Tommy Brown Remains the Youngest Player to Hit a HR in MLB History

Former MLB player Tommy Brown passed away on Wednesday at the age of 97. Brown was the last living MLB player to begin his career during WWII. 

The Brooklyn native began that career late in the 1944 season with his hometown Dodgers. Brown was 16 years-old when he ran onto Wrigley Field on a Thursday afternoon in August. He remains the youngest position player to ever grace a big-league diamond. Earlier that season, Joe Nuxhall took the mound for the Cincinnati Reds as a 15-year-old. It was WWII and a great many players were serving their country in uniform which gave teenaged ballplayers like Brown and Nuxhall an opportunity they would have not had otherwise.

The following year, Brown would make MLB history again. During a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Ebbets Field, Brown took Preacher Roe deep for his first MLB HR. It was the Brooklyn Bums only bright spot in an 11-1 loss to the Bucs. Brown was 17 when he that HR and nearly 80 years later he remains the youngest player in MLB history to hit a HR. 

Brown would miss the entire 1946 season due to military service. When he returned to the Dodgers in 1947, Jackie Robinson had joined the team. Brown was among the few Brooklyn players who refused to sign a petition stating he would not play with Robinson.

Largely a utility player, Brown was in lineup sparingly. However, he did play in two World Series for the Dodgers in 1947 and in 1949. 

During the 1951 season, the Dodgers traded Brown to the Philadelphia Phillies. Brown was spared the indignity of being part of a Dodgers team which blew a 13½ game lead over the New York Giants in the NL. While the Phillies were nothing to write home about, Brown got more playing time. Although Brown hit only .219, he would hit a career best 10 HR with 32 RBI. 

However, when Brown struggled early in the 1952 season, he was sold to the Chicago Cubs where he batted a career high .320 in 61 games. Unfortunately, 1953 would be his last year on a big-league diamond. Brown continued to play minor league ball with the Cubs, Cincinnati Reds and the Washington Senators through the 1959 season before finally retiring at the age of 31. At the major league level, Brown played in 494 games collecting 309 hits for a lifetime batting average of .241 with 31 HR and 159 RBI. 

Brown moved to Tennessee where he raised a family and worked at a Ford glass factory for more than 30 years before enjoying a long retirement with his grandchildren and his great-grandchildren. Tommy Brown carved himself a unique place in MLB history. R.I.P.