John Kroner

John Harold Kroner

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
• High School Grover Cleveland High School (St. Louis)
• Debut September 29, 1935
• Final Game September 29, 1938
• Born November 13, 1908 in St. Louis, MO USA
• Died August 26, 1968 in St. Louis, MO USA

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Biographical Information

John Kroner played four seasons in the majors. He was a frequently-used back-up on Joe Cronin's Boston Red Sox in 1936 and then became the regular second baseman for the Cleveland Indians in 1937.

Kroner was born in 1908 in St. Louis, MO and played pro ball at age 19 for the Moline Plowboys of the Mississippi Valley League. Many years of minor league ball followed until, in 1935, he hit .323 with 15 home runs in the International League. At the end of the season the Red Sox brought him up for 2 games.

By 1936 Kroner had played professional baseball for many years, but he was still a major league rookie at age 27. He appeared in 84 games hitting .292 on a team which hit .276. Although John hit better than the 36-year-old regular second baseman Ski Melillo, Melillo had 93 games at second base while John was in 38, also appearing 28 times at third base and 18 times at shortstop.

Cleveland purchased him on April 15, 1937. He and Odell Hale each appeared 64 games at second base for the team, but John is listed as the regular second baseman while Hale, who appeared more often at third base, is listed as the team's regular at that position instead.

John hit only .237 in 1937, but improved his performance the following year, 1938, when he hit .248 with a .353 on-base percentage. In spite of that, the Indians used him less because they put a 21-year-old named Ken Keltner at third base, and Odell Hale played second, with Lyn Lary continuing at shortstop.

After the 1938 season, the Indians sold Kroner to Syracuse. He continued playing in the minors through 1942, and managed part of the 1942 season at Oklahoma City.

Related Sites

• John Kroner at the SABR Bio Project