Conger, Dick

Richard Conger

Conger (whose mother was Jewish) played in the early 1940s for the Detroit Tigers, the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Philadelphia Phillies. Though he had a career mark of three wins and seven losses in the 20 games in which he appeared, Dick compiled superb ERAs for the first three of his four seasons.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. April 3, 1921 - d. February 16, 1979

Career Highlights:
Born in Los Angeles to a Russian Jewish immigrant mother, Conger attended UCLA for one year before beginning his professional baseball career. Signed by the Detroit Tigers prior to the 1940 season, he made his major league debut on April 22, 1940.
Against the Chicago White Sox, Conger entered in the eighth inning as a relief pitcher and ended up securing his first victory by lasting through the 11th in a 6-5 Tiger win. He appeared in one more game that year, but the spent the rest of the season in the minors. One of his teammates was the great Hank Greenberg.
Traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates the following season, Conger yielded no earned runs in four innings, so his ERA was a perfect 0.00. The next year, also with the Pirates, his ERA was a sparkling 2.16. His final season in the majors was 1943, when he played for the Philadelphia Phillies and went 2-7 in 13 games (10 starts).
After his major league career, Dick served in the U.S. Army during World War II. Following the war, he returned to play baseball in the minors and remained in baseball until 1950. He later became a scout for the Dodgers organization.

Career Dates:
Conger played with the Detroit Tigers in 1940, the Pittsburgh Pirates, 1941-42, and the Philadelphia Phillies, 1943.

Position:
Pitcher

Physical description:
6'0", 185 pounds
Right-handed

Career Statistics:
Wins: 3
Losses: 7
Winning pct.: .300

ERA: 5.14

Games: 19
Games Started: 12
Complete Games: 2

Innings Pitched: 70
Hits Allowed: 86
Bases-on-Balls: 35
Strike Outs: 24

Shut-outs: 0

Relief Pitching
Wins: 1
Losses: 0
Saves: 0

Batting
At-bats: 19
Hits: 1
Home Runs: 0
Batting Average: .053

Fielding Statistics
Put-outs: 1
Assists: 17
Errors: 2
Double Plays: 0

Total Chances per Game: 1.1
Fielding avg: .900

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References:
encyclopedia of JEWS in sports, by Bernard Postal, Jesse Silver, and Roy Silver (New York: Bloch Publishing Co., 1965)
The Big Book of Jewish Baseball: An Illustrated Encyclopedia and Anecdotal History, by Peter S. Horvitz and Joachim Horvitz (New York: S.P.I. Books, 2001)