Jo-Jo White

Who was Jo-Jo White?

Joyner Clifford "Jo-Jo" White was an American center fielder in professional baseball. He played nine seasons with the Detroit Tigers, Philadelphia Athletics, and Cincinnati Reds. He also was the father of former major league outfielder Mike White.

Born in Red Oak, Georgia, Joyner White was known as "Jo-Jo" because of the way he pronounced the name of his native state of Georgia.

White was the starting center fielder for the Detroit Tigers teams that won back-to-back American League pennants in 1934 and 1935. He was a backup outfielder for the 1932 and 1933 teams but won the starting job in 1934.

In 1934, he batted .313, scored 97 runs, and stole 28 bases—the second most in the American League. His .418 on base percentage was also 7th best in the league. He played in all 7 games of the 1934 World Series, walking 8 times and scoring 6 runs against the Gashouse Gang Cardinals.

In 1935, White's batting average dropped 73 points to .240, but he still scored 82 runs and was among the AL leaders with 12 triples and 19 stolen bases. He played in all five games of the 1935 World Series, scoring three runs with a .417 on base percentage. White also hit a single in the 11th inning of Game 3 to drive in Marv Owen for the win.