Cyril Charles Slapnicka (March 23, 1886 – October 20, 1979) was a

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

and

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...

. He played for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

(1911) and

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

(1918). His playing career was unusual in that he went almost seven years between major league appearances. He also played 18 years of minor league ball. In 10 total games pitched Slapnicka had a record of 1–6 with an ERA of 4.30 in 73.1

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

. He started eight games, completed five, and finished two. He also had one save. His more significant contributions to baseball came when his playing career was over. He was the

General Manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

from 1935 to 1940, and then a major league

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

for the Indians until he retired in 1961. He signed 31 major league players, including Hall of Famers

Bob Feller Robert William Andrew Feller (November 3, 1918 – December 15, 2010), nicknamed "the Heater from Van Meter", "Bullet Bob", and "Rapid Robert", was an American baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Clevel ...

and

Bob Lemon Robert Granville Lemon (September 22, 1920 – January 11, 2000) was an American right-handed pitcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Lemon was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976. Lemon was raised in California, ...

. He resigned as Indians Vice President in September 1941. Slapnicka died in his hometown of

Cedar Rapids, Iowa Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 137,710 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, second-most populous city in Iowa. The city lies o ...

, at the age of 93.

References

External links

The Deadball Era
* 1886 births 1979 deaths Baseball executives Baseball players from Iowa Birmingham Barons players Burlington Pathfinders players Cedar Rapids Rabbits players Chicago Cubs players Chicago Cubs scouts Cleveland Indians executives Cleveland Indians scouts Hannibal Cannibals players Joplin Miners players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball general managers Marshalltown Brownies players Marshalltown Snappers players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Minor league baseball managers Newton Railroaders players Pittsburgh Pirates players Rockford Reds players Rockford Wolverines players St. Louis Browns scouts Galesburg Boosters players 20th-century American sportsmen {{Baseball-business-bio-stub