Robert Ford Garrison (August 29, 1915 – June 6, 2001), nicknamed "Rocky" and "Snapper", was an American professional baseball player and coach. An outfielder, the native of Greenville, South Carolina, threw and batted right-handed, stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed 180 pounds (82 kg). He appeared in 185 games in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox (1943–44) and Philadelphia Athletics (1944–46).
Robert Frank Knoop ( kuh-NOP; born October 18, 1938) is an American former Major League Baseball second baseman and coach. In his nine-year MLB career, he appeared in 1,153 games as a member of the Los Angeles / California Angels (1964–69), Chicago White Sox (1969–70) and Kansas City Royals (1971–72). He threw and batted right-handed, stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 170 pounds (77 kg).
Walker James Cress (March 6, 1917 – April 21, 1996) was an American professional baseball player and scout. The right-handed pitcher appeared in 33 Major League Baseball games, 31 in relief, in 1948 and part of 1949 for the Cincinnati Reds. Born in Ben Hur, Virginia, and nicknamed "Foots", he was listed as 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) tall and 205 pounds (93 kg).
Cress played baseball for Louisiana State University from 1938 to 1939. His professional playing career began in 1939 in the Boston Red Sox' farm system. He missed the 1943–1945 seasons in World War II military service, but the website Baseball in Wartime lists no service branch under his name. In 1946, Cress returned to baseball and won 19 of 22 decisions for the Lynn Red Sox of the Class B New England League. The next year, 1947, he won 15 of 20 decisions for the New Orleans Pelicans of the Double-A Southern Association.
Cress then was acquired by Cincinnati, setting the stage for his major-league career. He worked in 30 games for the 1948 Reds, with two assignments as a starting pitcher. He posted his only MLB complete game on October 1, 1948, during the season's final weekend. Facing the Pittsburgh Pirates at Crosley Field, he had held the Bucs to two hits and no runs over eight innings, and was nursing a 1–0 lead going into the ninth. But in the final frame, he surrendered four hits and two runs, and when the Reds could not respond in their half of the ninth, Cress was tagged with the loss, his only MLB decision.Cress then worked in three early-season games in 1949 and pitched two scoreless innings coming of the Reds' bullpen before returning to the minors for the rest of his career. As a big leaguer, he allowed 62 hits and 45 bases on balls in 62 total innings pitched, with 33 strikeouts and no saves. He won a combined 33 games for the Tulsa Oilers of the Double-A Texas League in 1949–50, and ended his minor-league career with 99 victories.
After his pitching career, Cress resided in Baton Rouge, LA, working as an electrician, and became a scout for the St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros, and San Francisco Giants. He later became the Director of Recreation for BREC, a recreational organization in East Baton Rouge Parish. Cress died at the age of 79 on April 21, 1996, in Baton Rouge.
Wilburn Rue Butland (March 22, 1918 – September 19, 1997) was an American professional baseball pitcher who appeared in 32 games in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox over four seasons between 1940 and 1947. Born in Terre Haute, Indiana, Butland batted right-handed and threw left-handed. He was listed as 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) tall and 185 pounds (84 kg).
In his four-season MLB career, Butland posted a 9–3 record with 62 strikeouts and a 3.88 earned run average in 1502⁄3 innings pitched. His lone full season in the majors was 1942, in which he appeared in 23 games, won seven, lost one, threw two shutouts and six complete games, and posted a sparkling 2.51 ERA. He handled 46 total chances (15 putouts, 31 assists) in his major league career without an error for a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage.
Butland's pro career lasted from 1936 through 1950, although he missed three seasons due to service in the United States Army during World War II. He died in Terre Haute at age 79 on September 19, 1997.
Arthur Frederick Bues was a Major League Baseball third baseman. He was born on March 3, 1888, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He batted and threw right-handed, weighed 184 pounds (83 kg), and was 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m). Bues was considered one of the best third basemen in the country during his career. Bues was the nephew of George Stallings. Bues originally played for Kansas City of the American Association and made his Major League debut on April 17, 1913, for the Boston Braves. He had just 1 at bat in 2 games. In 1914 he played for the Chicago Cubs in 14 games. He had 45 at-bats with 10 hits. He recorded no home runs and 4 RBIs.
Art Bues died on November 7, 1954, in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin.
