Gene Desautels

Eugene Abraham "Red" Desautels (June 13, 1907 – November 5, 1994) was an American professional baseball player. He played most of his Major League Baseball career as a backup catcher with four teams between and . Desautels was a light-hitting player, but was known for his superior defensive ability as a catcher, and for his handling pitching staffs.

As a member of the Indians, Desautels played as a reserve catcher behind Rollie Hemsley. He entered the United States Marine Corps in February 1944 and was discharged in July 1945 at the age of 38, losing two years from his baseball career.

Career statistics In a thirteen-year major league career, Desautels compiled a major league career batting average of .233, including 461 hits, three home runs and 187 runs batted in. He led American League catchers in 1937 with a .993 fielding percentage and a 5.69 range factor. Desautels allowed only 19 passed balls in his career, the third fewest all-time among major league catchers.

Managing career Following his playing retirement, Desautels managed the Williamsport Tigers of the Eastern League for three years from to . In , he managed the Double A Little Rock Travelers to their first Southern Association pennant in nine years. He was inducted into the Holy Cross Athletics Hall of Fame in 1981.

Desautels died in Flint, Michigan, at the age of 87.