Dan Dobbek

Who is Dan Dobbek?

Daniel John Dobbek is an American former professional baseball player. An outfielder, he played one full season and parts of two others for the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins franchise of Major League Baseball; his only full MLB campaign, 1960, was as a member of the last "original" Washington Senators team that moved to the Twin Cities for 1961. Dobbek appeared in 110 games for that team, including 58 in center field, batting .218 in 288 at bats with 10 home runs and 30 runs batted in.

Dan Dobbek attended Western Michigan University and signed with Washington in 1955. He threw right-handed, batted left-handed, and was listed at 6 feet and 195 pounds. His first professional season, with the 1956 Hobbs Sports of the Class B Southwestern League, was his finest: he batted .340 with 23 home runs in 129 games. He missed the 1957–1958 seasons due to military service.

He was recalled from the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts — after hitting 23 home runs in the Southern Association — in September 1959. But while Dobbek showed some power during his MLB service, he batted only .208 in 198 games and 433 at bats, including a lowly .168 for the Twins in their 1961 debut season in Minnesota.