On this day in 1944 Ed Kirkpatrick was born in Spokane, Washington. He was still only 17 years old when the Angels signed him as an amateur free agent in 1962 and made his big league debut later that same year, becoming one of the final three players to appear in a major league game before their 18th birthday:
| Player | Position | Team | Date | Age |
| Jay Dahl | Pitcher | Astros | September 27, 1963 | 17 years, 295 days |
| Ed Kranepool | First Base | Mets | September 22, 1962 | 17 years, 318 days |
| Ed Kirkpatrick | Pinch Hitter | Angels | September 13, 1962 | 17 years, 340 days |
15 years had passed and Kirkpatrick had been an Angel, Royal, Pirate and Ranger when the Brewers acquired him (in exchange for young outfielder Gorman Thomas, who they would later reacquire) in 1977. Kirkpatrick played his final 29 major league games with the Brewers, hitting .273/.364/.325 in 29 appearances.
The Brewers released Kirkpatrick the following spring and he was done with the big leagues at age 33. At that point he had already played 16 major league seasons.
Kirkpatrick passed away in 2010 or he would have turned 68 today. With help from the B-Ref Play Index we'd also like to wish a happy birthday to 1982-83 Brewer Bob Skube, who turns 55.
Today is also the 54th anniversary of the final game of the 1958 World Series, as the Milwaukee Braves lost Game Seven and ended their bid for back-to-back championships. We covered that event in this space last year.