Johnny Dickshot

John Oscar Dickshot, commonly known as "Ugly" Johnny Dickshot (born John Oscar Dicksus,[1] January 24, 1910 – November 4, 1997) was a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1936 to 1938, the New York Giants in 1939, and the Chicago White Sox from 1944 to 1945. He won the nickname "Ugly" because of his self-proclaimed status as the "ugliest man in baseball". Born and raised in Waukegan, Illinois, Dickshot began his professional career in the early 1930s playing for the Milwaukee Brewers, which was then a minor league team. He entered the majors with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1935. In a time before baseball salaries took off, Dickshot worked at a North Chicago steel mill in the off-season.

Johnny Dickshot
Left fielder
Born: (1910-01-24)January 24, 1910
Waukegan, Illinois
Died: November 4, 1997(1997-11-04) (aged 87)
Waukegan, Illinois
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 16, 1936, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
Last MLB appearance
September 25, 1945, for the Chicago White Sox
MLB statistics
Batting average.276
Home runs7
Runs batted in116
Teams

He moved to the Hollywood Stars in the Pacific Coast League in 1941. In 1943, he hit .352 for the Stars and had a 33-game hitting streak.

He joined the White Sox in 1944 and had his best major league season in 1945, his last year in the majors, when he had a .302 batting average (third-best in the American League) with 58 RBIs, 10 triples and 18 stolen bases in 486 at-bats.

Soon after his retirement, Dickshot opened a tavern called the Dugout in Waukegan. In his obituary, his granddaughter said he would often call his wife at home from the bar demanding that she look in his encyclopedia to settle a dispute over baseball trivia. He threw out a first pitch in the new Comiskey Park in June 1994.

Johnny Dickshot died in 1997 in Waukegan. He had four daughters and one son, fourteen grandchildren (including the actor John Ducey), and four great-grandchildren.

References
  1. The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia. Sterling Publishing. 2007. p. 445. ISBN 1-4027-4771-3.
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