Stu Komer

Stuart Komer

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 210 lb.
• School Ohio State University
• Born March 23, 1926 in Detroit, MI USA
• Died May 24, 2018 in Florida

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Stu Komer played high school baseball against fellow catcher Joe Ginsberg. At Ohio State, he played basketball, football and track in addition to baseball. He signed for $5,000 with the St. Louis Browns after college. In 1945, he was assigned to the Newark Moundsmen and hit .316 with five homers and 54 RBI. In '46, he split the year between the Springfield Browns (.336/~.417/.450, but 15 errors in 42 games behind the plate) and the Gloverstown-Johnstown Glovers (.292/~.405/.406). He had his most memorable baseball experience that year, catching Satchel Paige in an exhibition game.

Stu hit .263 for Gloversville in 1947 and split 1948 between the San Antonio Missions (.250 in his brief AA chance) and the Elmira Pioneers (.216, 3 HR and 26 RBI), where he was a teammate of Pete Gray's. In 1949, he finished his career by hitting .291 with one homer and 33 RBI for Elmira.

Out of baseball, Komer was a teacher, coach and athletic director of Horseheads High School for a year. He then worked for his father's soft drink company in Detroit for a year. After years with a Chicago, IL mail-order company, he returned to Elmira in 1966 and became chairman of the board and president of Artistic Greetings. He was still chairman three decades later. On September 2, he threw out the first ball at a Elmira Pioneers contest.

Sources: 1947 Baseball Guide, The Big Book of Jewish Baseball by Peter Horvitz and Joachim Horvitz, Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database

Further Reading

• Obituary