Joe Tipton
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| Joe Tipton | |
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| Catcher | |
| Born: February 18, 1922 McCaysville, Georgia |
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| Died: March 1, 1994 (aged 72) Birmingham, Alabama |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| May 2, 1948 for the Cleveland Indians | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 26, 1954 for the Washington Senators | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .236 |
| Home runs | 29 |
| Runs batted in | 125 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Joe Hicks Tipton (February 18, 1922 – March 1, 1994) was a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1948 through 1954. Tipton, who was born in McCaysville, Georgia, batted and threw right-handed.
In 1940, Tipton began his playing career in the Textile Industrial League with Brighton Mills in Shannon, Georgia; Shannon is located near Rome in Floyd County, Georgia.
Tipton was a backup catcher - only once recording over 200 at bats - who in a seven-season major-league career was sold or traded five times. A good defensive catcher with a strong arm, he displayed some slugging power but remained as a bench player throughout his Major League career.
A World War II veteran, Tipton led the Eastern League with a .375 batting average in 1947. He debuted in the majors with the 1948 World Champion Cleveland Indians, hitting .289 in 47 games as a backup for All-Star catcher Jim Hegan. After the World Series, Tipton was traded to the Chicago White Sox for Joe Haynes (Haynes was subsequently traded to the Washington Senators three weeks later).
Before the 1950 season, the White Sox made one of the best trades in franchise history when they sent Tipton to the Philadelphia Athletics for a young player named Nellie Fox. Athletics owner/manager/GM Connie Mack signed off on the deal, sending the future Hall of Fame second baseman to Chicago. Tipton supplied good backup to starting catcher Mike Guerra, batting .266 with six home runs and 20 RBI in 64 games. A year later, he appeared in a career-best 72 games. Tipton returned to Cleveland in the 1952 midseason. That year, combined between the A's and Indians, he posted career-highs in home runs (nine) and RBI (30) in 66 games. After one more season with the Indians, he finished his career with the Washington Senators in 1954.
Tipton was a .236 hitter with 29 home runs and 125 RBI in 417 games.
He died in Birmingham, Alabama, at age 72.
[edit] Sources
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- Baseball Library
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