Dick Conger
Richard Conger (April 3, 1921 – February 16, 1970) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Philadelphia Phillies.[1] His key pitch was the fastball.[2]
| Dick Conger | |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | |
| Born: April 3, 1921 Los Angeles, California | |
| Died: February 16, 1970 (aged 48) Los Angeles, California | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 22, 1940, for the Detroit Tigers | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 14, 1943, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 3–7 |
| Earned run average | 5.14 |
| Strikeouts | 24 |
| Teams | |
Early life
Conger was born in Los Angeles, California, and was Jewish.[3][4][5][6] He attended Fremont High School in Los Angeles, for whom he played baseball, and as a sophomore won 17 consecutive games on the way to a City title.[7] He also led the team to the City Championship in his senior year in 1938.[7]
He then attended the University of California, Los Angeles, where Conger also played baseball.[8][9][10] He lost only one game as a freshman for the UCLA Bruins, before signing with the Detroit Tigers in 1940.[7]
Baseball career
In the minor leagues, in 1943 with the Toronto Maple Leafs Conger was 11-6 with a 1.96 ERA (3rd in the International League).[11] In 1944 with the Los Angeles Angels he was 13-7 with a 2.88 ERA, and 5 shutouts (tied for 7th in the Pacific Coast League).[12]
Conger pitched in the major leagues from 1940 (when at 19 years of age he was the second-youngest player in the American League, behind Hal Newhouser) to 1943.[13][14][15] In his major league career he was 3-7 with a 5.14 ERA, and four complete games.[14]
From 1944 to 1946 Conger served in the Marine Corps during World War II.[16][17]
After his major league career, Conger continued to play in the minor leagues, his last season being with the Sacramento Solons (PCL) and Oklahoma City Indians (Texas League) in 1950.[18] He died at 48 years of age.[5]
On June 26, 2011, Conger was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.[19]
References
- ^ "Dick Conger Stats". baseball-reference.com. sports-reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2011.
- ^ Neyer, Rob; James, Bill (2004). The Neyer/James Guide to Pitchers. Simon & Schuster. p. 170. ISBN 9781439103777.
- ^ Burton Alan Boxerman, Benita W. Boxerman (2007). Jews and Baseball: Entering the American mainstream, 1871-1948
- ^ "Big League Jews". Jewish Sports Review. 12 (137): 18. January–February 2020.
- ^ a b Horvitz, Peter S.; Horvitz, Joachim (2001). The Big Book of Jewish Baseball. SP Books. ISBN 9781561719730 – via Google Books.
- ^ Wechsler, Bob (2008). Day by Day in Jewish Sports History. KTAV Publishing House, Inc. ISBN 9780881259698 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c "Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame Home". scjewishsportshof.com.
- ^ Southern Campus, Volume 20, 1939.
- ^ "Dick Conger Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ "University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Baseball Players Who Made it to a Major League Baseball Team". www.baseball-almanac.com.
- ^ "1943 International League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1944 Pacific Coast League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Richard (Dick) Conger". jewishbaseballmuseum.com.
- ^ a b "Dick Conger Stats". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1940 American League Awards, All-Stars, & More Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia. Sterling Publishing. 2007. p. 1137. ISBN 978-1-4027-4771-7.
- ^ "Baseball in Wartime - Those Who Served A to Z". BaseballinWartime.com. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
- ^ "Dick Conger Minor Leagues Statistics & History". baseball-reference.com. sports-reference.com. Retrieved June 10, 2011.
- ^ "Sports Shorts". Jewish Sports Review. July–August 2011.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Dick Conger at Find a Grave