Gil Coan was born on Thursday, May 18, 1922, in Monroe, North Carolina. Coan was 23 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 27, 1946, with the Washington Senators. His biographical data, year-by-year hitting stats, fielding stats, pitching stats (where applicable), career totals, uniform numbers, salary data and miscellaneous items-of-interest are presented by Baseball Almanac on this comprehensive Gil Coan baseball stats page.
"Gil Coan was the most promising rookie ever to arrive on the Washington baseball scene! Unfortunately, he was never able to realize the high expectations held for him. Joe Engel, the Senators' chief scout who discovered so many great ballplayers declared, unequivocally, that Coan was the best of them all. To put this high praise in perspective, Goose Goslin, Sam Rice, Bucky Harris, Ossie Bluege, Joe Judge, Fred Marberry and Earl McNeely were all dispatched to the Senators on Engel's recommendation and formed the nucleus of the Nats' 1924 and 1925 championship teams." - Willis, C. Norman. Author. Washington Senators All-Time Greats. Xlibris Publishing. 31 August 2011. Page 272.
Gil Coan![]() Gil Coan Autograph on a 1991 Topps Archives Baseball Card (#133 | Checklist) |
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Gil CoanGil Coan Pitching Stats |
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| Year | Age | Team | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
| - | - | Did Not Pitch | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Career | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD | ||
Gil CoanGil Coan Hitting Stats |
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| Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 1946 | 24 | Senators | 59 | 134 | 17 | 28 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 37 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | .209 | .269 | .328 |
| 1947 | 25 | Senators | 11 | 42 | 5 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | .553 | .667 |
| 1948 | 26 | Senators | 138 | 513 | 56 | 119 | 13 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 60 | 41 | 0 | 78 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 5 | .232 | .298 | .333 |
| 1949 | 27 | Senators | 111 | 358 | 36 | 78 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 25 | 29 | 1 | 58 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .218 | .278 | .307 |
| 1950 | 28 | Senators | 104 | 366 | 58 | 111 | 17 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 50 | 28 | 1 | 46 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 1 | .303 | .359 | .429 |
| 1951 | 29 | Senators | 135 | 538 | 85 | 163 | 25 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 62 | 39 | 0 | 62 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 6 | .303 | .357 | .426 |
| 1952 | 30 | Senators | 107 | 332 | 50 | 68 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 32 | 2 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .205 | .277 | .319 |
| 1953 | 31 | Senators | 68 | 168 | 28 | 33 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 22 | 3 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | .196 | .301 | .286 |
| 1954 | 32 | Orioles | 94 | 265 | 29 | 74 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 16 | 2 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | .279 | .320 | .351 |
| 1955 | 33 | Orioles | 61 | 130 | 18 | 31 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 13 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .238 | .313 | .331 |
| 1955 | 33 | White Sox | 17 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .176 | .176 | .176 |
| 1955 | 33 | Giants | 9 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .154 | .154 | .154 |
| 1956 | 34 | Giants | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
| 11 Years | 918 | 2,877 | 384 | 731 | 98 | 44 | 39 | 2 | 278 | 232 | 9 | 384 | 27 | 2 | 28 | 25 | .254 | .316 | .359 | ||
Gil CoanGil Coan Fielding Stats |
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| Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| 1946 Senators | LF | 27 | 26 | 693 | 161 | 6.0 | 159 | 159 | 0 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 6.19 |
| 1946 Senators | RF | 2 | 1 | 24 | 3 | 1.5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.38 |
| 1947 Senators | RF | 11 | 11 | 288 | 23 | 2.1 | 23 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.16 |
| 1948 Senators | LF | 131 | 126 | 3,318 | 363 | 2.8 | 352 | 341 | 11 | 11 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .970 | 2.86 |
| 1949 Senators | CF | 29 | 22 | 618 | 76 | 2.6 | 75 | 75 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .987 | 3.28 |
| 1949 Senators | LF | 66 | 57 | 1,512 | 162 | 2.5 | 157 | 149 | 8 | 5 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .969 | 2.80 |
| 1950 Senators | CF | 3 | 3 | 75 | 14 | 4.7 | 13 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .929 | 4.68 |
| 1950 Senators | LF | 95 | 80 | 2,226 | 217 | 2.3 | 211 | 209 | 2 | 6 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .972 | 2.56 |
| 1950 Senators | RF | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
| 1951 Senators | LF | 132 | 127 | 3,405 | 405 | 3.1 | 391 | 374 | 17 | 14 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .965 | 3.10 |