Arthur Emil Kores (July 22, 1886 – March 26, 1974) was a professional baseball player whose career spanned nine seasons, one of which was spent in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the St. Louis Terriers (1915). In the majors, he compiled a .234 batting average with 18 runs scored, 47 hits, nine doubles, two triples, one home run, and 22 runs batted in (RBIs) in 60 games played. He played all of his Major League games at third base. Kores played the majority of his career in the minor leagues with the Des Moines Boosters (1911–1912), Portland Beavers (1913–1914), Rochester Hustlers (1915), Nashville Volunteers (1916–1917), Louisville Colonels (1918), Toledo Mud Hens (1920), and Indianapolis Indians (1920). In the minors, he compiled a career .274 batting average with 1,225 hits, 212 doubles, 91 triples, and 29 home runs in 1,243 games played. Kores batted and threw right-handed. During his playing career, he stood at 5 feet 9 inches (175 cm) and weighed 167 pounds (76 kg).
Charles Magnus Gelbert (January 26, 1906 – January 13, 1967) was an American professional baseball player. He played all or part of ten seasons in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals (1929–32 and 1935–36), Cincinnati Reds (1937), Detroit Tigers (1937), Washington Senators (1939–40) and Boston Red Sox (1940), primarily as a shortstop.
James Harry Taylor (May 20, 1919 – November 5, 2000) was an American professional baseball player. He was a right-handed pitcher who appeared in 90 games, 44 as a starter, in Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1946–48) and Boston Red Sox (1950–52). The native of East Glenn, Indiana, stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 175 pounds (79 kg).
Taylor's professional career lasted from 1938 through 1955, with five seasons (1941–45) missed due to United States Army service in World War II and another two (1953–54) out of organized baseball in the semipro ranks. He spent the entire 1947 campaign on the Dodgers' big-league roster, winning ten of 15 decisions with 20 starting assignments and two shutouts. It was an eventful season for Brooklyn that saw Jackie Robinson break the baseball color line in the Major Leagues, manager Leo Durocher's season-long suspension for "conduct detrimental to baseball", and the Dodgers win their seventh overall National League pennant.
Taylor was the Dodgers' starting pitcher in Game 4 of the 1947 World Series on October 3 at Ebbets Field. Matched against the New York Yankees' Bill Bevens, Taylor failed to record an out, facing four batters in the first inning and allowing two singles, a base on balls, a fielder's choice (the batter reaching on an error) and an unearned run before being relieved by Hal Gregg, who got out of the inning without further scoring. Bevens, meanwhile, threw 82⁄3 innings of no-hit baseball. But the Yankee hurler allowed ten bases on balls, and his no-hitter and game were ruined by pinch hitter Cookie Lavagetto's ninth-inning double, scoring the decisive two runs and enabling the Dodgers to win, 3–2.
Taylor returned to the minor leagues during the 1948 season, and spent almost all of the following two years at Triple-A. But in September 1950, his contract was purchased by the Red Sox, who were chasing the Yankees and Detroit Tigers in the American League pennant race. After one game in relief, he threw two complete game victories, September 25 against the Philadelphia Athletics (a two-hit shutout) and October 1 against the Yankees. But Boston fell short in the standings, finishing in third place, four games behind the Yankees.
In his 90 MLB games, Taylor worked 3572⁄3 innings pitched, and allowed 344 hits and 201 bases on balls. He recorded 127 strikeouts, 16 complete games and four saves.
He posted a .161 batting average (20-for-124) in his career. He fielded his position well, recording a .990 fielding percentage with only one error in 105 total chances.
Kenneth Wayne Trinkle (December 15, 1919 – May 10, 1976) was an American professional baseball player and right-handed pitcher who appeared in 216 games in Major League Baseball with the New York Giants (1943 and 1946–1948) and Philadelphia Phillies (1949). A relief specialist, he led the National League in appearances in 1946 and 1947. The native of Paoli, Indiana, stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 175 pounds (79 kg).
Stanley Ernest Hollmig (January 2, 1926 – December 4, 1981) was an American professional baseball player and scout. Born in Fredericksburg, Texas, he was an outfielder who played in 94 games over all or parts of three seasons (1949–51) in Major League Baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies.Nicknamed "Hondo", Hollmig was listed as 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and 190 pounds (86 kg); he threw and batted right-handed. He signed with the Phillies after attending Texas A&M University, where he was an All-Conference football player.