Don Demeter

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Donald Lee (Don) Demeter (born June 25, 1935 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1956), Los Angeles Dodgers (1958-1961), Philadelphia Phillies (1961-1963), Detroit Tigers (1964-1966), Boston Red Sox (1966-1967) and Cleveland Indians (1967). He batted and threw right-handed.

In an eleven-season career, Demeter posted a .265 batting average with 163 home runs and 563 RBI in 1109 games played.

Demeter's best season came in 1962 when he posted a .307 average with 29 home runs, 107 RBI, 85 runs, 169 hits, 24 doubles, and a .520 slugging percentage - all career-highs.

The book Carl Erskine's Tales from the Dodgers Dugout: Extra Innings (2004) includes short stories from former Dodger pitcher Carl Erskine. Demeter is prominent in many of these stories.

According to Baseball Digest, He is the only player to field an apple. In one game the fans booed him, and one threw an apple that landed near his feet. He picked it up, and took a bite out of it; the booing stopped.

[edit] See also

• Top 500 home run hitters of all time
• Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game

[edit] Sources

• Baseball Almanac
• Baseball Library
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference

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