Al Wingo

Absalom Holbrook Wingo (May 6, 1898 – October 9, 1964), commonly known by the nickname "Red", was an American baseball player.

A native of Norcross, Georgia, his older brother Ivey Wingo played 17 years in Major League Baseball starting in 1911. Al "Red" Wingo began playing baseball at Oglethorpe University and played professional baseball, primarily as an outfielder, for 15 years from 1918 to 1932. He followed his older brother to the major leagues in 1919 as an outfielder for the Philadelphia Athletics.

He played for the Detroit Tigers from 1924 to 1928 and had the best season of his career in 1925 when he had a .370 batting average and a .456 on-base percentage and finished twelfth in the voting for the American League Most Valuable Player award. He also led the American League's left fielders in 1925 with eight double plays turned. In five major league seasons, Wingo compiled a .308 career batting average. He later played for the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League from 1929 to 1931.

Early years Wingo was born in Norcross, Georgia, in 1898. He attended Oglethorpe University in suburban Atlanta where he played as a catcher and a pitcher for the Oglethorpe Stormy Petrels baseball team during the 1917 and 1918 seasons. Wingo's older brother Ivey Wingo reached the major leagues in 1911 and became a fixture for the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds from 1911 to 1926.

Professional baseball Minor leagues Wingo began playing professional baseball with the Atlanta Crackers of the Southern Association in 1918. The following year, he played for the Greenville Spinners in the South Atlantic League, compiling a .319 batting average in 360 at bats.

Philadelphia Athletics Wingo was acquired by the Philadelphia Athletics late in the 1919 season and made his major league debut on September 9, 1919. He appeared in 15 games for the 1919 Athletics, compiling a .305 batting average in 59 at bats. In 1924, he appeared in 78 games for the Tigers, mostly as a pinch hitter but also in 30 games as a starter in the outfield. The deal was combined with the Tigers' January 1929 purchase of Roy Johnson with Wingo being given a value of $7,500 for purposes of the transaction. Wingo played in the outfield for the Seals and compiled batting averages of .350 in 1929.348 in 1930, and .314 in 1931. He continued to play for the Chattanooga Lookouts (Southern Association) in 1931 and the Scranton Miners (New York-Penn League) and Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) in 1932. After retiring from baseball, he remained in Detroit and worked as a driver and safety inspector for Ford Motor Company.