Marv Rickert
From BR Bullpen
Marvin August Rickert (Twitch)
- Bats Left, Throws Right
- Height 6' 2", Weight 195 lb.
- Debut September 10, 1942
- Final Game September 26, 1950
- Born January 8, 1921 in Longbranch, WA USA
- Died June 3, 1978 in Oakville, WA USA
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[edit] Biographical Information
Outfielder Marv Rickert was puchased by the Chicago Cubs from the Tacoma Tigers of the Western International League in August of 1941 after spending four years as an unaffiliated player in the minors. In 1942, while with the Tulsa Oilers of the Texas League he hit .310 with nine homers and also had a short time with the parent Chicago Cubs, appearing in eight games and hitting .269. Rickert would enter the United States Military Services on September 28, 1942, spending the next three years serving with the Coast Guard during World War II.
Out in time for spring training in 1946 Marv made the Cubs roster and the left-handed hitter appeared in 111 games hitting a solid .263. On June 23, 1946, he and Eddie Waitkus where the first players in National League history to hit back-to-back inside the park home runs. Marv would be with the Cubs in 1947 but his hitting fell to .146 in 154 plate appearances and he was sold to the Reds on October 8, 1947.
Marv started the 1948 season with Cincinnati but spent most of the year with the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association where he hit 27 home runs and batted in 127 while making the All-Star team. He was a late season acquisition of the Boston Braves for outfielder Jeff Heath who was sidelined with a broken ankle. He played in just three regular season games, but was named to the World Series roster with the special permission of Commissioner Happy Chandler. Marv played in five of the World Series games against the Cleveland Indians, hitting .211 (4-19) , one of his hits, a seventh inning home run off Steve Gromek in game five, tied the score at 1-1, in a game Cleveland won 2-1. Cleveland would go on to win the World Series four games to two.
"Twitch" as Marv was sometimes called, hit a career high .292 playing in an even 100 games for the Braves in 1949. He finished his six year tour of the major leagues with a lifetime .247 average after also playing with the Pirates and the White Sox in 1950. Marv, who had also spent eight seasons in the minor leagues, finished out his pro baseball career with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Baltimore Orioles of the International League in 1952, at he age of 31, with a career .299 batting average along with 108 home runs.
After baseball Rickert worked as a charter boat operator and was employed by the Pierce County Parks and Recreation Department. He died on June 3, 1978, at age 57 in Oakville, Washington.
[edit] Notable Achievements
Rickert holds the record for the fewest career regular-season games for a team, before hitting a postseason home run for them. In 1948, he joined the Braves and played just three regular season games for them: he then hit a home run in the 1948 World Series. (In second place is Tom Wilson, with nine games for the 2004 Dodgers.)
[edit] Sources
Baseball Players of the 1950s
BR Minors Page
