Tony Batton York (November 27, 1912 – April 18, 1970) was a 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. He played part of one season 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 ...

for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

in 1944 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 ...

and

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 ...

. The 31-year-old

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 ...

was measured during his playing career at and weighing 165 lbs.

Personal life

He was born in

Irene, Texas Irene is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Hill County, Texas, Hill County, Texas, United States. It is located approximately twelve miles southeast of Hillsboro, Texas, Hillsboro, near the intersection of Farm to Market Roa ...

to Theodore York (1888–1942) and his wife Mattie. Tony was the second of their four children, and the only son. His sisters were Juanita M., Lois C., and May W. York. He was married twice, first to Stephanie. They had no children. His second marriage, on January 29, 1941, was to Mariana Norris (November 30, 1915 – July 21, 2009). They had one daughter, Nancy Ann York. Stephanie born in 1985 was the wife of Tony Batton York's Great Grandson Tony Farmer.

Playing career

York had an extensive career in

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 ...

. He began his career in 1933 with the Baton Rouge Solons in the Dixie League, and continued to play until 1956. In the minors, York was primarily a shortstop, moving to

second base In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the infield, between second and first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and feet, needs the ability to get rid of the ball quickly, and must ...

full-time in 1947. York is one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the major leagues during

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 ...

. He made his major league debut on April 18, 1944 (

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...

) in a road game against 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 ...

Crosley Field Crosley Field was a Major League Baseball park in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home field of the National League's Cincinnati Reds from 1912 through June 24, 1970, and the original Cincinnati Bengals football team, members of the second (1937) a ...

. His season and career major league totals for 28 games include a .235

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 ...

(20-for-85) with 7

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 4

runs scored In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted bal ...

. He was a good fielder for his era, handling 120 out of 125

total chances In baseball statistics, total chances (TC), also called ''chances offered'', represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is the sum of putouts plus assists plus errors. ''Chances accepted'' refers to the total ...

successfully for a

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 ...

of .960. In 1952, York became

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 ...

of the

Texarkana Bears The Texarkana Bears minor league baseball team played in the East Texas League in 1947 and the Big State League from 1947 to 1953. It was based in the American city of Texarkana, Texas. It was affiliated with the Chicago White Sox in 1946. In 194 ...

in the

Big State League The Big State League was a mid-level, Class B (baseball), Class B level circuit in American minor league baseball that played for 11 seasons, from 1947 through 1957. Its member clubs were exclusively based in Texas. The Corpus Christi Clippers (19 ...

. He served as a player-manager for the remainder of his playing career, and continued managing in the minor leagues until 1958.

Death

Tony and his wife are buried in Fairview Cemetery in

Hubbard, Texas Hubbard is a city in Hill County, Texas, United States. It was named for Texas Governor Richard B. Hubbard. The city is northeast of Waco. The population was 1,394 at the 2020 census, down from 1,423 at the 2010 census. History Hubbard was ...

References

External links

Retrosheet
* {{DEFAULTSORT:York, Tony Major League Baseball infielders Chicago Cubs players Baton Rouge Solons players Dallas Steers players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Shreveport Sports players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players Seattle Rainiers players San Diego Padres (minor league) players Texarkana Bears players Crowley Millers players Odessa Eagles players Ballinger Westerners players Minor league baseball managers Baseball players from Hill County, Texas 1912 births 1970 deaths People from Hill County, Texas Carlsbad Potashers players 20th-century American sportsmen