Howard Henry Schultz (July 3, 1922 – October 30, 2009), nicknamed "Stretch" and "Steeple", was an American

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player from

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center o ...

. Schultz won an NBA title with the Minneapolis Lakers in 1952. Schultz played in both

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), ...

and in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

, one of thirteen athletes to do so.

Early life

Schultz was the second of three children to Leo and Minnie Schultz, raised in

alongside older brother Louis and younger sister Lorraine. Leo Schultz worked for

Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a world-pioneering mail-order business and later also a leading department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The curren ...

for 35 years. His family lived three blocks north from

Lexington Park Lexington Park was the name of a former minor league baseball park in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was the home of the St. Paul Saints from 1897 through 1956, when it was replaced by the first version of Midway Stadium. Lexington Park was commiss ...

, home of the

St. Paul Saints The St. Paul Saints are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and have played their home games at CHS Field since 2015. They prev ...

of the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

. Leo Schultz was a member of the St. Paul Municipal Baseball Board and Howie attended many Saints games as a youth with his father. In 1940, Howie Schultz graduated from Central High School in St. Paul, Minnesota. Schultz attended

Hamline University Hamline University is a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1854, Hamline is known for its emphasis on experiential learning, service, and social justice. The university is named after Bishop Leonidas Lent Hamline o ...

near his home in St. Paul. As a sophomore, Schultz led Hamline to the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball (NAIB) championship. While in college at Hamline, Schultz played minor league baseball. In 1940, Lou McKenna, the general manager of the Saints, recruited Schultz to play in the Class C level

Northern League Northern League may refer to: Sport Baseball * Northern League (baseball, 1902–71), a name used by several minor leagues that operated in the upper midwestern U.S. and Manitoba from 1902 to 1971 * Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010), an indep ...

after his freshman year at Hamline. Schultz signed and then played for the 1941

Grand Forks Chiefs The Grand Forks Chiefs were a minor league baseball team from Grand Forks, North Dakota. They played in the Northern League from 1934 to 1964, with a couple breaks in between. History Minor league baseball first began in Grand Forks when the 18 ...

(

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

). Due to his height, , Schultz was deferred from serving in the armed forces during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Sports career

Major League Baseball career (1943–1948)

Schultz began his professional career in baseball with the minor league

in 1941 and 1942. Schultz then was promoted to the

in 1942, where he was noticed by

Branch Rickey Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...

general manager of the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

. In 1943, Brooklyn called up Schultz from St. Paul. From 1943 to 1948, Schultz, played

. Schultz was a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers (1943–1947),

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

(1947–1948), and

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

(1948). He primarily played as a

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and was traded by Brooklyn to Philadelphia to make room for

Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...

. Schultz had a career batting average of .241 with 24 home runs and 208 RBI in 470 career MLB games.

NBA basketball career (1948–1952)

In the baseball off-season, Schultz played professional basketball. Schultz first played for the Anderson Packers of the NBL in 1946. When the Packers moved to the NBA in 1949–1950, Schultz served as their player-coach (21–14), before being traded to the

Fort Wayne Pistons A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

during the season. Schultz later played two seasons with Minneapolis Lakers, winning an NBA championship in 1952, alongside teammates George Mikan,

Jim Pollard James Clifford Pollard (July 9, 1922 – January 22, 1993) was an American professional basketball player and coach. As a player in the National Basketball Association (NBA), Pollard was considered one of the best forwards in the 1950s and was k ...

Vern Mikkelsen Arild Verner Agerskov Mikkelsen (October 21, 1928 – November 21, 2013) was an American professional basketball player. One of the National Basketball Association's first Power forward (basketball), power forwards in the 1950s, he was known for ...

and

Slater Martin Slater Nelson "Dugie" Martin Jr. (October 22, 1925 – October 18, 2012) was an American professional basketball player and coach who was a playmaking guard for 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was born in Elmina, ...

. In the championship against the New York Knicks, Schultz reportedly threw a punch at 6'3" Knick player Ernie Vandeweghe in game 4 of the NBA Championship series. Schultz was ejected after receiving a

Technical Foul In basketball, a technical foul (colloquially known as a "T" or a "tech") is any infraction of the rules penalized as a foul which does not involve physical contact during the course of play between opposing players on the court, or is a foul by a ...

and received a $50 fine. Schultz averaged 9.7 points per game in the NBL, and 5.3 in the NBA.

NBA and MLB Players

Schultz is one of 13 athletes who played in both the

and

. The thirteen are: Danny Ainge,

Frank Baumholtz Frank Conrad Baumholtz (October 7, 1918 – December 14, 1997) was an American professional baseball and basketball player. He was an outfielder for Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds (1947–49), Chicago Cubs (1949 and 1951–55) and Phi ...

Hank Biasatti Henry Arcado Biasatti (January 14, 1922 – April 20, 1996) was an Italian-Canadian National Basketball Association player and a Major League Baseball first baseman. He is the only Canadian to play at the top professional level in both sports. E ...

, Gene Conley, Chuck Connors, Dave DeBusschere, Dick Groat, Steve Hamilton, Mark Hendrickson,

Cotton Nash Charles Francis "Cotton" Nash (born July 24, 1942) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder and National Basketball Association (NBA) forward. Basketball career Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, Nash played collegiately for A ...

Ron Reed Ronald Lee Reed (born November 2, 1942) is a former two-sport star who spent two seasons as a power forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before spending nearly two decades as a Major League Baseball pitcher. Early life and educa ...

Dick Ricketts Richard James Ricketts, Jr. (December 4, 1933 – March 6, 1988) was an American professional basketball and baseball player. Ricketts was the No. 1 overall pick of the 1955 NBA draft by the St. Louis Hawks out of Duquesne University. Ricketts pl ...

and Schultz.

Death

Schultz died on October 30, 2009, aged 87, after a brief battle with cancer, in Chaska, Minnesota.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schultz, Howie 1922 births 2009 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Anderson Packers coaches Anderson Packers players Baseball players from Saint Paul, Minnesota Basketball coaches from Minnesota Basketball players from Saint Paul, Minnesota Brooklyn Dodgers players Deaths from cancer in Minnesota Cincinnati Reds players Fort Wayne Pistons players Grand Forks Chiefs players Hamline Pipers men's basketball players Major League Baseball first basemen Minnesota Golden Gophers baseball players Minneapolis Lakers players Montreal Royals players Philadelphia Phillies players Player-coaches St. Paul Saints (AA) players