- Gil Coan
Gilbert Fitzgerald Coan (born
May 18 , 1922 inMonroe, North Carolina ) is a formeroutfielder inMajor League , playing mainly as aleft fielder for four different teams between the by|1946 and by|1955 seasons. Listed at 6' 0", 180 lb., he battedleft-handed and threwright-handed .In 1945, Coan was honored by "
The Sporting News " as the "Minor League Player of the Year" while playing for theChattanooga Lookouts of theSouthern Association . He entered the majors in 1946 with the Washington Senators, playing for them eight years before joining theBaltimore Orioles (1954-1955 ["start"] ),Chicago White Sox (1955 ["mid"] ) and New York Giants (1955 ["end"] ). Basically a line-drive hitter and speedy outfielder, he averaged 12stolen base s from 1948-52, with a career-high 23 in 1948 (2nd inAmerican League ).In 1947, Coan hit 21 hits in 42
at bat s for a .500batting average to collect the highest BA for any player who had 30 or more at-bats in a major league season, setting a record that was matched byRudy Pemberton in 1996 with a .512 BA (21-for-41). His most productive season came in 1951, when he posted career-numbers inhome run s (9),runs batted in (62), runs (85) andgames played (135) while hitting .303 (9th in AL), equaling a personal mark he set a year before. He also tied a major league record hitting two triples in a same inning (April 21, 1951). The record is shared with four others.In a 11-season career, Coan was a .254 hitter (731-for-2877) with 39 home runs and 278 RBI in 918 games, including 384 runs, 98 doubles, 44 triples, 83 stolen bases, and a .316
on-base percentage .Following his majors career Coan entered the insurance business. Since 1962 the Brevard Insurance Agency was owned and operated by Coan, and after his retirement in 1986, his son and grandson continue to run the agency.
External links
* [http://www.baseballlibrary.com/ballplayers/player.php?name=Gil_Coan_1922 Baseball Library]
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/c/coangi01.shtml Baseball Reference]
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Gil_Coan BR Bullpen]
* [http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/C/Pcoang101.htm Retrosheet]
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