Mack Burk

Mack Edwin Burk

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 4", Weight 180 lb.
• School University of Texas at Austin
• High School Stephen F. Austin High School (Houston)
• Debut May 25, 1956
• Final Game June 22, 1958
• Born April 21, 1935 in Nacogdoches, TX USA

BR page

Biographical Information

A 6'4" catcher, Mack Burk signed a large bonus contact on September 29, 1955 with the Philadelphia Phillies. Hailing from the University of Texas, he suffered a broken collarbone playing college basketball, which set back his baseball playing. To compensate, he played for the Mechanics' Uniform Supply team which won the ABC national championship in 1955. He hit over .400, prompting heavy recruiting by several major league teams, and received an estimated $40,000 bonus from the Phils.

Due to the bonus rules of the day, Mack had to remain on the Philadelphia roster for at least two years. And so, in 1956, he was used exclusively as a pinch runner except for one inning behind the plate and a pinch-hitting appearance in which he singled off Joe Nuxhall of the Cincinnati Redlegs. As a result, he finished his major league career with a sensational .500 batting average, one hit in two official plate appearances. He served in the United States military in 1957, during the Korean confict, interrupting his mandatory stay in the majors, and then played in the winter leagues in Panama following his discharge. The bonus rule was revoked after the 1957 season, meaning Burk could be sent down to the minors without spending a second year on the Phillies' bench; he played for the AA Tulsa Oilers to begin 1958. He hit .182 in eight games and was sent to the Class A Williamsport Grays, hitting .236 in 94 games there. He was recalled briefly to the big club and pinch-hit once more in 1958, striking out in his last trip to the plate. In 1959, he started out on fire in the Eastern League, batting 11 for 14 with three home runs over the Memorial Day weekend to earn a promotion to the Buffalo Bisons of the International League. But in 1960, he went all the way back down to the South Atlantic League, playing for the Asheville Tourists, where he hit a solid .281 with 25 doubles in 114 games. Burk left baseball at that point. He appeared in 286 games in the minors, hitting .258.

Burk settled in Houston, where he worked in electrical supplies sales.

Sources

Baseball Players of the 1950s

Further Reading

• Clifford Blau: "Leg Men: Career Pinch-Runners in Major League Baseball", in The Baseball Research Journal, SABR, Volume 38, Number 1 (Summer 2009), pp. 70-81.
• Sam Zygner: "Phillies Bonus Babies, 1953–57", in Morris Levin, ed.: From Swampoodle to South Philly: Baseball in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, The National Pastime, SABR, 2013, pp. 92-97.

Related Sites

• BR Minors page