Prentice Almont "Pidge" Browne Jr. (March 21, 1929 – June 3, 1997) was an American

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 professional ...

player. A

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

, he was a longtime minor league star who had a half-season trial 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), ...

in in his 13th and final professional season at the age of 33. That year, as a member of the first-ever

Houston Colt .45s The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after s ...

squad, he participated in another unusual feat, representing a

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

-based professional baseball team at three different levels — Double-A (with the 1956–57

Houston Buffaloes The Houston Buffaloes, Houston Buffalos, or Buffs were an American minor league baseball team, and were the first minor league team to be affiliated with a Major League Baseball, Major League franchise, which was the St. Louis Cardinals. The clu ...

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

), Triple-A (with the 1959 and 1961 Buffs 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 ...

) and MLB (with the 1962 Colt .45s, known as the ''Astros'' since ). Browne was from

Peekskill, New York Peekskill is a city in northwestern Westchester County, New York, United States, from New York City. Established as a village in 1816, it was incorporated as a city in 1940. It lies on a bay along the east side of the Hudson River, across from ...

and attended Peekskill High School, where he dropped out in May 1946 to join the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. He served for two years. He threw and batted left-handed, stood tall and weighed . He spent much of his minor league career in the farm system of 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 ...

and belted 190 home runs over the course of his 13 years in the minors. His two best seasons occurred back to back in the Texas League, when he hit 33 home runs for the 1955

Shreveport Sports The Shreveport Sports were a professional Minor League Baseball team based in Shreveport, Louisiana, in the United States. The Sports fielded a team from 1925 to 1935, 1938 to 1942, 1946 to 1957, and 1959 to 1961. They were affiliated with the C ...

, an unaffiliated team, then 29 more homers in 1956 for the Cardinals' Houston Buffaloes affiliate. Acquired by the Colt .45s for their first season in 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 ...

, he made his debut on April 19, 1962, as a pinch hitter for

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

Turk Farrell; batting against Jack Hamilton of the Philadelphia Phillies, Browne grounded out to second baseman Tony Taylor. Six days later, Browne started at first base for Houston against the Chicago Cubs and got his first MLB

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

, a

triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * ...

off

Don Cardwell Donald Eugene Cardwell (December 7, 1935 – January 14, 2008) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) right-handed pitcher who played for five National League (NL) teams from 1957 to 1970. He was the first pitcher in major league history to ...

. He would appear in 65 games played for the Colt .45s through the end of July, 15 as a starting player. His best day came May 6 on the road against the Milwaukee Braves, when Browne had three hits, including his only Major League home run, in five

at bats 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 ...

and scored three runs in a 9–1 Houston win. He was sent to the Triple-A

Oklahoma City 89ers Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

to finish the 1962 season, and he retired at the end of that campaign. Browne worked in the freight business after his retirement from baseball, and died in Houston at age 68 in 1997.The Houston Chronicle, June 5, 1997
/ref> He is buried at Earthman Resthaven Cemetery in Houston.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, Pidge 1929 births 1997 deaths Allentown Cardinals players American expatriate baseball players in Cuba Baseball players from New York (state) Columbus Jets players Denver Bears players Habana players Hamilton Cardinals players Houston Buffaloes players Houston Buffs players Houston Colt .45s players Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players Major League Baseball first basemen Mobile Bears players Oklahoma City 89ers players Omaha Cardinals players Peekskill Highlanders players People from Peekskill, New York Shreveport Sports players United States Navy sailors