William Hayden "Stubby" Greer (1920 in

Carbon, Texas Carbon is a town in Eastland County, Texas, United States. The population was 272 at the 2010 census, up from 224 at the 2000 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, Carbon has a total area of , all land. Demographics A ...

– September 14, 1994) was a player, coach and manager in Minor League Baseball. Greer debuted in 1940 with the Midland Cowboys and hit .305/?/.464 with 80 runs in 94 games. In 1941, he moved on to the Big Spring Bombers and batted .335/?/.524 with 99 runs, 30 doubles, 11 triples, 16 homers, 18 steals and 115 RBI. In 1942, Greer split time between the Santa Barbara Saints (.319/?/.489, 60 R in 68 games) and the

Dayton Ducks The Dayton Ducks were a minor league baseball team that played in the Central League in 1932 and then the Middle Atlantic League from 1933–1942. The team took its name from their owner and field manager, former St. Louis Cardinals player Ducky Ho ...

(.259/?/.393). Overall, he scored 108 runs, hit 45 doubles and stole 22 bases. He led the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leag ...

in runs and doubles (26). Stubby then missed the 1943–1945 seasons due to military service, perhaps costing him any shot at the majors. In 1946, Stubby returned as player-manager of the

Abilene Blue Sox The Abilene Blue Sox were a minor league baseball team that operated in the West Texas–New Mexico League from 1946 to 1955 and the Big State League from 1956 to 1957. They were an affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers (1946–48) and the Kansas City ...

. Greer led 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 ...

in hits (202) and steals (38) and his team had a .708 winning percentage. Greer was named MVP and All-Star shortstop. He hit .358/~.430/.577. He was third in the league in total bases (326), 5th in average, fourth in runs (146) and led shortstops in fielding percentage (.956, 20 points ahead of the runner-up). He hit 23 home runs, 39 doubles and 8 triples and drove in 131 in 135 games. He also fielded .962 in 28 games at second base, the best in the league for players with 15+ games there. Returning to Abilene in 1947, he hit .345/?/.537 and scored 110 runs in 112 games. He hit 16 homers and stole 25 bases. He also spent 24 games with the

Mobile Bears The Mobile Bears were an American minor league baseball team based in Mobile, Alabama. The franchise was a member of the old Southern Association, a high-level circuit that folded after the 1961 season. Mobile joined the SA in 1908 as the ''Sea Gu ...

, hitting a fine .366/?/.427. Returning as Mobile's regular third baseman in 1948 for his only full season at AA, he batted .276/?/.382, solid numbers but far from what he had done in the low minors. Returning to Abilene in 1949, Greer hit .326/?/.520 with 19 homers, 106 RBI, 28 steals and 122 runs in 118 games. He also managed the team to a second-place finish. In his usual role as Abilene's player-manager, the 30-year-old hit .330/~.435/.553 while his team fell to a disappointing last place. In 1951, Greer moved on to the

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and they too finished last. He batted .331/?/.549 with 18 homers and 18 steals. In 1952, Greer joined the Roswell Rockets, but only as player, not manager. He hit .360/~.412/.650 with 15 home runs, 117 RBI and 44 doubles, second in the

Longhorn League The Longhorn League was the name of a Minor league baseball circuit that operated from through in the Southwestern United States. In , it was renamed the Southwestern League and operated through before changing its name to the Sophomore Leag ...

. He also led the Longhorn League's regular shortstops in fielding percentage (.954) and was named All-Star shortstop. In 1953, Stubby started the year as player-manager of the Brownsville Charros and held that role until June 10. He hit .310/~.374/.458 in 57 games. He then joined up with the

Amarillo Gold Sox The Amarillo Gold Sox was the name of an American minor league baseball franchise that represented the city of Amarillo, Texas, in the Class D West Texas–New Mexico League, the Class A Western League and the Double-A Texas League at various t ...

and batted .365/~.452/.642 in 32 games there. Greer returned to Roswell in 1954, just in time to be teammates with

Joe Bauman Joe Willis Bauman (April 16, 1922 – September 20, 2005) was an American first baseman in professional baseball who played primarily in the low minor leagues. He is best remembered for his time with the Roswell Rockets of the Class C Longhorn Lea ...

in Bauman's legendary 70-homer campaign. Several sources now list Greer as finishing second to Bauman on Roswell in homers, with 12, but the sources of the time list him with 13, third on the club. He hit .398/~.477/.603 in that hitter-friendly league. He scored 122 runs and drove in 101 in 103 games as a 3B/OF. He was second to Bauman in OBP and average, losing the batting title race to his now-legendary teammate by two points. In 1955, Greer managed Roswell to a second-place finish, in his final season in the driver's seat. He batted .337/?/.564 with 39 doubles, 8 triples, 22 homers, 111 runs and 113 RBI in 123 games. In 1956, Stubby moved on to the

Victoria Eagles Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

but struggled, only hitting .210/?/.261 in 37 games. The next year, he wrapped up his career with the Ballinger Westerners, batting .314/~.381/.508 with 16 home runs. Playing in high-offense leagues primarily, Greer hit .330/?/.519 in 1,669 minor league games. He scored 1,348 runs, drove in 1,274, hit 441 doubles, 80 triples and 204 home runs and stole 212 bases. Sources: 1947, 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955 and 1958

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, '' The Minor League Register'' ed. by W. Lloyd Johnson
Minor League Baseball.com profile of the 1946 Abilene Blue Sox

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

External links

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"Stubby Greer"
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. {{DEFAULTSORT:Greer, William Minor league baseball managers 1920 births 1994 deaths Midland Cowboys players Big Spring Bombers players Dayton Ducks players Santa Barbara Saints players Abilene Blue Sox players Mobile Bears players Artesia Drillers players Roswell Rockets players Brownsville Charros players Amarillo Gold Sox players Victoria Eagles players Ballinger Westerners players