Jim Baumer

Who was Jim Baumer?

James Sloan Baumer was an American infielder and front office executive in Major League Baseball. A right-handed-hitting shortstop born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he was a graduate of Broken Arrow Senior High.

Baumer had a highly unusual major league playing career. After reaching the majors at age 18 with the 1949 Chicago White Sox, Baumer hit .400. He then disappeared into the minor leagues and would not return to MLB until, as a 30-year-old, he had a brief trial with the 1961 Cincinnati Reds before he was traded to the Detroit Tigers for first baseman Dick Gernert and returned to the minor leagues. Overall, he batted .206 in 18 games and 34 at bats, with two runs batted in. After his major league career, Baumer played for the Nishitetsu Lions in Japan from 1963 until 1967.

When his playing career ended, Baumer became a scout with the Houston Astros and Milwaukee Brewers, and became Milwaukee's director of scouting in 1974. The following season, he succeeded Jim Wilson as the Brewers' general manager. Baumer's most successful transaction during his three-year tenure as GM was his acquisition of first baseman Cecil Cooper from the Boston Red Sox following the 1976 season. However, the Brewers struggled on the field and after their eighth straight losing season in Milwaukee in 1977, Baumer was fired and replaced by Harry Dalton.