Syl Simon

From BR Bullpen

Sylvester Adam Simon (Sammy)

Bats Right, Throws Right
Weight 170 lb.

Debut October 1, 1923
Final Game September 27, 1924
Born December 14, 1897 in Evansville, IN USA
Died February 28, 1973 in Chandler, IN USA

[edit] Biographical Information

Syl Simon was a third baseman for twelve seasons, 1920-1932, two in the Major Leagues (1923-1924) and eleven in the minors (1920;1922-1923;1925-1932), losing 1921 to inactivity. Simon was born on Tuesday, 14 December 1897, in Evansville, IN. He was 25 years old when he broke into the big leagues on 1 October 1923, with the St. Louis Browns.

The son-in-law of Punch Knoll, he played for the Browns (1923-1924). He continued to play professional baseball after losing part of his left palm and four of his fingers. He was considered an above average prospect and spent parts of the 1923 and 1924 seasons as a third baseman and shortstop with the St. Louis Browns. But in the fall of 1926, while working in a furniture factory in Evansville, he caught his left hand in a saw. The only finger that remained was his pinkie.

Everyone wrote off Simon's career. Everyone except Syl himself. While he recovered from the accident, notes of sympathy came in. One was from Otto Borchert, owner of the Milwaukee club which held Simon's contract. Borchert's letter included a check for $100 and Simon's release.

But by June 1927, Simon said he was ready to play. He had had a special glove made. It was a strange looking reinforced contraption that managed to come within the rules. His bat had a steel attachment on the handle and it allowed him to slip his injured hand through it for a better grip. Simon played the rest of the 1927 season with Quincy. He later was with Fort Wayne, Nashville, Bloomington and Quincy again before retiring in 1932. He piloted Quincy in his final year. The bat and the glove are now in the Hall of Fame at Cooperstown NY.

He worked for Wesselman's in Evanston, IL until 1971 when he retired to his orchard near Chandler, IN He died at age 75 when he took his own life by hanging himself in his barn and is buried at Locust Hill Cemetery in Evansville.

Principal sources are Syl Simon's Obit, SABR's Minor League Baseball Stars, Volume III and The Baseball Necrology.