Edwin Albert Brinkman (December 8, 1941 – September 30, 2008) was an American 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, coach and

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

. He played 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 ...

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 ...

from to , most prominently as a member of the Washington Senators and the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

. Brinkman was a light- hitting, defensive specialist who spent the first 10 years of his career with the 1961 expansion team the Washington Senators, before being traded to the Detroit Tigers where he helped lead the team to the American League Eastern Division title and was voted 1972 Tiger of the Year. He won the

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 ...

(AL)

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

in 1972, and made his only All-Star team in 1973 while with the Tigers. Brinkman ended his career playing for 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

, Texas Rangers, and the

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

. After his playing career, Brinkman worked for several major league organizations as a scout, coach and

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 Nort ...

manager until he retired in 2000.

Early life

Brinkman was born and raised in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, Ohio. He attended Western Hills High School, where he played alongside

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of ...

on the school's baseball team. Paul "Pappy" Nohr, the baseball coach at Western Hills, described Rose as "a good ball player, not a Brinkman." Based on their performance in high school, scouts saw Brinkman rather than Rose as the future superstar. When he was a senior, Brinkman batted .460 and also won 15 games as a

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

including a perfect game. Brinkman was paid a large (for the time) bonus of $75,000 by the Washington Senators in 1961. Brinkman later said: "Pete always kidded me that the Washington Senators brought me my bonus in an armored truck. Pete said he had cashed his at the corner store."

Major league playing career

Brinkman began the 1961 season playing for the Senators' minor league teams in Middlesboro and

Pensacola Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only city in Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Pensacola metropolitan area, which ha ...

before making his major league debut with the Senators on September 6,

1961 Events January * January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union. * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...

, at age 19. Although Brinkman was known as a good defensive player, he seldom provided much of an offensive contribution for a Senators team that routinely finished near the bottom of the final standings. His best

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 ...

in the first eight years of his career was a .229 average posted in 1966 when he led

shortstops with a 3.3 defensive Wins Above Replacement (WAR). In

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 193 ...

was named as the Senators'

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

and, he worked to improve Brinkman's hitting skills. Brinkman responded with a career-high .266 batting average as well as 71 runs scored, also a career-high. Brinkman once again led the league's shortstops with a 3.3 defensive WAR rating in 1969. He continued to improve in

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

with a career-high 162

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in 152 games. He also led the league's shortstops in assists and in

putout In baseball statistics, a putout (PO) is awarded to a defensive player who (generally while in secure possession of the ball) records an out by one of the following methods: * Tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a tag ...

s. In 1971, Brinkman was part of an eight-player trade which sent himself, third baseman Aurelio Rodríguez and pitchers Joe Coleman and Jim Hannan from the Senators to the

in exchange for

Denny McLain Dennis Dale McLain (born March 29, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player. He played for ten seasons in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher, most prominently as a member of the Detroit Tigers. In 1968, McLain becam ...

, Don Wert, Elliott Maddox, and Norm McRae. He had his best season defensively in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

. Playing in all of the Tigers' 156 games, he set American League fielding records for shortstops with the most consecutive games without an

error An error (from the Latin , meaning 'to wander'Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “error (n.), Etymology,” September 2023, .) is an inaccurate or incorrect action, thought, or judgement. In statistics, "error" refers to the difference between t ...

(72), most consecutive chances without an error (331), fewest errors in 150 games or more (7) and the highest

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

in 150 games or more (.990). He also produced a career-high 49

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) 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 th ...

, helping the Tigers clinch the American League Eastern Division championship by a half game over 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) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

. Brinkman only appeared in one game of the 1972 American League Championship Series before he was ruled out for the rest of the season due to a ruptured disc in his lower back. The Tigers lost the championship series to the eventual world champions, the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

, in five games. Brinkman's efforts during the regular season earned him the 1972

and he was named the recipient of the "Tiger of the Year" award by the Detroit baseball writers. He also finished ninth in voting for the 1972 American League Most Valuable Player Award. Brinkman earned his first and only

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...

appearance when he was named as an American League reserve in the 1973 All-Star Game. He hit a career-high 14 home runs in the

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

season. He was involved in a three-team deal on November 18, 1974, in which he was first traded along with Bob Strampe and

Dick Sharon Richard Louis Sharon (born April 15, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from to for the Detroit Tigers and the San Diego Padres. Baseball career Sharon was born in San ...

from the Tigers to the

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

for Nate Colbert and then sent to the

for

Sonny Siebert Wilfred Charles "Sonny" Siebert (born January 14, 1937) is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher from 1964 to 1975. He finished with a record of 140-114 and a 3.21 ERA. He threw a no-hitter on June 10, 1966, against the ...

, Alan Foster and

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 M ...

Danny Breeden Danny Richard Breeden (born June 27, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to for the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs. Baseball career Breeden was born in Albany, G ...

went from the Padres to the Cardinals to subsequently complete the transactions. Brinkman appeared in 24 games with the Cardinals before being traded along with Tommy Moore to the Texas Rangers for Willie Davis on June 4, 1975. After only one appearance with the Rangers, his contract was purchased by the

on June 13,

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

. He played in 44 games for the Yankees before they gave him his unconditional release on March 29, 1976, as, he continued to be hampered by his back injury. Brinkman played his final major league game on September 28, 1975, at the age of 33.

Career statistics

In a fifteen-year major league career, Brinkman played in 1,845

games A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...

, accumulating 1,355 hits in 6,045

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 upon completion of his turn at bat, b ...

for a .224 career batting average along with 60 home runs, 461 runs batted in and an

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batting (baseball), batter reaches base (baseball), base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA ...

of .280. Defensively, he recorded a .970

as a shortstop. Brinkman led the AL in games played twice, won a Gold Glove Award at shortstop, and was named to the American League All-Star team in 1973. He holds the American League record for the fewest hits in a season while playing a minimum of 150 games, with 82 hits in 1965.

Coaching career

After his playing career he was hired by the Tigers as a minor league roving fielding instructor in 1976. Brinkman then became a minor league manager in the Detroit organization, leading the 1977

Montgomery Rebels The Montgomery Rebels was the name of several American minor league baseball franchises representing Montgomery, Alabama, playing in various leagues between and . ''Rebels'' was the predominant nickname of the Montgomery teams, but it was not the ...

to a first-place finish in the Southern League. He spent on the Tigers' MLB coaching staff. Later, he was a coach and scout with the

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 ...

for 18 years (1983–2000), initially as the ChiSox' MLB infield coach (1983–1988) and then special assignment scout. He retired after the 2000 season. Ed Brinkman died on September 30, 2008, at the age of 66, due to complications from

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

. His younger brother, Chuck Brinkman also played in Major League Baseball as a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

Notes

* William A. Cook, "''Pete Rose: Baseball All-Time Hit King'

* David M. Jordan, "''Pete Rose: A Biography''" (Greenwood Press 2004

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brinkman, Ed 1941 births 2008 deaths American League All-Stars Baseball coaches from Ohio Baseball players from Cincinnati Birmingham Barons managers Burials at Spring Grove Cemetery Chicago White Sox coaches Chicago White Sox scouts Cincinnati Bearcats baseball players Deaths from lung cancer in Ohio Detroit Tigers coaches Detroit Tigers players Gold Glove Award winners Lakeland Flying Tigers managers Major League Baseball shortstops Major League Baseball third base coaches Middlesboro Senators players New York Yankees players Pensacola Senators players Raleigh Capitals players St. Louis Cardinals players San Diego Padres coaches Texas Rangers players Washington Senators (1961–1971) players 20th-century American sportsmen