Gene Oliver
Gene Oliver | |
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Catcher / First baseman / Outfielder | |
Born: Moline, Illinois | March 22, 1935|
Died: March 3, 2007 Rock Island, Illinois | (aged 71)|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
June 6, 1959, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
Last MLB appearance | |
August 24, 1969, for the Chicago Cubs | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .246 |
Home runs | 93 |
Runs batted in | 320 |
Teams | |
Eugene George Oliver (March 22, 1935 – March 3, 2007) was an American professional baseball player who appeared in 786 games in Major League Baseball, primarily as a catcher and first baseman, between 1959 and 1969, for the St. Louis Cardinals (1959, 1961–63), Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves (1963–67), Philadelphia Phillies (1967), Boston Red Sox (1968) and Chicago Cubs (1968–69). He batted and threw right-handed. stood 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and weighed 225 pounds (102 kg).
Biography[edit]
Oliver was from Moline, Illinois. He graduated from Alleman Catholic High School and Northwestern University, before signing with the Cardinals in 1956. Although he spent seven full years and three partial seasons in the majors, he was a regular for only two seasons, as the catcher for the Cardinals in 1962 and the first baseman for the Braves in 1963. Oliver had a strong arm and was good at blocking the plate. As a batter, he had some power and decent speed for a catcher.
In 1965, Oliver reached a high-career mark of 21 home runs with the Braves in their final season in Milwaukee, enabling the 1965 Braves to set a National League record with six 20-HR hitters in one season. On June 8 of that year, Joe Torre, Eddie Mathews, Hank Aaron and Oliver hit tenth-inning home runs in a Braves victory over the Cubs, setting a major league record for most long balls in a single inning of an extra-inning game.
The Phillies and Braves switched catchers in 1967, with Bob Uecker going to Atlanta. After the trade, Oliver suffered a severe knee injury that shortened his career.
In his ten-season career, Oliver hit .246 with 93 home runs, 320 runs batted in, 268 runs scored, 111 doubles, five triples, and 24 stolen bases in 786 games.
Oliver remained close to his former Cubs teammates and acted as social director for Randy Hundley's fantasy baseball camps. He died shortly after his 25th camp in Rock Island, Illinois, and is interred at Calvary Mausoleum in Rock Island.[1]
References[edit]
- ^ "Gene Oliver Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
External links[edit]
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Gene Oliver at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
- Gene Oliver at Baseball Library
- 1935 births
- 2007 deaths
- Albany Cardinals players
- Ardmore Cardinals players
- Atlanta Braves players
- Baseball players from Illinois
- Boston Red Sox players
- Chicago Cubs players
- Major League Baseball catchers
- Major League Baseball first basemen
- Major League Baseball left fielders
- Milwaukee Braves players
- Northwestern Wildcats baseball players
- People from Moline, Illinois
- Philadelphia Phillies players
- Portland Beavers players
- Rochester Red Wings players
- St. Louis Cardinals players
- San Antonio Missions players
- Winston-Salem Cardinals players
- Northwestern Wildcats football players