Jim Russell (baseball)

Russell was born in Fayette City, Pennsylvania, on October 1, 1918, the son of James Walch "Doc" Russell and Lillian Johnson. Russell never finished high school, but instead went out to work mines to bolster his family's financial situation. Jim played baseball with rocks (for balls) and tree limbs (for bats) in alleyways when he was a youngster. As a youth, he contracted rheumatic fever twice; his baseball career would be shortened because of his rheumatic heart disease.

Russell, a switch hitter who threw right-handed, stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 181 pounds (82 kg) After beginning his minor league career in 1937, his contract was bought by the Pittsburgh Pirates in September 1942. In 1944, Russell led the Pirates in hitting with a .312 batting average and 181 total hits, and hit the first pinch-hit home run in Pirates history on August 20.

Russell was traded in November 1947 to the Boston Braves in a five-player transaction that included Danny Murtaugh, Johnny Hopp and Bill Salkeld. He was the pennant-winning Braves' regular center fielder in 1948, starting 80 of Boston's 98 games played through early August. But then he was stricken with bacterial endocarditis brought on by the rheumatic fever he had as a child. It cost him the rest of the season and a chance to play in the 1948 World Series.

He was able to play again for the Braves in 1949, but the heart problem slowly degraded his ability, as he had a .231 batting average. In 1952 and 1953, he returned to the minor leagues.

As a big-leaguer, Russell appeared in 1,035 games played over his ten-season career and batted .267 with 428 RBI. His 959 hits included 175 doubles, 51 triples and 67 home runs. Defensively, he recorded a .981 fielding percentage.

From 1954 until 1965, he scouted for the Dodgers and Senators.

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or Baseball-Reference, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Jim Russell at Find a Grave