Zebulon Vance Eaton (February 2, 1920 – December 17, 1989), nicknamed "Red", was an American right-handed pitcher. He played 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 ...

for 11 seasons between 1939 and 1956, including two seasons 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 ...

with the

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 ...

in 1944 and 1945.

Early years

Eaton was born in 1920 in Cooleemee, North Carolina.

Professional baseball player

Eaton began his professional baseball career in 1939 playing for the Cooleemee Cools in the

North Carolina State League The North Carolina State League was a Class D level league in Minor League Baseball. The original version of the league played from 1913 to 1917 as the successor to the Carolina Association. The second version of the league was established in ...

. He then spent the 1941 season with the

Beaumont Exporters The Beaumont Exporters was the predominant name of a minor league baseball team located in Beaumont, Texas that played between 1920 and 1957 in the Texas League and the Big State League. Beaumont rejoined the Class AA Texas League (1983-1986) and ...

in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. After the United States entered

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 ...

, Eaton enlisted in the Army; he played for an Army baseball team at

Camp Wolters Fort Wolters was a United States military installation four miles northeast of Mineral Wells, Texas. The fort was originally named Camp Wolters in honor of Brigadier General Jacob F. Wolters, commander of the 56th Cavalry Brigade of the Nationa ...

. He received a medical discharge in December 1943. Upon being discharged from the Army, Eaton signed with the

. He played in six games for the Tigers in 1944 with no decisions and a 5.74

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA). In 1945, he played in 17 games and had a record of 4–2 with an improved ERA of 4.05. Eaton also contributed as a hitter in 1945, with two home runs, 10 RBIs, and a double in 32 at-bats. On July 15, 1945, he hit a 450-foot home run with the bases loaded against the

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

. He hit a second home run on August 8, a 400-foot blow to left-center field against 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 ...

. Eaton's last major league appearance came as a pinch hitter in Game 1 of the

1945 World Series The 1945 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1945 season. The 42nd edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion Detroit Tigers against the National League champion Chicago Cubs. Th ...

. He pinch-hit for pitcher

Al Benton John Alton Benton (March 18, 1911 – April 14, 1968) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians, and Boston Red Sox. The right-hande ...

and struck out. Eaton continued to play in the minor leagues for several years, including stints with the

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

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 ...

(1944, 1946, 1949, 1956), the

Birmingham Barons The Birmingham Barons are a Minor League Baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox and plays at Regions Field in downtown Birmingham. The Baron ...

of the

Southern Association The Southern Association (SA) was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class B (1902-19 ...

(1947),

Shreveport Sports The Shreveport Sports were a professional Minor League Baseball team based in Shreveport, Louisiana, in the United States. The Sports fielded a team from 1925 to 1935, 1938 to 1942, 1946 to 1957, and 1959 to 1961. They were affiliated with the C ...

of the

(1950), the Greenwood Tigers of the

Tri-State League The Tri-State League was the name of six different circuits in American minor league baseball. History The first league of that name played for four years (1887–1890) and consisted of teams in Ohio, Michigan and West Virginia. The second league ...

(1951), and the Gastonia Rockets of the Tri-State League (1952).

Later years

Eaton died in 1989 in

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, Florida, Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lag ...

. He was buried at Elmlawn Cemetery in the town of Tonawanda, New York.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eaton, Zeb 1920 births 1989 deaths Detroit Tigers players Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from North Carolina Beaumont Exporters players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Birmingham Barons players Shreveport Sports players Greenwood Tigers players Gastonia Rockets players People from Cooleemee, North Carolina United States Army personnel of World War II Cooleemee Cools players Cooleemee Weavers players Martinsville Manufacturers players Savannah Indians players 20th-century American sportsmen