Leo Payne

Leo Enrich Payne

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 190 lb.
• Born March 8, 1894 in Grand Rapids, MI USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Outfielder Leo Payne played in the minor leagues from 1920 to 1925 and in 1928.

He began his career with a .292/.326/.444 slash line for the Grand Rapids Joshers in 1920, then hit .339 in 434 at-bats between two clubs in 1921. With the Grand Rapids Billbobs in 1922, he hit .370 with 187 hits, 31 doubles and 10 triples in 133 games; he led the Central League in batting average, outpacing the second place finisher, Bob Wells, by 8 points. He hit .442 in 41 games for Grand Rapids in 1923. He played for two other teams that season and hit .397 overall, per records available.

In 1924, he hit .397/.430/.592 with 8 home runs, 77 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 90 games for the Grand Rapids Homoners and .360 with a .581 slugging mark in 47 games for the Wichita Izzies. Combined, he batted .384 with 203 hits, 50 doubles, 11 triples and 12 home runs in 137 games. He led the Michigan-Ontario League in average, outpacing #2 Parry O'Brien by 36 points. With Wichita in 1925, he hit .368 with a .634 slugging percentage. He had 226 hits, 45 doubles, 10 triples, 33 home runs and 390 total bases in 150 games and led the Western League in home runs, slugging and total bases (outpacing #2 Frank Osborn by 1). He was second in batting average, behind Osborn's .372 mark. He was an All-Star that year. After not playing in 1926 and 1927, he fell to .276 in 1928 to finish his career.

Per records available, Payne hit around .362 in 7 seasons.