John Christopher Vukovich (July 31, 1947 – March 8, 2007), nicknamed "Vuk" or "Johnny Vuk", was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

utility infielder In baseball, a utility player is a player who typically does not have the offensive abilities to justify a regular starting role on the team but is capable of playing more than one defensive position. These players are able to give the various s ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activitie ...

, and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

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 (A ...

(MLB),John Vukovich
URL accessed December 16, 2009
Archived
12/16/09 best known for his years with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

.John Vukovich
at baseballbiography.com, URL accessed December 16, 2009
Archived
12/16/09 He played in parts of ten seasons between and for the Phillies,

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, and

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

. Vukovich is also known for recording the lowest career MLB

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 ...

(BA) (.161) of any non-pitcher with 500 or more

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

s (AB).

Life and career

Vukovich was of Serbian descent and was born in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

and grew up in Sutter Creek, California. His father was the baseball coach for the local

Amador High School Amador High School, located in Sutter Creek, California, is one of two public high schools in Amador County. Originally known as "Amador County High School" at its inception in 1911, the school's name changed to "Sutter Creek Union High School" ...

where Vukovich attended. He was traded along with

Don Money Donald Wayne Money (born June 7, 1947) is an American former professional baseball infielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Kintetsu ...

and Bill Champion by the Phillies to the Brewers for

Jim Lonborg James Reynold Lonborg (born April 16, 1942) is an American former professional baseball right-handed starting pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Boston Red Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, and Philadelphia Phillies. Though nickname ...

Ken Brett Kenneth Alven Brett (September 18, 1948 – November 18, 2003) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher and the second of four Brett brothers who played professional baseball, the most notable being the youngest, George Brett. Ken played for ...

, Ken Sanders and Earl Stephenson on October 31, 1972. He was a backup for the 1975 Reds World Series-winning team, although he was traded back to the Phillies before the playoffs began, and also for the 1980 Phillies World Series-winning team. He actually began the 1975 season as the Reds' starting third baseman, but was benched in early April after hitting only .250 with three extra base hits and only one RBI. The Reds moved

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...

to third base and platooned

Dan Driessen Daniel Driessen (born July 29, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman from 1973 to 1987, most notably as a member of the Cincinnati Reds dynasty that won three National Leag ...

and George Foster in left at first, but Foster eventually won the left-field job full time. Vukovich spent the remainder of his time with the Reds as a late-inning defensive replacement before being released in May 1975. He batted above .200 only twice in his ten-year career, appearing in 277

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (suc ...

while batting .161 with 6

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 44

runs batted in 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 b ...

, and had a .956

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, di ...

. During his second period of playing with the Phillies, he became beloved to the fans even though he seldom appeared in games; he was seen as a blue-collar player and the ordinary fan respected his effort. After his playing career ended, he joined the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

as a coach, and in he was

for a day after

Jim Frey James Gottfried Frey (May 26, 1931 – April 12, 2020) was an American professional baseball manager, coach, general manager, and Minor League Baseball (MiLB) outfielder. In , Frey led the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB) to ...

was fired (he split that day's doubleheader). In , he rejoined the Phillies, and after

Lee Elia Lee Constantine Elia (born July 16, 1937) is an American former professional baseball infielder, who played only sparingly in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago White Sox () and Chicago Cubs (). Following his playing career, he managed t ...

was fired with nine games to go, he took over as skipper, going 5-4 the rest of the season. Vukovich stayed with the Phillies as a coach from 1988 to 2004, and was considered for the managing job when

Terry Francona Terrence Jon Francona (born April 22, 1959), nicknamed "Tito", is an American baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Cleveland Guardians in Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, he was the manager of the Boston Red Sox fo ...

was fired in . The job eventually went to Vukovich's childhood friend,

Larry Bowa Lawrence Robert Bowa (born December 6, 1945) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB), who played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and New York Mets. Bowa went on to mana ...

. Vukovich was diagnosed with a

brain tumor A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and seco ...

early in the season and subsequently had surgery. He would return later that season, and remained on the coaching staff until being named special assistant to the

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 ...

following the season. Along with Bowa and

Milt Thompson Milton Orville Thompson (May 4, 1926 – August 6, 1993), (Lieutenant Commander (United States), Lt Cmdr, United States Naval Reserve, USNR), better known as Milt Thompson, was an American United States Navy, naval officer, United States naval ...

, Vukovich is one of just three Phillies to go to the World Series as both a player and coach for the club. In late 2006, he again exhibited symptoms; he died at Thomas Jefferson Hospital in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

at age 59. The 2007 Phillies honored him by wearing a uniform patch on their right sleeve with his nickname, "Vuk".Vukovich dies at 59; won Series rings with Phils, Reds
at espn.com, URL accessed December 16, 2009
Archived
12/16/09 Vukovich was a resident of

Voorhees Township, New Jersey Voorhees Township is a township in Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 29,131, reflecting an increase of 1,005 (+3.6%) from the 28,126 counted in the 2000 census. Voorhee ...

.Mandel, Ken
"Phils pay respect to Vukovich"

, March 9, 2007. Accessed March 17, 2011. "A private funeral will be held Tuesday near Vukovich's Voorhees, N.J., home, and many members of the Phillies organization are planning to attend by traveling to Philadelphia on a chartered flight."

References

External links

John Vukovich
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
John Vukovich
at Baseball Almanac
John Vukovich
at Baseball Biography

at The Deadball Era *
Curt Schilling's Tribute to John Vukovich
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vukovich, John 1947 births 2007 deaths Deaths from brain cancer in the United States Major League Baseball third basemen Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball third base coaches Philadelphia Phillies players Eugene Emeralds players Reading Phillies players Huron Phillies players Oklahoma City 89ers players Toledo Mud Hens players Indianapolis Indians players Tidewater Tides players Spartanburg Phillies players Milwaukee Brewers players Cincinnati Reds players Baseball players from Sacramento, California Chicago Cubs managers Philadelphia Phillies coaches Philadelphia Phillies managers People from Voorhees Township, New Jersey American people of Serbian descent American River Beavers baseball players Deaths from cancer in Pennsylvania Chicago Cubs coaches Sportspeople from the Delaware Valley