Tom Saffell

Thomas Judson Saffell

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 170 lb.
• School Maryville College
• Debut July 1, 1949
• Final Game September 25, 1955
• Born July 26, 1921 in Etowah, TN USA
• Died September 10, 2012 in Sarasota, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Tom Saffell played four seasons in the major leagues and then embarked on a long career as a minor league manager and executive.

He was centerfielder for the 1948 Indianapolis Indians, who won 100 games. He hit .299 with 22 stolen bases.

He was a United States Army Air Force pilot during World War II, flying 61 missions in Europe with the 405th Fighter Squadron of the 371st Fighter Group. He flew the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.

After his playing career, Tom Saffell embarked on a nomadic minor league managing career in which he managed for 5 different organizations (one twice) over 13 years. In 1960, Saffell led the Reno Silver Sox to the California League title for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was a scout in 1961 and managed the Jacksonville Jets. In 1964 Saffell was fined $250 and suspended for 30 days for refusing to send his team to the field for a game.

He then worked as a painter, bartender and salesman in Sarasota, FL for several years. He had earlier been one of the pitchers on the television program Home Run Derby in 1958-1959. Saffell became president of the Gulf Coast League (where he had managed in 1966-1968) in 1980 and held the job until retiring, at age 88, at the end of 2009. After his 30-year run as league president, the championship trophy of the GCL was named the Thomas J. Saffell Trophy in his honor.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs	Notes
1960	Reno Silver Sox	California League	89-51	1st	Los Angeles Dodgers	none League Champs
1961	Jacksonville Jets	South Atlantic League	29-52	--	Houston Colt .45's	--	replaced by Dixie Howell (22-29) on July 17
1962	Grand Forks Chiefs	Northern League	72-52	1st	Pittsburgh Pirates	Lost in 1st round
1963	Reno Silver Sox	California League	71-69	5th	Pittsburgh Pirates
1964	Reno Silver Sox	California League	7-20 44-37	6th	Pittsburgh Pirates	none	replaced by Sandy Johnson (0-2) on May 21 Replaced Harvey Koepf (15-12) on June 20
1965	Batavia Pirates	New York-Penn League	47-75	5th (t)	Pittsburgh Pirates
1966	GCL Braves	Gulf Coast League	27-21	2nd	Atlanta Braves	none
1967	GCL Braves	Gulf Coast League	27-32	5th	Atlanta Braves	none
1968	GCL White Sox	Gulf Coast League	21-37	8th	Chicago White Sox	none
1969	Appleton Foxes	Midwest League	84-41	1st	Chicago White Sox	none League Champs
1970	Mobile White Sox	Southern League		--	Chicago White Sox	--	replaced by Larry Sherry in July
1971	Monroe Pirates	Western Carolinas League	44-77	6th	Pittsburgh Pirates
1972	Gastonia Pirates	Western Carolinas League	60-70	4th	Pittsburgh Pirates

Saffell also was manager for the Chicago White Sox entry in the 1969 Florida Instructional League.

Related Sites

• Tom Saffell at the SABR Bio Project