Five Youngest MLB Players
Five Youngest MLB Players in History
When researching this, I was staggered to learn the youngest player was only 15 and the next four were only 16! Wow! Hard to fathom nowadays. What a wonderful world of history that exists in the MLB!
Here are the five babies:
1. Joe Nuxhall
Age of Debut: 15 years, 10 months, 11 days
Date of Debut: June 10, 1944
Position: Pitcher (LH)
Team: Cincinnati Reds
Years Active in MLB: 1944, 1952 to 1966
Nowadays this is impossible to comprehend someone could debut this young, but Joe Nuxhall did it! He was a native of Hamilton, Ohio, and was remarkably signed, when scouts, looking to fill out the Cincinnati Reds’ depleted roster, were considering Orville Nuxhall, Joe’s father, in 1943. However, they were informed that the elder Nuxall was not interested in signing a professional contract because of his five children. The scouts then became interested in Joe, who was only 14 at the time. After waiting until the followingh year’s basketball season was over, Joe Nuxhall signed a major league contract with the Reds on Feb. 18, 1944. In his debut start he entered the game to pitch with Cincinnati trailing 13-0. He pitched five walks, gave up two hits and five runs in his debut. He spent the remainder of that season in the minors.
He didn’t feature again until 1952 but was still going in 1966 and ended his career with a 135-117 record and an ERA of 3.90.
He became a broadcaster for the Reds in 1967 until 2004. Occasionally he would pitch batting practice throughout this time. He was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 1968.
2. Tommy Brown
Age of Debut: 16 years, 7 months, 28 days
Date of Debut: Aug. 3, 1944
Position: Shortstop
Team: Brooklyn Dodgers
Years Active in MLB: 1944 to 1945, 1947 to 1953
The Brooklyn, N.Y., native became the youngest non-pitcher to ever play in a major league game when he made his debut at shortstop for the Dodgers. He became the youngest player ever to hit a home run in the major leagues at age 17 on Aug. 20, 1945. He played 103 career games before he turned 18 and appeared in a total of 494 games as a major leaguer before spending the final seven seasons of his pro career in the minors.
3. Carl Scheib
Age of Debut: 16 years, 8 months, 5 days
Date of Debut: Sept. 6, 1943
Position: Pitcher (RH)
Team: Philadelphia Athletics
Years Active in MLB: 1943 to 1945, 1947 to 1954
A native of Gratz, Pa., Carl Scheib was one of the best hitting pitchers of his time, compiling an amazing .392 average in 1951. When Scheib made his first appearance in 1943 at age 16, he was the youngest player to play in the modern era until Nuxhall debuted with the Cincinnati Reds the following season. He remains the youngest American League player ever.
4. Jim Derrington
Age of Debut: 16 years, 10 months, 1 day
Date of Debut: Sept. 30, 1956
Position: Pitcher (LH)
Team: Chicago White Sox
Years Active in MLB: 1956 to 1957
From Compton, Calif., Jim Derrington was playing semi-pro ball at age 13 and made his MLB debut in the final game of the 1956 season. He received a reported $50,000 signing bonus, mega bucks for the time, let alone for a kid. He tore elbow ligaments while playing for the minor league San Diego Padres in 1960. He then became a position player before moving on to work in his father’s appliance store and managing college baseball and independent league teams.
5. Putsy Caballero
Age of Debut: 16 years, 10 months, 9 days
Date of Debut: Sept. 14, 1944
Position: Third base
Team: Philadelphia Phillies
Years Active in MLB: 1944 to 1945, 1947 to 1952
The youngest nicknamed ball player, Ralph Joseph ‘Putsy’ Caballero, a New Orleans native, was signed straight out of high school during World War II and became one of the steadiest reserve members of the Phillies “Whiz Kids” era. He amusingly became an exterminator after his career ended but sadly was later a victim of Hurricane Katrina and lost everything including memorabilia signed by Babe Ruth,
Eddie Mathews, and Pete Rose.