Fabian Kowalik

Fabian Lorenz Kowalik

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 185 lb.
• Debut September 4, 1932
• Final Game September 27, 1936
• Born April 22, 1908 in Falls City, TX USA
• Died August 14, 1954 in Karnes City, TX USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Fabian Kowalik pitched three seasons in the majors. Much of his minor league career was spent with San Antonio and Buffalo.

Kowalik was born in Falls City, TX, which the book San Antonio at Bat calls "a small Polish-American town forty miles southeast of San Antonio". The book has a photo of him. After a number of years in the minors he came up for a couple games with the 1932 Chicago White Sox.

He had a good season in the minors in 1933 with San Antonio, going 21-13, but didn't come back to the majors until 1935. He pitched 20 major league games in 1935 and 29 more in 1936. The Cubs, for whom he pitched, went to the 1935 World Series and Kowalik pitched 4.1 innings in Game 2, giving up one earned run. The book The Cubs (by Stout and Johnson) states that Kowalik threw a pitch to opposing batter Hank Greenberg who in turning was struck on the wrist, and the wrist was broken. The book Red: A Biography of Red Smith mentions Smith writing about Kowalik's time with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1936.

In 1950, he managed a minor league team in the Rio Grande Valley League, the Robstown Rebels. The team had a 13-18 record when it was disbanded on May 13.

After his playing career he was a wholesale beer distributor. He died at age 46 of cirrhosis of the liver. Through 2008, he and Fabian Gaffke are the only major leaguers with the name Fabian.