Newell W. Kimball (March 27, 1915 - March 22, 2001) was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 right-handed pitcher

Pitcher

In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

 in Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

.

Born in Logan, Utah

Logan, Utah

-Layout of the City:Logan's city grid originates from its Main and Center Street block, with Main Street running north and south, and Center east and west. Each block north, east, south, or west of the origin accumulates in additions of 100 , though some streets have non-numeric names...

, Kimball was signed by the Chicago Cubs

Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...

 in 1934, winning twenty games for their Class C Ponca City, Oklahoma

Ponca City, Oklahoma

Ponca City is a small city in Kay and Osage counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, which was named after the Ponca Tribe. Located in north central Oklahoma, it lies approximately south of the Kansas border, and approximately east of Interstate 35. 25,919 people called Ponca City home at the...

 affiliate as a nineteen-year-old. He worked his way up the Cubs chain, eventually being called up late in both the 1937 and 1938 seasons, before Chicago returned him to the minors in 1939. In 1940, the Cubs dealt Kimball to the Brooklyn Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...

, who used him mainly in relief through 1943. He would appear in two games for the St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 in 1940 and a partial season for the 1943 Philadelphia Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

 before heading back to the Pacific Coast League

Pacific Coast League

The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...

.

After three seasons with the PCL Hollywood Stars

Hollywood Stars

The Hollywood Stars were a minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early and mid 20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels.-Hollywood Stars :...

, Kimball was hired by the Boston Braves in 1947 to manage their new Class D club, the Las Vegas Wranglers

Las Vegas Wranglers

The Las Vegas Wranglers are a professional ice hockey team based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Wranglers are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the ECHL...

. The club finished third in the six-team Sunset League

Sunset League

The Sunset League was a minor league baseball league that operated from 1947 through 1950. For the 1951 season, the league merged with the Arizona-Texas League to form the Southwest International League.- Former :...

, and Kimball (despite a 14-5 record on the mound and a .361 batting average

Batting average

Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...

), was let go as both player and manager at season's end. Taking a liking to Las Vegas, Newt stayed in town and took over the helm for the 1951 Wranglers, now playing in the Southwest International League

Southwest International League

The Southwest International League was a minor league baseball league that operated from 1951 through 1952. The league was formed through the merger of the Sunset League and Arizona-Texas League in 1951.- Former :...

. After a 72-71 finish, Kimball quit baseball for good.

Newt Kimball died in Las Vegas in 2001, just a few days shy of his 86th birthday.

External links