John Riddle (minors02)

John Houston Riddle
(Shotgun)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 185 lb.
• School Campbell College

• Born January 27, 1941 in Kannapolis, NC USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Outfielder John Riddle played in the minor leagues from 1962 to 1966. His main claim to fame was that he was involved in a trade that had a significant impact on the 1966 American League pennant race.

Riddle was signed by the Baltimore Orioles before the 1962 season after attending Campbell College in Buies Creek, NC. He made his professional debut with the Bluefield Orioles of the Appalachian League, hitting .288 with 16 homers and 60 RBIs. In 1962, he moved up to the Aberdeen Pheasants of the Northern League, but fell to .234 with 8 homers and 52 RBIs in 99 games. He bounced back in 1964 with the Stockton Ports of the California League, finishing at .319 with 15 homers and 71 RBIs in 122 games. The California League was a strong hitters league at the time, but his batting average still placed him seventh in the circuit. He then played in the Florida Instructional League that fall.

In 1965, he moved up to the Elmira Pioneers of the Eastern League, where he hit .273 with 8 homers and 75 RBIs. The AA Eastern League was a tougher place to hit, and his RBI total placed him fourth in the league (whereas his 71 RBIs the year before had been nowhere near the league lead). In 1966, he started the season in AAA with the Rochester Red Wings of the International League. He was hitting .261 with 7 homers and 21 RBIs after 40 games when the big trade happened on June 13th. The Orioles traded disgruntled second baseman Jerry Adair and John to the Chicago White Sox in return for P Eddie Fisher. The move, in addition to getting rid of a malcontent and giving the second base job full-time for Davey Johnson, also strengthened the O's bullpen as they went on to win their first pennant since moving to Baltimore, and then to sweep the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series. Adair regained a starting job in Chicago, but things did not work out for Riddle. He fell to .243 in 57 games for the Indianapolis Indians in the American Association and was demoted to the Evansville White Sox of the AA Southern League. He took another plummet, hitting just .167 in 19 games, and he was let go following the season.

In addition to playing the outfield, he played first base on a regular basis, and it was his main position with Elmira in 1965. He was married twice, first to Lynn Thurman in 1965, with whom he had a son, John Houston Riddle Jr., born in 1965, and in 1986 to Judy Israel. He made his off-season home in Atlanta, GA.