John Irving Burns (August 31, 1907 – April 18, 1975), nicknamed "Slug", was an American

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 ...

, 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 ...

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 ...

who played for the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

and

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 ...

from 1930 to 1936. A native of

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

, Burns stood tall and weighed in his playing days and batted and threw

left-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to and causing it to be stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply l ...

Playing career

Known as "Slug", or "Slugger" on the Cambridge sandlots, Burns initially pursued factory work after high school, and played for his employer's baseball team. In 1927, he played for the Chatham-

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-o ...

club in the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

, where he was described as "the hardest hitting first baseman in the league." Burns's professional playing career began in 1928 for the Brockton Shoemakers of the

New England League The New England League was a mid-level league in American minor league baseball that played intermittently in five of the six New England states (Vermont excepted) between 1886 and 1949. After 1901, it existed in the shadow of two Major League B ...

. After leading the Class A Western League in

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s with 36 in 1929, his contract was purchased by the

of 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 ...

. After a brief MLB trial in 1930, Burns became the starting first baseman for the Browns in 1931. He handled those duties until he was traded to the

on April 30, 1936, for

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, ...

Elon Hogsett Elon Chester "Chief" Hogsett (November 2, 1903 – July 17, 2001) was a professional baseball pitcher who threw with a left-handed submarine motion. He played in Major League Baseball from 1929 to 1938 plus a final season in 1944, appearing in 3 ...

. He returned to the

minor leagues 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 ...

at the end of that campaign for the remainder of his playing career. In Burns's finest season for the Browns, 1932, he scored 111 runs, batted .305, hit 11 homers and drove home 70

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 ...

(RBIs). Over his big league career (1930–36), he appeared in 890 games, and batted .280 with 980

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

, 44 homers and 417 RBIs. His career

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 ...

was .992. He led American League first basemen in assists in 1931 and 1932.

Coaching and scouting career

Burns became a

player-manager A player–coach (also playing coach, captain–coach, or player–manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. Player–coaches may be head coaches or assistant coaches, and they may make chang ...

in the minor leagues with the 1938

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

, replacing

Dan Howley Daniel Philip "Dapper Dan" Howley (October 16, 1885 – March 10, 1944) was an American Major League Baseball manager with the St. Louis Browns and the Cincinnati Reds. His first year as manager of the Browns saw his team lose 94 games and fini ...

on June 27 with the Leafs in eighth place. He rallied the team to a fifth place standing that year, but when Toronto finished last in 1939, Burns was released. He briefly continued his playing career in 1940, appearing in 100 games for the San Francisco Seals of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

, then spent one year, 1942, in the Boston Braves' organization as playing skipper of their Bradford Bees affiliate in the Class D Pennsylvania–Ontario–New York League (PONY League). After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Burns managed the unaffiliated Fall River Indians of the Class B

in 1946. Then, he joined 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 ...

as a

in 1947 to 1948 before moving into their

farm system In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful pl ...

as skipper of the Bosox' Eastern League affiliates in

Scranton Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

and Albany from 1949 to 1954. His 1952 Albany Senators won the league pennant, while his 1954 Senators were the EL playoff champions. Burns then spent five seasons (1955–59) as a Red Sox coach, working primarily as the third-base coach under manager Pinky Higgins. He scouted for Boston from 1960 until his death, at

Brighton, Massachusetts Brighton is a former town and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, located in the northwestern corner of the city. It is named after the English city of Brighton. Initially Brighton was part of Cambridge, and known as " ...

, at the age of 67. As a

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

–based Red Sox scout, he is credited with recommending and signing

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...

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 ...

Carlton Fisk, a first-round selection in the January 1967

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

Personal

His son Bob Burns was a baseball coach at Kennett High School, North Conway, New Hampshire, from 1971 to 2012. Each year, the school presents the Jack Burns Baseball Award.

References

; General *Spink, J.G. Taylor, ed., ''The Baseball Register'' 1956 edition. St. Louis:

The Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...

. *''The Baseball Encyclopedia,'' Macmillan Books, 10th edition. ; Specific

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Jack 1907 births 1975 deaths Baseball coaches from Massachusetts Boston Red Sox coaches Boston Red Sox scouts Bradford Bees players Brockton Shoemakers players Cape Cod Baseball League players (pre-modern era) Chatham Anglers players Detroit Tigers players Fall River Indians players Harwich Mariners players Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball third base coaches Pittsfield Hillies players St. Louis Browns players 20th-century American sportsmen San Francisco Seals (baseball) players Baseball players from Cambridge, Massachusetts Toledo Mud Hens players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) managers Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Wichita Falls Spudders players