The birthday series we’re running here at Pinstripe Alley is interesting for multiple reasons, primarily because we’re introduced to players who may not have as much exposure as the stars of today’s game or had their time in the majors but end up in the weeds of Major League Baseball history. With the Yankees being an old franchise relative to most of MLB, the latter is bound to happen to plenty of different players from the olden days of our great game. Fred Heimach is one of the names that might be lost to time, but he still made his impact in his short stint with the Bombers.

Frederick Amos Heimach
Born: January 27, 1901 (Camden, NJ)
Died: June 1, 1973 (Fort Myers, FL)
Yankees Tenure: 1928-29

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Fred “Lefty” Heimach was born on this day in 1901 and worked his way up to the major-league ranks as a pitcher despite never playing high school baseball as a teenager. When the United States entered World War I, Heimach enlisted and trained to become a mechanic before being sent overseas to France, where he helped organize a baseball team for his unit in Romorantin in the spring of 1918. Tom Turner, who was then working as a quasi-scout for the Philadelphia Athletics and was the athletic officer for a team that was defeated by Heimach’s, said to him, according to Bill Nowlin from the Society of American Baseball Research, “When this war is over, and you still have two legs and two arms, see me without fail. You have a job with the Athletics waiting for you.”

And he did. Heimach returned to the United States, fresh off the war, at 19-years-old, and was signed by the Athletics. He was sent for some conditioning and made his MLB debut in a 13-3 loss to the Washington Senators on October 1, 1920.

However, despite the poor start and a 14.40 ERA to his name at the MLB level, he came back strong in his second season. At the Three-I League (Class B) level, he helped his squad, the Moline Plowboys, to a championship. He finished the year with a 24-8 record and led the league in wins and ERA with a 2.38 before making his second MLB start against the Chicago White Sox, where he pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only seven hits.

Heimach pitched 117 games more for the Athletics and started 64 of them before being moved to the Boston Red Sox in 1926. He finished with a 4.67 ERA in those games and a 5.65 ERA in 20 games with Boston. His next move, following an entire season in the minor leagues in 1927, was a pickup by the Yankees, who thought he could be a special player for them. He was acquired for $20,000 and a player to be named later, and in 13 games and nine starts, “Lefty” posted a 3.31 ERA in 68.0 innings pitched. He saw no action in the 1928 World Series against St. Louis but still walked away with a championship to his name.

Heimach was brought back for his 29-year-old season with the Yankees as well and had another decent season on the mound, finishing with a respectable 4.01 ERA and an 11-6 record. However, despite his two decent seasons in pinstripes, his contract was sold to the Toledo Mud Hens, and manager Bob Shawkey somewhat ominously told the New York World Telegram, “There are some things that this club will not elaborate.”

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Heimach’s last MLB appearance came on August 30, 1933, for the Brooklyn Dodgers, before his retirement was forced by a back injury. He pitched four seasons for the Dodgers from 1930 to 1933, finishing with a 4.31 career ERA with the team. His final career ERA came out to 4.46, and he finished with a career record of 62-69.

After his MLB career ended, Heimach headed south and joined the Miami Beach Police Department, where he spent 20 years as an officer before retiring in 1956 and moving to Arizona before returning to Florida. Heimach passed away in Fort Myers, on June 1, 1973, at the age of 72, and is buried at the Fort Myers Memorial Gardens.

See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.