Don Leppert (leppedo01)
From BR Bullpen
Don Eugene Leppert (Tiger)
- Bats Left, Throws Right
- Height 5' 8", Weight 175 lb.
- Debut April 11, 1955
- Final Game September 25, 1955
- Born November 20, 1930 in Memphis, TN USA
[edit] Biographical Information
The name Don Leppert wouldn't seem to be common enough that there would be a pair of unrelated major leaguers with the name, but there was and this is Don E. Leppert, who was the starting second baseman for the Baltimore Orioles at the start of the 1955 season. This Leppert had been signed as an amateur free agent by the New York Yankees before the 1949 season. The middle infielder would spend five seasons (1949-1954) in the minors before getting his chance in the majors.
Don would have two good seasons on his way up the ladder. As a nineteen-year-old in 1950 with the McAlester Rockets of the Sooner State League, he would hit .330 in 140 games for the second-place Rockets and be named the All-Star second baseman. In 1954 for the Birmingham Barons of the Southern Association he hit .313 with 10 home runs and was chosen for the All-Star team. At this point in time, Don would be involved in a 17-player deal, the largest trade in baseball history, that would send him from the Yankees to the Orioles and put him at second base for the 1955 season with Baltimore.
Leppert's time in the majors with Baltimore in 1955 didn't last too long as he struggled with just a .114 average (8-for-70) in 40 games; he spent other parts of the season in the minor leagues where he performed most the year with the Charleston Senators of the American Association, hitting .271 in 119 games.
His big league days were over. Don would leave baseball the following year after playing 52 games with the Vancouver Mounties and hitting .256, then wrapping his baseball career up with a 67-game run with the Birmingham Barons with a .278 average. Don had a seven-year run in the minors, showing a .291 batting average and fielding at a .965 percentage.
After baseball, he worked for many years for the Chattanooga Bakery Company in Memphis and as of last notice is retired in Southaven, MS. The other Leppert was Don G., a catcher for the Pirates and Senators in the early 1960s and later a coach with Pittsburgh.
