James Michael Derrick (September 19, 1943 – January 14, 2009"James Michael Derrick Sr."
'

The State A state is a centralized political organization that imposes and enforces rules over a population within a territory. There is no undisputed definition of a state. One widely used definition comes from the German sociologist Max Weber: a "stat ...

'' obituaries, January 16, 2009 ) was a

left fielder 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 ...

and

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

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 played briefly for 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 ...

during the season. Listed at 6' 0", 190 lb., he batted left-handed and threw right-handed. He was born in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

. Derrick graduated from

Brookland-Cayce High School Brookland-Cayce High School is a public high school located in Cayce, South Carolina, United States. History The school was built in 1932. Named for the cities of Brookland (now West Columbia) and Cayce which it originally served, the school no ...

in 1961. While there he lettered in Football, Baseball, Basketball, and Track. For football he was selected as an All-American and the State AAA Back of the Year in 1960. Also, in 1960, he was a unanimous all-state selection. He was a member of the 1960 Shrine Bowl team and attended the University of South Carolina on a football and baseball scholarship. Derrick signed as an amateur free agent with 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 1962, then was sent by Pittsburgh to the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

in exchange for

Chris Cannizzaro Christopher John Cannizzaro (May 3, 1938 – December 29, 2016) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1960 to 1974 for the St. Louis Cardinals (1960–61), New York Mets ...

in 1967. During his minor league baseball career, Derrick was primarily a first baseman. Later, he was selected by the Red Sox from Detroit in the 1969 Rule 5 major league draft. In a 24-game career, Derrick posted a .212 batting average (7-for-33) with five RBI, three runs, and a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

without

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. Used mostly in pinch-hitting and pinch-running roles, he made two appearances in left field and one at first base. He died in January 2009 in Columbia, South Carolina.

References

Sources

Retrosheet
1943 births 2009 deaths Asheville Tourists players Baseball players from Columbia, South Carolina Boston Red Sox players Columbus Jets players Grand Forks Chiefs players Kinston Eagles players Louisville Colonels (minor league) players Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball left fielders Reno Silver Sox players Tacoma Twins players Toledo Mud Hens players {{US-baseball-outfielder-1940s-stub