Austin Jay Knickerbocker (October 15, 1918 – February 18, 1997) 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 professiona ...

player whose 11-season career included 21 Major League

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Baseball ...

for the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oakl ...

during the season. An

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

, he threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed .

Career

Born in Bangall, a hamlet of

Stanford, New York Stanford is a town in the north-central part of Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 3,628 at the 2020 census,US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report, Stanford town, Dutchess County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-res ...

, Knickerbocker attended Duke UniversityPietrusza, David, and Thorn, John, ''Baseball's Canadian–American League.'' Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 1990, p. 75 and began his professional career at age 21 in 1940. In 1941, he batted .406 to lead the Class C

Canadian–American League The Canadian–American League, nicknamed the Can-Am League, was a class C level minor league baseball circuit which ran from 1936 through 1951, with a three-year break during World War II. Teams * Amsterdam Rugmakers, 1938–1942, 1946–1 ...

in hitting; he also paced the circuit in

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...

(202) and

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 ...

(135), as a member of the Oneonta Indians.Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, eds., ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball''. 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina:

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form ...

, 2007, p. 380 (However, Leon Riley of the

Rome Colonels The Rome Colonels was the primary moniker of minor league baseball teams based in Rome, New York between 1898 and 1951. Rome teams played as members of the New York State League (1898–1901), Empire State League (1905) and Canadian–American Lea ...

led the league in

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 is ...

s that season.) The performance earned Knickerbocker a promotion all the way to the top level of the minors, with the 1942

Jersey City Giants {{about, the baseball team, the football team, American Association (American football) The Jersey City Giants was the name of a high-level American minor league baseball franchise that played in Jersey City, New Jersey, as the top farm system a ...

, but he played only 30 games that season, then spent 1943–1945 serving in the United States Army during World War II.Baseball in Wartime
/ref> He resumed his playing career in the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ( ...

in 1946 and the following year made his only Major League appearances. In his April 19, 1947, debut for the Athletics, he was a

pinch runner In baseball, a pinch runner is a player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing another player on base. The pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been subs ...

against 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 eig ...

, and mostly languished on the bench in the early weeks of the campaign, getting only five

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

s before the May cutdown date, when he was optioned to the Triple-A

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Divi ...

. After batting .278 in 105 games for Toronto that season,Minor league record
from

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he was recalled by Philadelphia in September and started eight games, playing all three outfield positions through season's end. He resumed his minor league career in 1948 and played through 1954, with the exception of the 1952 season. In 48 Major League

s, Knickerbocker registered 12 hits, including three doubles and two triples. He scored eight runs in his 21 games.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knickerbocker, Austin 1918 births 1997 deaths Allentown Wings players Baltimore Orioles (International League) players Baseball players from New York (state) Duke Blue Devils baseball players Jersey City Giants players Major League Baseball outfielders Mayfield Clothiers players Oneonta Indians players Olean Giants players Olean Oilers managers People from Stanford, New York Philadelphia Athletics players San Antonio Missions players Syracuse Chiefs players Toledo Mud Hens players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Wausau Timberjacks players