Bob Rinker
From BR Bullpen
Robert John Rinker
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 0", Weight 190 lb.
- Debut September 6, 1950
- Final Game September 16, 1950
- Born April 21, 1921 in Audenried, PA USA
- Died December 19, 2002 in Hazleton, PA USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Pennsylvania native Bob Rinker, a career minor league catcher, made it into one game behind the plate and two as a pinch-hitter for the Philadelphia Athletics in late September of 1950. He went 1 for 3 for a "lifetime" MLB average of .333. All told, Bob appeared in 3 games in his ten-day stay with the major league Athletics. Rinker was signed as an amateur free agent by the Athletics before the 1948 season.
The stocky catcher would spend only three seasons in pro baseball (1948-1950), spending his first year with the Mahanoy City Brewers of the North Atlantic League, appearing in 83 games and hitting at a .305 clip. 1949 saw him with the Griffin Pimientos of the Georgia-Alabama League, where he hit at a .285 clip and had a career-high 8 home runs. His last season in the game was spent with the Youngstown A's of the Middle Atlantic League where he appeared in just 33 games but hit at a .381 average before his call up to Shibe Park.
Rinker was 29 years old when he decided to give up the pro game and ended his minor league career of just three seasons with a .307 hitting average and 17 home runs while appearing in 228 games.
After baseball, Rinker was employed with Tungsall Incorporated, building transistors for radios and televisions. He retired to Hazleton, PA, where he died on December 19, 2002 at the age of 81.
