Third Baseman/Outfielder,
Philadelphia Phillies
2nd season
with Phillies (first complete)
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 6’4” Weight: 190
Prior to 1962:
An Oklahoma
City native, Demeter (pronounced DEM-et-er) moved to Denver with his family in
his youth, but when his parents split up, he returned to Oklahoma City to live
with his grandparents. A fine natural athlete, baseball proved to be his best
sport and he played center field on the Capitol Hill High School team which won
the Oklahoma state championship during his junior and senior years. In 1953 he
signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers for an $800 bonus. The 18-year-old prospect
was initially assigned to the Shawnee Hawks of the Class D Sooner State League
where he batted an unimpressive .223 with 12 doubles, 6 triples, 9 home runs,
42 RBIs, and a .335 on-base percentage. Demeter advanced to the Bakersfield
Indians of the Class C California League in 1954 and bumped his average up to
.267 with 18 doubles, 26 home runs, 89 RBIs, and a .350 OBP. Demeter started
the 1955 season with Pueblo of the Class A Western League and was promoted to
the Mobile Bears of the Class AA Southern Association. His combined batting
production was .254 with 16 doubles, 16 home runs, 59 RBIs, a .348 OBP, and a
.420 slugging percentage. He also played winter ball in Venezuela for the
second straight year. Moving up to the Fort Worth Cats of the Class AA Texas
League in 1956, he hit .287 with 41 home runs, 128 RBIs, a .384 OBP, and a .574
slugging percentage. Earning a September call-up to Brooklyn, Demeter went
one-for-three while swatting his first major league homer. Having established
himself as a solid prospect with his hitting and fine defensive play, he moved
on to the St. Paul Saints of the Class AAA American Association in 1957 where
he batted .309 with 17 doubles, 28 home runs, 86 RBIs, a .378 OBP, and a .562
slugging percentage. Again called up to the Dodgers following the American
Association playoffs, he saw no major league action. In the offseason he served
a stint in the Army. The Dodgers relocated to Los Angeles in 1958 and were
dealing with aging stars in the outfield. Demeter started the season in LA but
was sent back to St. Paul in May to get more playing time and hit .283 with 10
doubles, 14 home runs, 48 RBIs, a .343 OBP, and a .490 slugging percentage in
80 appearances prior to returning to the Dodgers in August. Seeing regular
action in the outfield during the remainder of the season, his major league
production was .225 with 5 home runs, 8 RBIs, and a .225 OBP. The Dodgers won a
surprising pennant in 1959 and Demeter performed well during the season’s first
half, although he dropped off thereafter to end up at .256 with 18 home runs,
70 RBIs, a .294 OBP, and a .437 slugging percentage while appearing in 139
games. In the six-game World Series defeat of the Chicago White Sox, he managed
only three hits, none for extra bases. It would prove to be his only postseason
action. His 1960 season was derailed by a broken wrist suffered in July that
limited him to 64 games in which he batted .274 with 9 home runs, 29 RBIs, and
a .306 OBP. Off to a slow start at the plate in 1961, Demeter was traded to the
Phillies in May as part of a four-player deal. Splitting time at first base and
all three outfield positions, his combined batting totals were .251 with 21
home runs, 70 RBIs, a .297 OBP, and a .467 slugging percentage. In 1962 he
further proved to be defensively versatile by filling in at the unfamiliar
position of third base in addition to his outfield duties.
