Very Short Career

[YankeeLinks]

Can you name the only player to have gotten thrown out of a major league game, but never played in one?

His name isn't in baseball-reference.com, but most of you (at least those over 45) have heard of him.

[SmedIndy]

Bill Sharman?

[Xanadu Dragon]

This is not a MLB game, but, a good story, nonetheless:

At Jack Russell Stadium in Clearwater, Florida, on June 26, 1985, organist Wilbur Snapp played "Three Blind Mice" following a call by umpire Keith O'Connor. The umpire was not amused, and saw to it that Mr. Snapp was ejected from the game.

[Xanadu Dragon]

Smed is right:

In 1951, with their magic number at just four, the Dodgers faded the season's final week, losing three of four from the Braves. Tensions ran so high in the final game of that series that umpire Frank Dascoli not only ejected catcher Roy Campanella over a disputed call, he ejected the entire Brooklyn bench.

That gave Dodgers rookie callup Bill Sharman a rare distinction -- he is the only player to ever be ejected from a major league game without having ever played in one. Sharman never returned to the majors but his sports career survived anyway. He traded his spikes for sneakers, teamed up with Bob Cousy and went on to a Hall of Fame career with the Boston Celtics.

Good question!

[YankeeLinks]

Steve,

You guys got it.

Some more info on Sharmen:

After his HOF playing career (he held the consecutive free throw record - 56 - when he retired, as well as the career free throw pct), he became a record-setting coach.

He is the only coach in history to win championships in three different leagues (1962 with the Cleveland Pipers of the American Basketball League, 1971 with the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association, 1972 with the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA)

He is one of only 10 players in NBA history to win a championship as both a player and a coach.

In 1972, he coached the LA Lakers to their first championship with a 69-13 record and a record 33 game winning streak.

[Xanadu Dragon]

If he had played baseball today, Berman would have had a ball with him - - -

Bill "Please don't squeeze the" Sharman

[KCBOOMER]

Bill "William Tecumseh" Sherman would be appropriate too,