James Albert Ripple (October 14, 1909 – July 16, 1959) was an American professional baseball player who played as an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

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), ...

for seven seasons from 1936 to 1943. He played for the New York Giants (1936–1939), the Brooklyn Dodgers (1939–1940), the Cincinnati Reds (1940–1941), and the Philadelphia Athletics (1943). He had a .282 career

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

, with 28

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 251

RBIs A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

in 554 games played. He played in three

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 ...

, two with the Giants (1936–1937), and one with the Reds in 1940, which won the championship. In addition to his major league playing time, he had a long 12-season minor league baseball career. He played eight seasons for the

Montreal Royals The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team in Montreal, Quebec, during 1897–1917 and 1928–1960. A member of the International League, the Royals were the top farm club (Class AAA) of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939; p ...

, parts of two for the Rochester Red Wings, and the same for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

, all of the International League. In 1956, he elected into the

International League Hall of Fame The International League Hall of Fame is an American baseball hall of fame which honors players, managers, and executives of the International League (IL). It was created by the International League Baseball Writers' Association in 1947 to honor t ...

Career

Minor leagues

James Albert Ripple was born on October 14, 1909, in Export, Pennsylvania. He made his first appearance in professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

at the age of 19 for the class-C Jeannette Jays of the

Middle Atlantic League The Middle Atlantic League (or Mid-Atlantic League) was a lower-level circuit in United States, American minor league baseball that played during the second quarter of the 20th century. History The Middle Atlantic League played from 1925 in base ...

for the start of the 1929 minor league baseball season. He played in 104 games for the Jays, hitting 24 triples, and 14 home runs, while batting .336, before being promoted to the

of the Class-AA International League for the remainder of the season. For the next six years, through the 1935 season, he remained with the Royals, playing as a starting outfielder. During that span he appeared in at least 130 games each season, hitting for a career highs with 21 home runs in 1932, and a .333 batting average in 1935.

Major Leagues

New York Giants

On June 22, 1935, Ripple was sold by Montreal to the New York Giants of the

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 ...

, and made his first appearance for the major league team on April 20, 1936. Platooning with Hank Leiber, Ripple started 74 games in

center field A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

for the Giants and appeared in 96 games total in 1936, and had a .305 batting average, seven home runs, and 47

. The Giants won the National League pennant, and met the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

in the

1936 World Series The 1936 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1936 season. The 33rd edition of the World Series, it matched the New York Yankees against the New York Giants, with the Yankees winning in six games to earn t ...

. Although the Yankees won the series four games to two, Ripple played in five of the six games played, starting four in center field and had a batting average of .333. In game three, he hit a home run in the fifth inning off

Bump Hadley Irving Darius Hadley (July 5, 1904 – February 15, 1963) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. Born in Lynn, Massachusetts, he played in the major leagues for the Washington Senators (1926–31 and 1935), Chicago White Sox (1932), St. ...

to score the Giants only run in a 2–1 defeat. In 1937, Ripple's playing time increased to 121 games, and his 100 starts were split between center and right field, and with the expanded role, he established career highs in all major batting categories except for home runs, which dipped to five. At the conclusion of the 1937 season, the Giants won the National League pennant, and met the New York Yankees again in the World Series. The Yankees defeated the Giants for the second consecutive year, winning four games to one in this series. Ripple played in right field for all five games, collecting five hits in 17 at bats for a .294 batting average. Ripple's playing time in 1938 increased further for the 1938 season, up to 134 games, of which most of them were in right field. Although his role was expanded, his offensive output suffered a significant drop in comparison of his first two seasons with the Giants. His batting average dipped to .261, and he surpassed just one statistical career high with 10 home runs.

Brooklyn Dodgers

Ripple's play suffered more in 1939, and was batting only .228 after playing in just 66 games for the Giants, he was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers on September 8 for a player to be named later, which was later revealed to be

Ray Hayworth Raymond Hall Hayworth (January 29, 1904 – September 25, 2002) was an American professional baseball player, manager and scout. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball between and , most notably as a member of the Detroit Tigers team ...

