Major League Baseball Player. For seventeen seasons (1943 to 1959), he played the outfield and third base positions with the Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers, and Milwaukee Braves. Born to Czechoslovakian immigrants, he attended Boyceville High School in Wisconsin. While playing baseball in an amateur league, he caught the attention of scouts who signed him to a contract with the Cubs in 1941. Due to the shortage of players in the Major Leagues during World War II, Pafko was promoted and made his big league debut with the Cubs on September 24th, 1943. He recorded an impressive .379 batting average in 13 games that year. The following season (1944), he secured a starting outfielder position and in 1945, he had career-high 159 hits and 110 runs batted in. That year, he experienced a pennant-winning season when the Cubs captured the National League crown. During the 1945 World Series, Pafko recorded 6 hits in 7 games. He was acquired by the Dodgers during the 1951 season and was playing left field when Bobby Thomson hit the famous pennant-winning home run for the Giants. He also saw action in the 1952 World Series. As his career began to wind down, he experienced a world championship in a Braves' uniform as a backup outfielder in 1957 and was a member of the Milwaukee squad that won the 1958 pennant. In 1,852 regular season games, he compiled 1,796 hits with a .285 lifetime batting average. Pafko earned All-Star status five times (1945, 1947 to 1950) and reached or topped the 30-home run plateau twice (36 in 1950 and 30 in 1951). He recorded 16 hits in 24 total World Series games. After retiring as a player, he served as a coach with the Milwaukee Braves (1960 to 1962) and later became a Minor League manager. In addition, he served as a scout with the Montreal Expos.
Major League Baseball Player. For seventeen seasons (1943 to 1959), he played the outfield and third base positions with the Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers, and Milwaukee Braves. Born to Czechoslovakian immigrants, he attended Boyceville High School in Wisconsin. While playing baseball in an amateur league, he caught the attention of scouts who signed him to a contract with the Cubs in 1941. Due to the shortage of players in the Major Leagues during World War II, Pafko was promoted and made his big league debut with the Cubs on September 24th, 1943. He recorded an impressive .379 batting average in 13 games that year. The following season (1944), he secured a starting outfielder position and in 1945, he had career-high 159 hits and 110 runs batted in. That year, he experienced a pennant-winning season when the Cubs captured the National League crown. During the 1945 World Series, Pafko recorded 6 hits in 7 games. He was acquired by the Dodgers during the 1951 season and was playing left field when Bobby Thomson hit the famous pennant-winning home run for the Giants. He also saw action in the 1952 World Series. As his career began to wind down, he experienced a world championship in a Braves' uniform as a backup outfielder in 1957 and was a member of the Milwaukee squad that won the 1958 pennant. In 1,852 regular season games, he compiled 1,796 hits with a .285 lifetime batting average. Pafko earned All-Star status five times (1945, 1947 to 1950) and reached or topped the 30-home run plateau twice (36 in 1950 and 30 in 1951). He recorded 16 hits in 24 total World Series games. After retiring as a player, he served as a coach with the Milwaukee Braves (1960 to 1962) and later became a Minor League manager. In addition, he served as a scout with the Montreal Expos.
Bio by: C.S.
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