Frank Saucier

Infobox MLB retired
bgcolor1=#2a1301
bgcolor2=#fa5905
textcolor1=white
textcolor2=white
name=Frank Saucier
position=Outfielder
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=May 28 1926
debutdate=July 21
debutyear=by|1951
debutteam=St. Louis Browns
finaldate=September 23
finalyear=by|1951
finalteam=St. Louis Browns
stat1label=AVG
stat1value=.071
stat2label=HR
stat2value=0
stat3label=RBI
stat3value=1
teams=
*St. Louis Browns (by|1951)
highlights=
*Named Minor League Player of the Year for the San Antonio Missions, 1950

Frank Saucier (May 28, 1926 in Leslie, Missouri) played two months of the 1951 baseball season for the St. Louis Browns. Although he had a spectactular minor league career, he is perhaps best known for being replaced by the shortest player in baseball history, Eddie Gaedel, who pinch-hit for him in a stunt devised by Browns' owner Bill Veeck in by|1951, Saucier's only season in the big leagues. Joyner, R., "Frank Saucier", "Sports Collectors Digest", Krause Publications, March 30, 2007.]

In his brief (18-game) Major League career, Saucier had one hit in 14 at bats, giving him a .071 batting average. Saucier also had three walks, scored four runs, and had one RBI [http://www.baseball-reference.com/s/saucifr01.shtml Baseball-Reference.com: Frank Saucier] ] . He was much more prolific in the minor leagues, however, hitting .348 in by|1948, his first pro season, at Belleville in the Illinois State League, and followed that with a .446 average at Wichita Falls in by|1949, which led all of professional baseball. This attracted the attention of Veeck, who signed him in July, 1951, paying him a substantial bonus to return to baseball.

In 1950 in baseball, Frank batted .343 for the San Antonio Missions in the (Texas League-batting champion) and was named the "Sporting News" Minor League Player of the Year for that season. An injury in 1951 and two years in the U.S. Navy-Lt. during the Korean War (in addition to 38 months in World War II) short-circuited his playing time, and he never played in the majors again. Professional baseball was his "stepping stone" to Texas.

Saucier graduated from Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri with a degree in math and physics; the baseball field there is named after him. [ http://www.westminster-mo.edu/athletics/mens_sports/baseball/facts.html Westminster College Baseball information] Ironically, the site is named Frank Saucier Field; his full name is Francis Field Saucier.

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References