Real Work - Offseason Jobs of Vintage Ballplayers

[frankbmd]

This thread could have several names, but baseball was formerly a low paying seasonal job for most professional ballplayers. Spring training actually involved physical training to get back into shape after a winter of alternative and frequently non-athletic employment. You don't have to look at too many Topps cards of the 50s before finding a line like

"Art sells used cars in the offseason."

Many of our vintage friends have nicknames such as "Doc" that usual mean they were either a trained doctor or dentist outside of baseball.

We all recognize that careers were interrupted by military service as well, but that is not what I'm looking for here either.

Careers after baseball are also not what I am looking for, such as Joe D selling coffee pots for Mr. Coffee. So no celebrity endorsements please.

Moe Berg's early career with Brooklyn was impacted by his desire to finish law school in the spring each year. Ultimately this led to his career in espionage after his playing days. This is more in line with my concept.

I could start a list, but will not do so now. Just name a vintage player or two and what their real jobs were during their career, when not playing baseball.

The more unusual the job the better. The guidelines above will not be strictly enforced. A list in this post may be forthcoming, but I doubt it. Lets just let this one go where it wants to go. I'll bet everyone will be surprised by some of the posts, if there are any.

[birdman42]

I don't remember the player's name (if I ever knew it) but I've seen a pic of a guy working in a radiator factory during the offseason. I'd imagine he was already in pretty good shape come February.

Bill

[Econteachert205]

Gotta love Denny McClain at the organ!

[wolf441]

Richie Hebner, the grave digger!

Joe Morgan (not the HOFer!) - cup of coffee in the majors as a player and former Red Sox Manager - Nicknamed Walpole Joe and Turnpike Joe for his off-season job driving a snowplow on the Massachusetts Turnpike.

[Paul S]

Originally Posted by birdman42

I don't remember the player's name (if I ever knew it) but I've seen a pic of a guy working in a radiator factory during the offseason.

Cool Papa Bell?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Al Kaline worked at a sporting goods store in Baltimore.

Mark Fidrych pumped gas after his rookie year.

[arc2q]

Frank "Piano Mover" Smith

[Leon]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Al Kaline worked at a sporting goods store in Baltimore.

Mark Fidrych pumped gas after his rookie year.

I believe Christy Mathewson might have worked at a (gas) service station too on the off season.

[Bocabirdman]

Jim Palmer sold men's suits in downtown Baltimore in 65/66

[Hot Springs Bathers]

Frank "Shanty" Hogan ran a bowling alley in Hot Springs for many years.

[Bocabirdman]

John Kling was a pool hall owner and tournament player.

[frankbmd]

A player to be named later sang so well in the off season, he was known as

"The Arkansas Hummingbird"

Really! Hint: Last name rhymes with Kling

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

A player to be named later sang so well in the off season, he was known as

"The Arkansas Hummingbird"

Really! Hint: Last name rhymes with Kling

Warneke rhymes with Kling?

[howard38]

In 1981 I was amazed to see on the news that Yankee reliever Ron Davis was working as a waiter during the baseball strike. As a kid I just couldn't wrap my mind around the fact that a pitcher who had been setting strikeout records a just a month earlier was not necessarily a wealthy man.

[Paul S]

During his career, Don Drysdale opened a bar in Van Nuys (Los Angeles) named Drysdale's Dugout. I imagine it supplemented his income year round. You won't find that on the back of no baseball card.

[packs]

King Kelly, John McGraw and Rube Marquard performed on vaudeville during their careers.

Mordecai Brown was a miner in his early career.

During his first few years with the Yanks Yogi worked at Sears.

Roy Campanella lucked into a weird deal with Nashua while in the New England League. A farmer said he'd give him 100 chickens for every homer. So when he hit 14 homers and ended up with 1,400 chickens, he started a farm. Later he opened a liquor store in Harlem.

Lefty Gomez was offered a try out by the Yanks while working at Universal Studios and pitching for a Hollywood Hills team.

