Jim Prendergast

James Bartholomew Prendergast

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 1", Weight 208 lb.
• High School Brooklyn Technical High School
• Debut April 25, 1948
• Final Game June 29, 1948
• Born August 23, 1917 in Brooklyn, NY USA
• Died August 23, 1994 in Amherst, NY USA

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Biographical Information

Left-hander Jim Prendergast spent eleven active seasons in professional baseball from 1936 to 1950. He also served four years in the United States Army from 1942 to 1945 in World War II. He spent eight years in the minors before getting his one and only shot at the major leagues in 1948.

Jim started things out right in his first full year in the minors, going 16-10 with a 3.50 ERA while pitching 257 innings in a split-season affair with the Palatka Azaleas of the class D Florida State League and the Augusta Tigers of the class B South Atlantic League in the 1937 season.

He spent three seasons (1939-1941) with the Little Rock Travelers of the Southern Association, and all were double-digit winning years. On September 30, 1941 he was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds from the Little Rock club in the 1941 Rule V Draft. It was unknown at the time that he would spend the next four years with the U. S. Military.

Jim was back in baseball for the 1947 season and picked up right where he left off, going 17-10 for the Syracuse Chiefs of the International League and then threw a 20-15 record in the same league in 1947. This show caused the Boston Braves to purchase Jim from the Reds on December 3, 1947, getting ready for the coming season.

Prendergast made his debut with the Braves on April 25, 1948. He appeared in ten games that year, gave up 30 hits and 20 runs with a 10.26 ERA and a 1-1 record. Prendergast was done on June 29, with the Braves and the big leagues.

Jim spent the last two years of his time in the minor leagues with Syracuse again and also the Milwaukee BRewers of the American Association. He couldn't get going again and closed out his final year in 1950, going 6-14 for Syracuse and called it a carer at the age of 32. He had seven double-digit winning seasons during his minor league career and ended up with 120 wins and 114 losses in 340 games.

After baseball, Jim worked in sales for a number of brewing companies, including William Simon Brewery, Carling Brewing Company and Ballantine Brewing, retiring in the mid 1970s. He then went into real estate, founding Parade of Homes Realty Company. Active in civic affairs, he ran for office as a city supervisor and a term as a state representative. He would give a local Little League team uniforms that said "Little Democrats". He died on August 23, 1994 after a long illness at the age of 77.

Related Sites

• Jim Prendergast at the SABR Bio Project