1951 Houston Buffalos Roster
Team Record: 99-61
Finished 1st in the TL
Manager: Al Hollingsworth (99-61)
Affiliation: St. Louis Cardinals
Location: Houston, Texas
Ballpark: Busch Stadium
Attendance: 333,201, Avg. 4,165
Playoffs - Houston Buffalos 4 games, Beaumont Roughnecks 2
Finals - Houston Buffalos 4 games, San Antonio Missions 0
The Houston Buffalos of the Texas League ended the 1951 season with a record of 99 wins and 61 losses, finishing first in the TL.
The Buffalos led the circuit with just 527 runs allowed. Houston scored 614 runs. Ben Steiner paced batters with significant playing time by hitting .262. Al Papai earned 23 wins on the mound for the squad, while Fred Martin, Octavio Rubert and Vinegar Bend Mizell each added 15 or more wins, too Vinegar Bend Mizell earned a 1.97 ERA, tops among qualifying pitchers.
Players from the 1951 Houston Buffalos who spent time in the Majors during their careers included Strick Shofner, Vinegar Bend Mizell, Fred Martin, Dick Bokelmann, Larry Miggins, Jerry Witte, Mike Clark, Al Papai, Les Fusselman, Eddie Kazak, Bill Reeder, Rip Repulski, Jack Crimian, Danny Lynch, Ben Steiner and Lou Ciola.
Al Hollingsworth served as manager.Click on column headings to sort.
| Player | Bats | Throws | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Bokelmann | R | R | October 26, 1926 | 6'0" | 180 | Arlington Heights, IL US |
| Roy Broome | R | R | February 17, 1921 | 5'11" | 160 | Norwood, NC US |
| Lou Ciola | R | R | September 6, 1922 | 5'9" | 165 | Norfolk, VA US |
| Mike Clark | R | R | February 12, 1922 | 6'4" | 190 | Camden, NJ US |
| Bob Clear | R | R | December 14, 1927 | 5'9" | 170 | Denver, CO US |
| Hal Coffman | R | R | May 8, 1929 | 6'1" | 173 | Topeka, KS US |
| Billy Costa | R | February 11, 1920 | 5'6" | 155 | ||
| Jack Crimian | R | R | February 17, 1926 | 5'10" | 180 | Philadelphia, PA US |
| Elbie Flint | R | 5'11" | 165 | |||
| Les Fusselman | R | R | March 7, 1921 | 6'1" | 195 | Pryor, OK US |
| Vann Harrington | L | November 2, 1917 | 5'8" | 155 | Thomasville, NC US | |
| Elroy Joyce | R | R | June 22, 1925 | 6'2" | 185 | Stokes County, NC US |
| Eddie Kazak | R | R | July 18, 1920 | 6'0" | 175 | Steubenville, OH US |
| Thomas Keating | L | R | November 10, 1926 | 6'3" | 210 | |
| Dick Landis | R | June 15, 1928 | 5'9" | 168 | ||
| Pete Lewis | R | R | June 4, 1921 | 5'11" | 170 | Camden, AR US |
| Danny Lynch | R | R | February 7, 1926 | 5'11" | 174 | Dallas, TX US |
| Fred Martin | R | R | June 27, 1915 | 6'1" | 185 | Williams, OK US |
| Pete Mazar | R | L | February 9, 1921 | 5'9" | 152 | Annandale, NJ US |
| Mel McGaha | R | R | September 26, 1926 | 6'2" | 198 | Bastrop, LA US |
| Larry Miggins | R | R | August 20, 1925 | 6'4" | 198 | Bronx, NY US |
| Vinegar Bend Mizell | R | L | August 13, 1930 | 6'3" | 205 | Leakesville, MS US |
| Vincent Moreci | L | L | October 11, 1929 | 5'10" | 190 | San Francisco, CA US |
| Al Papai | R | R | May 7, 1917 | 6'3" | 185 | Divernon, IL US |
| Hisel Patrick | R | R | August 21, 1925 | 6'2" | 190 | |
| Buddy Phillips | R | July 15, 1925 | 5'10" | 190 | Fort Smith, AR US | |
| Russ Rac | R | R | June 15, 1930 | 5'11" | 188 | Galveston, TX US |
| Bill Reeder | R | R | February 20, 1922 | 6'5" | 205 | Dike, TX US |
| Rip Repulski | R | R | October 4, 1928 | 6'0" | 195 | Sauk Rapids, MN US |
| Octavio Rubert | R | R | April 9, 1925 | 6'0" | 160 | Sancti Spiritus, Sancti Spiritus CU |
| Strick Shofner | L | R | July 23, 1919 | 5'10" | 187 | Crawford, TX US |
| Ben Steiner | L | R | July 28, 1921 | 5'11" | 165 | Alexandria, VA US |
| Earl Weaver | R | R | August 14, 1930 | 5'7" | 180 | St. Louis, MO US |
| Jerry Witte | R | R | July 30, 1915 | 6'1" | 190 | St. Louis, MO US |
Average attendance is based upon the number of actual home dates where known (most leagues from 1992 and later). Where the number of home dates is not known, the average is calculated using half the team's total games.
