Biff Schaller

Walter "Biff" Schaller (September 23, 1889 – October 9, 1939) was an American baseball outfielder. He played professional baseball for 11 seasons from 1910 to 1920, including two seasons in Major League Baseball for the Detroit Tigers in 1911 and the Chicago White Sox in 1913 and seven seasons in the Pacific Coast League from 1913 to 1917 and 1919 to 1920.

Biff Schaller
Schaller with Kansas City, 1912
Outfielder
Born: September 23, 1889
Chicago, Illinois
Died: October 9, 1939(1939-10-09) (aged 50)
Emeryville, California
Batted: Left Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 30, 1911, for the Detroit Tigers
Last MLB appearance
July 21, 1913, for the Chicago White Sox
MLB statistics
Batting average.186
Hits29
RBIs11
Teams

Early years

Schaller was born in 1889 in Chicago.[1]

Professional baseball

He played professional baseball for 11 seasons from 1910 to 1920, including two seasons in Major League Baseball for the Detroit Tigers in 1911 and the Chicago White Sox in 1913. For Detroit, Schaller appeared in seven games in left field, nine in center field, one at first base, and 23 as a pinch hitter. He had a .133 batting average in 60 at bats for the Tigers, and was released after one season. In 1913, Schaller got a second shot with the White Sox. He hit .219 in 96 at-bats, playing 32 games in the outfield.[1]

He also played two seasons in the American Association for the Kansas City Blues (1911-1912) and seven seasons in the Pacific Coast League for the San Francisco Seals (1913-17, 1919), Seattle Rainiers (1919), and Portland Beavers (1919-1920).[2] Between 1914 and 1917, he appeared in 807 games for the Seals.[2] During this period, he set a Coast League record by appearing in 642 consecutive games.[3]

Schaller was known for his misuse of the English language. He once blamed a batting slump by noting that "the high multitude of Salt Lake City bothers me."[4] He once summarized baseball philosophy as follows: "What's the use to get excited. It's either dis or dat."[5]

Family and later years

Schaller lived in Emeryville, California, for the last 15 years of his life.[6] He operated a bar in the Oakland area.[4] He and his wife, Lucille, had a daughter, Lorraine. In October 1939, Schaller died of a heart attack after eating dinner at his home in Emeryville.[6] He was buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California.[1]

References
  1. "Biff Schaller". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  2. "Biff Schaller Minor League Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  3. "Former Coast League Star Is Signed for Job as 1924 Umps". Salt Lake Telegraph. January 24, 1924. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "'Biff' Schaller, Colorful Old Star, Dead". Santa Ana Daily Register. October 11, 1930. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. Abe Kemp (February 10, 1937). "Biff Schaller: He Was a Riot". The San Francisco Examiner. p. 23 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Biff Schaller, Baseball Vet, Dies Here". Oakland Tribune. October 10, 1930. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
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