Paul Edwin Hinrichs (August 31, 1925 – April 9, 2023) was an American baseball player who was briefly a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

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 ...

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), ...

during the 1951 season. After his baseball career, Hinrichs became a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

minister.

Early life

Hinrichs was born to a family of German descent in

Marengo, Iowa Marengo is a town in and the county seat of Iowa County, Iowa, United States. It has served as the county seat since August 1845, even though it was not incorporated until July 1859. The population was 2,435 in the 2020 census, a decline from 2,5 ...

, the son of a Lutheran pastor, on August 31, 1925. He attended Concordia College in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...

, and enrolled at

Concordia Seminary Concordia Seminary is a Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, Lutheran seminary in Clayton, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, Missionary, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Chur ...

Clayton, Missouri Clayton is a city in and the seat of St. Louis County, Missouri. It borders the independent city of St. Louis. The population was 17,355 at the 2020 census. Organized in 1877, the city was named after Ralph Clayton, who donated the land for the ...

in 1943. He married Frances Rauscher in 1948, and they had five children, one of whom predeceased him.

Career

Hinrichs was signed 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 ...

organization in 1946, and first played in the

West Texas–New Mexico League The West Texas–New Mexico League was a minor league baseball league that operated from 1937 through 1955, with a hiatus from 1943 to 1945 during World War II. The league started as a Class D level league, upgraded to Class C in 1946 and then ...

before going to the

Dallas Rangers The Dallas Rangers were a high-level minor league baseball team located in Dallas, Texas from 1958 to 1964. The team was known by the Dallas Rangers name in 1958, 1959, and 1964 and as the Dallas-Fort Worth Rangers from 1960 to 1963. It played in ...

, the Tigers' Double A team. In 1948, ten minor league players within the Tigers

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

, including Hinrichs, were declared free agents after an investigation by Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler found that the organization was keeping more players in their farm system than they were permitted to. Hinrichs then signed with the

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

, and was the first player to be given a

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

by the team. The bonus was reported to be $75,000 at the time, though later estimates varied, and in a 2015 interview, Hinrichs only said that it was above $50,000. He played for their Double-A affiliate, the Kansas City Blues. However, his performance was hampered by an injury, and in the Rule 5 draft after the 1950 season, he was drafted by the

. In four appearances for the Red Sox in the 1951 season, Hinrichs posted a 21.60

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 ...

with one

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 ...

and four walks in 3⅓

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

, without recording a decision. In the months after his last major league game on June 21, 1951, he 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 San Francisco Seals, before he decided to leave baseball at the end of the year.

Later life and death

Hinrichs followed his father's career and became a Lutheran minister. He was ordained at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...

, on September 14, 1952. Hinrichs was sent to open a church in

Aiken, South Carolina Aiken is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Aiken County, in western South Carolina. It is one of the two largest cities of the Central Savannah River Area. Founded in 1835, Aiken was named after William Aiken, the president of the Sout ...

, followed by one in

La Puente, California La Puente (Spanish for "The Bridge") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city had a population of 39,816 at the 2010 census and is approximately east of downtown Los Angeles. History The original inhabitants of the ...

, before returning to St. Louis. He opened a congregation in

Litchfield, Illinois Litchfield is a city in Montgomery County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,605 at the 2020 census. It is located in South Central Illinois, south of Springfield, Illinois, and part of the Metro East of St. Louis. History Litch ...

, before retiring at age 63 and moving to Kentucky. Hinrichs died at a hospital in Greenville, Kentucky, on April 9, 2023, at age 97.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hinrichs, Paul 1925 births 2023 deaths 20th-century American Lutheran clergy American people of German descent Baseball players from Iowa Boston Red Sox players Concordia Golden Bears baseball players Dallas Rangers players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Major League Baseball pitchers People from Marengo, Iowa San Francisco Seals (baseball) players