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Bob Lemon
Robert Granville Lemon (September 22, 1920 – January 11, 2000) was an American right-handed pitcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lemon grew up in Long Beach, California where he played high school baseball and was the state player of the year in 1938. At the age of 17, he began a professional baseball career playing in the Cleveland Indians organization, with whom he played for his entire professional career. Lemon was called up to Cleveland's major league team as a utility player in 1941. He then joined the United States Navy during World War II returning to the Indians in 1946. That season was the first that Lemon was a pitcher.
The Indians played in the 1948 World Series and were helped by Lemon's two pitching wins as they won the club's first championship since 1920. In the early 1950s, Cleveland had a starting pitching rotation which included Lemon, Bob Feller, Mike Garcia and Early Wynn. During the 1954 season, Lemon had a career-best 23–7 win–loss record and the Indians set a 154-game season AL-record win mark when they won 111 games before they won the American League (AL) pennant. He was an All-Star for seven consecutive seasons and recorded seven seasons of 20 or more pitching wins in a nine-year period from 1948 to 1956.
Lemon was a manager with the Kansas City Royals, Chicago White Sox, and New York Yankees. He was named Manager of the Year with the White Sox and Yankees. In 1978, he was fired as manager of the White Sox. He was named Yankees manager one month later and he led the team to a 1978 World Series title and a 1981 American League Championship. Lemon became the first AL manager to win a World Series after assuming the managerial role in the middle of a season.
Bob Lemon was born in San Bernardino, California. Later, Lemon's father, Earl Lemon, moved his ice business and the family to Long Beach, California, where Lemon attended Wilson Classical High School and played shortstop on the school's baseball team. He was recognized as the state baseball player of the year by the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section in 1938.
Later in the same year, at the age of 17, Lemon began his professional baseball career in the farm system of the Cleveland Indians as a member of the Oswego Netherlands of the Canadian–American League and later that year, the Middle Atlantic League's Springfield Indians. In 75 games with the Netherlands he recorded a .312 batting average. The following season he played 80 games with Springfield, and hit .293, and then joined the New Orleans Pelicans of the Southern Association, where Lemon hit .309. He spent the next two seasons at the Class A level with the Eastern League's Wilkes-Barre Barons as he hit .255 in 1940 and .301 in 1941. In his final stint in the minors, Lemon hit .268 with 21 home runs for the 1942 Baltimore Orioles of the International League.
Lemon's major league debut came as a third baseman as a late season call-up on September 9, 1941. He appeared in five games and collected one hit in five plate appearances. He was joined by catcher and fellow rookie Jim Hegan. He repeated the same number of games in the 1942 season and failed to record a hit. Lemon served in the United States Navy during World War II and missed the next three seasons. Before leaving for tour duty in 1943, Lemon married Jane McGee.
Lemon was the Indians' center fielder for Opening Day in 1946. On April 30, Indians pitcher Bob Feller no-hit the New York Yankees; Feller later wrote that Lemon's "daring catch" and "throwing to and doubling a man off second base" were key in "saving my" no-hitter. By season's end, however, Lemon had entered more games as a pitcher than a utility player. Before that season, Lemon had pitched only one inning while with Oswego and another while with Wilkes-Barre. Birdie Tebbetts of the Detroit Tigers and Johnny Pesky of the Boston Red Sox had played against Lemon in Navy baseball games, and they spoke to Indians player-manager Lou Boudreau about switching Lemon from the outfield to the pitching mound.
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Bob Lemon
Robert Granville Lemon (September 22, 1920 – January 11, 2000) was an American right-handed pitcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976.
Lemon grew up in Long Beach, California where he played high school baseball and was the state player of the year in 1938. At the age of 17, he began a professional baseball career playing in the Cleveland Indians organization, with whom he played for his entire professional career. Lemon was called up to Cleveland's major league team as a utility player in 1941. He then joined the United States Navy during World War II returning to the Indians in 1946. That season was the first that Lemon was a pitcher.
The Indians played in the 1948 World Series and were helped by Lemon's two pitching wins as they won the club's first championship since 1920. In the early 1950s, Cleveland had a starting pitching rotation which included Lemon, Bob Feller, Mike Garcia and Early Wynn. During the 1954 season, Lemon had a career-best 23–7 win–loss record and the Indians set a 154-game season AL-record win mark when they won 111 games before they won the American League (AL) pennant. He was an All-Star for seven consecutive seasons and recorded seven seasons of 20 or more pitching wins in a nine-year period from 1948 to 1956.
Lemon was a manager with the Kansas City Royals, Chicago White Sox, and New York Yankees. He was named Manager of the Year with the White Sox and Yankees. In 1978, he was fired as manager of the White Sox. He was named Yankees manager one month later and he led the team to a 1978 World Series title and a 1981 American League Championship. Lemon became the first AL manager to win a World Series after assuming the managerial role in the middle of a season.
Bob Lemon was born in San Bernardino, California. Later, Lemon's father, Earl Lemon, moved his ice business and the family to Long Beach, California, where Lemon attended Wilson Classical High School and played shortstop on the school's baseball team. He was recognized as the state baseball player of the year by the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section in 1938.
Later in the same year, at the age of 17, Lemon began his professional baseball career in the farm system of the Cleveland Indians as a member of the Oswego Netherlands of the Canadian–American League and later that year, the Middle Atlantic League's Springfield Indians. In 75 games with the Netherlands he recorded a .312 batting average. The following season he played 80 games with Springfield, and hit .293, and then joined the New Orleans Pelicans of the Southern Association, where Lemon hit .309. He spent the next two seasons at the Class A level with the Eastern League's Wilkes-Barre Barons as he hit .255 in 1940 and .301 in 1941. In his final stint in the minors, Lemon hit .268 with 21 home runs for the 1942 Baltimore Orioles of the International League.
Lemon's major league debut came as a third baseman as a late season call-up on September 9, 1941. He appeared in five games and collected one hit in five plate appearances. He was joined by catcher and fellow rookie Jim Hegan. He repeated the same number of games in the 1942 season and failed to record a hit. Lemon served in the United States Navy during World War II and missed the next three seasons. Before leaving for tour duty in 1943, Lemon married Jane McGee.
Lemon was the Indians' center fielder for Opening Day in 1946. On April 30, Indians pitcher Bob Feller no-hit the New York Yankees; Feller later wrote that Lemon's "daring catch" and "throwing to and doubling a man off second base" were key in "saving my" no-hitter. By season's end, however, Lemon had entered more games as a pitcher than a utility player. Before that season, Lemon had pitched only one inning while with Oswego and another while with Wilkes-Barre. Birdie Tebbetts of the Detroit Tigers and Johnny Pesky of the Boston Red Sox had played against Lemon in Navy baseball games, and they spoke to Indians player-manager Lou Boudreau about switching Lemon from the outfield to the pitching mound.