Mickey Micelotta

Robert Peter "Mickey" Micelotta (October 20, 1928 – October 9, 2022) was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played 13 total seasons of professional baseball, two of which were spent in the National League with the Philadelphia Phillies. In 17 career MLB games, Micelotta posted a batting average of .000 and had two runs in nine plate appearances.

Born and raised in New York, Micelotta first played professionally with the Dayton Indians and Carbondale Pioneers in 1947. Over the next three seasons, he played for various minor league teams in the Phillies organization before missing the 1951 and 1952 seasons, serving in the Korean War. He returned and played for the Terre Haute Phillies in 1953 and the Syracuse Chiefs from 1954 to 1955, splitting time between the Chiefs and the Phillies' major league squad. Micelotta spent the next three seasons with the Miami Marlins and three seasons after that with the Birmingham Barons before retiring from baseball.

Early baseball career Born in Corona, New York, Micelotta made his professional debut in 1947 at the age of 18 and played for two different teams that year. He played in 40 games for the Dayton Indians of the Ohio State League and in 25 games for the Carbondale Pioneers of the North Atlantic League. Micelotta spent the 1948 season with two teams in the Philadelphia Phillies minor league system. He spent 58 games with the Bradford Blue Wings of the New York–Penn League and 60 games with the Dover Phillies of the Eastern Shore League, both D-class teams. Micelotta finished the season with a .257 batting average in 133 games. Micelotta returned to baseball in 1953, and played for the Terre Haute Phillies of the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League. In 115 games for them, he had a .297 batting average and 15 home runs.

Major league career As the 1954 season began, the Phillies noted that Micelotta had a good chance at winning a major league roster spot due to manager Steve O'Neill being impressed with his fielding and hitting power. Micelotta made the roster for the 1954 Phillies and made his major league debut on April 20. Micelotta played in 13 games for the Phillies that year, served primarily as a pinch runner, and scored two runs in three total at-bats. He spent the first three months of the season with the Chiefs, then was called back up to the Phillies due to both Granny Hamner and Roy Smalley Jr. getting injured. He played in four games during his time with the club, going hitless in four at-bats and playing his final major league game on August 2. By the end of March, with a couple of weeks to go until the season began, he was noted as playing very well, and the Phillies were considering keeping him on the major league roster for the season. He ended up not making the team, and spent the season with the Miami Marlins. During his time with Miami in 1956, Micelotta was known for his defensive plays at the shortstop position, making three good ones in a 6–1 loss against the Havana Cubans in late May. He finished the season with a .236 batting average and 12 home runs in 146 games. He, Woody Smith, Bobby Young, and Pancho Herrera were considered to be one of the best infields in the International League, with one writer saying, "they make plays the Phillies couldn't make." Micelotta finished the year with a .216 batting average in 143 games. His performances that season included a triple late in a game against the Richmond Virginians to win it, 3–2, and a walk-off home run against the Montreal Royals to win that game, 2–1. He finished the season with a .201 batting average in 127 games played. He finished the season with a .253 batting average in 150 games and career highs in home runs (20) and runs batted in (87). After spending March with the Tigers, he was sent back to Birmingham, where he spent the 1961 season. In a match against the Atlanta Crackers, Micelotta had three runs batted in as Birmingham won, 11–2. He finished his final season of professional baseball with a .237 batting average, seven home runs, and 55 runs batted in in 112 games while splitting time between shortstop and third base. Micelotta died in Henderson, Nevada on October 9, 2022, at the age of 93.