Marshall Bridges

Marshall Bridges
(Fox or Sheriff)

• Bats Both, Throws Left
• Height 6' 1", Weight 180 lb.

• Debut June 17, 1959
• Final Game September 25, 1965
• Born June 2, 1931 in Jackson, MS USA
• Died September 3, 1990 in Jackson, MS USA

BR page

Biographical Information

"Marshall Bridges was always giving me stories. He wanted me to recount his adventures off the field. He always wanted me to put in the book the length of his penis, because he said it was the largest in the major leagues, and he would bet anybody. Poor Marshall got shot in the ass by the husband of some woman he was knocking up. Marshall was fun." - Jim Brosnan, to Peter Golenbock, The Spirit of St. Louis

Marshall Bridges was a first baseman/pitcher with the Memphis Red Sox in the Negro Leagues and was signed by the New York Giants in 1953. After hitting just .233 but going 14-1 on the mound for the Amarillo Gold Sox in 1955, he concentrated on making the majors as a pitcher. He was acquired by the St. Louis Cardinals after winning 16 games and leading the Pacific Coast League in strikeouts with the Sacramento Solons in 1958 and was used primarily in relief by the Cardinals in 1959 and by the Cincinnati Reds, who acquired him in 1960.

In 1962, the New York Yankees were looking for bullpen help and "Sheriff", as he was sometimes called, came to the rescue. The hard-throwing southpaw won eight games and saved 18 in 52 appearances to help lead the Yankees to the pennant. He was not as effective in the World Series against the San Francisco Giants, allowing the first grand slam home run hit by a National Leaguer in a World Series, rocketing off the bat of Chuck Hiller.

Bridges was at the Pride of Fort Lauderdale Elks Lodge on February 13, 1963, when he was shot with a small caliber weapon in the leg just below the knee. 21-year-old Carrie Lee Raysor claimed Bridges had repeatedly offered to drive her home and, after repeatedly not taking "no" for an answer, "took out [her] gun and shot him." He recovered to pitch for another season with the Yankees in 1963, followed by two more with the Washington Senators in 1964 and 1965, concluding his seven-year major league career with a 23-15 record, 25 saves, and a 3.75 ERA. Bridges spent three more seasons in pro ball with the PCL Hawaii Islanders, from 1965 through 1967.

Overall, Marshall spent 15 years in pro ball from 1953 through 1967. As a big leaguer, he was 23-15 with 25 saves and a complete game, crafting a 3.75 ERA in 206 games (5 starts) and 345 1/3 innings. In the minors, he appeared in 243 games, going 74-57, pitching 1,138 innings with a 3.94 ERA.

After baseball, Marshall did carpentry and maintenance work at the State Capitol Building in Jackson, MS, where he died September 3, 1990, at age 59.

Notable Achievement

• Won a World Series with the New York Yankees in 1962

Sources

Baseball-Reference.com
Baseball Players of the 1950s
SABR MILB Database:page