Bob Finley
| Bob Finley | |||
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| Catcher | |||
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Born: November 25, 1915 Ennis, Texas |
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Died: January 2, 1986 (aged 70) West Covina, California |
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| MLB debut | |||
| July 4, 1943, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| October 1, 1944, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .251 | ||
| Home runs | 2 | ||
| Runs batted in | 28 | ||
| Teams | |||
Robert Edward Finley (November 25, 1915 – January 2, 1986) was an SMU back drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers and a Major League Baseball catcher who played for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1943 and 1944. He was a native of Ennis, Texas. He and Charlie Hudson are the only two Ennis-natives to appear in Major League Baseball.
Finley played both baseball and football at Southern Methodist University from which he graduated in 1937. He was a member of the SMU 1935 national champions and 1936 Rose Bowl team. At SMU, Finley is most famous for his play on November 30, 1935 in which No. 1 SMU played No. 2 TCU and Sammy Baugh in Ft. Worth. SMU scored the first 14 points of the game. But TCU came back and with the Horned Frogs leading late, 14–13, the Mustangs had fourth-and-four at the TCU 37. Out of punt formation, Finley threw a 37-yard touchdown to Bobby Wilson. SMU won, 20–14, and went to the Rose Bowl.
He was the varsity baseball coach at SMU from 1965 to 1976.
Finley was also a football official who worked in the Southwest Conference. He officiated professional football as an umpire and as a referee, one of nine on-field officials to serve in the American Football League (AFL) for its entire ten-year existence, 1960 through 1969. He also was a referee in the National Football League in 1970, the first season following the AFL–NFL merger. Finley retired following the 1970 season; his last game was a Pittsburgh Steelers–Philadelphia Eagles matchup at Franklin Field December 20.
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