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Andrew Wasal Seminick (September 12, 1920 – February 22, 2004) was an American professional baseball player.〔(Andy Seminick at Baseball Reference )〕 He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies between 1943 and 1951, and the Cincinnati Reds/Redlegs from 1952 through part of 1955, when he rejoined the Phillies for the rest of his career until his release at the end of the 1957 season. Seminick was an integral part of the 1950 "Whiz Kids" Phillies team that won their first pennant since .〔(''Seminick-Key Man of Phils'', by Charles Dexter, Baseball Digest November 1950, Vol. 9, No. 11, ISSN 0005-609X )〕〔(Andy Seminick Obituary at The New York Times )〕 ==Playing career== Seminick was born in Pierce, West Virginia to Carpatho-Rusyn immigrant parents. He was contracted as an amateur free agent in 1941 by the Pittsburgh Pirates.〔(Andy Seminick Trades and Transactions at Baseball Almanac )〕 Seminick led the Appalachian League in 1942 with 15 home runs and 202 total bases, and was among the league leaders in batting average.〔(1942 Appalachian League Batting Leaders )〕 In , he had a .303 batting average with the Knoxville Smokies of the Class-A Southern Association, and was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies.〔〔(1943 Southern Association Batting Leaders at Baseball Reference )〕 At the age of 23, Seminick made his major league debut on September 14, 1943. By 1945, the Phillies were using Seminick in a platoon system alongside veteran catcher Gus Mancuso. While he could hit for power, his defensive skills were below average, as he led the National League in errors in 1946, 1948 and 1949.〔 Phillies manager Eddie Sawyer assigned Phillies coach and former catcher Cy Perkins to tutor him, which helped improve his defensive skills.〔 He was voted by baseball fans to be the starting catcher for the National League in the All-Star Game, mostly for his reputation as a hitter.〔〔(1949 All-Star Game at Baseball Reference )〕 On June 2, , the Phillies hit five home runs during the eighth inning in a 12–3 victory over Cincinnati at Shibe Park, tying the major league mark set by the 1939 New York Giants.〔(Home Runs in a Game by a Team Records at Baseball Almanac )〕 Seminick hit two home runs in the inning, while Del Ennis, Willie Jones and Schoolboy Rowe had one each. Jones added a triple as Granny Hamner's double jumped the extra bases total to 18, still a record. Seminick collected three home runs overall. With his defensive and pitch calling skills improved, Seminick played an important leadership role during the 1950 "Whiz Kids" championship season.〔〔 Because he was, at 29, one of the veterans on the squad and was called upon to handle a young Phillie pitching staff, Philadelphia baseball writers nicknamed Seminick "Grandpa Whiz."〔Spink, C.C. Johnson, editor.''Official 1967 Baseball Register.'' St. Louis: The Sporting News, 1967〕 He enjoyed his best season in 1950, hitting for a .288 batting average with 24 home runs and 68 runs batted in. Unfortunately, Seminick broke his ankle late in the season, but continued to play with the injury until the Phillies lost to the New York Yankees in the World Series.〔〔(1950 World Series at Baseball Reference )〕 Future Hall of Fame pitcher, Robin Roberts said of Seminick,"If you had to pick a guy in the clubhouse who was our leader that year, it would be Andy. He always played hard, and that was his best year by far".〔 In 1951, Seminick was beaned by a Max Lanier fastball, diminishing his ability to play.〔 He was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for catcher Smoky Burgess, playing there from 1952 until the early part of the 1955 season.〔 In 1955, he was once again traded for Burgess, returning to the Phillies, where he led National League catchers with a .994 fielding percentage.〔〔(Baseball Digest, July 2001, P.86, Vol. 60, No. 7, ISSN 0005-609X )〕 He played a couple of more years before ending his playing career at the age of 36 after the 1957 season. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Andy Seminick」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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