On this day in 1921 Andy Pafko was born in Boyceville, Wisconsin, a small town northwest of Eau Claire. He was 20 years old when the Cubs purchased his contract from Green Bay of the Wisconsin State League, and made his major league debut for Chicago in 1943.
Pafko is probably best known for his time with the Cubs, as he played his first nine major league seasons there and made four All Star appearances over that time. Despite hitting just 12 home runs in 1945 he set a career high with 110 RBI as the Cubs reached the World Series, and finished fourth in the NL MVP voting.
Pafko was already on the downside of his career when he joined the Braves in their first season in Milwaukee in 1953 but still played seven more major league seasons, hitting .275/.324/.411 over 658 games. During that time he was a part of both the 1957 and 1958 World Series teams.
Pafko turns 91 today. With help from the B-Ref Play Index, we'd also like to wish a happy birthday today to:
- 1995-96 Brewer David Hulse, who turns 44.
- 1962-65 Milwaukee Brave Denny Lemaster, who turns 73.