Sammy Samuels

Samuel Earle Samuels
(Ike)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Weight 165 lb.

• Debut August 3, 1895
• Final Game September 28, 1895
• Born February 20, 1874 in Quincy, IL USA
• Died February 22, 1964 in New York, NY USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Sammy Samuels (or Samuls) was playing amateur baseball in Chicago, IL when he was signed by the St. Louis Brown Stockings for $50 per month at age 19. In his first game, he replaced Tommy Dowd and went 1 for 2 against Bill Hutchison. Overall, he hit .230/.278/.257, a 39 OPS+ in the high-powered 1895 NL. He also fielded only .736, with 20 errors in 21 games at third base and 4 errors in 3 games at shortstop, atrocious even in those days' standards. He never played in the majors after that year.

The regular third baseman that year was Doggie Miller, a multi-position who was also being used at catcher and in the outfield. Samuels and Dowd filled in at third.

There is some question about how the name "Ike" got attached to him. He was always called "Sammy" in contemporary accounts.

Source: The Big Book of Jewish Baseball by Peter Horvitz and Joachim Horvitz

Related Sites

• Sammy Samuels at the SABR Bio Project