Dee Fondy
Ballplayers Wounded in Combat
| Date and Place of Birth: | October 31, 1924 Slaton, TX |
| Date and Place of Death: | August 9, 1999 Redlands, CA |
| Baseball Experience: | Major League |
| Position: | First Base |
| Rank: | Unknown |
| Military Unit: | US Army |
| Area Served: | European Theater of Operations |
Dee V. Fondy, Jr., was born on October 31, 1924, in Slaton, Texas, but
his family moved to San Bernardino, California, when he was very young.
In his younger days, he used his middle name, Virgil, to avoid confusion
with his father, also Dee. Fondy played baseball at Sturges Junior High
School and San Bernardino High School, playing first base during the
summer months for the San Bernardino Comets.
Fondy was in his senior year at high school when he entered military
service with the Army on April 8, 1943. He trained as a radio technician
at Camp Cooke, California, and was at Camp Polk, Louisiana, before
serving with the artillery in Europe, landing at Utah Beach, Normandy,
in September 1944. Fondy fought in five major battles and was awarded a
Purple Heart for shrapnel wounds in his right foot.
Following military service, Fondy returned to San Bernardino and was
playing with the San Bernardino Outlaws, when he was signed at a Long
Beach, California, tryout by Brooklyn scout Tom Downey in 1946. The
21-year-old first baseman was assigned to the Santa Barbara Dodgers of
the Class C California League, where he batted .335 in 59 games. The
following year – 1947 – he hit .337 with the Newport News Dodgers of the
Class B Piedmont League and was an all-star selection.
Fondy advanced to the Fort Worth Cats of the Class AA Texas League in
1948 and batted .328 – second best in the league – with 86 RBIs. He was
with the Mobile Bears of the Class AA Southern Association in 1949 and
an all-star, then back with Fort Worth in 1950. But with Gil Hodges
holding down the first base job for Brooklyn there was nowhere else for
Fondy to go, and he was traded with Chuck Connors to the Chicago Cubs in
October 1950.
On March 26, 1951, the people of San Bernardino held a day for Fondy. He
received a TV set, sportswear, numerous electrical gadgets and a check
for $250, which he returned to the donors for a fund to encourage kids
to play baseball in his hometown. In the spring training game that
followed between the Cubs and Pirates, Fondy contributed a single to the
Cubs’ three-run ninth-inning rally that enabled them to beat Pittsburgh,
4 to 3.
Fondy was the opening day first baseman for the Cubs on April 17, 1951.
His first major league hit was a bases loaded triple off Cincinnati
pitcher Ken Raffensberger. He played 49 games that season - splitting
first base duties with Chuck Connors - and batted .271.
Fondy became the Cubs’ regular first baseman in 1952, batting .300 with
67 RBIs, and remained a fixture in the Chicago lineup until he was
traded to the Pirates in May 1957. He was traded to the Reds in 1958 and
batted .218 over 89 games in his final major league season.
After playing briefly in the Pacific Coast League in 1959, Fondy worked
as a scout and front office official for the New York Mets and Milwaukee
Brewers. He was the Scouting Director of the Milwaukee Brewers in
1976-1977, and then was a special assistant to Milwaukee GM Harry Dalton
until retiring from baseball in 1997. "The influence of Dee Fondy's
scouting is a major part of the Milwaukee success story," Dalton said in
1982.
Dee Fondy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 1998. He passed away
at Plymouth Village retirement center in Redlands, California, on August
9, 1999. He was 74 years old and is buried at Montecito Memorial Park in
Colton, California.
in
“Dee Fondy was one of my favorite people,” baseball commissioner Bud
Selig said after receiving news of his death. “He had a great sense of
humor. He and I used to kid each other a lot."
Date Added December 22, 2017
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