Wally Gilbert

Walter John Gilbert (December 19, 1900 – September 7, 1958) was an American athlete who performed in professional baseball, football and basketball.

Over his career, Gilbert played in Major League Baseball from 1928 to 1932 as a third baseman with the Brooklyn Robins and the Cincinnati Reds. In addition, he played in the National Football League from 1923 to 1926 for the Duluth Kelleys/Eskimos, as well as for the Buffalo Germans, Denver Tigers and Two Harbors All-Stars basketball squads.

Early years Gilbert was born in 1900 in Oscoda, Michigan. He moved to Duluth, Minnesota, as a child. At the time of the 1910 U.S. Census, he was living with his parents, Walter and Minnie Gilbert, in Duluth's 7th Ward. At the time of the 1920 U.S. Census, Gilbert's father, Walter Gilbert Sr., was employed as a laborer in a Duluth steel plant.

Gilbert graduated from Denfeld High School in Duluth where he starred in baseball, basketball and football. He led Denfeld's football team to a city championship before graduating in 1920.

After graduating from high school, Gilbert attended Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Indiana. He played for Valparaiso's 1920 football team that compiled a record of 5-3 and outscored opponents 215 to 60. Gilbert also played baseball and basketball at Valparaiso.

Football career In the field position game that was the early NFL, Gilbert was a punting weapon for Duluth in the early 1920s. From 1923 to 1926, Gilbert played professional football as a halfback and punter for the Duluth franchise in the National Football League. Gilbert played in the backfield with Ernie Nevers and handled punting and forward passing for the Duluth team. He reportedly punted the football 98 yards in a game against Rock Island and set an unofficial football record by drop-kicking a football 61 yards.

Gilbert also served on the football coaching staff at Superior State Teachers College (now known as University of Wisconsin–Superior) in 1938.

In 1925, Gilbert's contract was purchased by the New York Yankees as a potential insurance for injury-prone third baseman, Joe Dugan. His best years as a batter were 1929 and 1930 when he compiled batting averages of .304 and .294 with 353 hits, 65 doubles, and 125 RBIs. On May 30, 1931, Gilbert tied a Major League record with six hits in a single game against the New York Giants. Gilbert appeared in 114 games for the Reds in 1932, but his batting average dropped more than 50 points below his career average to .214. Gilbert was acquired in 1933 by the St. Louis Cardinals, but he never made the Cardinals' roster and never played another game in the Major Leagues.

Return to the minor leagues In 1933, Gilbert returned to the minor leagues and played for the Rochester Red Wings in the International League. In May 1934, Gilbert also took over as the Orioles' manager.

Gilbert continued to play in the minor leagues for several years with the Duluth Dukes and Knoxville Smokies in 1935 and the Duluth Dukes in 1936. and Superior Blues in 1938.

Gilbert played in the short-lived Twin Ports League in 1943 for the Marine Iron team, and led the league with a .456 batting average.

Basketball career Gilbert also played several seasons of professional basketball. He played for a professional touring basketball team known as the Two Harbors All-Stars from Two Harbors, Minnesota. He also played for a basketball team sponsored by the Duluth Tank Corp., as well as professional teams in Buffalo, New York (Buffalo Germans) and Denver, Colorado (Denver Tigers).

Family and later years Gilbert was married to Mary McKay in 1937. They had two children, Pat and John. In 1942, he took a job with U.S. Steel in Duluth and lived at 5217 London Road in Duluth's Lakeside neighborhood. While working for U.S. Steel, he managed the Duluth Marine Iron baseball team in the Twin Ports League. He developed a serious lung infection in 1943 and had surgery to remove one of his lungs. Gilbert was unable to work after the loss of his lung. He died in September 1958 in Duluth.

Gilbert was posthumously inducted into the Duluth Sports Hall of Fame in 1969, and was selected by the Duluth News-Tribune as "the greatest athlete ever developed in Duluth."