Baseball player
| Gene Leek | |
|---|---|
| Third baseman | |
| Born: (1936-07-15) July 15, 1936 (age 88) San Diego, California, U.S. | |
| Batted: RightThrew: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 22, 1959, for the Cleveland Indians | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 30, 1962, for the Los Angeles Angels | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .221 |
| Home runs | 6 |
| Runs batted in | 25 |
Stats at Baseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
Eugene Harold Leek (born July 15, 1936) is an American former professional baseball player who appeared in 77 Major League Baseball games over three seasons for the Cleveland Indians (1959) and Los Angeles Angels (1961–62). Primarily a third baseman, he threw and batted right-handed, stood 6 feet (1.8 m) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg).
Leek graduated from San Diego's Hoover High School — alma mater of Hall of Famer Ted Williams — and attended the University of Arizona. He jumped right from the Arizona campus to the Indians, and in his first MLB game, on April 22, 1959, Leek had two hits in four at bats in a 10–1 victory over the Detroit Tigers, including his first professional home run, a two-run shot off George Susce Jr. He cooled off thereafter and was sent to the minor leagues in May, spending part of the season with his hometown San Diego Padres, then in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League. He was recalled by the Indians in September, and started four more games at third base, but he then spent all of 1960 in the minors and was selected by the first-year Angels in the 1960 Major League Baseball expansion draft.
He spent the first three months of the 1961 season on the Angels' roster, starting 48 games at third base before being sent back to the Pacific Coast League. Injured during 1962, he appeared in only seven games for the Angels at the tail end of the season, then spent the rest of his career in the minors, retiring in 1968.
As a Major Leaguer, Leek collected 55 hits, including five doubles and one triple.
References
External links
- Career statistics from Baseball Reference
- 1936 births
- Living people
- Arizona Wildcats baseball players
- Baseball players from San Diego
- Cleveland Indians players
- El Paso Sun Kings players
- High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms players
- Indianapolis Indians players
- Los Angeles Angels players
- Lynchburg White Sox players
- Major League Baseball third basemen
- Mobile Bears players
- Portland Beavers players
- Reading Phillies players
- San Diego Padres (minor league) players
- Seattle Angels players
- Spokane Indians players
- York White Roses players