Ed Wolfe

Edward Anthony Wolfe

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 185 lb.
• School Fullerton College, San Diego State College
• Debut April 19, 1952
• Final Game April 25, 1952
• Born January 2, 1929 in Los Angeles, CA USA
• Died March 8, 2009 in Modesto, CA USA

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Biographical Information

Right-hander Ed Wolfe was signed as an amateur free agent before the 1949 season by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Ed was assigned to the Bartlesville Pirates of the class D Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League, where he went 9-4 in 16 games and finished up his first season with the Modesto Reds of the class C California League with a 2-2 record in 12 games, giving him a combined season of 11-6 with a 5.01 ERA.

Ed was back with Bartlesville in 1950 where he produced a fine 15-8 record with a 2.98 ERA while pitching 193 innings. This showing got Wolfe a shot with the 1951 Charleston Rebels of the class A South Atlantic League where he put together a 11-10 record and a 3.10 ERA in 186 innings.

It is said if you keep pitching and keep winning you will get your chance at the major leagues, which is just what Ed did and he made his debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 9, 1952, appearing in just three games with no decisions. This was it for Ed in the Show and he finished out the season with the New Orleans Pelicans of the Southern Association at 15-13 with a 4.85 ERA.

Ed was back with New Orleans in 1953 and was bothered by arm problems; he appeared in only eight games, going 2-2. Wolfe got squared away in 1954 and had a workmanlike season, going 4-6 for the New Orleans club, and finished up the year with the Hollywood Stars of the Pacific Coast League at 7-4 giving him a combined 11-10 record with a 3.80 ERA for the year.

Dark clouds loomed on the horizon and Wolfe talked about his major league debut and exit from professional baseball three years later. "Being from the West Coast, I pitched in the first big league game I ever saw. I was called in from the bullpen against the St. Louis Cardinals on Opening Day, and the first batter I faced was Stan Musial. I walked him. In 1955 the Pirates wanted to send me to the Mexican League. I was young and stubborn and refused to go and quit baseball."

Wolfe had spent seven seasons in the minors, winding up with a very creditable 65-49 record, with a 3.66 ERA while appearing in 167 games. After baseball Wolfe returned to California and was a sales representative for Colgate-Palmolive. Ed was retired in Modesto, CA, when he died on March 8, 2009, at 80 years of age.

Sources

Baseball Players of the 1950s
Photo through the courtesy of John Hall, KOM League Historian.

Related Sites

• BR Minors page