[Donscards]

Carl Furillo worked as a laborer in the 50's. Most of the old timers had to work in the off season. These current players have no idea. My father worked in a cement mill and at night, he tended bar.

[Wildfireschulte]

Frank Schulte owned and trained race horses, one of which he named Wildfire which is how his nickname came to be.

[GoldenAge50s]

Throughout college & his attempts at a professional career my cousin Mort Flohr ('34 A's) returned home to a very small town in WNY and worked in his father's tavern.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Lou Brock ran a flower shop.

[Peter_Spaeth]

My favorite is Don Rudolph (60s pitcher) who caught the clothes his stripper wife would cast off during her burlesque act. I suspect Frank "Doc" Burkett was at some of the performances.

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

My favorite is Don Rudolph (60s pitcher) who caught the clothes his stripper wife would cast off during her burlesque act. I suspect Frank "Doc" Burkett was at some of the performances.

Don didn't catch them all.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Don and "Patti"

[sayhey24]

Members of the Red Sox Quartette hit the vaudeville circuit in the off season.


Greg
www.baseballbasement.com

[RGold]

Doc White graduated from dental school and was a songwriter. Co-wrote this song with Ring Lardner.



I remember seeing pics of Stan Musial selling Christmas trees off a parking lot in St. Louis. I think he already was a 3 time batting champion and MVP at the time.

[mets41]

Thanks for the picture. Patti is definately better looking than Don!!!!!!!!!!!

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by mets41

Thanks for the picture. Patti is definately better looking than Don!!!!!!!!!!!

Apparently at the time the writers said her curves were better than his. Indeed.

[Brian Van Horn]

One of the things I like about the 1933 Goudeys is that some of the players off season jobs were mentioned.

Sheriff Dave Harris
Charlie Jamieson-silk mill foreman
Monte Weaver-college professor University of Virginia.
Ernie Orsatti-appeared in the movies.
Jack Quinn-(OT) worked in the mines as a boy.

[Brian Van Horn]

Originally Posted by packs

King Kelly, John McGraw and Rube Marquard performed on vaudeville during their careers.

Mordecai Brown was a miner in his early career.

During his first few years with the Yanks Yogi worked at Sears.

Roy Campanella lucked into a weird deal with Nashua while in the New England League. A farmer said he'd give him 100 chickens for every homer. So when he hit 14 homers and ended up with 1,400 chickens, he started a farm. Later he opened a liquor store in Harlem.

Lefty Gomez was offered a try out by the Yanks while working at Universal Studios and pitching for a Hollywood Hills team.

Don't forget Mike Donlin left baseball for vaudeville. Also, Wes Ferrell had a Hollywood screen test and Lew Fonseca, who sang professionally during the off season in the 1920s and won a batting title in 1929:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Lew_Fonseca

Waite Hoyt was also a noted singer.

[DHogan]

Shanty Hogan worked in lumber yard in the off season.

[Peter_Spaeth]

a few from 1958 article

Eddie Mathews: president of Eddie Mathews Enterprises, a construction firm.

Johnny Logan: president of a title company that bears his name.

Gene Conley: vice-president of an oil company.

Ernie Johnson: insurance salesman.

Frank Torre: public relations representative for a soft drink concern.

Bob Rush: sell real estate in Mesa, Arizona.

Bob Buhl: has an appliance dealership in Saginaw, Michigan.

Harry Hanebrink: drive an oil truck in St. Louis.

Joe Koppe: paint houses in Detroit.

Warren Spahn: work his cattle ranch in Hartshorne, Oklahoma.

Don Newcombe: whiskey business in Newark, New Jersey.

Walt Dropo: sell real estate in Marblehead, Massachusetts.

Pete Whisenant: has a bar in Charlotte (“I’ll sell beer and drink beer”).

Smoky Burgess: run a service station in Forest City, North Carolina.

Bob Schmidt: “will wrestle a concrete mixer in St. Louis.”

Sad Sam Jones: drive a lumber truck in West Virginia.

Larry Jackson: “plans to work on the sports staff of the Idaho Daily Statesman back in Boise.” (After his playing days Jackson served in the Idaho legislature and ran for governor.)

Stan Musial: “has a bowling alley to look after, in addition to his restaurant, banks, etc.”

Del Ennis: opening a bowling alley in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.

Irv Noren: owns a bowling alley in Pasadena, California.

Eddie Kasko: work with a beer distributor in Richmond, Virginia.

Ray Katt: sell life insurance in New Braunfels, Texas.

Wilmer Mizell: with a new insurance firm in St. Louis.

Jim Brosnan: will resume his job with a Chicago advertising agency. (During the 1959 season Brosnan would write the first of his classic books, “The Long Season.”)

Sal Maglie: has a liquor store in Niagara Falls, New York.

[sayhey24]

Great list Peter!

Mark Belanger sold sporting goods at a department store in Pittsfield, MA, and Jim Konstanty of the Chiefs and Phillies owned his own sporting goods store in his hometown of Oneonta, NY.

Greg

[conor912]

Great thread, Frank.

[Den*nis O*Brien]

As previously mentioned the '33 Goudey set points out off season work. Guy ran filling stations in Chicago. Great venue to get a ball autographed!

[Kawika]

"Johnny delivers mail during the off-season."

[MacDice]

Earl Averill was a flourist

[frankbmd]

A few more, some new, some previously mentioned from an article cited below.


Stan Musial sold Christmas trees from a parking lot alongside his St. Louis Cardinals teammates Red Schoendienst, Marty Marion and Terry Moore during the late 1940s.

Roy Campanella owned and operated a Harlem liquor store throughout his playing career.

Al Jackson, a member of the inaugural 1962 Mets team, sold men’s suits at Howard Clothes in New York.

Jim Palmer was the youngest player to ever throw a shutout in a World Series. He then started selling men’s clothes at Hamburgers in Baltimore.

Palmer arrived at the store every morning at 9, sold suits, signed some autographs and went out to lunch with the other sales representatives. It was nothing out of the ordinary. One of his Orioles teammates, he recalled, made steering wheels at a General Motors plant. Another was a part-time social worker.

edited from a NYT article in February 13, 2013

[RichardSimon]

Gil Hodges owned a bowling alley.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1950s-Gil-Ho...-/220908428479

[DHogan]

Warren Spahn owned a dinner across from Braves field in Boston.

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by MacDice

Earl Averill was a flourist

Does a flourist sell flour?

[ValKehl]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

a few from 1958 article
Gene Conley: vice-president of an oil company.

Gene Conley also played in the NBA for a few seasons with the Celtics and the Knicks during the off season. I can recall watching the Celtics on TV in the 1950's when Conley played (sparingly) with the likes of Cousy, Russell, Sharman, and the Joneses.
Val

[gman]

Dennis Menke, while a member of the Houston Astros, sold motorcycles at a Honda dealership in the southeast part of Houston

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

Does a flourist sell flour?

They were highly recruited specialists back when Bakeries were stand alone businesses.
The best could cross over to powdered sugar.
They made some good dough............

[ibuysportsephemera]

Dave DeBusschere had an off season job..I just can't remember what it was .

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by ibuysportsephemera

Dave DeBusschere had an off season job..I just can't remember what it was .

Neither can I but I do remember he wasn't very good at it.

[ibuysportsephemera]

Originally Posted by Bocabirdman

Neither can I but I do remember he wasn't very good at it.

I assume that you are being sarcastic?

Jeff

[frankbmd]

White was one of the last people to believe that the earth is flat.

I suspect his off season time was consumed trying to defend this position.

Source: The National League Story by Lee Allen (1961)

[DHogan]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

White was one of the last people to believe that the earth is flat.

I suspect his off season time was consumed trying to defend this position.

Source: The National League Story by Lee Allen (1961)

Didn't Bill Lee believe that too ?

[mattsey9]

When I was a buyer for Montgomery Ward, there was an informal list of people who worked for Wards before coming famous. Two that stood out were Stan Musial and Madonna.

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by ibuysportsephemera

I assume that you are being sarcastic?

Jeff

but of course....