. However, this move improved his play, and he had a .330 batting average in 28 games to close out the season. For the 1940 season, the Dodgers assigned Ripple to their class-AA International League team, the Montreal Royals. His return to the Royals resulted in another successful minor league season as he had a .305 batting average in 110 games played. In August, the Dodgers promoted him to the majors for a seven-game stretch, then placed him on waivers.

Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds claimed Ripple off waivers from the Dodgers on August 28, 1940, and they made him their regular

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

for the remainder of the pennant run. In 32 games for the Reds that season, he batted .307, while helping the team win the 1940 National League pennant. Following the regular season, the Reds met the Detroit Tigers in the

1940 World Series The 1940 World Series matched the Cincinnati Reds against the Detroit Tigers, with the Reds winning a closely contested seven-game series. The victory secured the Reds the second championship in their franchise history and came 21 years after th ...

, who they defeated in four games to three in a seven-game series. In game two, he hit a 2-run home run off

Schoolboy Rowe Lynwood Thomas "Schoolboy" Rowe (January 11, 1910 – January 8, 1961) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, primarily for the Detroit Tigers (1932–42) and Philadelphia Phillies (1943, 1946–49). He was a three-time A ...

to give the Reds a 2-run lead in their eventual 5–3 win to tie the series at one game win each.

Later career

Ripple began the 1941 season with the Reds, playing in 38 games. However, he was hitting just .216, so the Reds sold him to the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

on June 21, who then designated him to their International League team, the Rochester Red Wings. He played in 52 games to complete the season, batted .378, hit five home runs, and had 22 RBIs. In 1942, his batting average dropped to .249 through 78 games, and he was transferred to the

who were unnafiliated with a major league team. He remained with the Maple Leafs into the 1943 season, who were now affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates, his contract was later bought by the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League, and they promoted him to their major league club. He appeared in 32 games for the Athletics that season, batted .238, and played his last major league game on September 12, 1943. His major league career hitting totals include a .282 batting average, 28 home runs, 236 RBIs, and 510 hits in 554 games played. Defensively, Ripple recorded a .984 fielding percentage. After committing an error on September 11, 1938, against the Brooklyn Dodgers at the Polo Grounds, he went the next 204 games to the end of his major league career in 1943 without another miscue, handling 241

total chances In baseball statistics, total chances (TC), also called ''chances offered'', represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is the sum of putouts plus assists plus errors. ''Chances accepted'' refers to the total ...

(238 putouts, 3 assists). His last minor league season occurred in 1944, when he played for several class-AA teams: the

Louisville Colonels The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that also played in the American Association (AA) throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891. They were known as the Louisville Eclipse from 1882 to 1884, and as th ...

of the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

(an affiliate of the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

), the San Francisco Seals and

Seattle Rainiers The Seattle Rainiers, originally named the Seattle Indians and also known as the Seattle Angels, were a Minor League Baseball team in Seattle, Washington, that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1906 and 1919 to 1968. They were initi ...

of the Pacific Coast League. After 12 minor league seasons, and 1412 games, Ripple totalled 1507 hits, with 128 home runs and a .301 batting average.

Post-career

For his high level of play during his minor league baseball career, he was named to the

in 1956. He died at the age of 49 in

Greensburg, Pennsylvania Greensburg is a city in and the county seat of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city lies within the Laurel Highlands and the ecoregion of the Western Allegheny Plateau. The city is ...

of acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis, and is interred at Eastview Cemetery in

Delmont, Pennsylvania Delmont is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,592 at the 2020 census. History Delmont was initially known as New Salem. The 300 acres of land was warranted to William Wilson in 1784, and upon hi ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ripple, Jimmy 1909 births 1959 deaths Major League Baseball outfielders Baseball players from Pennsylvania People from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania New York Giants (NL) players Brooklyn Dodgers players Cincinnati Reds players Philadelphia Athletics players Jeannette Jays players Montreal Royals players Rochester Red Wings players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Louisville Colonels (minor league) players San Francisco Seals (baseball) players Seattle Rainiers players Deaths from pancreatitis