Batting average .203 Role Baseball Coach Name Al Lakeman | Runs batted in 66 Home runs 15 | |
 | ||
Died May 25, 1976, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States | ||
Albert Wesley Lakeman (December 31, 1918 – May 25, 1976) was a catcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds (1942–47), Philadelphia Phillies (1947–48), Boston Braves (1949) and Detroit Tigers (1954). Lakeman batted and threw right-handed, and was listed as 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and 195 pounds (88 kg). Nicknamed "Moose", he was a native of Cincinnati.
The light-hitting Lakeman was a fine defensive catcher as he took responsibility for getting the most out of his pitchers. For most of his nine-career in the Majors, he was an efficient, reliable backup playing behind Ray Mueller (Reds) and Andy Seminick (Phillies). His most productive season came in 1945 with Cincinnati, when he posted career-highs in games played (76, including 72 games as starting backstop as the Reds' most-used catcher), batting average (.256), home runs (eight), RBI (31) and runs (22).
In a nine-season career, Lakeman was a .203 hitter with 15 home runs and 66 RBI in 239 games. After his playing career ended, he managed in the Tigers' farm system (1956–62; 1965–66; 1970) and served two terms as the bullpen coach at the Major League level for the Boston Red Sox (1963–64; 1967–69). He was on the coaching staff of Boston's 1967 American League champions.
Lakeman died in Spartanburg, South Carolina, at age 57.