Thomas Lee "Chip" Coulter (born June 5, 1945) is an American former

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 who played for the 1969 St. Louis Cardinals. Listed at 5'10" tall, weighing 172 pounds, Coulter was a

switch-hitter In baseball, a switch hitter is a player who bats both right-handed and left-handed, usually right-handed against left-handed pitchers and left-handed against right-handed pitchers. Characteristics Right-handed batters generally hit better aga ...

and threw

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 ...

. He was born in

Steubenville, Ohio Steubenville is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. Located along the Ohio River 33 miles west of Pittsburgh, it had a population of 18,161 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The city's name is deri ...

. Originally signed by the Cardinals as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 1964, Coulter made his Major League debut at the age of 24 on September 18, 1969, against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. Founded as part o ...

, facing pitcher

Steve Blass Stephen Robert Blass (born April 18, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports color commentator. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates in a ...

, finishing the game 0-for-2, after which

Julián Javier Manuel Julián (Liranzo) Javier (born August 9, 1936), better known as Julián Javier oo-lee-AN hah-vee-ER is a former Major League Baseball second baseman. Called ''Hoolie'' by his teammates, he was also nicknamed "The Phantom" by Tim McCarver ...

pinch hit for him in the eighth inning. His second big league game, on September 26, 1969, was against the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They p ...

where Coulter went 4-for-5, with a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

and three

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 batt ...

, which saw the Cardinals win 12-1. Coulter went 0-for-10 in his next three games, then in his final game, on October 1, 1969, he went 2-for-2 with 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 * In ...

in his final at-bat, off Woodie Fryman. Coulter finished his career with six hits in 19 at-bats for a .316

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 i ...

and did not hit a

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 is ...

. In total he appeared in six games, collecting a double and a triple, driving in four runs while scoring three times,

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults o ...

twice and striking out six times. He committed one error in 25 fielding appearances for a .960

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, div ...

. After his stint in the majors, Coulter continued playing in the

Minor League 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 N ...

s. He was traded with Jim Beauchamp, Harry Parker and Chuck Taylor from the Cardinals to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major leagu ...

for

Art Shamsky Arthur Louis Shamsky (nicknamed "Sham" and "Smasher"; born October 14, 1941) is an American former Major League Baseball player. He played right field, left field, and first base from 1965 to 1972 for the Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, Chicago ...

Jim Bibby James Blair Bibby (October 29, 1944 – February 16, 2010)Morris, Chri"Former Major League pitcher Jim Bibby dies at 65" ''The News & Advance'' (Lynchburg, Virginia), Wednesday, February 17, 2010 was an American Major League Baseball right-han ...

Rich Folkers Richard Nevin Folkers (born October 17, 1946) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher from to for the New York Mets, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres and Mil ...

and

Charlie Hudson Charles Hudson (born August 18, 1949) is a former left-handed Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1972 to 1975 for the St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers and California Angels. He was 6'3" tall and he weighed 185 pounds. He attended ...

on October 18, 1971."Shamsky Traded by Mets to Cards in 8-Player Deal," ''The New York Times'', Tuesday, October 19, 1971.
Retrieved October 21, 2020 Coulter lives in

Toronto, Ohio Toronto is a city in eastern Jefferson County, Ohio, located along the Ohio River 6 miles northeast of Steubenville, Ohio, Steubenville. The population was 5,303 at the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the second-large ...

References

External links

Baseball Reference

Chip Coulter Stats , Baseball-Reference.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coulter, Chip 1945 births Living people Arkansas Travelers players Baseball players from Ohio Cedar Rapids Cardinals players Florida Instructional League Cardinals players Major League Baseball second basemen Modesto Reds players Sportspeople from Steubenville, Ohio St. Louis Cardinals players St. Petersburg Cardinals players Tidewater Tides players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players