| Danny Napoleon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Left fielder | |
| Born:(1942-01-11)January 11, 1942 Claysburg, Pennsylvania | |
| Died: April 26, 2003(2003-04-26) (aged 61) Trenton, New Jersey | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 14, 1965, for the New York Mets | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 2, 1966, for the New York Mets | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .162 |
| Home runs | 0 |
| Runs batted in | 7 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Daniel Napoleon (January 11, 1942 – April 26, 2003) was aMajor League Baseballleft fielder from 1965 to 1966 with theNew York Mets. Napoleon batted and threw right-handed.
Napoleon playedbaseball,football,basketball and track atMorrisville High School in Morrisville, PA. Shortly after graduation, his father died. While playing atRider University, he caught the eye of the Mets, and signed as an amateurfree agent with them prior to the1964 season.[1]
Hebatted .351 with 36home runs and 134runs batted in his first year ofprofessional baseball to carry theAuburn Mets to a 79–48 record and first place in theNew York–Penn League. In order to protect him from being selected in the minor league draft, the Mets added him to their 40-man roster.[2]
Napoleon made his major league debut on April 14,1965 in the eleventh inning of anextra innings affair with theHouston Astros. Hesingled offHal Woodeshick in his first major leagueat bat.[3] Ten days later, Napoleon hit a pinch hitbases loadedtriple off theSan Francisco Giants'Bob Shaw for his first three major league RBIs.[4]
Despite being predominantly anoutfielder, Napoleon made his first six appearances on the field atthird base. He saw most of his action as apinch hitter orpinch runner, and was batting .176 with six RBIs when he was demoted to triple A in early August to receive more playing time. In 30 games with theBuffalo Bisons, Napoleon batted .274 with one home run and nine RBIs. He rejoined the Mets in September, and went 1-for-23.
He spent the1966 season with theJacksonville Suns. He was second on the team with 15 home runs and third with 53 RBIs. He was called up to the Mets again that September, and batted .212 in 12 games.
He was traded along withEd Bressoud and cash from theMets to theSt. Louis Cardinals forJerry Buchek,Art Mahaffey andTony Martínez on April 1, 1967.[5] Napoleon spent the 1967 with theTulsa Oilers, the St. LouisTriple-A affiliate.
He batted .314 in1969 for theTexas League'sArkansas Travelers, theDouble-A farm team for the Cardinals. He played and coached with Arkansas through 1971, but he never returned to the majors.
In 1977, Napoleon played professional softball with theNew Jersey Statesmen of theAmerican Professional Slo-Pitch League (APSPL), playing alongside fellowMajor League Baseball alumnusCurt Blefary.[6][7]
Napoleon also worked for the New Jersey State Department of Treasury and was an original employee at the Candlelight Lounge in Trenton. He was employed by General Motors at the time of his death. Napoleon died on April 26, 2003, survived by his wife and three children.[8]