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Old 05-07-2007, 02:07 AM   #1
Comedian2004
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Anyone know anything about George Zeber

This has me scratching my head. No, not lice.

George Zeber played 25 games in 1977 as a backup 2B for Randolph on the Yankees. He hit .323 with 3 home runs. In 1978 he went 0-6.

He was originally drafted June 7, 1968: Drafted by the New York Yankees in the 5th round of the 1968 amateur draft.

So, I guess he spent the 1st 9 years down in the minor leagues.

So, what happen to him? He was just 27 years old in 1978, just reaching his prime. He did get a WS ring in 1977. Was he maybe sent back down to the minors and said the HELL with it, since he already had a WS ring?

Any diehard Yankee fans know the answer to this question? Did he win the lottery? Did his brother invent The Clapper and shared the wealth?

I am curious...

Larry
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Old 05-07-2007, 03:06 AM   #2
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I should be sleeping, but I went to www.paperofrecord.com. You can search every single Sporting News. It is AWESOME. Do not go there unless you have some spare time or want to stay up until 2am. You will get hooked.

Anyhow, I searched for Mr. Zeber and found 14 pages that he was mentioned in. Here is the stuff I found on him.

It is easy to get side tracked on this site while reading the articles!

Anyhow, I never found the answer, but it looks like he was out of baseball after that. I searched through 1988 and he was not even mentioned in the minor league batting records after that year.

4-22-1978 - Roy Staiger and George Zeber are among the infield prospects while Dell Alston and Darryle Jones are two standout outfielders. (Article on The Pacific Coast League)
4-22-1978 - Yankees - Optioned catcher Jerry Narron, pitcher Jim Beattie to Tacoma; sent George Zeber to minor league base for reassignment. (Pro transactions)
5-20-1978 - Tacoma - Activated third baseman George Zeber (from minor deals)
5-20-1978 - Mentioned in a game wrapup that he had 3 safeties for the Yankees. (what the hell is a saftie in baseball?) Also on same page it mentions in another game that the 1st three batters, Zeber, Dell Alston and Darryl Jones all had the same statistical line in the box score - six at bats, two runs, three hits and one RBI.
5-27-1978 - Batting records show him with 59 at bats, 15 hits, 1 HR and 7 rbis. .254 average. He is also mentioned in 3 game wrap ups for hitting a HR.
6-3-1978 - Batting records show him hitting .290 with 3 home runs in 69 at bats. Position is listed as 3B-DH
6-3-1978 - Yankees: Assigned infielder Brian Doyle to Tacoma, acquired infielder George Zeber from same club. (from pro transactions) The call up!
6-17-1978 - In an article entitled "Dandy Andy sends Yankees Dancing", it mentions that George and his Wife Duskie had their 1st child, Ryan, seven pounds and 10 ounces.
7-1-1978 - Article entitled 'Yankees Shoot for Moon, Bring Down Two Satellites", it mentions that Doyle was called up and Zeber was sent back down to the PCL club. Also this: The Yanks almost had the weirdest infield ever in the game with Seattle, June 14th. Paul Blair played the last inning at third, Graig Nettles at short when Jim Spencer batted for George Zeber in the 10th. Manager Billy Martin was left without a second baseman. If there had been an 11th, Thurman Munson would have gone to second base, but Blair hit a three run HR to win the game and save Munson from making his major league debut at scond. He played there at Syracuse in 1968. BTW, the article was about how they had tried to get Carew, but failed and got Gary Thomasson and Jay Johnstone instead.
8-12-1978 - Batting records show him hitting .265 with 3 home runs in 181 at bats for Tacoma. 2B
8-26-1978 - Batting records show him hitting .237 with 3 home runs in 224 at bats for Tacoma. 2B - On same page they have big article about Jerry Tabb, enjoying his job, terrorizing the league with a .368 average.
12-23-1978 - Article shows that George Earned $500 because the Yankees won the World Series. The starters on the team got around $31,000 each. On same page, a writer named Jack Lang said 'George Foster may be regarded as Cincinnati's greatest home run hitter ever.
8-23-1982 - Mentioned in a question to writer John Duxbury that was: In the early 70's, West Haven of the Eastern League had a powerhouse team managed by Bobby Cox. What members made it to the pros. Answer was: Tom Buskey, Larry Gowell, George Medich, Dave Cheadle, Jim Deidel, Tony Solaita, George Zeber, Otto Velez, Charlie Spikes and Wayne Nordhagen.
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Last edited by Comedian2004; 05-07-2007 at 03:08 AM. Reason: formatting
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Old 05-07-2007, 02:35 PM   #3
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You are right it is addictive. Had a few minutes this morning and ended spending an hour and half looking at Zeber's early career. Some notes:

Zeber was a 5th round pick in 1968. The June 22nd issue of The Sporting News has all the draftees that year. The Yanks took Thurman Munson in the first round. Other major leaguers NYY drafted after Zeber included Wayne Nordhagen in the 7th and Duane Kuiper in the 12th. Otherwise looked like a pretty slim draft for the Yankees.

