Larry Ciaffone
| Larry Ciaffone | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Outfielder/Pinch hitter | |
| Born: August 17, 1924 New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| Died: December 14, 1991 (aged 67) New York City, New York, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 17, 1951, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| May 3, 1951, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .000 |
| At bats | 5 |
| Runs scored | 0 |
| Teams | |
Lawrence Thomas Ciaffone (August 17, 1924 – December 14, 1991), nicknamed "Symphony Larry", was an American professional baseball player whose ten-year playing career (1946–55), largely as an outfielder, catcher and first baseman, included a six-game trial with the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball during the opening weeks of the 1951 season. Ciaffone threw and batted right-handed, stood 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg).
Born in Brooklyn, New York, he attended Lafayette High School before transferring to Abraham Lincoln High School to be teammates with his cousin Frank Ciaffone, a star pitcher.[1] Both signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers upon graduation but their baseball careers were delayed by military service in World War II. Larry entered the United States Army, and saw combat at the Battle of the Bulge in 1944–45. Frank enlisted in the United States Marines and was fatally wounded in the Battle of Iwo Jima on March 3, 1945.[2]
Returning from wartime service at the age of 22, Larry Ciaffone began his playing career in the Brooklyn farm system, but was drafted by the Cardinals after only one season at the Class B level. He progressed through the Cardinal system, and after batting .324 for the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings in 1950,[3] he made the Cardinals' early-season, 28-man roster in 1951. Ciaffone appeared in six games as a pinch hitter and substitute left fielder. He went hitless in five at bats with one base on balls, then returned to Rochester for the balance of the season.
References
[edit]- ^ Bedingfield, Gary (January 27, 2015). Baseball's Dead of World War II: A Roster of Professional Players Who Died in Service. McFarland. p. 214. ISBN 978-0-7864-5820-2. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
- ^ Frank Ciaffone, Baseball in Wartime website Archived 2012-01-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Minor league statistics from Baseball Reference
External links
[edit]- Career statistics from Baseball Reference
- Retrosheet
- Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics
   | This biographical article relating to an American baseball outfielder born in the 1920s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1924 births
- 1991 deaths
- Abraham Lincoln High School (Brooklyn) alumni
- Allentown Cardinals players
- United States Army personnel of World War II
- Chattanooga Lookouts players
- Houston Buffaloes players
- Major League Baseball outfielders
- New York Mets scouts
- Newport News Dodgers players
- Baseball players from Brooklyn
- Richmond Virginians (minor league) players
- Rochester Red Wings players
- Sabios de Vargas players
- St. Louis Cardinals players
- St. Louis Cardinals scouts
- Military personnel from New York City
- Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery
- Lafayette High School (New York City) alumni
- American baseball outfielder, 1920s birth stubs