Lafayette Fresco Thompson Jr. (June 6, 1902 – November 20, 1968) was an American

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), ...

second baseman and executive. Thompson was born in

Centreville, Alabama Centreville is a city in Bibb County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 2,800. The city is the county seat of Bibb County. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Centreville has a total area of , of which ...

. In 1916, when he was 14, his family moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, where Thompson attended George Washington High School and

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. At Columbia, he was a football teammate of

Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig (born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941) was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was renowned f ...

's, but Thompson left the school to turn

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...

before he could join Gehrig on the Lions' baseball team.

Playing career

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

batter and thrower, Thompson stood tall and weighed . His pro career began at the Class D level of the minors in 1923. After three years of seasoning, he made his debut in September with the eventual world champion Pittsburgh Pirates. Following brief appearances with the Pirates (14 games in 1925) and New York Giants (two games in ), Thompson was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in when the Giants obtained

Rogers Hornsby Rogers Hornsby Sr. (April 27, 1896 – January 5, 1963), nicknamed "The Rajah", was an American baseball infielder, manager, and coach who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1915–1926, 193 ...

. He had his most productive years with the Phils, playing in Baker Bowl, twice hitting over .300. Overall, in 669 games played for four teams over all or parts of nine

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

seasons (1925–32; 1934), Thompson batted .298 in 2,560 at bats. His 762 hits included 149 doubles, 34 triples and 13 home runs, and he collected 249 RBI. He finished his career with a .962 fielding percentage.

Dodger executive

After his playing days, Thompson managed in the

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in No ...

and in , he became an assistant farm system director for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Thompson moved up the executive ladder, and survived the front-office purge that followed Branch Rickey's departure in October . During the shakeup, Thompson became a vice president and the team's second-ranking baseball executive, responsible for all minor league operations, while another VP, Buzzie Bavasi, assumed control of the big-league Dodgers' operations. Thompson continued as head of the club's extensive player development system after the Dodgers moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

in . Over Thompson's 22 years as a senior farm system executive, the Dodgers produced six

National League Rookie of the Year Award In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The aw ...

winners,''MLB Rookie of the Year Award Winners,'' ESPN.com
/ref> and won ten NL pennants and four

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

titles. When Bavasi left to become president of the expansion

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

on June 4, 1968, Thompson became the Dodgers' executive vice president and

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

. During the transition, he presided over the Dodgers' hugely successful 1968 amateur draft. The regular and secondary phases of the 1968 June lottery netted the Dodgers

Steve Garvey Steven Patrick Garvey (born December 22, 1948) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres from 1969 to 1987. Garvey was the National ...

Davey Lopes David Earle Lopes (; born May 3, 1945) is an American former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He batted and threw right-handed. He played in MLB for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs, and Houston ...

Ron Cey Ronald Charles Cey (; born February 15, 1948), nicknamed "Penguin", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from through , most notably as an integral member of the Los Angeles Do ...

, Bill Buckner,

Bobby Valentine Robert John Valentine (born May 13, 1950), nicknamed "Bobby V", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He also served as the athletic director at Sacred Heart University. Valentine played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1 ...

Joe Ferguson Joseph Carlton Ferguson Jr. (born April 23, 1950) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at Arkansas. Early year ...

Doyle Alexander Doyle Lafayette Alexander (born September 4, 1950) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue J ...

and others. However, a few weeks after his promotion, Thompson was diagnosed with

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, and he died in November in Fullerton, California, at the age of 66.Collier, Phil, "Death of a Dodger", ''Baseball Digest'', February 1969, pp. 27-28 He was succeeded as general manager by the club's scouting director,

Al Campanis Alexander Sebastian Campanis (Greek: Αλέξανδρος Σεβαστιανός Καμπάνης; November 2, 1916 – June 21, 1998) was an American executive in Major League Baseball (MLB). He had a brief major league playing career, as a ...

. The following season,

Ted Sizemore Ted Crawford Sizemore (born April 15, 1945) is a former Major League Baseball second baseman. He was named the National League's Rookie of the Year in . Early life Sizemore was born in Gadsden, Alabama, but moved to Detroit, at the age of two ...

, developed in Thompson's farm system, was named the NL Rookie of the Year.

References

External links

Corbett,_Warren,_''Fresco_Thompson.''_Society_for_American_Baseball_Research
_Biography_Project.html" ;"title="Society for American Baseball Research">Corbett, Warren, ''Fresco Thompson.'' Society for American Baseball Research
Biography Project">Society for American Baseball Research">Corbett, Warren, ''Fresco Thompson.'' Society for American Baseball Research
Biography Project {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Fresco 1902 births 1968 deaths Baseball executives Baseball players from Alabama Birmingham Barons managers Birmingham Barons players Brooklyn Dodgers executives Brooklyn Dodgers players Brooklyn Dodgers scouts Brooklyn Robins players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Columbia Lions baseball players Deaths from cancer in California George Washington Educational Campus alumni Hartford Bees players Jersey City Skeeters players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Los Angeles Dodgers executives Major League Baseball farm directors Major League Baseball general managers Major League Baseball second basemen Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Minor league baseball managers Montreal Royals managers Montreal Royals players New York Giants (NL) players Omaha Buffaloes players People from Centreville, Alabama Philadelphia Phillies players Pittsburgh Pirates players Reading Brooks players Baseball players from New York City Williamsport Grays players