Eppa Rixey - Personal Life

Personal Life

He was married to Dorothy Meyers of Cincinnati, Ohio and had two children, Eppa Rixey III and Ann Rixey Sikes and five grandchildren, James Rixey, Eppa Rixey IV, Steve Sikes, Paige Sikes, and David Sikes. After his retirement from baseball, worked for his father-in-law's successful insurance company in Cincinnati, eventually becoming president of the company. He died of a heart attack on February 28, 1963, one month after his election to the Hall of Fame, becoming the first player to die between election and induction to the Hall of Fame. He is interred at Greenlawn Cemetery in Milford, Ohio.

When Rixey started playing, he was considered an "anomaly". He came from a well-off family and was college-educated, something that was rare during his era. He wrote poetry, and took graduate school classes in chemistry, mathematics and Latin. During the off-season, he was a Latin teacher at Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Virginia. He was also considered among the best golfers among athletes during the time period. He was the subject of hazing in his first few years in the Majors. Eventually he teamed up with other college graduates, Joe Oeschger and Stan Baumgartner and the hazing lessened to a degree.