| 1952 Senators | CF | 1 | 1 | 27 | 6 | 6.0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 6.00 |
| 1952 Senators | LF | 86 | 76 | 2,133 | 192 | 2.2 | 189 | 185 | 4 | 3 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 2.39 |
| 1953 Senators | LF | 45 | 38 | 1,047 | 107 | 2.4 | 107 | 105 | 2 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.76 |
| 1954 Orioles | CF | 32 | 31 | 774 | 78 | 2.4 | 75 | 75 | 0 | 3 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .962 | 2.62 |
| 1954 Orioles | LF | 36 | 33 | 855 | 76 | 2.1 | 74 | 73 | 1 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .974 | 2.34 |
| 1955 Giants | CF | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.50 |
| 1955 Orioles | LF | 42 | 28 | 774 | 59 | 1.4 | 59 | 54 | 5 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.06 |
| 1955 White Sox | LF | 1 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .000 | 0.00 |
| 1955 Giants | LF | 1 | 1 | 27 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.00 |
| 1955 Giants | RF | 4 | 0 | 33 | 1 | 0.3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.82 |
| 1955 White Sox | RF | 2 | 1 | 30 | 2 | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.80 |
| 1955 Orioles | RF | 1 | 1 | 24 | 2 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .500 | 1.13 |
| Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
| LF Totals | 662 | 592 | 16,005 | 1,744 | 2.6 | 1,701 | 1,651 | 50 | 43 | 10 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.87 | |
| CF Totals | 67 | 57 | 1,500 | 175 | 2.6 | 170 | 167 | 3 | 5 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 3.06 | |
| RF Totals | 21 | 14 | 404 | 31 | 1.5 | 30 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .968 | 2.00 | |
| 10 Years | 750 | 663 | 17,909 | 1,950 | 2.6 | 1,901 | 1,847 | 54 | 49 | 12 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .975 | 2.87 | |
Gil CoanGil Coan Miscellaneous Stats |
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| Baserunning Statistics | Other Positions | Common Hitting Ratios | Common Pitching Ratios | |||||||||
| Team | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 1946 Senators | 2 | 2 | .500 | 25 | 5 | n/a | 44.7 | 3.6 | 14.9 | - | - | - |
| 1947 Senators | 2 | 1 | .667 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 7.0 | 14.0 | - | - | - |
| 1948 Senators | 23 | 9 | .719 | 10 | 2 | n/a | 73.3 | 6.6 | 8.6 | - | - | - |
| 1949 Senators | 9 | 6 | .600 | 14 | 7 | n/a | 119.3 | 6.2 | 14.3 | - | - | - |
| 1950 Senators | 10 | 5 | .667 | 13 | 3 | n/a | 52.3 | 8.0 | 7.3 | - | - | - |
| 1951 Senators | 8 | 5 | .615 | 6 | 1 | n/a | 59.8 | 8.7 | 8.7 | - | - | - |
| 1952 Senators | 9 | 4 | .692 | 17 | 9 | n/a | 66.4 | 9.5 | 16.6 | - | - | - |
| 1953 Senators | 7 | 0 | 1.000 | 24 | 3 | n/a | 84.0 | 7.3 | 9.9 | - | - | - |
| 1954 Orioles | 9 | 4 | .692 | 27 | 2 | n/a | 132.5 | 15.6 | 13.3 | - | - | - |
| 1955 Orioles | 4 | 2 | .667 | 18 | 10 | n/a | 130.0 | 8.7 | 11.8 | - | - | - |
| 1955 White Sox | 0 | 0 | .000 | 11 | 4 | n/a | 0.0 | 3.4 | 17.0 | - | - | - |
| 1955 Giants | 0 | 0 | .000 | 3 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 13.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
| 1956 Giants | 0 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 3 | n/a | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
| Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
| 11 Years | 83 | 38 | .686 | 169 | 49 | n/a | 73.8 | 7.5 | 10.3 | - | - | - |
Gil CoanGil Coan Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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| Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
| 1946 Washington Senators | 22 | $4,500.00 | - | - |
| 1947 Washington Senators | 22 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1948 Washington Senators | 3 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1949 Washington Senators | 3 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1950 Washington Senators | 30 | $13,000.00 | - | - |
| 1951 Washington Senators | 2 | $14,950.00 | - | - |
| 1952 Washington Senators | 2 | $14,500.00 | - | - |
| 1953 Washington Senators | 2 | $13,000.00 | - | - |
| 1954 Baltimore Orioles | 16 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1955 Baltimore Orioles | 16 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1955 Chicago White Sox | 35 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1955 New York Giants | 10 | Undetermined | - | - |
| 1956 New York Giants | 28 | Undetermined | - | - |
| Gil Coan Stats by Baseball Almanac | ||||

Gilbert Fitzgerald Coan was a Major League Baseball player with the Washington Senators (1946-1953), Baltimore Orioles (1954-1955), Chicago White Sox (1955), and New York Giants (1955-1956). When Gil, his nickname, made his big league debut on April 27, 1946, he became the first Mineral Springs High School (Mineral Springs, North Carolina) graduate to reach the majors! Coan told Baseball Almanac (18 May 2002. Happy Birthday Interview. Telephone Discussion.) that the missing thumb story was accurate, saying, "Yeah, it's true. I really did play without a thumb, or most of it anyway. I was a ten, I hurt the joint badly playing football. It really made a loud crack, I remember that the most! (laughing) We kept playing too, but the bone had come loose and my left thumb was basically removed at the middle joint."

