Eddie Lopat

Edmund Walter Lopat (originally Lopatynski) (June 21, 1918 – June 15, 1992) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher, coach, manager, front office executive, and scout. He was sometimes known as "the Junk Man", but better known as "Steady Eddie", a nickname later given to Eddie Murray. He was born in New York City.

Lopat was born Edmund Walter Lopatynski on June 21, 1918, in New York City. He graduated from Dewitt Clinton High School in the Bronx in 1935. The school did not have a baseball team, and he played first base for the Music Hall team in the Theatrical League. In 1936, he tried out for the New York Giants without success, but the Brooklyn Dodgers sent him to their minor league affiliate in the Pennsylvania State Association for $50/month.

A 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m), 185 lb (84 kg) left-hander, Lopat was originally signed to play professional baseball by the Brooklyn Dodgers. He would play a total of seven years of minor league baseball before playing in the major leagues.

He began his professional baseball playing career in 1937, as a first baseman for the Greensburg Green Sox in the Class D Pennsylvania State Association. The next season, he was converted to a pitcher while playing for the Jeanerette Blues of the Evangeline League in Louisiana, where he had a 12–7 record.

In 1939, he led the East Texas League with a 2.11 earned run average (ERA), to go along with a 16–9 record, pitching for the Chicago White Sox affiliated Longview Cannibals. In 1940, he played for the Shreveport Sports of the Class-A1 Texas League, but with an ERA of 5.94 in 15 games. He also played that year for the Class C Marshall Tigers of the East Texas League, going 7–9, with a 3.45 ERA. In 1941, he was sent down to the Class D Salina Millers in the Western League, where he was 11–15, with a 3.84 ERA. However, in pitching for the Oklahoma City Indians of the Texas League that same year, he was 3–4, with a 1.76 ERA.

Again at Oklahoma City in 1942, Lopat was 6–7, with a 3.32 ERA. He also played part of the 1942 season, and all of his final (1943) minor league season in Class-A1 ball, with the Little Rock Travelers of the Southern Association. In 1942, he was 6–4, with a 2.44 ERA with the Travelers; and overall 12–11 with a 3.08 ERA for the year. Lopat’s 1943 won—loss record improved considerably over the previous few years, with a 19–10 record, and he had a 3.05 ERA. In his most unusual baseball experience, Lopat pitched the opening game of a double header for the Travelers, and then was called on to serve as the first base umpire in the second game when the assigned umpire was overcome by the heat.

After seven minor league seasons, he was called up to the Chicago White Sox in 1944. Lopat made his major league pitching debut on April 30, 1944. During his four years with the White Sox (1944-47), the team never had a winning season. Despite the team's lack of success, Lopat's four year record was 50–49, with a 3.10 ERA. His best year with the White Sox came in 1947, when Lopat was 16–13 (on a team that won only 70 games) with a 2.81 ERA, while giving up only 73 bases on balls in 252.2 innings pitched. He was 31st in Most Valuable Player (MVP) voting that year.

The near 30-year old Lopat was traded to the New York Yankees on February 24, 1948, for Aaron Robinson, Bill Wight, and Fred Bradley. From 1948 to 1953 he was the third of the "Big Three" of the Yankees' pitching staff, together with Allie Reynolds and Vic Raschi; and from 1949-53, the Yankees won five consecutive World Series. During those five championship years, Lopat's regular season won–loss records were 15–10, 18–8, 21–9, 10–5 and 16–4, respectively. His annual ERAs were 3.26, 3.47, 2.91, 2.53 and 2.42, respectively.