| Aaron Robinson | |
|---|---|
 Robinson's 1949Bowman Gum baseball card | |
| Catcher | |
| Born:(1915-06-23)June 23, 1915 Lancaster, South Carolina, U.S. | |
| Died: March 9, 1966(1966-03-09) (aged 50) Lancaster, South Carolina, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 6, 1943, for the New York Yankees | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 28, 1951, for the Boston Red Sox | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .260 |
| Home runs | 61 |
| Runs batted in | 272 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Aaron Andrew Robinson (June 23, 1915 – March 9, 1966) was an Americanprofessionalbaseball player. He played inMajor League Baseball as acatcher from1943 to1951 for theNew York Yankees,Chicago White Sox,Detroit Tigers andBoston Red Sox.[1] Robinson's tenure with the Yankees spanned the gap between the careers of YankeeHall of Fame catchersBill Dickey (1928–1946) andYogi Berra (1946–1963).[2][3]
Born inLancaster, South Carolina, Robinson threw right-handed, batted left-handed and was listed as 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and 205 pounds (93 kg). His professional playing career began in 1937 inminor league baseball.
Robinson made his major league debut for the New York Yankees on May 6,1943, playing in only one game before leaving to serve in theUnited States Coast Guard for the remainder ofWorld War II.[4] His service in the Coast Guard began on June 21, 1943, and he played baseball while serving.[5][6] When the war ended in1945, Robinson returned to the Yankees in July, appearing in 50 games.[1] He took over as the Yankees' starting catcher in1946 with promising results, posting a .297batting average along with 16home runs and 64runs batted in.[1] He also finished third amongAmerican League catchers with 25 baserunnerscaught stealing, and fourth inassists with 50.[7] Robinson finished 16th in the American LeagueMost Valuable Player Award voting.[8]
Robinson began the1947 season as the Yankees' starting catcher, and was named as a reserve player for the American League in the1947 All-Star Game.[9] However, as the season progressed,Yogi Berra began to take over as the starting catcher.[3] Robinson ended the year with a .270 batting average in 82 games, with 5 home runs and 36 runs batted in, as the Yankees went on to win the American Leaguepennant.[1] In the1947 World Series, Robinson appeared in three games and started in Games 5 and 7, getting two hits in 10 at-bats, as the Yankees defeated theBrooklyn Dodgers in a seven-game series.[10][11][12]
Having a surplus of catchers in1948 with Berra,Sherm Lollar andGus Niarhos, the Yankees decided to trade Robinson, along withFred Bradley andBill Wight, to theChicago White Sox forEddie Lopat in February of that year.[13] He played in 98 games for the White Sox, but his offensive statistics continued to decline, as he hit for a .252 batting average.[1] After only one season with the White Sox, Robinson was traded to the Detroit Tigers forBilly Pierce in November 1948.[13]
Robinson became the Tigers' starting catcher in1949 and1950, providing solid defense; however, hisbatting continued to decline.[1] During apennant race late in the1950 season, Robinson was involved in a critical play during a game against theCleveland Indians on September 24.[14] The Tigers had been in first place for most of the season and, had just fallen to second place behind the Yankees with one week left in the season.[15] Heavy smoke from a Canadian forest fire forced the Indians to turn on the lights inCleveland Stadium for the Sunday afternoon game.[16] With the score tied 1–1,Bob Lemon opened the bottom of the tenthinning with atriple, and twointentional walks followed. With the bases loaded and oneout,Luke Eastergrounded out to Tigers'first basemanDon Kolloway, who then tagged first base. Because of the haze, Robinson did not see Kolloway remove the force after fielding the ball. Thinking he only had to step onhome plate toforce out Lemon, he failed to apply atag, thus allowing Lemon to score the winningrun.[17] The Tigers fell two and a half games behind the Yankees in the standings with one week left in the season, and were unable to recover before the season ended.[15]
By the time Robinson was acquired by the Boston Red Sox in1951, he was hitting for just a .207 batting average.[18] Robinson retired at the end of the1951 season.[1] In 610 games played in the big leagues, Robinson collected 478hits, including 74doubles, 11triples and 61home runs. Hehit .260 lifetime.
Over an eight-year career, Robinson played in 610games, accumulating 478hits in 1,839at bats for a .260 career batting average, along with 61 home runs and 272runs batted in.[1] Robinson was a fine defensive catcher, ending his career with a .990fielding percentage.[1] As of 2020[update], according toBaseball-Reference, Robinson has the most careerwins above replacement of any position player never to have stolen a base.[19]
In1953 only, the 'Aaron Robinson, MacGregor G176'catcher's mitt was produced.[4] The1948 trade between the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago White Sox involving Robinson and Pierce has been cited as one of the more lopsided trades in baseball history, as Robinson had retired from baseball by 1951, whereas Pierce had a lengthy, productive career with the White Sox.[20][21]
After retiring as a player, Robinson became amanager in theminor leagues, managing theFayetteville Highlanders to the1954Carolina League championship.[22][23] He later managed theWinston-Salem Twins and won another title with theShelby Colonels, winning the1961Western Carolina League championship despite having a losing record.[22] Five years later, Robinson died at age 50, a victim oftesticular cancer, on March 9, 1966, in Lancaster, South Carolina.[24]
· Baseball Almanac