Alan Bannister (born September 3, 1951) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player who played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

for the

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

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

(1976–80),

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

(1984) and Texas Rangers Developed as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

, he became a

utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, basketball, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water ...

during his major league career.

Biography

Bannister attended John F. Kennedy High School in

La Palma, California La Palma (Spanish language, Spanish for "The Palm") is a city in Orange County, California, Orange County, California, United States. The population was 15,568 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 Census, up from 15,408 at the 2000 United Sta ...

and then played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...

. He represented the United States at the

1971 Pan American Games The 1971 Pan American Games, officially known as the VI Pan American Games () and commonly known as Cali 1971, were held in Cali, Colombia, from 30 July to 13 August 1971. (One source dates the Games from July 25 to August 8.) A total of 2,935 ...

, where he won a silver medal. Highly touted in college, Bannister was the Phillies' first-round pick in the 1973 draft (January). Although versatile (he played every position but pitcher and catcher) he never lived up to his college billing and was rarely a regular. He opened the 1975 season as the Phillies' starting center fielder until the arrival of Garry Maddox from the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

on May 4. He was traded with

Dick Ruthven Richard David Ruthven (born March 27, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves, and Chicago Cubs. The two- ...

and

Roy Thomas Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor. He was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics and possibly bes ...

to the

for

Jim Kaat James Lee Kaat (; born November 7, 1938), nicknamed "Kitty", is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. A left-handed pitcher, he played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators / Minnes ...

and Mike Buskey on December 10, 1975. He was the 1977 White Sox' starting shortstop following the trade of Bucky Dent in April, the only season in which he played over 100 games at a position, and he led all

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

shortstops in errors (40). That same season he led the AL in sacrifice flies with 11. In 12 major league seasons he played in 972 games and recorded 3,007 at bats, 430 runs, 811 hits, 143 doubles, 28 triples, 19 home runs, 288 RBI, 108 stolen bases, 292 walks, with a .270 batting average, .334 on-base percentage and a .355 slugging percentage. After his playing career, he managed two years in the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

minor league system and three years for the AZL Giants of the

Arizona League The Arizona Complex League (ACL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona, since 1988. Prior to 2021, it was known as the Arizona League (AZL). Along with the Florida Complex League (FCL), it fo ...

. He was inducted to the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2010. As an amateur, Bannister was involved in a play which resulted in a fatality. In July 1972, he was a participant in a Baseball Federation tour of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. While attempting to complete a

double play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Le ...

during a game against a Japanese team, he made a throw to first base which struck the head of Akira Tohmon, who was advancing from first base to second base. Tohmon was knocked unconscious, and later died at a hospital as a result of

cerebral contusion Cerebral contusion (), a form of traumatic brain injury, is a bruise of the brain tissue. Like bruises in other tissues, cerebral contusion can be associated with multiple microhemorrhages, small blood vessel leaks into brain tissue. Contusion ...

.Bannister Prize In Free Agent Draft Today
, United Press International, January 10, 1978.
, United Press International, July 15, 1972.

References

External links

* *
Alan Bannister
at Baseball Almanac {{DEFAULTSORT:Bannister, Alan 1951 births Living people Arizona State Sun Devils baseball players Chicago White Sox players Cleveland Indians players National College Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Eugene Emeralds players Houston Astros players Iowa Oaks players Major League Baseball infielders Major League Baseball outfielders Minor league baseball managers Philadelphia Phillies players Sportspeople from Montebello, California Baseball players from Los Angeles County, California St. Petersburg Pelicans players Texas Rangers players Toledo Mud Hens players All-American college baseball players Baseball players at the 1971 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1971 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in baseball 20th-century American sportsmen