Bill Engeln
{{short description|American baseball umpire (1898-1968)}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Bill Engeln
|image =
|image_size =
|caption =
|birth_name = William Raymond Engeln
|birth_date = {{Birth date|1898|9|9}}
|birth_place = St. Louis, Missouri
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1968|4|17|1898|9|9}}
|death_place = Palo Alto, California
|alma_mater =
|employer = National League
|occupation = Umpire
|years_active = 1952-1956
}}
William Raymond Engeln (September 9, 1898 – April 17, 1968) was a professional baseball umpire who worked in the National League from 1952 to 1956. Engeln was the right field umpire in the 1953 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. In his career, he umpired 749 major league games.[http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/E/Pengeb902.htm Retrosheet]
Early life and career
Engeln was born in St. Louis, Missouri and served as a bat boy for the St. Louis Browns when he was young.{{cite news| title=No title | newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune| location=Lewiston, Idaho | page=8 | date =August 7, 1952 | url =https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YbxeAAAAIBAJ&pg=2901,2854875&dq=bill+engeln+umpire&hl=en| accessdate=June 28, 2012}} As an umpire, he spent sixteen seasons (1936 through 1951) in the Pacific Coast League before being promoted to the majors. In 1945, Engeln was surrounded by angry fans after a ninth-inning third strike in a game between the Portland Beavers and Seattle Rainiers. He was attacked by two women who were then led away by police.{{cite news| title=Beavers Victors in Two Contests| newspaper=Bend Bulletin | location=Bend, Oregon | page=2 | agency=United Press | date=June 16, 1945| url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=9SZPAAAAIBAJ&pg=6551,303308&dq=bill+engeln+umpire&hl=en| accessdate=June 28, 2012}}
Notable games
Engeln also officiated on July 31, 1954, when Joe Adcock hit four home runs in one game.{{cite book|title=The Official Major League Baseball Fact Book 2002|year=2002|publisher=The Sporting News|isbn=0-89204-670-8|pages=504}} He was behind the plate a day later when Adcock was hit in the head by a Clem Labine pitch. The pitch precipitated a near-physical confrontation between Jackie Robinson and Lew Burdette as Adcock was carried off the field by stretcher.{{cite news | title=Adcock Beaned | agency=Associated Press (wirephoto) | date=August 2, 1954| url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2GpWAAAAIBAJ&pg=5444,234741&dq=bill+engeln&hl=en| accessdate=June 29, 2012}}
Death
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://retrosheet.org/TSNUmpireCards/Engeln-William.jpg Umpire Card]
{{Authority control}}
- [https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/bill-engeln/ Bill Engeln] at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Engeln, Bill}}
Category:Major League Baseball umpires
Category:Sportspeople from Missouri
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