Jake Powell
Jake Powell | |
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Outfielder | |
Born: Silver Spring, Maryland | July 15, 1909|
Died: November 4, 1948 Washington, D.C. | (aged 39)|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
August 3, 1930, for the Washington Senators | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 30, 1945, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .271 |
Home runs | 22 |
Runs batted in | 327 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Alvin Jacob Powell (July 15, 1909 – November 4, 1948),[1] was an outfielder for the Washington Senators (1930, 1934–1936 and 1943–1945),[2] New York Yankees (1936–1940)[3] and Philadelphia Phillies (1945).[4]
Career[]
Powell helped the Yankees win the World Series every year from 1936 to 1939 and batted .455 in the 1936 series.[5] In eleven seasons, he played in 688 games and had 2,540 at bats, 353 runs, 689 hits, 116 doubles, 26 triples, 22 home runs, 327 RBIs, 65 stolen bases, 173 walks, a .271 batting average, .320 on-base percentage, .363 slugging percentage, 923 total bases and 43 sacrifice hits. Defensively, he recorded a .975 fielding percentage.
He played in 31 games in 1939 and 12 games in 1940 before the Yankees sold him to the minor leagues.[6] In the fall of 1944 – during World War II – Powell served as an emergency police officer in Montgomery County, Maryland. He returned to baseball at the start of the 1945 season. In 1948, Powell tried to make a comeback, playing in 31 games for the Gainesville G-Men of the Florida State League, but batted just .220.[7]
Controversy[]
Throughout his career, Powell had been involved in a number of controversies on and off the field. While playing for the 1936 World Series team, he received a $5,000 check, which he later gambled away. He also stole various items out of hotel rooms during his baseball days. [8]During a dugout interview in a July 1938 game versus the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park, Powell was asked by WGN radio announcer Bob Elson how he stayed in shape during the off-season. Powell – who claimed to be a policeman in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio (but in reality had only applied without being hired) – replied that he kept in shape by "cracking niggers over the head with my blackjack."[9] He was subsequently suspended for 10 days by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis, for making "an uncomplimentary reference to a portion of the population."[6] He was later ordered by the Yankees to walk through Harlem as an act of apology, accompanied by noted Black aviator Hubert Julian.[6] Powell was later accused of purposefully colliding with Jewish star Hank Greenberg, costing Greenberg his season after only 12 games with a broken wrist.[10]
In November 1948, Powell was arrested in Washington, D.C. for passing bad checks. He drew a revolver while at a police station and committed suicide.[6]
References[]
- ^ "The tale of talented, troubled outfielder Jake Powell". RetroSimba. 2018-10-31. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
- ^ Rutkoff, Peter M.; Hall, Alvin L. (2015-11-16). The Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, 1997 (Jackie Robinson). McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-8157-6.
- ^ "Alvin Jacob Powell". Beckett.com.
- ^ "Buy Jake Powell Baseball Cards". www.deanscards.com. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
- ^ Rutkoff, Peter M.; Hall, Alvin L. (2015-11-16). The Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, 1997 (Jackie Robinson). McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-8157-6.
- ^ a b c d Wulf, Steve. "Bigot unwittingly sparked change". espn.go.com. February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
- ^ Schraufnagel, Noel (2008-08-15). The Baseball Novel: A History and Annotated Bibliography of Adult Fiction. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3557-9.
- ^ "Wulf: A bigot unwittingly sparked change". 21 February 2014.
- ^ "Document Resume" (PDF). files.eric.ed.gov.
- ^ Lamb, Chris (27 July 2008). "A Public Slur in '38 Laid Bare a Game's Racism". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
External links[]
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- Lamb, Chris (July 27, 2008). "A Public Slur in '38 Laid Bare The Game's Racism". The New York Times.
- Jake Powell at Find a Grave
- 1908 births
- 1948 suicides
- Major League Baseball outfielders
- Washington Senators (1901–1960) players
- New York Yankees players
- Philadelphia Phillies players
- Baseball players from Maryland
- People from Silver Spring, Maryland
- Suicides by firearm in Washington, D.C.
- American police officers