Dave Philley

David Earl Philley (May 16, 1920 – March 15, 2012) was an American professional baseball outfielder who played in Major League Baseball. A switch hitter who threw right-handed, he debuted on September 6, and played his final game on August 6. He was born in Paris, Texas and attended East Texas State University prior to his MLB career.

Philley played for eight different teams in a long, 18-season career. He led American League outfielders in assists three different years (, , ) and once in outs (1950).

Philley reached the majors in 1941 with the Chicago White Sox. He spent four years as a military policeman during World War II, rejoining the White Sox in 1946 and playing 17 games for them that year. Philley was with the White Sox for five-and-a-half years before moving to the Philadelphia Athletics early in the 1951 season.

A 42-year-old Philley was signed off the Baltimore roster by the expansion Houston Colt .45's during the 1961–62 offseason, but a few hours later, Houston sent him to the Boston Red Sox. Philley spent most of 1962 on the bench for Boston until he was released on August 14, 1962.

In an 18-season career, Philley was a .270 hitter with 84 home runs and 729 RBI in 1,904 games. He also collected 1,700 hits, 276 doubles, 72 triples, 789 runs, 101 stolen bases, and a walk-to-strikeout ratio of 1.078 (594 to 551). Defensively, he recorded a .982 fielding percentage playing at all three outfield positions and at first and third base. As a pinch hitter, he batted .299 (92-for-308) with two home runs and 57 RBI in that role.

After his playing days, Philley worked as a manager for the Houston minor league system from 1963 to 1964, and spent 1965 managing the Durham Bulls, where he won a Carolina League division title. He found employment for 1966 in the Red Sox organization, where he managed the Class A Waterloo Hawks and served as a scout. Until his death, Philley lived in his native Paris, Texas.