Jimmie Goodwin Coker (March 28, 1936 – October 29, 1991) 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 ...

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 ...

, who played in

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 ...

(MLB) for the

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

(, –),

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

(), and

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

(–). A native of

Holly Hill, South Carolina Holly Hill is a town in Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States. Prior to 1910 it was located in the northwest portion of Saint James Goose Creek Township. The population was 1,277 at the 2010 census. As of 2023, the estimated populati ...

, Coker was the son of David and Leola Coker. He played football and basketball for

Furman University Furman University is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1826 and named after Baptist pastor Richard Furman, the Liberal arts college, liberal arts university is the oldest private institution of higher l ...

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...

, before signing as an amateur free agent in February 1955, with the Phillies. Coker spent all or parts of nine years in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

(NL). Coker made his big league debut, at age 22, on September 11, 1958, as the Phillies’ starting catcher, batting eighth, in Philadelphia’s 4-3 win over the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

, at

Connie Mack Stadium Shibe Park ( , rhymes with "vibe"), known later as Connie Mack Stadium, was a ballpark located in Philadelphia. It was the home of the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League (AL) from 1909 to 1954 and the Philadelphia Phillies of the Natio ...

. In his second at-bat of the game, in the fifth inning, he singled for his first career hit, off

Johnny Podres John Joseph Podres (September 30, 1932 – January 13, 2008) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in the majors from 1953 to 1969, spending most of his career with the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers. Podres ...

. During most of the 1962 season Coker served in the

U.S. Military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. U.S. federal law names six armed forces: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and the Coast Guard. Since 1949, all of the armed forces, except th ...

. After playing four seasons with the Phillies, his contract was purchased by the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

. He was traded along with

Jack Fisher John Howard "Fat Jack" Fisher (born March 4, 1939) is an American retired professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, ...

and

Billy Hoeft William Frederick Hoeft (May 17, 1932 – March 16, 2010) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) whose career spanned 15 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Braves, Chicago Cubs and San F ...

from the

Orioles Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and early ...

to the

Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) * Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'g ...

for

Stu Miller Stuart Leonard Miller (December 26, 1927 – January 4, 2015), nicknamed The Butterfly Man, was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1952–56), Philadelphia Phillies (1956), New York/San Francisco Giants ( ...

John Orsino John Joseph Orsino (April 22, 1938 – November 1, 2016) was an American Major League Baseball catcher. He was signed by the New York Giants as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season, and played for the San Francisco Giants (1961–1962), ...

and Mike McCormick on December 15, 1962."Giants, Orioles Exchange Hurlers in Six-Man Deal," ''United Press International'' (UPI), Saturday, December 15, 1962.
Retrieved March 1, 2023. Coker played one season with the Giants. In August 1964, the Reds purchased his contract from the

Milwaukee Braves The Milwaukee Braves were a Major League Baseball club that played in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1953 to 1965, having previously played in Boston, Massachusetts, as the Boston Braves. After relocating to Atlanta, Georgia, in 1966 they were rename ...

, where he played parts of his last four seasons. Coker made his last MLB start, on August 26, 1967; two days later

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 ...

Johnny Bench Johnny Lee Bench (born December 7, 1947) is an American former professional baseball player. He played his entire Major League Baseball career, which lasted from to , with the Cincinnati Reds, primarily as a catcher. Bench was the leader of the ...

made his Reds' debut. In all, Coker played in 233 games, had 592 at bats, 137 hits, 16

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

, 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 ...

, and a .231

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 ...

. After baseball, Coker was a rancher in Texas, where he was on the board of directors of the

Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, Inc., is an organization established in 1877 by forty Texas cattlemen for the purpose of combating unbridled livestock theft. The association headquarters is located in Fort Worth. History The T ...

, in

Throckmorton, Texas Throckmorton is a town in Throckmorton County, Texas, United States. Its population was 727 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Throckmorton County. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of ...

, where he died from a heart attack, on October 29, 1991, at age 55.

References

External links

Jimmie Coker
at SABR (Baseball BioProject) {{DEFAULTSORT:Coker, Jimmie 1936 births 1991 deaths Baseball players from Orangeburg County, South Carolina Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Cincinnati Reds players Denver Bears players Major League Baseball catchers Mattoon Indians players Mattoon Phillies players Miami Marlins (International League) players People from Holly Hill, South Carolina People from Throckmorton, Texas Philadelphia Phillies players San Francisco Giants players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Wilson Tobs players 20th-century American sportsmen