Jake Crawford
From BR Bullpen
Rufus Crawford
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 1½", Weight 185 lb.
- School University of Missouri
- Debut September 7, 1952
- Final Game September 28, 1952
- Born March 20, 1928 in Campbell, MO USA
- Died October 21, 2008 in Fort Worth, TX USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Before the 1950 season Jake Crawford signed as an amateur free agent with the St. Louis Browns. The outfielder was assigned to the Muskogee Reds of the class C Western Association for his first season and the 19 year old responded by getting 125 base hits, including 20 round-trippers, in 475 at bats for a .263 average.
Jake would have even a better year in 1951, upping his base hit total to 143, along with 23 home runs for a .302 average. In 1952, while with the Scranton Miners of the class A Eastern League, his home run total reached 27 and his batting average was a solid .288. This earned him a September call-up to the St. Louis Browns where he made his debut in Cleveland and singled in his first at bat, but finished 2 for 11 overall for a .182 average. As things go this would be Jake's one and only shot at the major leagues.
Crawford would spend the next five seasons (1953-1957) in the high minors, appearing in five different leagues, with five different teams but could not quite match his early career performances and wound up his pro baseball career with the Fort Worth Cats of the AA Texas League in 1957.
Jake spent a total of eight years in pro baseball, playing 1,000 games in the minors, with 3,431 at bats, 912 base hits, including 136 home runs, for a .265 batting average.
After baseball he would spend 23 years as a patrolman for the Fort Worth, TX police department. Crawford died at his home on October 21, 2008 in Fort Worth, TX. He was 80 years old.
[edit] Sources
Baseball-Reference.com
Baseball Players of the 1950s
SABR MILB Database:page
