Virgil Stallcup

Thomas Virgil Stallcup
(Red)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 185 lb.
• School Erskine College
• Debut April 18, 1947
• Final Game April 25, 1953
• Born January 3, 1922 in Ravensford, NC USA
• Died May 2, 1989 in Greenville, SC USA

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Biographical Information

Virgil Stallcup, a 19-year-old shortstop was signed as an amateur free agent by the Boston Red Sox before the 1941 season. The 6' 3", 185-pounder spent his first season in pro ball with the Class-B Greensboro Red Sox appearing in just 39 games and hitting .192. Virgil stepped it up a notch and hit .282 in 123 games in 1943 for the Class-C Canton Terriers of the Middle Atlantic League.

Virgil or "Red" as he was sometimes called had also been attending Clemson University. When 1943 arrived, he served three years (1943-1945) on a Navy destroyer during World War II. He was back just in time for the 1946 season and spent it with the Class-B Roanoke Red Sox, where he hit 10 homers and batted .304 in 138 games. This performance no doubt caused the Cincinnati Reds to take him from the Red Sox in the 1946 Rule V Draft.

Stallcup got his first look at the major league brand of baseball starting in mid-April of 1947 when he made eight appearances for the Reds. Stallcup then spent the remainder of the this season (76 games) with the AAA Jersey City Giants of the International League where he busted 15 round-trippers and hit for an average of .338 and was named shortstop on the All-Star team.

Stallcup was the Cincinnati everyday shortstop from 1948 through 1951. His best season came in 1949 when he led all National League shortstops in fielding with a percentage of .963 and he hit for a .254 average.

Early in the 1952 season Virgil was traded, along with Dick Sisler to the St. Louis Cardinals for Eddie Kazak and Wally Westlake. He departed the major leagues with a .241 batting average after appearing in one last game with the Cardinals in 1953.

Stallcup was noted as a free swinger. In his major league career, he appeared at the plate 2,059 times and drew only 51 bases on balls. In 1949, his 9 walks were the lowest in the National League in the 20th Century for someone with 500 or more at-bats.

Virgil played out the remainder of his pro baseball career (1953-1955) in the minors with four different clubs - the Columbus (OH) Red Birds, Tulsa Oilers, Anderson Rebels and finally with the Sunbury Redlegs in 1955. "Red" had spent 12 active seasons in pro baseball (1941-1955) and appeared in 652 minor league contests, going to bat 2,412 times with 676 base hits (including 36 home runs) and a .280 career batting average.

After baseball, Virgil became a supervisor for a chemical company and took his own life on May 2, 1989, at age 67 in Greenville, SC.

Sources

Great Baseball Feats, Facts & Firsts by David Nemec