George Gibson was born in London, Ontario on July 22, 1880. He played
amateur baseball locally, and semi-professionally before leaving London
to play professionally.
Late in 1903 he joined the Buffalo Bisons of
the Eastern League, and in 1904 he was sold to Montreal. He started
1905 in Montreal before having his contract purchased by the National
League’s Pittsburgh Pirates.
Gibson made his major league debut on July 2, 1905 in Cincinatti. He
remained with the Pirates until being claimed on waivers by the New York
Giants in the Summer of 1916.
His playing days would end 2 years later;
his last game having been played August 20, 1918.
By far, his greatest year was 1909. That year, he set career highs in
hits (135), doubles (25), triples (9), RBIs (52) and stolen bases (9).
He also caught 150 games (140 straight), helping the Pirates to a 110-42
record on the way to winning the World Series (over Ty Cobb’s Detroit
Tigers).
By no means an offensive standout, Gibson was known for his
defense and durability. In 1194 games (catching), he posted a 0.977
career fielding percentage, 5214 putouts and 1386 assists.
George Gibson spent 1919 managing the Toronto Maple Leafs of the
International League before returning to Pittsburg(h) to manage the
Pirates from 1920 to 1922. He then worked as a coach for the Washington
Senators (1923), and a coach (and then manager, briefly) of the Chicago
Cubs in 1925.
In 1932 he returned for his second stint as the Pirates’
manager.
In June, 1934 he was replaced by Pie Traynor.
George Gibson returned to his farm in London, but remained active in
baseball. He spent some time serving as Vice President of the Pirates’
farm club in London, and was heavily involved in local amateur baseball.
George Gibson passed away on January 25, 1967. In 1987, George Gibson was
elected, posthumously, into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St.
Mary’s, Ontario.
George Gibson's career statistics can be found over at Baseball-Reference.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment