Ambrose Francis "Bruce" Ogrodowski (February 17, 1912 – March 5, 1956) was an American

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 ...

player, a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

who appeared in 184 Major League games played for 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 1936–1937. A native of

Hoytville, Pennsylvania Morris Township is a township in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 562 at the 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 73.5 square miles (190.4&nbs ...

, he threw and batted

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

, stood tall and weighed . His older brother Joe pitched in one Major League game in . Bruce Ogrodowski was the second-string catcher, behind

Spud Davis Virgil Lawrence "Spud" Davis (December 20, 1904 – August 14, 1984) was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Cinc ...

, for the 1936 Cardinals, appearing in 94 games and

batting Batting may refer to: * Batting (baseball), the act of attempting to hit a ball thrown by the pitcher with a baseball bat, in order to score runs * Batting (cricket), the act of defending one's wicket with the cricket bat while attempting to score ...

.228. During a regular season exhibition game in Cleveland that year he was the first Major League Baseball batter to face Bob Feller. In 1937, he appeared in four fewer games but nonetheless was the most-used catcher for the Redbirds; however, he improved his batting average by only five points. The following year, Mickey Owen became the Cardinals' regular catcher, and Ogrodowski was sent to the Rochester Red Wings. He spent the rest of his career in minor league baseball, including nine seasons (1939–1947) in the highly competitive Pacific Coast League for the

Sacramento Solons The Sacramento Solons were a minor league baseball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Pacific Coast League during several periods (1903, 1905, 1909–1914, 1918–1960, 1974–1976). The current Sacramento River Cats began pl ...

(1939–1940) and San Francisco Seals (1941–1947). Ogrodowski's 119 Major League hits included 25 doubles, four triples and four home runs. After

managing Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

in the farm systems of the Boston Braves and

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...

, Ogrodowski died at age 44 in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

after having been ill since suffering a stroke in 1953

External links

1912 births 1956 deaths Baseball players from Pennsylvania Columbus Red Birds players Greensboro Patriots players Houston Buffaloes players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Major League Baseball catchers Marshall Browns players People from Tioga County, Pennsylvania Rochester Red Wings players Sacramento Solons players St. Louis Cardinals players San Francisco Seals (baseball) players Wichita Falls Spudders players {{US-baseball-catcher-1910s-stub