Johnny Lipon
John Joseph Lipon
(Skids)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 0", Weight 175 lb.
- High School Chadsey High School
- Debut August 16, 1942
- Final Game April 25, 1954
- Born November 10, 1922 in Martins Ferry, OH USA
- Died August 17, 1998 in Houston, TX USA
Biographical Information[edit]
Johnny Lipon was an infielder, primarily a shortstop, for 17 years (1941-1960), nine in the majors (1942-1954) and ten in the minors (1941-1960), losing three years and most of a fourth to military service.
Lipon was born on November 10, 1922, in Martins Ferry, OH. His family eventually moved to Detroit where he would graduate from high school. Scouted and signed by Wish Egan of the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent in 1941, he was 19 years old when he broke into the big leagues with his hometown team on August 16, 1942, where he would play seven of his nine big league seasons.
He played for the Tigers in 1942, 1946 and from 1948 to 1952, where he had four very solid seasons. After being traded to the Boston Red Sox, he played there in 1952 and 1953, but his production quickly diminished and he finished his career with two very brief stops with the St. Louis Browns in 1953 and the Cincinnati Redlegs in 1954, playing his last game on April 25 th that year. He then spent the next five years playing in the minors before retiring as a player and turning to managing.
In 1941, Lipon led the Michigan State League with 176 hits and 35 HRs for the Muskegon Reds, and tied for the league lead with 115 RBI. He was named the league's all-star shortstop.
He served four years in the U.S. Navy during World War II (1943-1946) (N&C/GB/BR/BN). He married Bama Belle Jones on October 14, 1951 and his hobbies were hunting and fishing
As the Tigers' regular shortstop from 1948 to 1951, Lipon was more adequate than outstanding. Like many at his position, he was never known for his power, but he wasn't an exceptional fielder, either. His most productive season came in 1949 with the Tigers when he hit .293 with 2 home runs and 63 RBI in 601 at-bats. He hit .259 in his major league career with 10 home runs and 266 RBI. He had 28 stolen bases and scored 351 runs.
A baseball lifer, he became a highly respected minor league manager, often rumored to be in line for a major league job. His only opportunity came when he replaced Alvin Dark for the Cleveland Indians for the last 59 games of the 1971 season; the team went 18-41 and finished in last place. He was replaced by Ken Aspromonte the following year.
Lipon retired from managing minor league teams in 1992 after winning the Florida State League title. He compiled a record of 2,185-1,987 over 33 seasons (1959-1992) in the minor leagues. He was a minor league manager for the Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates and Tigers. He was also a coach for the Indians from 1968 to 1971. He is fourth in Minor League Wins by a Manager.
He died at age 75 on August 17, 1998 in Houston, TX and is buried at Memorial Oaks Cemetery in Houston.
Notable Achievements[edit]
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 1 (1950)
| Preceded by Alvin Dark |
Cleveland Indians Manager 1971 |
Succeeded by Ken Aspromonte |
Career Highlights[edit]
- Led Michigan State League in Games (119), Runs (126), Hits (176), Total Bases (316), Home Runs (35) and RBI (115) in 1941
- Led Michigan State League shortstops in Putouts (241), Assists (424), Errors (51) and Double Plays (70), 1941
- Led Texas League shortstops in Assists (511), Double Plays (93) and Errors (43), 1947
- Led American League shortstops in Assists (483), Errors (33) and Double Plays (126), 1950
- Tied for lead in Errors by a shortstop in the American League, 1951 (33)
- Led International League shortstops in Fileding Percentage, 1955 (.979)
- Led International League third basemen in Fielding Percentage, 1957 (.991)
- Tied MLB record for most Double Plays by a shortstop, game (5), 20 May 1950
Chronology[edit]
- Before 1941 Season: Signed by the Tigers as an amateur free agent by Wish Egan.
- 1950: On May 20th, Lipon and second baseman Jerry Priddy team for a record five double plays (most DP by a SS and most DP started by a 2B) in the first five innings to lead the Tigers to a 5–3 win over the Philadelphia Athletics. On September 24th, with vision made difficult by heavy smoke from a Canadian forest fire and with the lights subsequently on in the afternoon, Lipon accounts for the only Detroit run with a solo home run as Detroit loses, 2-1, to the Cleveland Indians in 10 innings.
- 1951: On July 1st, Bob Feller of the Indians pitches the third no-hitter of his career, but loses his shutout in the 4th inning when Lipon reaches on an error, swipes 2B, goes to 3B on a errant pick-off and scores on a sacrifice fly.
- 1952: On June 3rd, in a blockbuster trade between Detroit and Boston, the Boston Red Sox send Walt Dropo, Don Lenhardt, Johnny Pesky, Fred Hatfield and Bill Wight to the Tigers for George Kell, Hoot Evers, Dizzy Trout, and Lipon.
- 1953: On September 8th, he is purchased by the St. Louis Browns from Boston.
- 1954: On February 5th, in a trade involving older players, the Baltimore Orioles trade Johnny Groth and Lipon to the Chicago White Sox for Sam Mele and Neil Berry. Lipon will go to the Cincinnati Redlegs on April 18th for Grady Hatton, but he is released on April 29th after only one National League at bat.
- 1971: On July 30 the Indians, with a 42-61 record, fire manager Alvin Dark and Lipon takes over, but the team goes 18-41 the rest of the season.
Sources[edit]
Principal sources for Johnny Lipon include newspaper obituaries (OB), government Veteran records (VA,CM,CW), Stars & Stripes (S&S), Sporting Life (SL), The Sporting News (TSN), The Sports Encyclopedia:Baseball 2006 by David Neft & Richard Cohen (N&C), old Who's Who in Baseballs {{{WW}}} (WW), old Baseball Registers {{{BR}}} (BR) , old Daguerreotypes by TSN {{{DAG}}} (DAG), Stars&Stripes (S&S), The Baseball Necrology by Bill Lee (BN), Pat Doyle's Professional Ballplayer DataBase (PD), The Baseball Library (BL), Baseball in World War II Europe by Gary Bedingfield (GB) {{{MORE}}} and independent research by Walter Kephart (WK) and Frank Russo (FR) and others.
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