Chico Renfroe

Othello Nelson Renfroe
(Chico, Chappy)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 175 lb.
• School Clark College
• Debut 1945
• Final Game 1948
• Born March 1, 1923 in Newark, NJ USA
• Died September 3, 1991 in Atlanta, GA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Othello Renfroe was a one-time Negro League All-Star who later was a sports journalist, scout and scorer.

As a youth, Renfroe's family moved to Jacksonville, where he watched spring training for Negro League teams. After college (where he played both football and baseball), Renfroe signed with the Kansas City Monarchs. He hit .351 as their starting catcher in 1945, 6th in the Negro American League and ahead of teammate Jackie Robinson, a fellow Negro League rookie. When Robinson left the team to break the color line, Renfroe became the backup shortstop behind Jim Hamilton. Hamilton was injured for the 1946 Negro World Series and Chico stepped in to go 12 for 29, leading the Monarchs' attack. Kansas City lost, 4 games to 3, to the Newark Eagles. Renfroe also appeared in the first 1946 East-West Game, going 0 for 1 after replacing Artie Wilson at shortstop in a 6-3 loss by the West. In the fall of 1946, the Newark native was 2 for 20 against the Bob Feller All-Stars.

Renfroe was the starting shortstop for the Monarchs in 1947 then held the same role with the Cleveland Buckeyes of 1948. He saw some more exhibition action against white big leaguers, going 3 for 14 against the Bob Feller and Ewell Blackwell All-Stars in 1947 and 1 for 2 against Bob Lemon and Murry Dickson in 1948. He split 1949 between Cleveland and the Indianapolis Clowns. He then spent 1950-1952 in Latin America, touring Venezuela the first winter and the Dominican Republic the next two. In the summers, he played for the Mexican League's Torreon Cotton Dealers. He batted .264/.410/.406 with 54 walks in 79 games in 1950 and was a bench player in 1951 (.266/.346/.419 in 33 G) and 1952 (10 for 47, 2B, 2 HR, 7 BB). Overall, he hit .260/.384/.405 in 128 games in Mexico.

Chappy ended his playing career in the 1954 with the Manitoba-Dakota League's Minot Mallards. He then worked for the U.S. Post Office in Atlanta. Renfroe was hired as sports director of WERD in Atlanta in 1963. He won a Sportcaster of the Year award in 1970. In 1972, he became a columnist for the Atlanta Daily World, then was promoted to sports editor in 1979.

Meanwhile, Renfroe was also announcing Florida A&M football games from 1975-1980. He was a scout for the Montréal Expos at one point and public address announcer for football's Atlanta Falcons. The Atlanta Braves hired Renfroe as their official scorer, making him the first African-American official scorer in all of Major League Baseball. He died of a heart attack at age 68.

Notable Achievements

• NAL All-Star (1946)
• NAL Bases on Balls Leader (1947)

Sources

• The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues by James Riley
• The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues by John Holway
• Black Baseball's National Showcase by Larry Lester
• The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics by Pedro Treto Cisneros
• Jet Magazine, Sep. 30, 1991
• Digital Library of Georgia