Walt Dixon

Who was Walt Dixon?

Walter Edward Dixon was an American pitcher, outfielder, first baseman, coach and manager in minor league baseball. He threw and batted right-handed, stood 6 ft 1 1⁄2 in tall and weighed 185 pounds. He was a native of Chatham County, North Carolina.

Dixon attended the College of William and Mary before signing with the Boston Red Sox farm system in 1940 as a right-handed pitcher. Despite losing three seasons to military service during World War II, Dixon progressed as far as the Scranton Red Sox of the Class A Eastern League before his release by the Red Sox at the end of the 1946 campaign. When he returned to the game in 1947 he pitched for unaffiliated clubs in the mid-minors until he became predominantly an outfielder and first baseman in 1949. That season — also his first as a manager — Dixon batted .368 for the Shelby Farmers of the Class D Western Carolina League. His best minor league season, however, would come in 1953 when, as the manager and first baseman of the Norton Braves of the Class D Mountain States League, he led the loop in home runs and hits, while batting .415 and driving home 162 RBI. Incredibly, Dixon did not lead the MSL in RBI or batting, finishing behind Willie Kirkland and Leo "Muscle" Shoals.