Tommy Heath (baseball)

Thomas George Heath (August 3, 1913 – February 26, 1967) was an American catcher and scout in Major League Baseball and a manager in minor league baseball. He played in parts of three seasons in the Majors between 1935 and 1938, all for the St. Louis Browns. Heath stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg) during his playing days.

Heath's Major League career was spent with the Browns (1935; 1937–38), where he played 134 total games, compiling a batting average of .230 in 330 at bats with three home runs and 34 runs batted in. He was somewhat better known for his 18-year career as a minor league manager (1947–1964), where he principally worked in the New York Giants and |Los Angeles Angels farm systems, and in between piloted four Pacific Coast League clubs between 1952 and 1961. As manager of the Giants' Minneapolis Millers Triple-A affiliate (1949–1951), he sent players such as Willie Mays and Hoyt Wilhelm — both members of the Baseball Hall of Fame — to the majors. In 1948, he managed the Trenton Giants to the Interstate League championship, the only title he won during his managerial career.

Heath served as a scout for the Angels after his managing career ended. He died at age 53 in Los Gatos, California.

External links

• Managing record, from BR Bullpen

Sources

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference