Ray Jablonski

Raymond Leo Jablonski
(Jabbo)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 183 lb.
• High School Thomas Kelly High School
• Debut April 14, 1953
• Final Game September 17, 1960
• Born December 17, 1926 in Chicago, IL USA
• Died November 25, 1985 in Chicago, IL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Ray Jablonski was a World War II Veteran, discharged from the Army in 1947 where he had served one and half years and had been stationed in Paris. He played eight years for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Redlegs, New York and San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Athletics, mostly at third base, and another eleven years in the minor leagues.

Jablonski tied a major league record by playing 157 games at third base in 1953 in his rookie season (the season was only 154 games at that time, but the Cards played a number of tie games to allow him to set the record). He died from kidney failure at age 58 and is buried at Resurrection Cemetery in Justice, IL. A free swinger who only walked 7 percent of the time, he was a fairly good hitter, but a liability in the field. He had two seasons of over 100 RBIs in the 1950s, when he toiled for the Cardinals. He would have been better suited as a DH if he had played twenty years later.

Notable Achievements

• 1951 MVP Carolina League Winston-Salem Cardinals
• NL All-Star (1954)
• 20-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1953)
• 100 RBI Seasons: 2 (1953 & 1954)

Related Sites

• Ray Jablonski at the SABR Bio Project