Roy David McMillan (July 17, 1929 – November 2, 1997) 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 ...

player, coach and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

. He 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 ...

as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

from 1951 to 1966, most prominently as a member of the

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 ...

, where he was the starting shortstop for nine seasons. A two-time

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

player, McMillan was one of the top defensive shortstops of his era. Nicknamed "Mr. Shortstop" because of his defensive play, he won three

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

s during his tenure with the Reds. He teamed with Reds second baseman,

Johnny Temple John Ellis Temple (August 8, 1927 – January 9, 1994) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman from 1952 to 1964, most prominently as a member of the Cincinnati Reds, where ...

, to form one of the best double-play combinations of the 1950s. McMillan also played for the Milwaukee Braves and the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

. Following his retirement as a player, McMillan managed the Brewers and Mets. McMillan was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1971.

Early life

McMillan was born in

Bonham, Texas Bonham is a city and is the county seat of Fannin County, Texas, United States. Its population was 10,408 at the 2020 census. James Bonham (the city's namesake) sought the aid of James Fannin (the county's namesake) at the Battle of the Alamo. B ...

, and attended Bonham High School where he was a member of the

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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 (appro ...

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

, and the

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

teams. Although his high school did not have a baseball team, he did play as a

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 ...

on the town

softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

team. After high school, Roy attended

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

for one semester hoping to play sports of some kind but, returned to Bonham after failing to make the football team. In 1947 at the age of 16, McMillan attended a Cincinnati Reds try-out camp in McKinney, Texas conducted by Red scout Hack Miller. Although his baseball experience was extremely limited, Miller saw his athletic ability, especially his ability to catch ground balls. In 1947 he was assigned to the Ballinger Cats of the

Longhorn League The Longhorn League was the name of a Minor league baseball circuit that operated from through in the Southwestern United States. In , it was renamed the Southwestern League and operated through before changing its name to the Sophomore Leagu ...

. By the 1950 season, he had progressed to the top of the

minor league 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 ...

ladder with the

Tulsa Oilers The Tulsa Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and play in the ECHL. The Oilers played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center until 2008 when they moved into the new BOK Center. For many years, the Tulsa ...

where he produced a .274 batting average.

Major League Baseball career

McMillan made his major league debut with the Reds on April 16,

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

at the age of 21 however, he saw little playing time as he served as a back up to the starting shortstop, Virgil Stallcup. Unhappy with Stallcup's performance, Reds manager

Luke Sewell James Luther "Luke" Sewell (January 5, 1901 – May 14, 1987) was an American professional baseball player, Coach (baseball), coach, and Manager (baseball), manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Cleveland Indians (1921 ...

decided to promote McMillan to be the starting shortstop for the 1952 season. McMillan became a defensive standout and would lead 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) in fielding percentage four times,

putout In baseball statistics, a putout (PO) is awarded to a defensive player who (generally while in secure possession of the ball) records an out by one of the following methods: * Tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a tag ...

s three times, assists four times, and

double play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Le ...

s four consecutive years from 1953 to 1956. When

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

joined the Reds in

1954 Events January * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown–IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York, at the head ...

, he teamed with McMillan through the

1959 Events January * January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...

season to become the second longest double play combination in the NL since 1900.(The longest was

Joe Morgan Joe Leonard Morgan (September 19, 1943 – October 11, 2020) was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Houston Colt .45s / Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Fran ...

and Dave Concepción of the Cincinnati Reds in the 1970s.) He played in 150 or more games in eight different seasons–six in a row. In 1954, he set a since-surpassed major league record of 129 double plays. The Reds’ best result during McMillan’s career came in

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, E ...

when the Reds were in first place at mid-season and stayed in the pennant race until the last day of the season, ending up with a 91–63 record, two games behind the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...

. Despite the performance of home run hitting

Frank Robinson Frank Robinson (August 31, 1935 – February 7, 2019), nicknamed "the Judge", was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams over 21 seasons: the Cincinnati Reds (1956–196 ...

, the Cincinnati Baseball Writers Association named McMillan the Reds’

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

in in recognition of the value of his excellent defensive play. He also received recognition from national baseball writers when he placed sixth in the National League Most Valuable Player Award. Further national recognition came in when ''

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 ...

'' named him to their All-Star Fielding team and recipient of the Rawlings

in the first year the award was made. McMillan would win the award again in and . He was elected to the National League All-Star team in

and

1957 Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricke ...

. In

, the Reds were once again in first place at mid-season when, McMillan and six of his Redleg teammates—

Ed Bailey Lonas Edgar Bailey, Jr. (April 15, 1931 – March 23, 2007) was an American professional baseball player and later served on the Knoxville, Tennessee city council. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from through . A six-time All-St ...

, Don Hoak,

Gus Bell David Russell "Gus" Bell Jr. (November 15, 1928 – May 7, 1995) was an American professional baseball player and scout. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from 1950 to 1964, most prominently as a member of the Cincinnati Reds ...

, Wally Post and

—were voted into the National League All-Star starting lineup, the result of a ballot stuffing campaign by Reds fans. Bell remained on the team as a reserve, but Post was taken off altogether. Bell and Post were replaced as starters by

Hank Aaron Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934 – January 22, 2021), nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. Considered one ...

and

Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (May 6, 1931 – June 18, 2024), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid", was an American professional baseball center fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of ...

. The Reds faltered after the All-Star break and dropped to fourth place in the season final standings. With the Reds in need of pitching, McMillan was traded on December 15, 1960, to the Milwaukee Braves for Joey Jay (who won 20 games in two straight seasons) and Juan Pizarro. McMillan also played with 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 ...

and

and finished his career in 1966. He played in his final major league game on August 3, 1966, at the age of 37. Dubiously, with 2,093 games played, McMillan is one of fourteen players to have played over two thousand games without ever reaching the postseason (the closest he came was with the 1956 season, where they finished two games out of a pennant).

Statistics

In a 16-year major league career, McMillan played in 2,093

games A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...

, accumulating 1,639

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 ...

in 6,752

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, ...

s for a .243 career batting average along with 68 home runs, 594 runs batted in and an

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batting (baseball), batter reaches base (baseball), base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA ...

of .314. He retired with a .972

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 ...

. McMillan ranked 8th overall among major league shortstops in double plays turned. He ranks 16th overall among major league shortstops in assists and, ranks 19th overall in putouts.

Post playing career

In 1970, McMillan returned to Milwaukee as first-base coach with the Brewers, served as interim skipper in 1972 between Dave Bristol and Del Crandall, then coached for the

. In 1975, he replaced

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (born Lorenzo Pietro Berra; May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of Manager (baseball), manager and Coach (baseball), coach. He played 19 seas ...

as the Mets' interim manager. Late in his career, McMillan was a scout for the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

based in Bonham. McMillan was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1971 and was subsequently inducted into the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame and the Ohio Baseball Hall of Fame. McMillan died on November 2, 1997, at the age of 68, having collapsed in his kitchen. He was survived by his wife of 45 years, along with two children and three grandchildren.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:McMillan, Roy 1929 births 1997 deaths Ballinger Cats players Baseball players from Fannin County, Texas Cincinnati Redlegs players Cincinnati Reds players Columbia Reds players Gold Glove Award winners Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball shortstops Milwaukee Braves players 20th-century American sportsmen Milwaukee Brewers coaches Milwaukee Brewers managers Montreal Expos scouts National League All-Stars New York Mets coaches New York Mets managers New York Mets players People from Bonham, Texas Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Tyler Trojans players