William H. "Dode" (it's a great old baseball nickname you never hear anymore) was on his second life as a minor leaguer. He was born in Warrensburg, Mo., and played college ball at the University of Washington (where he also coached in 1909 and 1916). He started professionally as a pitcher with Seattle, but announced his "retirement" in 1908 to go into newspaper work. He returned to pro ball as an outfielder with Spokane, who sold him to Vancouver in 1910. In 1912 he played nine games for the Philadelphia Philies, then was released back to Vancouver. He played around Vancouver in the Northwest and Pacific International Leagues between 1913-1918, when he joined the Army and went to Field Artillery Officers School in Kentucky. In the off-seasons in Vancouver he became an attorney-at-law.
 |
| Bill Brinker, middle, born in Warrensburg, MO |
William Hutchinson "Bill" Brinker (August 30, 1883 - February 5, 1965), nicknamed "Dodo", was a Major League Baseball outfielder and third baseman. Brinker played for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1912 season. In 9 career games, he had 4 hits in 18 at-bats. He batted right and left and threw right-handed. He attended the University of Washington. He played college baseball and football for the Huskies from 1903–1905 and was the program's head coach 1906, 1909–1910, 1915–1916, and 1918–1919.
Brinker was born in Warrensburg, Missouri and died in Arcadia, California.
The baseball program at UW began play in the 1901 season, in which it went 4-6 under head coach Fred Schlock. After not competing in 1902, the team returned in the 1903 season. From its inception through the end of the 1915 season, the team did not belong to a conference. Prior to 1923, most of the program's head coaches served only one or two seasons, with Dode Brinker being the only exception. Brinker served four tenures as the program's head coach (1906, 1909–1910, 1915–1916, 1918–1919), in between which he also played professional baseball. In his seven seasons as the team's head coach, Washington had a 59-28 record.
1907 Northwest Player of the Year
| ||
The top signal caller in the Northwest, Seattle's Dode Brinker was an easy choice to captain the All-Northwest team chosen by opposing players and coaches in the PNAAU. By far the best forward passer in the league, the 24-year old Brinker was also the defensive signal caller for the Blue Diamonds, as well as handling punting duties in outdistancing his closest rivals in all departments of the game.
Brinker was a standout baseball player for the University of Washington Huskies from 1903-1905 while also playing football during the 1904 and 1905 seasons. In 1908 he was a pitcher for the Spokane Indians and made plans to return in 1909, but was tabbed as the coach of the UW baseball team in his 2nd stint. He would serve as head manager in 1906; 1909, 1910, 1915, 1916, 1918, and 1919 with his final two teams combining to go 16-0. In 1912 he was with the Philadelphia Phillies playing outfield and third base getting 4 hits in 18 at bats.
In 2001, the University selected "Dode" as one of 58 players on it's All-Century baseball team. Brinker passed away in Arcadia, California in 1965.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment