Allen McElreath

Marion Allen McElreath
(Al)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 8", Weight 160 lb.

• Born August 4, 1912 in Pryor, OK USA
• Died December 12, 1996 in Oklahoma City, OK USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Outfielder Allen McElreath played in the minor leagues from 1931 to 1947, reaching the Pacific Coast League when minor league rosters were depleted during World War II, but usually at lower levels. He first played with the Joplin Miners of the Western Association in 1931, and spent a number of seasons in the West Dixie League and the Cotton States League in the 1930s. He was with the Chattanooga Lookouts of the Southern Association in both 1939 and 1940, and alternated between that league, the South Atlantic League and the Southeastern League from 1939 to 1943, always staying in the same geographic area. However, the war changed his habits, as he moved to the West Coast, suiting up with the Sacramento Solons for two seasons. When the regular players returned in 1946, he moved back to his regular hunting grounds, with the Muskogee Reds of the Western Association, the league where he had started his career fifteen years earlier.

His career came to an ignominious end on June 4, 1947, when George Trautman, president of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, declared him to be permanently ineligible for attempting to induce a teammate to throw a game. The teammate refused to play along and denounced him. McElreath claimed the charges were a lie, but he was seen by teammates letting a routine fly ball drop and signalling for a hit-and-run and not swinging, leading to a teammate being caught stealing, not the types of mistakes a veteran ballplayer like him would normally make. He never returned to the professional ranks and died in 1996.

While statistics for his career are not complete, he was a solid hitter for average, batting over .300 several times, including .306 for the Greenville Bucks in 1936, .351 for the Spartanburg Spartans in 1939, .326 for the Selma Cloverleafs in 1940. His final two seasons in Muskogee, he batted .354 and .367, so he was still a productive player when his career ended abruptly. His two seasons in the PCL were good ones - albeit with the caveat that the talent in the league was much diluted: he hit .289 in 114 games in 1944, and .291 with 75 runs scored in 128 games in 1945. His OBP was excellent both years as well. He had very little power, however, although he would hit his fair share of triples.