Highlighted Year: Earl Battey, 1962

Catcher, Minnesota Twins

Age:  27

3^rd season with Senators/Twins

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’1”    Weight: 237 

Prior to 1962:

A Los Angeles native, Battey was an outstanding catcher at Jordan High School and signed with the Chicago White Sox in 1953 for $3999. Initially assigned to Colorado Springs of the Class A Western League, the 18-year-old backstop hit only .158 in 26 games and was sent to Waterloo of the Class B Illinois-Indiana-Iowa (or Three I) League in 1954 where he batted .292 with 25 doubles, 11 home runs, 67 RBIs, a .403 on-base percentage, and a .445 slugging percentage. In 1955 he was with Charleston of the Class AAA American Association and hit .269 with 16 doubles, 8 home runs, 71 RBIs, and a .371 OBP thanks to drawing 62 walks. Receiving a late-season call-up to the White Sox, Battey appeared in five games and produced his first two major league hits. Spending 1956 primarily with the Toronto Maple Leafs of the Class AAA International League, he was hindered by a knee injury that limited him to 36 games and a .178 average. He also spent time both early and late in the season with the White Sox. Healthy in the offseason he played winter ball in Venezuela and batted .331. Catching the attention of new manager Al Lopez (once a former star catcher himself) during 1957 spring training, Battey opened the season with Chicago and was used when starting backstop Sherm Lollar received a day off. When Lollar suffered a broken wrist and missed 41 games, Battey and Les Moss filled in behind the plate. While he handled his catching duties well, Battey only hit .174 in 48 games, and he was sent down to Los Angeles of the Pacific Coast League in August. Regaining his batting stroke over the winter in Venezuela, he hit well during spring training in 1958 and stuck with the White Sox where he capably backed up the steady Lollar. He still batted a low .226 with 8 home runs, 26 RBIs, a .325 OBP, and a .417 slugging percentage. Joined by rookie backstop John Romano in 1959, Battey saw less action for the pennant-winning White Sox and in 72 plate appearances he hit .219 with a .306 OBP. As the White Sox sought to improve their power production, Battey was traded to the Washington Senators for slugging outfielder Roy Sievers just prior to the 1960 season. Taking over as Washington’s starting catcher, he produced at the plate by hitting .270 with 24 doubles, 15 home runs, 60 RBIs, a .346 OBP, and a .427 slugging percentage. He was also awarded a Gold Glove for his performance behind the plate and placed eighth in league MVP voting. He proved to be a deft handler of pitchers in addition to having an excellent throwing arm. With the Senators becoming the Minnesota Twins in 1961, Battey had another fine season as he played through injuries to bat .302 with 24 doubles, 17 home runs, 55 RBIs, a .377 OBP, and a .470 slugging percentage. He also received another Gold Glove for his defense and entered 1962 as a highly-regarded backstop.

1962 Season Summary

Appeared in 148 games

C – 147, PH – 1

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 591

At Bats – 522

Runs – 58

Hits – 146

Doubles – 20

Triples – 3

Home Runs – 11

RBI – 57

Bases on Balls – 57

Int. BB – 3

Strikeouts – 48

Stolen Bases – 0

Caught Stealing – 0

Average - .280

OBP - .348

Slugging Pct. - .393

Total Bases – 205

GDP – 20 [2, tied with Elston Howard & Mike Hershberger]

Hit by Pitches – 0

Sac Hits – 8 [15, tied with ten others]

Sac Flies – 4 

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 12, HR - 4, RBI - 29, AVG - .280, OBP - .333

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Most hits, game – 3 on nine occasions

Longest hitting streak – 9 games

HR at home – 6

HR on road – 5

Most home runs, game – 1 on eleven occasions

Multi-HR games – 0

Most RBIs, game – 3 at Baltimore 7/31

Pinch-hitting – 0 for 1 (.000)

Fielding

Chances – 963

Put Outs – 872

Assists – 82

Errors – 9

Passed Balls – 13

DP – 9

Pct. - .991 

Awards & Honors:

Gold Glove

All-Star (Started for AL at C in both games)

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The Twins went 91-71 to finish second in the AL, 5 games behind the pennant-winning New York Yankees, while leading the league in OBP (,338) and fewest stolen bases (33). The Twins were surprise contenders from the start and stuck close behind the Yankees through April, May, and June. 7 games back on August 1, they whittled their way closer until time ran out in September.

Aftermath of 1962:

Battey remained a solid producer, offensively and defensively, for the Twins in 1963. He batted .285 with 26 home runs, 84 RBIs, a .369 OBP, and a .476 slugging percentage. He placed seventh in league MVP balloting and once more started for the American League in the All-Star Game. Prone to putting on weight, he reported to spring training in 1964 at 260 pounds and went on to have an injury-marred off-year in which he hit .272 with 12 home runs, 52 RBIs, a .348 OBP, and a .407 slugging percentage. The Twins won the pennant in 1965 and Battey contributed by batting .297 with 22 doubles, 6 home runs, 60 RBIs, a .375 OBP, and a .409 slugging percentage, all despite dealing with an assortment of nagging injuries. His defense remained strong as well and he finished tenth in AL MVP voting. Having struck out only 23 times during the season, he fanned five times in the seven-game World Series loss to the Dodgers and their outstanding pitching. In 1966 Battey’s batting production dropped to .255 with 17 extra-base hits and a .337 OBP. With the Twins involved in a wild pennant race in 1967 in which they ultimately came up short, Battey was limited to 48 games by injuries and lost his starting job to veteran backup Jerry Zimmerman. He hit .165 with four extra-base hits and a .254 OBP and retired following the season. For his major league career, Battey batted .270 with 969 hits that included 150 doubles, 17 triples, and 104 home runs. He scored 393 runs and compiled 449 RBIs, a .349 OBP, and a .409 slugging percentage. With the Senators/Twins he batted .277 with 894 hits, 346 runs scored, 139 doubles, 12 triples, 91 home runs, 410 RBIs, a .354 OBP, and a .412 slugging percentage. In his only World Series action in 1965 he hit .120 with 2 RBIs. Battey was a five-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove recipient. Selected as catcher on Minnesota’s fortieth anniversary all-time team in 2000, he was remembered by teammates for his big and fun-loving personality and was respected for playing through his many injuries. Following his playing career, Battey was part of Consolidated Edison’s community relations program. He also got his college degree and was a high school teacher and baseball coach who died in 2003 at age 68.   

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.