Sonny Senerchia

Who was Sonny Senerchia?

Emanuel Robert "Sonny" Senerchia was an American professional baseball player who played 29 games of Major League Baseball with the 1952 Pittsburgh Pirates and later became a professional musician as well as a teacher and college baseball coach.

He was born and grew up in Newark, New Jersey, and attended Montclair State University, where he earned bachelors degrees in physical education and English; he then received a master's degree in music from Trenton State College. According to his obituary, Senerchia was an accomplished violinist as a boy, appearing at Carnegie Hall at the age of ten, and as an adult he was a concert violinist with the New Jersey Symphony, the Garden State Arts Center Orchestra, and the Toms River Symphony. He also performed as a violinist with Pearl Bailey, Jack Benny and others. As a jazz musician, he played clarinet, saxophone, flute and piano in ensembles and big bands.

Senerchia's professional baseball career lasted for eight seasons. He threw and batted right-handed, stood 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighed 195 pounds. Mostly a third baseman early in his career, he later converted to pitcher as a minor leaguer.