Career
Sievers won the American League Rookie of the Year and TSN Rookie of the Year awards in 1949, batting .306 with 16 home runs and 75 RBI. He struggled to .238 in 1950, and for the next three years he suffered shoulder and arm injuries that limited his playing time to 134 games. He was traded to the Washington Senators for Gil Coan before the 1954 season.
In Washington, Sievers collected 95 or more RBI and played at least 144 games during five consecutive years (1954–58) and made the AL All-Star team three times (1956–57, 1959). His most productive season came in 1957, when he led the league in home runs (42), RBI (114), extra base hits (70) and total bases (331), batting .301. He finished third in the MVP ballot with four first-place votes and 205 points –Mickey Mantle got six and 233, Ted Williams five and 209.
On April 4, 1960, Sievers went to the Chicago White Sox in the same trade that sent Earl Battey and Don Mincher to Washington. In his first year with the Sox, he hit .295 with 28 homers and 93 RBI, and had almost an identical season in 1961 with .295, 27, 92, making his fourth All-Star appearance.
From 1962-64, Sievers remained productive with the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League. In the 1964 midseason, he was sold to the AL expansion Senators, playing his final game on May 9, 1965.
At a time when achieving 300 home runs was still a rarity, Sievers became only the 18th ballplayer to reach the plateau. He also holds the dubious distinction of being the first member to hit 300 home runs and not make the Baseball Hall of Fame.
In a 17-season career, Sievers was a .267 hitter with 318 home runs and 1147 RBI in 1887 games. After his playing career ended, he served one season (1966) as a coach for the Cincinnati Reds and managed in the minor leagues.
Sievers currently resides in St. Louis, and attends the annual St. Louis Browns Alumni gathering each year.
Read more about this topic: Roy Sievers
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