Al Widmar

Widmar was born in Cleveland, Ohio, attending Cleveland's Cathedral Latin High School. He was originally signed by the Boston Red Sox in 1942 (prior to the draft),[2] and played Minor League Baseball (MiLB) throughout the war years.[5] Between 1947 and 1952, Widmar played for the BoSox (1947), St. Louis Browns (1948, 1950–51), and Chicago White Sox (1952).

In a five-season major league career, Widmar posted a 13–30 record, with 143 strikeouts, and a 5.21 earned run average (ERA), in ​388 ¹⁄₃ innings pitched.[2]

Widmar played part of two Major League seasons as a reliever with the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Browns. He made his MLB debut with the Red Sox in 1947,[2] and was sent to the Browns before the 1948 season in the same trade that brought Vern Stephens to Boston. After an unspectacular year with the Browns, he was demoted to the MiLB International League Baltimore Orioles, St. Louis' Triple-A affiliate team.[5]

Beginning in the late-1940s, Widmar began to play professional basketball in the off-season — in order to keep himself in shape. He played for the Binghamton Triplets of the Eastern Professional Basketball League (EPBL), and the Scranton Miners and Allentown / Carbondale Aces of the American Basketball League (ABL).[3][4]

In 1949, Widmar won 22 games with Baltimore.[5] A year later, he returned to the Browns as a starter. After going 11–24 in two seasons, Widmar was traded to the Chicago White Sox, along with Sherm Lollar, for Dick Littlefield, Joe DeMaestri, Gus Niarhos, and Jim Rivera.[2] Widmar finished the 1952 season with the Seattle Rainiers of the Pacific Coast League, and remained with the team through half of the 1955 season. At that point, he donned a Tulsa Oilers uniform; Widmar became the team's player/manager from 1956 through 1958.[5]

Following his playing career ended, Widmar became a successful minor league manager, spending six seasons at the helm.[5] He also was an MLB pitching coach for the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers.[1]

After the 1979 season, Widmar was named the Toronto Blue Jays’ pitching coach;[1] he kept the job for the next ten seasons. In 1985, Widmar was guiding a rotation that featured Dave Stieb, Doyle Alexander, Jim Clancy, and Jimmy Key, as the Jays won their first American League East title. After spending a year as a Blue Jays’ special assignment scout, team management promoted Widmar to special assistant to the vice president and general manager in 1991.

On October 15, 2005, Widmar died of colon cancer in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at age 80.[6]

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
• Al Widmar at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
• Al Widmar at Baseball Almanac
• Al Widmar at Baseball Library
• Al Widmar at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League)
• Bradenton Herald
• Slam ! Sports
• Ten great moments in pennant races
• Al Widmar at The Deadball Era
• Al Widmar at Find a Grave