Eugene Victor Hermanski (May 11, 1920 – August 9, 2010) was a

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 ...

outfielder. A native of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, he attended Seton Hall University. Signed by the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...

as an amateur free agent in 1939, Hermanski made his

debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers on August 14, 1943, and appeared in his final game on September 22, 1953. The Salem (Massachusetts) ''Evening News'', reported on August 8, 1943, that the then-22-year-old outfielder, recently released from the USCG Salem Air Station in order to enlist in the USN's V-5 Aviation Training Program, was expected to use a month-long break to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers. "Hermanski hit a homer and two triples in an exhibition game with the Red Sox and poled out a homer and a double in a contest with the Braves." When Hermanski played for the Brooklyn Dodgers along with Jackie Robinson, he demonstrated he was a great teammate by suggesting that all of the players stand in solidarity by wearing No. 42 to confuse potential snipers who were said to be out to kill Robinson because he had broken the color barrier. Hermanski died in Homosassa Springs, Florida, at the age of 90.

Career statistics

In a 739 game major league career spanning nine seasons, Hermanski posted a .272 batting average (533-for-1960) with 276 runs, 46 home runs and 259 RBI. Playing primarily left and right field, he recorded a .977 fielding percentage. In two World Series (1947 & '49), he hit .219 (7-for-32) with 5 runs and 3 RBI.

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Major League Baseball outfielders Brooklyn Dodgers players Chicago Cubs players Pittsburgh Pirates players Durham Bulls players Federalsburg A's players Kinston Eagles players Oakland Oaks (baseball) players Olean Oilers players Pocomoke City Chicks players Seton Hall Pirates baseball players 1920 births 2010 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Baseball players from Pittsfield, Massachusetts 20th-century American sportsmen {{US-baseball-outfielder-1920s-stub