Tom Brewer

Thomas Austin Brewer

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 175 lb.
• School Elon University
• High School Cheraw High School
• Debut April 18, 1954
• Final Game September 27, 1961
• Born September 3, 1931 in Wadesboro, NC USA
• Died February 15, 2018 in Cheraw, SC USA

BR page

Biographical Information

“What has amazed the older players mostly is the excellent change-up Brewer has demonstrated. This, plus a good curve and a blazing fast ball, make him one of the brightest prospects of the spring.” - Bob Holbrook, The Sporting News, March 1954

Tom Brewer was a mainstay of the Boston Red Sox rotation for nearly a decade, recording double-digit wins in seven seasons.

Brewer grew up in Cheraw, South Carolina and attended Elon College. After two year there, he was signed by the Red Sox. He made his pro debut in 1951 with the High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms, winning 19 games and leading the North Carolina State League with a 2.55 ERA. Following that season, he was drafted into the Army, and he missed the next two seasons. Brewer returned to baseball in 1954 and reached the majors. As a rookie, he went 10-9 with a 4.65 ERA in 33 appearances. He had his finest season in 1956, going 11-3 in the first half and appearing in the All-Star Game. He ended the year with 19 wins and a 3.50 ERA in 32 starts, while notching a .298 batting average. He won 16 games the following year, third in the American League. An article in the July 28, 2007 Boston Globe indicated that Brewer had decisions in all of his first 21 starts that year, a Red Sox record of sorts later tied by Tim Wakefield. After an injury-plagued 1961 season, he was released.

Overall, in eight years in the majors, Brewer won 91 games. He was chosen by the website "Top 100 Red Sox" as #78 of all-time. After his baseball career, he returned to his hometown. He died at age 86 in 2018.

Notable Achievements

• AL All-Star (1956)
• 15 Wins Seasons: 2 (1956 & 1957)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 4 (1956-1959)

Further Reading

• Tom Larwin: "Tom Brewer", in Mark Armour and Bill Nowlin, eds.: Red Sox Baseball in the Days of Ike and Elvis: The Red Sox of the 1950s, SABR, Phoenix, AZ, 2012, pp. 19-27. ISBN 978-1933599243

Related Sites

• Tom Brewer at the SABR Bio Project