Norm Brown

Norman Ladelle Brown
(Brownie)

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 180 lb.

• Debut October 3, 1943
• Final Game May 11, 1946
• Born February 1, 1919 in Evergreen, NC USA
• Died May 31, 1995 in Bennettsville, SC USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Right-hander Norm Brown was signed as an amateur free agent by the Boston Red Sox before the 1937 season and pitched sixteen seasons in professional baseball. This run was interrupted for two years (1944-1945) when Brown served in the United States Army during World War II.

In the bigs, Brown pitched seven innings with no decisions in 1943 for the Philadelphia Athletics, before leaving for military duty, and appeared in four games on his return in 1946, going 0-1 with a 3.14 ERA. During Brown's sixteen year run in the minor leagues, from age 18 to 35, he played for 14 different teams in 9 different leagues. Norm rung up eleven seasons of double-digit winning numbers during this stretch. Two of those double-digit seasons were of 20+ wins, and his 22 wins for the Atlanta Crackers were tops in the Southern Association in 1948 and got him on the All-Star team. He came back five years later in 1953 with a league-leading 21 wins for the Lincoln Chiefs of the Western League and another spot on an All-Star team. Brownie wound up his professional baseball career the following year, 1954, going 8-13 with two teams. He ended with a 198-178 record (.527) while appearing in 490 games.

After baseball, Brown resided in Bennettsville, SC where he owned Brownie's Mens Store. He died on May 31,1995, at 76 in his Bennettsville home.

Related Sites

• BR Minors page