Gil Coan Rookie Card | 1949 Bowman Baseball Card (#90 | Checklist)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Gil Coan, during his sophomore season (1947) became the first Major League player to finish a season with at least forty at-bats and a .500 batting average. A feat matched only once more, by Rudy Pemberton who had forty-one at-bats in 1996, twenty-one hits, and a .512 batting average. Both Coan and Pemberton were American League players. The closest a National League player has come occurred in 2008, when Cameron Maybin had a .500 batting average, but only reached the thirty at-bat plateau (32 at bats / 16 hits) — he is the only NL player with at least 30 at bats and a .500 average.
Gil Coan was traded by the Senators to the Orioles on February 18, 1954, for a former Rookie of the Year. Do you remember who it was? [Answer] When Coan took the field with Baltimore on April 13, 1954 at Briggs Stadium, Gil became the first Oriole to ever wear #16 in a regular season game!
Gil Coan once raced a horse at a minor league game on August 27, 1956, as part of an on-field promotion. The fleet-footed outfielder lost, but had a history of promotional events, including a race against stolen-base champ George Case — best described in Sports Collector's Digest:
Sidebar: A Griffith and Veeck promotion
In listing a PSA 9 1951 Bowman of Coan recently, Goodwin & Co. included the following description of a 1946 event: "A confident rookie, Coan challenged five-time AL stolen base champion George Case to a foot race at Griffith Stadium prior to a game. While Case bested Coan by a step, the promotion was wildly successful and endeared Coan to the Washington fans. Speaking of the race years later, Case recalled, 'It pulled a lot of people into the ballpark, including President Eisenhower.'" In the month prior to the 100-yard race, it was billed as a race to determine "the fastest man in major league baseball."
The Dodgers and Reds added to the pre-event publicity by claiming they had speedier runners than either Case or Coan.
When I asked about the race, Coan had a more accurate description of the events. "I did not challenge (former Senator teammate and track athlete) George Case. Clark Griffith (president of the Senators) and Bill Veeck (president of the Indians) arranged the race. Case and I received $500 each. This was part of a two-day series in Washington with Cleveland. Our race was before the second game. Before the first game, the Army set up a crude machine with Bob Feller throwing six pitches to check the velocity of his fastball. Five pitches were strikes that averaged 98 mph. The sixth pitch hit the machine made primarily of wood and destroyed the machine. All games filled Griffith Stadium, probably the only series sellout of Griffith Stadium, unless it happened during the 1933 World Series."
Feller negotiated $700 for his efforts. Coan's $500 for just 11 seconds of running was an even better deal, but not as good a deal as the return Griffith got on his money. Getting people in the park wasn’t easy. Washington averaged around 10,000 per game in the years Coan played there, and even worse before. Baseball Almanac shows 30,051 came out to see Feller's exhibition before the Aug. 20, 1946, game in which he pitched and lost, and 24,123 came to see the Case/Coan race on Wednesday, Aug. 21. Even when the Senators made the World Series in 1933, their highest series attendance was 28,454. The two Cleveland games with the Feller and Case/Coan promotions contributed to the Senators drawing 1,027,000 fans in 1946, the only year they ever exceeded 1 million.
Veeck's involvement adds to the lore of the Case/Coan race. Later in 1946, Veeck brought in Jesse Owens to challenge Case between games of a doubleheader in Cleveland. Owens, winner of four gold medals in the 1936 Olympics, dressed in a Cleveland uniform and won by at least a yard. Owens' appearance in a Cleveland Indians uniform was a year prior to Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier. Case returned to the Senators for 36 games the next year, hit .150 and retired.
Source of Excerpt: Sports Collectors Digest. Vrecheck, George. 1 October 2013. Full Article.

Gil Coan Hits Two Triples in an Inning | The Cumberland Sunday Times | 22 April 1951 | Page 26Baseball Almanac Research Library
Did you know that Gil Coan hit two triples in the sixth inning on April 21, 1951, tying the Major League record for triples in an inning (2), and through today, Coan remains one of only two American League players in history with two triples in an inning (the first player from the junior circuit was Al Zarilla, fourth inning, July 13, 1946)?