Frederick August Knorr II (July 9, 1913
''Sports Illustrated'', February 18, 1957 – December 26, 1960) was an American radio executive and part-owner of the Detroit Tigers in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

from 1956 until his death in 1960. A native of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

and a graduate of Hillsdale College in

Hillsdale, Michigan Hillsdale is the largest city and county seat of Hillsdale County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,036 at the 2020 census. The city is the home of Hillsdale College, a private liberal arts college noted for its academics ...

, his first job in radio was at

WHLS WHLS (1450 AM) is an alternative rock radio station licensed to Port Huron, Michigan, with a power output of 1,000 watts, covering much of St. Clair County, Michigan. The station is owned by Radio First and broadcasts from studios on Huron Aven ...

in Port Huron, Michigan, in 1937. During the 1940s, Knorr purchased four Michigan radio stations, including WKMH, which broadcast Tigers games. In 1956, Knorr and

John Fetzer John Earl Fetzer (March 25, 1901 – February 20, 1991) was a radio and television executive who was best known as the owner of the Detroit Tigers from 1961 through 1983. Under his ownership, the 1968 Tigers won the World Series. Biography Bo ...

led an ownership group intending to acquire the Tigers and Briggs Stadium from the Briggs family. The team was sold at a cost of US$5.5 million, with assurances of retaining Walter Briggs Jr., the prior owner, who was given the position of

executive vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

. In addition to being owner, Knorr also served as president in 1957 before being replaced by Harvey Hansen on April 19, 1957. The team under Knorr's new direction supported integration of baseball, a position that was contrary to Walter Briggs Sr.'s longtime segregationist stance. On June 6, 1958,

Ozzie Virgil Sr. Osvaldo José Virgil Pichardo (born May 17, 1932) is a former professional baseball player and coach who was the first Dominican to play in Major League Baseball. He was a utilityman who played in MLB between 1956 and 1969 for the New York / S ...

became the first black player for the Tigers. In late December 1960, Knorr, 47, died of burns suffered when he accidentally fell into a bathtub of scalding water while vacationing in a Fort Lauderdale, Florida, hotel.

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

, 28 December 1960 Upon his death, Fetzer became majority owner.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knorr, Fred 1913 births 1960 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople Accidental deaths in Florida American radio executives Detroit Tigers owners Hillsdale College alumni Major League Baseball owners Sportspeople from Michigan Deaths from fire in the United States

See also

References