Pumpsie Green
| Pumpsie Green | |
|---|---|
| Infielder | |
| Born: October 27, 1933 Boley, Oklahoma |
|
| Batted: Switch | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| July 21, 1959 for the Boston Red Sox | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 26, 1963 for the New York Mets | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .246 |
| Home runs | 13 |
| Runs batted in | 74 |
| Teams | |
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Elijah Jerry "Pumpsie" Green (born October 27, 1933) is a former Major League Baseball backup infielder who played with the Boston Red Sox (1959–62) and New York Mets (1963). He was a switch-hitter who threw right-handed.
Green, who was born in Boley, Oklahoma, had the distinction of being the first black player to play for the Red Sox, the last major-league club to integrate. In his Boston tenure, he was used mostly as a pinch runner or day-off replacement for infielders Pete Runnels and Don Buddin. He made his debut on July 21, 1959, pinch-running in a 2-1 loss against the White Sox.
Green enjoyed his best season in 1961, posting career highs in batting average (.260), home runs (6), RBI (27), doubles (12), stolen bases (4), and at-bats (260). However, he also had the most errors of his career that year, with 16. He played his final game with the Mets on September 26, 1963.
In 1962, after a weekend of humiliating losses to the New York Yankees, Green along with Gene Conley got off the bus in the middle of a traffic jam in the Bronx. They were not spotted until 3 days later by a New York Post sports reporter at the Idlewild International Airport trying to board a plane for Israel, with no passports or luggage.[1]
In a five-season career, Green was a .246 hitter with 13 home runs and 74 RBI in 344 games. On April 17, 2009, Green was honored by the Boston Red Sox in a first-pitch ceremony, in recognition of 50 years since his breaking of the Red Sox color barrier.
Green now lives in El Cerrito, California, where he grew up and went to high school. He is the brother of Cornell Green, long-time safety for the Dallas Cowboys.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ The Red Sox Reader. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 1991. p. 33. ISBN 0-395-58776-X.
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
- Baseball Almanac
- Baseball Library
- Diamond Fans
- The New York Mets Hall of Records
- Pumpsie Green/Gene Conley try to fly to Israel
