Earl Rapp

Earl Wellington Rapp
(Rappy)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 185 lb.
• High School Old Swede High School
• Debut April 28, 1949
• Final Game September 23, 1952
• Born May 20, 1921 in Corunna, MI USA
• Died February 13, 1992 in Swedesboro, NJ USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Earl Rapp, whose father was a plant inspector, went to high school in Swedesboro, New Jersey, where he lettered in baseball, basketball, football and track.

He was signed as a free agent by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1940. Before the 1941 season, he was sent to the Boston Red Sox. In June of that year, the Red Sox sent him to the Detroit Tigers. He then spent many years in the minor leagues, missing 1943 to 1945 due to military service during World War II([1]).

In 1948, Rapp hit .298 with 17 home runs and 96 RBI for the Seattle Rainiers. Prior to getting the call up to the majors in 1949, he hit .340 with 15 home runs and 86 RBI for the Oakland Oaks.

On April 28, 1949, he made his major league debut. He had one at-bat, drawing a walk. On May 7th, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox for Don Kolloway. With the White Sox, he hit .259 in 19 games. He was sent to the Oakland Oaks on June 11th of that season to complete an earlier trade made on June 2nd. The deal went like this: the White Sox sent a player to be named later (Rapp), Jerry Scala and cash for a player to be named later and Catfish Metkovich. The White Sox sent Scala to complete the trade, and the Oaks sent Rapp.

In 1950, he hit .347 with 24 home runs and 145 RBI for Oakland.

On July 1, 1951, Rapp was sent by the Oaks to the New York Giants for Spider Jorgensen and Red Hardy. He played in 13 games for the Giants, collecting 1 hit in 11 at-bats for a .091 batting average. He was selected off waivers by the St. Louis Browns on September 1st of that year, and in 98 at-bats with them he hit .327 with 2 home runs and 15 RBI. Overall, he hit .303 in 109 at-bats that season. With the Oaks that year, he hit .322 with 10 homers and 74 RBI.

Despite having a solid run with the Browns in 1951, Brown did not perform well for them in 1952. In fact, he hit only .143 in 49 at-bats, prompting them to trade him to the Washington Senators for Fred Marsh on June 10th. He wrapped up his career with the Senators, hitting .284 in 67 at-bats with them. Overall, he hit .224 with 13 RBI in 116 at-bats that season. He played his final game on September 23rd.

In 1953, Rapp hit .311 with 24 home runs and 108 RBI for the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League. In 1954, he hit .337 with 24 homers and 111 RBI. In 1955, he hit .302 with 30 home runs and 133 RBI for them. In 1956, he hit .300 with 9 home runs and 65 RBI. For the Padres and Portland Beavers in 1957, he hit .278 with three home runs and 19 RBI.

He played for 12 different minor league clubs from 1940 to 1959, and in 12 years at Triple-A he hit .313.

Rapp was a scout for four teams from 1960 to 1989, including the Houston Astros (1962-1978), Kansas City Royals (1979-1982), and Montreal Expos (1983-1989), and was responsible for signing Mark Gubicza. Later he was a consultant for the Toronto Blue Jays at the time of his death. In 2004 he was elected to the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame.

Following his death, he was interred at St. Joseph Cemetery in Swedesboro.

Related Sites

• Earl Rapp at the SABR Bio Project