Bill Mills (baseball)
Encyclopedia
William Henry Mills [Buster] (born November 2, 1919) is a former catcher
who played in Major League Baseball
during the season. Listed at 5' 10", 175 lb., he batted and threw right handed.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Bill Mills was one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the major leagues during World War II
.
Mills started with the Philadelphia Athletics
in 1944 as an unsigned free agent out of College of the Holy Cross
, where he was a member of the football
and baseball
squads from 1934 through 1943. In his senior season, Mills served as the captain of the Crusaders
baseball team and won the batting title of the league with a huge .586 average. He was nicknamed Buster after Colonel Buster Mills
, who spent nine seasons in the as a player or manager.
Mills, who had been rejected by the military draft because of a perforated ear drum, started his professional baseball career in 1944 with the Lancaster Red Roses
of the Interstate League
, but was promoted to the Athletics in the month of June as the draft was depleting major league rosters of first-line players. He was used primarily as a pinch-hitter in four games and caught a game, going 1-for-4 for a .250 batting average
.
Following his majors stint, Mills played in the minor league until 1949. In a five-year career, he posted a .286 average with 17 home run
s in 316 games.
After playing retirement, Mills returned to his native Boston and pursued a teaching and coaching career at the high school level. At age 91, he is one of the oldest living big leaguers.
Catcher
Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...
who played in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
during the season. Listed at 5' 10", 175 lb., he batted and threw right handed.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Bill Mills was one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the major leagues during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Mills started with the Philadelphia Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
in 1944 as an unsigned free agent out of College of the Holy Cross
College of the Holy Cross
The College of the Holy Cross is an undergraduate Roman Catholic liberal arts college located in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA...
, where he was a member of the football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
squads from 1934 through 1943. In his senior season, Mills served as the captain of the Crusaders
Holy Cross Crusaders
The Holy Cross Crusaders are the athletic teams representing the College of the Holy Cross. They compete in NCAA Division I as members of the Patriot League. The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete in Atlantic Hockey Association and women's golf in the Big South Conference...
baseball team and won the batting title of the league with a huge .586 average. He was nicknamed Buster after Colonel Buster Mills
Buster Mills
Colonel Buster Mills was an American outfielder, coach, scout and interim manager in Major League Baseball. A native of Ranger, Texas, Mills received a degree in geology from Oklahoma University in 1931...
, who spent nine seasons in the as a player or manager.
Mills, who had been rejected by the military draft because of a perforated ear drum, started his professional baseball career in 1944 with the Lancaster Red Roses
Lancaster Red Roses
The Lancaster Red Roses baseball team, originally known as the Maroons, changed its name at the start of the 1906 season during a bitter match with the York, Pennsylvania-based White Roses. Some sources indicate that the rival teams were named for the opposing factions in England's historic Wars of...
of the Interstate League
Interstate League
The Interstate League was the name of five different American minor baseball leagues that played intermittently from 1896 through 1952. The longest tenured of these was the last incarnation, which played in the Middle Atlantic States from 1939 through 1952, and was one of the few mid-level minor...
, but was promoted to the Athletics in the month of June as the draft was depleting major league rosters of first-line players. He was used primarily as a pinch-hitter in four games and caught a game, going 1-for-4 for a .250 batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.
Following his majors stint, Mills played in the minor league until 1949. In a five-year career, he posted a .286 average with 17 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s in 316 games.
After playing retirement, Mills returned to his native Boston and pursued a teaching and coaching career at the high school level. At age 91, he is one of the oldest living big leaguers.