Eddie Gaedel
Edward Carl Gaedel (June 8, 1925 – June 18, 1961) was the smallest player to appear in a Major League Baseball game.
| Eddie Gaedel | |
|---|---|
Gaedel batting in August 1951, in his only plate appearance in baseball | |
| Pinch hitter | |
| Born: June 8, 1925 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
| Died: June 18, 1961 (aged 36) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 19, 1951, for the St. Louis Browns | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 19, 1951, for the St. Louis Browns | |
| MLB statistics | |
| On-base percentage | 1.000 |
| Batting average | – |
| Plate appearances | 1 |
| Base on balls | 1 |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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Gaedel gained recognition in the second game of a St. Louis Browns doubleheader on August 19, 1951. Weighing 60 pounds (27 kg) and standing 3 feet 7 inches (109 cm) tall, he became the shortest player in the history of the Major Leagues. Gaedel made a single plate appearance and was walked with four consecutive balls before being replaced by a pinch-runner at first base. His jersey, bearing the uniform number "1⁄8", is displayed in the St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
St. Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck, in his 1962 autobiography Veeck – As in Wreck, said of Gaedel, "He was, by golly, the best darn midget who ever played big-league ball. He was also the only one."