Ellis Narrington Burton (August 12, 1936 – October 1, 2013) was an American
professional baseball center fielder
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...
who played for the
St. Louis Cardinals,
Cleveland Indians and
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 located ...
over parts of five
Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons. 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 ...
who threw
right-handed, Burton stood tall and weighed . He was born in
Los Angeles, California.
He was selected in the
Rule 5 draft by the
Houston Colt .45s from the
Toronto Maple Leafs on November 26, .
Burton posted a .216 average with 17
home runs and 59
runs batted in in 215 Major League games, scoring 79 runs while
stealing
Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for some ...
six bases.
During an eleven-year
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 Nor ...
career, he hit .274 and 169 home runs in 1,213 games, while playing from 1955 through 1965 for 10 different teams at four different levels.
References
External links
1936 births
2013 deaths
African-American baseball players
Baseball players from Los Angeles
Billings Mustangs players
Chicago Cubs players
Cleveland Indians players
Fort Worth Cats players
Houston Buffaloes players
Louisville Colonels (minor league) players
Omaha Cardinals players
Rochester Red Wings players
St. Louis Cardinals players
Salt Lake City Bees players
Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players
Tri-City Braves players
Place of death missing
20th-century African-American sportspeople
21st-century African-American people
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