Carl Sawatski Marquee

b. November 4, 1927 · Chicago Cubs 1948, 1950, 1953, Chicago White Sox 1954, Milwaukee Braves 1957–1958, Philadelphia Phillies 1958–1959, St. Louis Cardinals 1960–1963

Carl Sawatski was a left-handed hitting catcher in an era that valued them, and he made a career out of it despite never being a regular for long — 633 games spread across eleven seasons and five clubs, with 58 home runs and a great deal of pinch hitting.

St. Louis got the best of it, keeping him for four seasons from 1960 as a reserve behind the plate and a bat off the bench. His most productive year was 1957 with the Milwaukee Braves, whose championship team he was part of.

Born in Shickshinny, Pennsylvania in 1927, Sawatski became president of the Texas League after retiring and held the job for more than twenty years. Sawatski was sixty-four at his death in November 1991.

Batting, season by season

Year	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	AVG
1948	CHC	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
1950	CHC	38	103	4	18	1	0	1	7	11	19	0	.175
1953	CHC	43	59	5	13	3	0	1	5	7	7	0	.220
1954	CHW	43	109	6	20	3	3	1	12	15	20	0	.183
1957	MLN	58	105	13	25	4	0	6	17	10	15	0	.238
1958	MLN/PHI	70	193	13	43	4	1	5	13	18	47	0	.223
1959	PHI	74	198	15	58	10	0	9	43	32	36	0	.293
1960	STL	78	179	16	41	4	0	6	27	22	24	0	.229
1961	STL	86	174	23	52	8	0	10	33	25	17	0	.299
1962	STL	85	222	26	56	9	1	13	42	36	38	0	.252
1963	STL	56	105	12	25	0	0	6	14	15	28	2	.238
Career	—	633	1449	133	351	46	5	58	213	191	251	2	.242

On this day & linked events

1927

Born November 4, 1927

Shickshinny, PA, USA

1991

Died November 24, 1991

1948

Major-league debut: Carl Sawatski

Carl Sawatski made a major-league debut on September 29, 1948.

1963

Final major-league game: Carl Sawatski

Carl Sawatski played a final major-league game on September 29, 1963.

Image: Unknown author Unknown, public domain