), and at-bats (518) that season. At the end of the 1971 season, Milbourne was selected by the California Angels in the minor league draft. During the 1972 season, Milbourne played his first and only season in the Angels organization. He was assigned to the Double-A

Shreveport Captains The Shreveport Captains (1971–2000) and Shreveport Swamp Dragons (2001–02) were a professional minor-league baseball team based in Shreveport, Louisiana. They were affiliated with the California Angels (1971–72), Milwaukee Brewers (1973–74 ...

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. He batted .264 with 110 hits, 14 doubles, five triples, and two home runs in 122 games played that year. On defense, he only played second base. After the season, Milbourne was again selected in the minor league draft, this time by 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 ha ...

. In 1973, the Cardinals assigned him to the Triple-A

Tulsa Oilers The Tulsa Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and play in the ECHL. The Oilers played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center until 2008 when they moved into the new BOK Center. For many years, the Tuls ...

, where he batted .283 with 104 hits, 13 doubles, six triples, and five home runs in 111 games played. The Cardinals added Milbourne to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

after the season.

Houston Astros

Milbourne was selected by the Houston Astros from the

in the Rule 5 draft on December 3, 1973. He started the season with the Astros in 1974. On April 6, against the San Francisco Giants, Milbourne made his

(MLB) debut, but did not make a plate appearance. His offensive debut came on April 9, against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

, where he went hitless in one at-bat. Milbourne got his first MLB hit on April 11, against the Padres. In his first major league season, Milbourne batted .279 with 31 runs scored, 38 hits, two doubles, one triple, and nine RBIs in 112 games played. In the field, he played 87 games at second base, eight games at shortstop, and four games in left field. After the season, Milbourne was named to the

Topps All-Star Rookie Team The Topps All-Star Rookie Team, also known as the Topps ASRT, is a set of baseball cards issued by Topps Company, Inc., every year to commemorate notable Major League Baseball rookie players. History Since the 1960s, Topps' regular-issue basebal ...

. At the start of spring training in 1975, Milbourne failed to report to the Houston Astros, and his whereabouts were unknown. However, he did eventually report and made his season debut on April 8, against the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

. On September 23, in a game against the Cincinnati Reds, Milbourne hit his first career MLB home run. That season, Milbourne batted .212 with 17 runs scored, 32 hits, one double, two triples, one home run, and nine RBIs in 73 games played. Defensively, Milbourne was positioned at second base for 43 games, and 22 at shortstop. He also played in 24 games in the minor leagues that season with the Astros Triple-A affiliate, the Iowa Oaks. With the Oaks, Milbourne batted .221 with nine runs scored, 17 hits, three doubles, one triple, one home run, and six RBIs in 86 at-bats. He made the Astros major league roster out of spring training in 1976. On May 2, 1976, in the first game of a doubleheader against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, Milbourne hit a game-winning single in the ninth inning. In the majors that year, he batted .248 with 22 runs scored, 36 hits, four doubles, and seven RBIs in 59 games played. In the field, he played exclusively at second base. In June 1976, Milbourne was

optioned In the film industry, an option is a contractual agreement pertaining to film rights between a potential film producer (such as a movie studio, a production company, or an individual) and the author of source material, such as a book, play, or s ...

to the minor leagues. In the minors that season, he played with the Triple-A

Memphis Blues The Memphis blues is a style of blues music created from the 1910s to the 1930s by musicians in the Memphis area, such as Frank Stokes, Sleepy John Estes, Furry Lewis and Memphis Minnie. The style was popular in vaudeville and medicine shows a ...

, batting .325 with 45 runs scored, 95 hits, 12 doubles, two triples, five home runs, 31 RBIs, and 12 stolen bases in 71 games played.

Seattle Mariners

On March 30, 1977, the

acquired Milbourne from the Houston Astros in exchange for Roy Thomas. Milbourne delivered the Mariners first game-winning hit on April 8, 1977. During the 1977 season, he batted .219 with 24 runs scored, 53 hits, 10 doubles, two home runs, and 21 RBIs in 86 games played. On defense, he played 41 games at second base, 40 games at shortstop, and one game at third base. He also played one game as the Mariners

designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by th ...

. He again made the Mariners roster in 1978. Milbourne commented on his role as the Mariners

that year by saying, "I know it's my role to fill in. ..I'd prefer to play more". On August 3, Milbourne got another game-winning hit, this time against the Minnesota Twins. On the season, he batted .226 with 31 runs scored, 53 hits, six doubles, two triples, two home runs, and 20 RBIs in 93 games played. Milbourne played 32 games at third base, 23 games at shortstop, and 15 games at second base. In 10 games that season, Seattle used Milbourne as the designated hitter. In 1979, Milbourne made the Mariners Opening Day roster for the third consecutive season. In 123 games played that year, he batted .278 with 40 runs scored, 99 hits, 13 doubles, four triples, two home runs, and 26 RBIs. Defensively, Milbourne played 65 games at shortstop, 49 at second base, and 11 at third base.

Later career

In 1980, the Seattle Mariners traded him to the New York Yankees. He was dealt along with

John Pacella John Lewis Pacella (born September 15, 1956) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. He became known for his unusual delivery that sometimes caused him to lose his cap after a pitch. Background Born in Brooklyn, New York, Pacella mov ...

and

Pete Filson William Peter Filson (born September 28, 1958) is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played during seven seasons at the major league level for the Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. Playing car ...

from the Yankees to the

Twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

for Butch Wynegar and Roger Erickson on May 12, 1982.Durso, Joseph. "Yankees Acquire Wynegar in Trade, Beat Angels by 6–5," ''The New York Times'', Thursday, May 13, 1982.
Retrieved October 31, 2020 A few months after, the Twins traded him to the Cleveland Indians. After the 1982 season, the Indians sold him to the Philadelphia Phillies, who sold him back to the Yankees in 1983. After the 1983 season, the Yankees traded him back to the Mariners. Seattle released him following the 1984 season, and Milbourne subsequently retired.

References

;General references # # ;Inline citations

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Milbourne, Larry 1951 births Living people African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from New Jersey Bluefield Orioles players Calgary Cannons players Cleveland Indians players Decatur Commodores players Gold Coast Suns (baseball) players Houston Astros players Iowa Oaks players Major League Baseball second basemen Major League Baseball shortstops Major League Baseball third basemen Memphis Blues players Minnesota Twins players New York Yankees players Orlando Juice players People from Commercial Township, New Jersey Philadelphia Phillies players Seattle Mariners players Shreveport Captains players Sportspeople from Cumberland County, New Jersey St. Lucie Legends players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople Millville Senior High School alumni