A December 14, 1968 article discusses the Yanks lack of success in the free agent draft. Munson is, of course, praised as a top prospect while Zeber, Ken Johnson and Steve Kogut are all rated as having a chance at the majors. (Neither Johnson or Kogut would ever get there).

April 1969. I notice Zeber goes 0-for-2 with an error in a 6-1 preseason loss to the expansion Expos.

May 1969 - playing at Class A Kinston of the Carolina League, Zeber is batting .333 after 27 games which places him 9th in the league at that point.

Oct 1969 - brief mention of Zeber in a story on Yankees top prospects. "highly rated as an infield prospect and will draw a lot of attention at Clearwater. He made the All-Star team in the Carolina League, where he hit .244 as a switch-hitter. George is only 19 and limited in experience.

Jan 1970 - Despite his youth Zeber is given a slim chance on catching on with the Yanks this year as a reserve. He will be battling vets Bobby Cox, Len Boehmer and Ozzie Chavarria along with fellow rookies Frank Baker and Mario Guerrero.

Feb 1970 - Zeber is listed on the Yankees 40 man roster. Stats at Kinston last season were .244,3,39 in 132 games.

Mar 14, 1970 - Article about the shortage of middle infielders in New York. Gene Michael and Horace Clark are the current doubleplay duo but there is no one ready to replace them at the moment. However, coming up fast are promising rookies Baker, Zeber, Guerrero and Fred Frazier.

Mar 1970 - couple of spring boxscores I notice. Zeber goes 1-for-3 in a 7-6 loss to Washington March 5th and 0-for-3 with an error in a 4-1 loss to the Royals the next day. He plays second base in both games. On March 7th he is 0-for-1 in a 5-1 loss to Baltimore.

August 1970 - I learn Zeber is now on a two-year military duty. Not sure if he left before the season started because there is no more mention of him after the March 7th game.

April 1971- Brief mention that Zeber will make a bid for an infield job in 1972 after military service. Fred Frazier, who followed up Zeber by making the Carolina League all-star team as a second baseman last year will also challenge for a job.

August 1971- Zeber will soon be returning from the army and will play somewhere the final month of the season as well as winter league ball. The Yanks are high on Fred Frazier as the second baseman of the future so Zuber will likely learn to play third.

December 1971- Zeber is in the Florida Instructional League and playing second base. The 21 year old figures to challenge along with 20 year Fred Frazier for the starting job in New York. However, incumbant Horace Clark feels the job is still his.

February 1972 article headline : Yanks have a problem: Their Infield is a Sieve. Nothing new on Zeber in the article other than projected depth chart at second base goes Clarke, Frazier with our man George number 3.

February 1972 - During the Yankee Caravan skipper Ralph Houk publicly invited Yank kids to push veterans out of jobs. Zeber is an unknown quantity due to his military service. Frazier is just 20 but with a year of AAA under his belt seems to have the edge. Frazier is a master of turning the doubleplay but commits a lot of errors because he tries to do everything too fast. He was rather erratic at Syracuse last year but could mature quickly.

A brief mention of Zeber the following week but I get sidetracked reading about the Braves uniforms having gone 'Mod'

March 1972 - brief mention of Zeber and Frazier along with Mario Guerrero in the mix for second base job but the Yanks have also acquired middle infielders Rich McKinney, Hal Lanier and Bernie Allen via deals. Projection now has Gene Michael and Jerry Kenney fighting it out for SS while Horace Clarke faces a challenge from Lanier and Frazier. Apparently thoughts of Zeber playing third are dead.

March 1972 - Zeber goes 1-for-1 as a pinch-hitter in a 1-0 loss to the White Sox on March 5th. Clarke plays second and goes 0-for-3. A day off for Zeber the next day as Minnesota hammers the Yanks 10-1. Frazier and Allen play second and each are 0-for-2.

Mar 11 Frazier goes 1-for-3 with a run as the leadoff man in a 2-1 win over Baltimore. Frazier also commits an error. The next day the Yanks beat Baltimore 4-1 as Clarke is 2-for-4 at second base. March 14th Clarke plays second and is 0-for-4 in a 5-4 loss to Montreal. Frazier and Clarke continue to alternate at second with no mention of Zeber.

April 1972 - Found out why. I see that Zeber and Mario Guerrero along with outfielder Charlie Spikes were assigned to Yanks minor league base.

May 1972 - Zeber is at West Haven of the Eastern League. After 13 games he is in the top 10 with a .326 average including 2 homers and 5 rbi's. A Reds prospect by the name of Ken Griffey his hitting .396. I also see that Bob Forsch tossed a 7 inning no-hitter as Arkansas beat Memphis in a Texas League game.

