Hillis Layne
From BR Bullpen
Ivoria Hillis Layne (Tony)
- Bats Left, Throws Right
- Height 6' 0", Weight 170 lb.
- Debut September 16, 1941
- Final Game September 21, 1945
- Born February 23, 1918 in Whitwell, TN USA
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[edit] Biographical Information
Hillis Layne was an infielder, mostly at third base, 19 seasons, three in the Major Leagues (1941; 1944-1945) and 17 in the minors (1938-1941; 1946-1958), losing 2¾ years to the Military. He was born February 23, 1918 in Whitwell, TN to Elijah Hudson Layne (1881-1969) and Dolly Daisy Elizabeth Hudson Layne (1885-1958), the sixth out of eight children. He served in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II (1942-1944) (N&C). He married Dottie Graham (1924-1997) with whom he had two children: son Stephen Hillis Layne (28 Nov 1951 -- ), and daughter Margaret Elizabeth Layne Dowling (10 Nov 1960 -- ) and three grandchildren.
Signed as an Amateur Free Agent by the Washington Senators, where he played his three years in MLB. In his 17-year minor league career, he played in 1,796 games and hit only 83 home runs but had 953 runs batted in and a lifetime minor leaguue batting average of .335.
He led the Pacific Coast League in batting in 1947 (.367) and the Northwest League (NWL) in 1955 (.391). He wound up his long career as a player/manager in the low minors and later worked as a major league scout. He scouted Brian Doyle for the Texas Rangers, who took him the 1972 amateur draft.
Layne was a player/manager for the Lewiston Broncs from 1955-1958 and won the league batting title in 1955 (.391) and finished second in both 1956 (.354) and 1957 (.340). In four NWL seasons, Layne's batting average was .362 and his on base percentage was .468. He struck out only 78 times in four years and led league 3B in fielding in 1955-56-57.
Layne spent most of his lengthy career in the Minors, spending parts of the 1941, 1944 and 1945 seasons with the Washington Senators. In 107 MLB games he hit .264. He was inducted into the Tennesse Sports Hall of Fame in 1987. He is currently (2006)living, having recently enjoyed his 88th birthday.
[edit] Sources
Principal sources for Hillis Layne include newspaper obituaries (OB), government Veteran records (VA,CM,CW), Stars & Stripes (S&S), Sporting Life (SL), The Sporting News (TSN), The Sports Encyclopedia:Baseball 2006 by David Neft & Richard Cohen (N&C), old Who's Who in Baseballs (none) (WW), old Baseball Registers (none) (BR) , old Daguerreotypes by TSN (none) (DAG), Stars&Stripes (S&S), The Baseball Necrology by Bill Lee (BN), Pat Doyle's Professional Ballplayer DataBase (PD), The Baseball Library (BL), Baseball in World War II Europe by Gary Bedingfield (GB) and SABR's Minor League Stars, Volume I and independent research by Walter Kephart (WK) and Frank Russo (FR) and others.
[edit] Year-by-Year Managerial Record
| Year | Team | League | Record | Finish | Organization | Playoffs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Anderson Rebels | Tri-State League | 6th | St. Louis Browns | replaced Len Schulte | ||
| 1952 | Pine Bluff Judges | Cotton States League | 62-64 | 6th | St. Louis Browns | ||
| 1953 | Anderson Rebels | Tri-State League | 75-74 | 4th | St. Louis Browns | Lost League Finals | |
| 1954 | San Angelo Colts | Longhorn League | 53-86 | 7th | none | ||
| 1955 | Lewiston Broncs | Northwest League | 47-79 | 6th | none | ||
| 1956 | Lewiston Broncs | Northwest League | 72-59 | 2nd | Philadelphia Phillies | none | |
| 1957 | Lewiston Broncs | Northwest League | 58-78 | 5th | none | ||
| 1958 | Lewiston Broncs | Northwest League | 80-56 | 1st | Sacramento Solons | Lost League Finals |
[edit] Further Reading
- Larry Stone: "Those were the most wonderful days I believe I ever had", in Mark Armour, ed.: Rain Check: Baseball in the Pacific Northwest, Society for American Baseball Research, Cleveland, OH, 2006, pp. 104-105.
