Joe Brovia

Joseph John Brovia
(Ox)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 195 lb.
• High School Santa Cruz High School
• Debut July 3, 1955
• Final Game August 5, 1955
• Born February 18, 1922 in Davenport, CA USA
• Died August 15, 1994 in Santa Cruz, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

"Joe Brovia has been a cult hero on the West Coast for years." - Dave Newhouse, Oakland Tribune, 1994

Joe Brovia quit Santa Cruz High School in 1940, at 17, to sign with the San Francisco Seals of the A1 Pacific Coast League as a pitcher. He was immediately converted to the outfield because of his hitting ability. He spent the season with El Paso Texans of the Class C Arizona-Texas League where he led the league with a .383 average and fashioned a 39-game hitting streak. The 1941 season was spent with the Seals, but in 1942, his season was split between San Francisco and Tacoma of the Class B Western International League. In February 1943, Joe was drafted into the Army and assigned to the Infantry. He spent time in Germany and returned to the Pacific Coast League in 1946.

Joe was initially sent to Salt Lake City Bees of the Class C Pioneer League for a while but was soon recalled by San Francisco and spent the next ten seasons in the Pacific Coast League either by the bay or with the Portland Beavers (1949), the Sacramento Solons (1952) or the Oakland Oaks (1955). He was a consistent high average hitter, providing plenty of home runs and runs batted in. In 1946, he hit the longest home run in the history of Seals Stadium in San Francisco.

Oakland finally sold him to the Cincinnati Redlegs and he got his chance, at 33, to play in the major leagues in 1955. The Detroit Tigers had tried to buy him when he was with Portland but the owner was asking too high a price. His contract was purchased by the Boston Braves in 1948, but he was unable to report to the team because of appendicitis. With Cincinnati, Joe appeared in 21 games (entirely as a pinch hitter) and collected only two hits while driving in 4 runs. His first three RBIs came before his first career hit, which set a record which was tied by Patrick Mazeika in 2021.

Brovia died of cancer at the age of 72. In 2005, he was elected to the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame.

Related Sites

• Joe Brovia at the SABR Bio Project