Pete Beiden

John Peter Beiden

• Bats Right, Throws Right

• School University of Redlands
• High School Sanger High School

• Born January 30, 1908 in Dinkel, Russia
• Died March 6, 2000 in Visalia, CA USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Pete Beiden was born in Russia and moved with his family to Fresno, CA at the age of 6. He was honorable mention All-American in football in 1931 and was all-conference in both baseball and football. After graduating in 1932 he became a high school football and baseball coach at Orosi High School (3 years) and Tulare Union High School (8 years).

Beiden spent many years as a catcher in semi-pro ball. He coached at Visalia College in 1947 and was player-manager of the Visalia Cubs for part of 1946 (Bobby Schang was the other manager). A catcher, he hit .287/.392/.385 with only 3 strikeouts in 122 at-bats. His .982 fielding percentage ranked second among California League backstops. He was offered the managerial job for the Hollywood Stars in 1948 but instead opted to become head coach at Fresno State University. With the exception of the 1967 season (Bob Bennett replaced him during a sabbatical), he was the school's coach through 1969, posting a record of 601-268. He won ten conference titles, and the team finished third in the 1959 College World Series. His most notable products (on a MLB level) were Tex Clevenger and Ted Wills.

Sources include 1947 Baseball Guide, 2/12/48 Fresno Bee

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Playoffs	Notes
1946	Visalia Cubs	California League	23-54	6th		replaced Bobby Schang (16-37) on June 26