June 1972 - Zeber is still at West Haven but has fallen off the batting leaderboard. Interesting note from Elmira. Jan and Jim Kern team up to provide the organ music. Jan plays the organ while her husband Jim turns the sheets of misic. Jim is 1-3 with a 3.86 era for the last place Elmira squad while Jan enjoys playing the organ now that she is over her initial nervousness. Jan has no plans to play in the majors. "If there is going to be a Kern in the majors let it be Jim."

July 1972 - Bonehead Zeber. In the first inning against Three Rivers Zeber singled and raced home on a double by Charlie Spikes. However, he missed tagging third base and is ruled out on the appeal. West Haven skipper Bobby Cox credits Three Rivers left fielder Jim Bottoms for an alert play. West Haven has a 1/2 game lead on Pittsfield atop the American Division.

July 1972 - Zeber is hot. He has crept back onto the leaderboard of the Eastern League. Hitting .272 with 7 homers and 20 rbi's in 60 games.

September 1972- West Haven beats Three Rivers in the Eastern League playoff series 5 games to three. Bobby Cox is the manager and Zeber's teammates include Charlie Spikes, Tony Solaita and George Medich, a pitcher fresh out of medical school.

December 1972 - Word from New York is that Horace Clarke will again face a challenge from Zeber and Fred Frazier for his second base job. Clarke has led American League second basemen in assists 6 straight years, one shy of Charlie Gehringer's record.

January 1973 - Otto Velez is another young infielder the Yanks are high on. Velez hit .249 with 13 homers at West Haven.

February 1973 - Skipper Ralph Houk has a good idea who is 25 man roster will be and it will take a real spring surprise for any of youngsters Fred Frazier, Frank Baker, George Zeber, Otto Velez or Ken Bennett to make the squad.

March 8, 1973 Zeber is a defensive replacement for Horace Clarke in a 7-2 loss to Boston but does not get an at bat.

March 9, 1973- Zeber is 0-for-2 with a run in an 11-4 win over Minnesota. Frazier starts at second and is 1-for-3 with a solo homer before giving way to Zeber.

May 1973 - Next mention of George comes in May when he hits a 9th inning sac fly to help AAA Syracuse beat Pennisula 7-6. Syracuse roster includes Manager Bobby Cox, pitcher Tom Buskey, catcher Rick Dempsey, infielder Fred Stanley and outfielders Wayne Nordhagen and Otto Velez. Zeber is there of course, but no mention of his rival Fred Frazier...wonder what happened to him?

Mid May 1973 - quite a start Georgie boy. Batting .096 for Syracuse (5-for-52 with 1 homer and 6 rbi's.) Do you think West Haven is calling? The next week he is up to .121 after going 3-for-14.

By July he is hitting .159 with 3 homers and 21 rbi's. Syracuse is second in the American Division, 3 games back of Rochester.

He finishes the season with a .171 averahe (36-for-211) with 3 homers and 23 rbi's. Rochester wins the division thanks to league batting champ Juan Beniquez, Syracuse is 3 games back.

1974 Another terrible season at the plate in Syracuse batting .157 with 2 homers and 8 rbi's in 108 at bats. He also spent some time at West Haven this season as there is mention of him hitting a homerun in a 2-0 win over Bristol.



This is what I figure his minor league career was like?


Code:
YEAR	TEAM	LEV	GP   HR	RBI  AVG
1970 Kinston	A	132   3  39  .244
1971 military service
1972 West Haven AA	118   8  27  .268
1973 Syracuse   AAA           3  23  .171
1974 Syracuse   AAA           2   8  .157
1974 West Haven AA

Reading about him has got me really wondering about Fred Frazier. He never made the majors and just seems to have dissappeared from the Yankees organization in the spring of 1973. I guess his fielding never did get good enough.
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Old 05-07-2007, 03:43 PM   #4
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Very interesting!
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Old 05-07-2007, 04:41 PM   #5
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Yeah, thanks for adding to the Zerber story. I started my search in 1977, since that was when he started in the MLB.

That site rocks and you can go all the way back to the start of the decade. A little hard to read some of the text on those though. I found where Babe Ruth was traded to NY. According to the article I found, the Babe wanted more money and said he was going to sit out unless they paid him more.

The photo hunters can get some old black and white photos from this site as well.

I love the little tidbits you find, like the Kern thing, or predictions on players or stuff like that. That site almost needs a thread here.
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Old 05-07-2007, 08:23 PM   #6
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You have to love the advertisements in the paper also:

From April 1954:

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Old 05-07-2007, 08:26 PM   #7
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On e-bay, I found the 1954 Mickey Mantle for 266 bucks.

But I also found the 1954 Bowman Complete Set ex-mint++ WOW!! for $209.52
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Old 05-08-2007, 12:09 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Comedian2004 View Post
5-20-1978 - Mentioned in a game wrapup that he had 3 safeties for the Yankees. (what the hell is a saftie in baseball?)
Safety squeeze? That'd be my guess...
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Old 05-08-2007, 12:19 AM   #9
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Safety was another word for hit, I do believe.
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