Marvin Edward Blaylock (September 30, 1929 – October 23, 1993) 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 ...

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

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

, 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 and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. Between and , he appeared in 287 big league games. Blaylock threw and batted left-handed, standing tall and weighing , during his playing days. Originally signed by the Giants in 1947, Blaylock appeared in only one MLB game for them, as a

pinch hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, A ...

on September 26, 1950. Batting 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, ...

Larry Jansen, he popped out to

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

Billy Cox off Ralph Branca of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Blaylock then returned to

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

(MiLB) for four full seasons, batting over .300 for the 1954 Syracuse Chiefs of the Triple-A

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 ...

, the top farm club of the Phillies, which earned him a second trial in MLB. Blaylock was the Phillies' most-used first baseman in both and . In 1955, he appeared in 113 games, starting 55 of them (while Earl Torgeson, Eddie Waitkus, and Stan Lopata each started more than 25 games at first for the team). Blaylock batted only .208 with three

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 ...

that season. However, in 1956, he started 110 games at first, improved his batting average to .254, and hit ten home runs, fourth on the team. But it was not enough production, and Blaylock lost his starting job to

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

Ed Bouchee in . He was sent down to the Triple-A Miami Marlins for 41 games before his recall in September 1957. In his final Major League

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...

, Blaylock hit a pinch hit home run off René Valdés of the Dodgers in an 8–4 loss at Connie Mack Stadium.1957-9-28 box score
from Retrosheet As a Major Leaguer, he had 175 total hits, including 21 doubles, 15 triples, and 15 homers. Blaylock was out of baseball in 1958 but returned for a final pro season in 1959 at the Double-A level, with the Nashville Vols of the Southern Association.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Blaylock, Marv 1929 births 1993 deaths Baseball players from Arkansas Jersey City Giants players Lawton Giants players Major League Baseball first basemen Miami Marlins (International League) players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Nashville Vols players New York Giants (baseball) players Ottawa Giants players Philadelphia Phillies players Sioux City Soos players Sportspeople from Fort Smith, Arkansas Syracuse Chiefs players Trenton Giants players 20th-century American sportsmen