Mike Schemer

Michael Schemer (November 20, 1917 – April 22, 1983), nicknamed "Lefty", was an American professional baseball player whose eight-year (1940–1942; 1944–1948) career included 32 games played in Major League Baseball for the 1945–1946 New York Giants. A first baseman and native of Baltimore, Maryland, he stood 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) and weighed 180 pounds (82 kg). Schemer served in the United States Army during World War II.^[1]

Baseball career

Prior to his professional career, Mike played as an amateur on the United States team assembled by international baseball proponent Leslie Mann in the inaugural Amateur World Series held in England in 1938.

All but one of his Major League appearances occurred during the 1945 season. Called up from the Jersey City Giants of the International League, Schemer made his MLB debut on August 8, 1945, against the St. Louis Cardinals at the Polo Grounds and notched two singles in four at bats against Cardinals' left-hander George Dockins.^[2] He hit well for the Giants in his rookie season. In 31 games he had a batting average of .333 (36-for-108) with one home run, 10 runs batted in, 10 runs scored, and a slugging percentage of .407. Defensively, he made two errors in 27 appearances at first base and had a fielding percentage of .993. He hit his only MLB home run on August 20, a three-run blast against Hank Wyse, the 20-game-winner from the Chicago Cubs.^[3]

However, with the return of Giants' slugger Johnny Mize from military service in 1946, Schemer would get into only one more game for New York. On April 24, 1946 he went 0-for-1 as a pinch-hitter, bringing his lifetime average down to .330.

Schemer married Florida native Gloria Lowe. The had three children: Nancy, Michael, and Sophie Schemer.

Schemer died at the age of 65 in Miami, Florida.

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Retrosheet