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Mike Michot

Ballplayers Decorated in Combat

 

Date and Place of Birth: February 8, 1906 Louisville, KY
Date and Place of Death:    July 11, 1959 Fort Lauderdale, FL
Baseball Experience: Minor League
Position: Catcher
Rank: Chief Motor Machinist's Mate (Chief Petty Officer)
Military Unit: US Coast Guard
Area Served: European Theater of Operations

Spalding E. "Mike" Michot, Jr., the son of Spalding and Marie Michot, was born on February 8, 1906, in Louisville, Kentucky. Aged 15, Michot joined the Coast Guard in 1921. Upon his discharge in 1925, the 19-year-old catcher was given a trial with the New York Yankees. He played for his hometown Louisville Colonels of the Class AA American Association in 1926, and had a trial with the Boston Red Sox in 1927, spending the season with the Portland Eskimos of the Class B New England League.

After baseball, Michot joined the Louisville Police Department in 1933, in the first class of policemen to enter the force under Civil Service, and rose to the rank of lieutenant. He rejoined the Coast Guard in September 1942, and became a Chief Motor Machinist's Mate (Chief Petty Officer). Attached to the United States Navy, he made 56 round trips across the English Channel, and was awarded the Silver Star, Legion of Merit and the Navy and Marine Corps Medal. In March 1945, home on leave due to the illness of his mother, he attended a luncheon given in his honor by Bruce Dudley, president of the Louisville Colonels.

Discharged in 1945, Michot returned to police work in Louisville. He retired due to ill health and moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he passed away on July 11, 1959, aged 53. Mike Michot is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens Central Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Date Added January 27, 2018. Update August 11, 2022

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