Jake Henson

John Calvin Henson

• Bats Right, Throws Right

• Born December 17, 1922 in Pauls Valley, OK USA
• Died August 17, 2006

The son of John and Hersey Henson, Jake Henson served in the military towards the end of and shortly after WWII and was in the Occupation Forces in Japan. He began his professional baseball career with the 1947 Jacksonville Jax, going 21-12 with a 3.18 ERA. He tied Bob F. Ross for the Lone Star League lead in wins and was in the top five in ERA. In '48, Henson was 6-14 with a 5.63 ERA in the first of several years with the Oklahoma City Indians. The next year, Jake went 7-10 with a 4.90 ERA for the Wilkes-Barre Indians. On his birthday that year, he wed Roby Lee Wilmot. In 1950, Henson returned to Oklahoma City and had a 8-6, 4.73 season. He hit .325/~.357/.400 as the club's top contact hitter (in 40 AB). The next year, Jake was 5-7, 5.35 for Oklahoma City, then he improved in '52 to 4-4, 3.94 and hitting .255. In 1953, the 30-year-old was 1-0, 1.29 for Oklahoma City and 14-7, 4.16 for the Pampa Oilers. He completed his baseball career with the '54 Pauls Valley Raiders, the final season of professional baseball in his hometown, going 0-3. Overall, his career record was 66-63, having spent most of his time at AA.

He had 3 children, Calvin Keith, Candace, and Chris. Roby preceded him in death by nearly 4 years. He was survived by children Calvin, daughter-in-law Ruth, Candace, Chris, and 6 grandchildren (Rachel, Tara, Zachary, Darry, Holly, and Jake), and 3 great-grandchildren (Dutch, Landon, and Bailee), as well as 3 sisters (Lola, Virginia, and Lillie), and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews.

He retired from Fleming Company in 1988 and he and Roby lived on their farm, which they dearly loved, until their deaths.

Sources include 1951 and 1953 Baseball Guide and Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database