1962 Season Summary
Appeared in 153
games
3B – 105, CF – 42,
LF – 23, PH – 6, RF – 4, 1B – 1
[Bracketed
numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]
Batting
Plate
Appearances – 617
At Bats – 550
Runs – 85
Hits – 169 [19]
Doubles – 24
Triples – 3
Home Runs – 29 [8,
tied with Eddie Mathews & Joe Adcock]
RBI – 107 [7]
Bases on Balls
– 41
Int. BB – 6
[19, tied with six others]
Strikeouts – 93
[13, tied with Andre Rodgers]
Stolen Bases – 2
Caught Stealing
– 7 [11, tied with eleven others]
Average - .307 [9]
OBP - .359 [18]
Slugging Pct. -
.520 [6]
Total Bases – 286
[13]
GDP – 11
Hit by Pitches
– 10 [2, tied with Curt Flood]
Sac Hits – 5
Sac Flies – 11
[1]
League-leading
sac flies were +1 ahead of runner-up Ernie Banks
Midseason
snapshot: 2B – 12, HR – 14, RBI – 55, AVG – .297, OBP - .347, SLG – .507
---
Most hits, game
– 4 (in 4 AB) vs. St. Louis 6/22
Longest hitting
streak – 14 games
Most HR, game –
2 (in 4 AB) at NY Mets 4/28, (in 4 AB) at San Francisco 6/28, (in 4 AB) at NY
Mets 8/15
HR at home – 10
HR on road – 19
Multi-HR games
– 3
Most RBIs, game
– 6 at Chi. Cubs 5/11
Pinch-hitting – 2 for 6 (.333)
Fielding (3B)
Chances – 286
Put Outs – 91
Assists – 177
Errors – 18
DP – 18
Pct. - .937
Awards & Honors:
12th
in NL MVP voting (12 points – 4% share)
---
The Phillies
went 81-80 to finish seventh in the NL, 20 games behind
the pennant-winning San Francisco Giants. Following four straight last-place
finishes, the retooling Phillies started slowly but finished strong in August
and September to nose just above .500.
Aftermath of 1962:
The arrival of veteran third baseman Don Hoak in 1963 lessened the need for Demeter to play at the not corner although he continued to sub at third and first base while appearing in 120 games in the outfield. While his batting average dipped to .258 he accumulated 20 doubles, 22 home runs, 83 RBIs, a .306 OBP, and a .433 slugging percentage. In the offseason the Phillies dealt him to the Detroit Tigers for RHP Jim Bunning and catcher Gus Triandos. Demeter performed well in the outfield for the Tigers in 1964 and occasionally platooned with Norm Cash at first base. While he proved to be a fine clutch hitter, his overall batting production was .256 with 22 doubles, 22 home runs, 80 RBIs, a .290 OBP, and a .460 slugging percentage. Continuing to display his versatility in the outfield and at first base in 1965, Demeter experienced a surge in production during July but an August wrist injury curtailed his use down the stretch and he finished at .278 with 16 doubles, 16 home runs, 58 RBIs, a .325 OBP, and a .463 slugging percentage. Caught in a crowded outfield situation in 1966, Demeter appeared in only 32 games for Detroit and was hitting just .212 when he was traded to the Boston Red Sox in June as part of the deal that brought RHP Earl Wilson to the Tigers, with significant results. Appearing primarily in center field during the remainder of the season with the Red Sox, he ended up batting a combined .268 with 18 doubles, 14 home runs, 41 RBIs, a .284 OBP, and a .458 slugging percentage. With rookie Reggie Smith taking over in center field in 1967, Demeter found himself on the move again in June as part of the deal that brought RHP Gary Bell to Boston, who contributed to the Red Sox winning an improbable pennant. He finished the season and his career as a reserve outfielder for the Indians, and hit a combined .226 with 6 home runs, 16 RBIs, and a .274 OBP. Dealing with a heart condition he decided to retire. For his major league playing career, Demeter batted .265 with 912 hits that included 147 doubles, 17 triples, and 163 home runs. He scored 467 runs and compiled 563 RBIs, a .307 OBP, and a .459 slugging percentage. With the Phillies he batted .276 with 400 hits, 62 doubles, 9 triples, 71 home runs, 202 runs scored, 258 RBIs, a .325 OBP, and a .479 slugging percentage. Never an All-Star, he twice received MVP votes, both with the Phillies. A devout Baptist, Demeter did not smoke, drink, or use profanity and became pastor of Grace Community Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. Prior to that, following his playing career, in addition to working in a few businesses, he served as president of the minor league Oklahoma City 89ers. He also was an unsuccessful candidate for the Oklahoma legislature in 1976. Demeter died in 2021 at age 86.
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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.
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