American baseball player (1948?2022)
Baseball player
John Ellis
|
---|
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/John_Ellis_1970.jpg/220px-John_Ellis_1970.jpg) Ellis in 1970
|
First baseman
/
Catcher
|
Born:
(
1948-08-21
)
August 21, 1948
New London, Connecticut
, U.S.
|
Died:
April 5, 2022
(2022-04-05)
(aged 73)
New Haven, Connecticut
, U.S.
|
Batted:
Right
Threw:
Right
|
|
May 17, 1969, for the New York Yankees
|
|
October 3, 1981, for the Texas Rangers
|
|
Batting average
| .262
|
---|
Home runs
| 69
|
---|
Runs batted in
| 391
|
---|
|
---|
|
|
John Charles Ellis
(August 21, 1948 ? April 5, 2022) was an American professional
baseball
player who played as a
first baseman
and
catcher
in
Major League Baseball
from 1969 to 1981. He played for the
New York Yankees
,
Cleveland Indians
, and
Texas Rangers
.
Career
[
edit
]
Ellis was a standout football and baseball player at
New London High School
in
New London, Connecticut
, earning the nicknames "New London Strong Boy" and the "Moose".
[1]
[2]
He signed with the
New York Yankees
as an
undrafted
free agent
in 1966.
[3]
After playing in the
minor leagues
, he made his major league debut in 1969 as an injury replacement for
catcher
Jake Gibbs
.
[1]
Ellis hit an
inside-the-park home run
in his major league debut. With
Thurman Munson
becoming the Yankees new starting catcher in 1970, the Yankees moved Ellis to
first base
. He
batted
.248 with seven
home runs
and 29
runs batted in
(RBIs) in 78 games during the 1970 season.
[4]
For the 1972 season, Ellis was Munson's backup catcher.
[5]
Ellis was traded along with
Charlie Spikes
,
Rusty Torres
, and
Jerry Kenney
from the
Yankees
to the
Cleveland Indians
for
Graig Nettles
and
Jerry Moses
at the
Winter Meetings
on November 27, 1972.
[6]
He became the first
designated hitter
in Cleveland Indians history in 1973.
[7]
Ellis had his best season in 1974, when he hit .285 with 10 home runs and 64 RBIs in 128 games.
[1]
That year, Ellis caught
Dick Bosman
's
no-hitter
on July 19.
[8]
Ellis was dealt from the
Indians
to the
Texas Rangers
for
Ron Pruitt
and
Stan Thomas
at the
Winter Meetings
on December 9, 1975.
[9]
He played for the Rangers through the 1981 season, when he batted .138 in 28 games. The Rangers released Ellis before the start of the 1982 season.
[10]
He retired from baseball with a .262 batting average, 69 home runs, and 391 RBIs.
[1]
When he was released, Ellis took a position as a
scout
for the Rangers.
[11]
Post-playing career
[
edit
]
Ellis invested in
real estate
as an offseason hobby. In 1977, he established his own real estate firm.
[12]
Ellis was diagnosed with
Hodgkin lymphoma
when he was 38 years old. He founded the Connecticut Sports Foundation Against Cancer with his wife Jane,
[4]
[3]
which helps cancer patients financially and funds
cancer research
.
[13]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Ellis had two children, John and Erika.
[1]
His son, John J. Ellis, was a baseball standout and played at the
University of Maine
and in the Texas Rangers system for three seasons.
[14]
Ellis died on April 5, 2022, at the
Yale New Haven Health System
's Smilow Cancer Hospital, after a recurrence of his cancer.
[1]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Hallenbeck, Brian (April 7, 2022).
"John Ellis, New London native and former major league baseball player, dies"
.
The Day
. Retrieved
April 7,
2022
.
- ^
Amore, Dom; Courant, Hartford (April 7, 2022).
"John Ellis, famed slugger from New London who raised millions to help families fighting cancer, dead at 73"
.
Yahoo! Sports
. Retrieved
April 8,
2022
.
- ^
a
b
Sisson, William (August 2, 2016).
"Profile of John Ellis, fisherman and former professional baseball player ? Anglers Journal ? A Fishing Life"
. Anglers Journal
. Retrieved
April 8,
2022
.
- ^
a
b
Krofssik, Sean (October 17, 2021).
"SPORTS BOOKS: The life and times of Connecticut's Johnny Ellis"
.
Record-Journal
. Retrieved
April 7,
2022
.
- ^
Koppett, Leonard (March 30, 1972).
"YANKS WILL CARRY ONLY 2 CATCHERS ? The New York Times"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 8,
2022
.
- ^
Durso, Joseph (November 28, 1972).
"Durso, Joseph. "Mets Send Agee to the Astros for Pair; Yanks Trade Four to Get Graig Nettles,"
The New York Times
, Tuesday, November 28, 1972. Retrieved October 24, 2020"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 7,
2022
.
- ^
Ruddy, John (August 15, 2021).
"Book tells the story of New London's John Ellis, whose baseball career was a prelude to his calling"
.
The Day
. Retrieved
April 7,
2022
.
- ^
Keegan, Tom (July 19, 1994).
"20 years later, no-hitter remains a thrill for Bosman"
.
Baltimore Sun
. Retrieved
April 7,
2022
.
- ^
Durso, Joseph. "Veeck Has Funds to Pay White Sox Price Today,"
The New York Times
, Wednesday, December 10, 1975.
Retrieved October 16, 2022.
- ^
"The Texas Rangers Tuesday sought permission to give John... ? UPI Archives"
. Upi.com. March 30, 1982
. Retrieved
April 7,
2022
.
- ^
"SPORTS PEOPLE; Rudy Law to White Sox ? The New York Times"
.
The New York Times
. March 31, 1982
. Retrieved
April 8,
2022
.
- ^
"The Day ? Google News Archive Search"
.
news.google.com
.
- ^
"WFAN Radiothon Is Friday; Items Being Auctioned To Benefit Connecticut Cancer Patients ? CBS New York"
. Cbsnews.com. February 8, 2016
. Retrieved
April 8,
2022
.
- ^
"John Ellis"
.
The Baseball Cube
. Archived from
the original
on May 9, 2007
. Retrieved
July 24,
2008
.
External links
[
edit
]