Sievers was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1926; he was nicknamed "Squirrel" as a schoolboy basketball star. He won the American League Rookie of the Year and TSNRookie of the Year awards in 1949, batting.306 with 16 home runs and 75 RBI. He struggled to.238 in 1950, and for the next three years he suffered shoulder and arm injuries that limited his playing time to 134 games. He was traded to the Washington Senators for Gil Coan before the season. In Washington, Sievers collected 95 or more RBI and played at least 144 games during five consecutive years and made the AL All-Star team three times. His most productive season came in, when he led the league in home runs, RBI, extra base hits and total bases, batting.301. He finished third in the MVP ballot with four first-place votes and 205 points –Mickey Mantle got six and 233, Ted Williams five and 209. On April 4,, Sievers went to the Chicago White Sox in the same trade that sent Earl Battey and Don Mincher to Washington. In his first year with the Sox, he hit.295 with 28 home runs and 93 RBI, and had almost an identical season in 1961, hitting.295 with 27 home runs and 92 RBI, making his fourth All-Star appearance. From 1962 to 1964, Sievers remained productive with the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League. In the 1964 midseason, his contract was sold to the AL expansion Senators, and he played his final game on May 9, 1965. At the time of his death in 2017, Sievers was the oldest living member of the expansion Senators team. At a time when achieving 300 home runs was still a rarity, he became only the 22nd ballplayer to reach the plateau. He also shares the dubious distinction with Gil Hodges of being one of the first two major leaguers to hit 300 career home runs and not make the Baseball Hall of Fame. Sievers hit his 300th home run on July 19, 1963. Hodges hit No. 300 on April 23, 1958. In a 17-season career, Sievers was a.267 hitter with 318 home runs, 1,703 hits, and 1,147 RBI, in 1,887 games. Defensively, he compiled a career.989 fielding percentage. After his playing career ended, he served one season as a coach for the Cincinnati Reds and managed in the minor leagues. Sievers was one of only nine players to don the uniform of both the original and expansion Washington Senators teams, the others being Rudy Hernández, Héctor Maestri, Don Mincher, Camilo Pascual, Pedro Ramos, Johnny Schaive, Zoilo Versalles, and Hal Woodeshick. Sievers died in his home in Spanish Lake, Missouri, on April 3, 2017, aged 90.
Highlights
4-time All-Star
AL Rookie of the Year
Set seasonal and career records in home runs for the Senators:
