Pip Koehler

Horace Levering Koehler

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 165 lb.
• School Pennsylvania State University
• Debut April 22, 1925
• Final Game September 12, 1925
• Born January 16, 1902 in Gilbert, PA USA
• Died December 8, 1986 in Tacoma, WA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Horace Levering "Pip" Koehler went to Pennsylvania State University, where he played under manager Hugo Bezdek, who had managed the Pittsburgh Pirates. He also played basketball. He then taught high school physical education for a couple of years in Wilkes-Barre, PA and played semi-pro ball. He made it to the bigs with the New York Giants in 1925 on the strength of a good spring training. After one appearance, he was sent to the Reading Keystones of the International League but came back to the majors in mid-August. He made 11 more appearances, 9 of them as a pinch-runner.

After the season, he was sent by the Giants to the Toledo Mud Hens to complete a deal by which they had obtained Earl Webb earlier in the season. He played 8 years in the American Association, and also played and coached professional basketball. In spite of spending the bulk of his brief major league career as a pinch-runner, he was not a great base stealer. His career-high was 20, in 1926, against 13 caught stealing. He was mainly an outfielder, although he also played some infield, mainly at third base. He played baseball through 1942.

As a minor league manager, he managed 9 seasons, some as a player-manager. That's how he came to manage a club in Tacoma, WA, where he would later settle. After being fired as a minor league manager by the Cincinnati Reds' organization in 1948, he worked as a scout in the Pacific Northwest, then as an employee of the Knights of Columbus. In 1963, former teammate Rosy Ryan, who was now general manager of the Tacoma Giants of the Pacific Coast League, hired him as the team's business manager, a position he occupied for a decade. He died of a heart attack in 1986 and was laid to rest in Calvary Cemetery in Tacoma.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs	Notes
1935	Portsmouth (VA) Truckers	Piedmont League	67-72	5th	Atlanta Crackers
1936	Portsmouth Cubs	Piedmont League	66-77	5th	Chicago Cubs
1938	Akron Yankees	Middle Atlantic League	66-62	4th	New York Yankees	Lost League Finals
1939	Akron Yankees	Middle Atlantic League	69-61	3rd	New York Yankees	Lost in 1st round
1940	Akron Yankees	Middle Atlantic League	73-54	1st	New York Yankees	League Champs
1941	Tacoma Tigers	Western International League	58-76	5th	none
1942	Tacoma Tigers	Western International League	77-64	2nd	none	none
1947	Ogden Reds	Pioneer League	77-61	3rd	Cincinnati Reds
1948	Ogden Reds	Pioneer League	29-40	--	Cincinnati Reds	--	replaced by Bobby Mattick (32-25) July 18

Further Reading

• Clifford Blau: "Leg Men: Career Pinch-Runners in Major League Baseball", in The Baseball Research Journal, SABR, Volume 38, Number 1 (Summer 2009), pp. 70-81.