Jerry Zimmerman | |||
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Catcher | |||
Born: Omaha, Nebraska |
September 21, 1934|||
Died: September 9, 1998 Neskowin, Oregon |
(aged 63)|||
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MLB debut | |||
April 14, 1961, for the Cincinnati Reds | |||
Last MLB appearance | |||
September 22, 1968, for the Minnesota Twins | |||
MLB statistics | |||
Batting average | .204 | ||
Home runs | 3 | ||
Runs batted in | 72 | ||
Teams | |||
Career highlights and awards | |||
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Gerald Robert Zimmerman (September 21, 1934 – September 9, 1998) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played all or part of eight seasons in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Reds and the Minnesota Twins from 1961 to 1968, primarily as a catcher. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, he attended Milwaukie High School in Oregon.
Zimmerman began his professional baseball career when he was signed by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent in 1952. He had played for the Minneapolis Millers, Boston's Triple-A farm club, where his manager was Gene Mauch. After spending seven years in the minor leagues, he was released by the Red Sox on July 16, 1959 and was picked up by the Baltimore Orioles on the same day. Two months later, on September 25, the Orioles released him, and he was picked up by the Cincinnati Reds, then known as the Redlegs.
Zimmerman finally got his big break during the 1961 season, when the Reds traded away catcher Ed Bailey and Zimmerman was called up to the majors. He was the Reds' starting catcher during their pennant-winning season of 1961, and although he only had a batting average of .206, he still led the team's catchers, with Johnny Edwards hitting .186 and Bob Schmidt hitting .129. In the 1961 World Series, Zimmerman appeared in two games as a late-inning defensive substitution and had no at bats, as the Reds lost to the New York Yankees, four games to one.