Batting average .246 Role Baseball player Name Gene Oliver | Runs batted in 320 Home runs 93 | |
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Died March 3, 2007, Rock Island, Illinois, United States Education Alleman High School, Northwestern University | ||
Eugene George Oliver (March 22, 1935 – March 3, 2007) was an American professional baseball player. He played as a catcher and first baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1959 through 1969, Oliver played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1959, 1961–63), Milwaukee & Atlanta Braves (1963–67), Philadelphia Phillies (1967), Boston Red Sox (1968) and Chicago Cubs (1968–69). He batted and threw right-handed.
Biography
Oliver was from Moline, Illinois. He was a regular catcher for the Cardinals in 1962 and the Phillies in 1967, but most of his career he served as a back-up. Oliver had a strong arm and was good at blocking the plate. As a batter, he had some power and decent speed for a catcher.
In 1965, Oliver reached a high-career mark of 21 home runs with the Milwaukee Braves, enabling the team to set a National League record with six 20-HR hitters in one season. On June 8 of that year, Torre, Mathews, Aaron and Oliver hit 10th-inning home runs in a Braves victory over the Cubs, setting a major league record for most home runs in an extra-inning game.
The Phillies and Braves switched catchers in 1967, with Bob Uecker going to Atlanta. After the trade, Oliver suffered a severe knee injury that shortened his career.
In a 10-season career, Oliver hit .246 with 93 home runs, 320 runs batted in, 268 runs scored, 111 doubles, five triples, and 24 stolen bases in 786 games.
Oliver remained close to his former Cubs teammates and acted as Social Director for the Randy Hundley Cubs Fantasy Camp. He died shortly after the 25th camp. He died in Rock Island, Illinois and is interred at Calvary Mausoleum in Rock Island.