1954 Lakeland Pilots Roster
Team Record: 71-67
Finished 4th in the FSL
Manager: Jim Bello (0-0), Rip Sewell (0-0)
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Ballpark: Henley Stadium
Attendance: 41,808, Avg. 606
Playoffs - Lakeland Pilots 3 games, Jacksonville Beach Sea Birds 2
The Lakeland Pilots of the Florida State League ended the 1954 season with a record of 71 wins and 67 losses, finishing fourth in the FSL.
The Pilots scored 744 runs and yielded 825 runs. Herman Niehaus led Lakeland with 23 home runs and accounted for 94 RBI, while leading batters with significant playing time by hitting .268. Rolando Ortega topped the squad with 20 wins, and Richard Donnelly added 15 or more victories also Richard Donnelly registered a 3.5 earned run average, tops among qualifying pitchers.
Les Witherspoon played in Major League Baseball during his career, the only member of the Lakeland Pilots to do so.
Jim Bello and Rip Sewell served as manager.Click on column headings to sort.
| Player | Bats | Throws | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reynaldo Alvarez | ||||||
| Roger Baer | May 12, 1931 | Oak Park, IL US | ||||
| Jim Bello | R | R | April 3, 1929 | 6'0" | 185 | Bronx, NY US |
| Billy Boyette | R | R | April 13, 1928 | 5'11" | 155 | Charlotte, NC US |
| William Bright | ||||||
| Lyle Copeland | ||||||
| Hugh Craig | R | 6'1" | 150 | |||
| John Deer | ||||||
| Richard Donnelly | R | R | September 21, 1932 | 6'2" | 180 | |
| Joseph Fazzino | ||||||
| Jim Fernan | ||||||
| Enrique Ferris | ||||||
| Rene Friol | R | R | May 28, 1933 | 6'1" | 208 | Candelaria, Pinar del Rio CU |
| Dewey Funkhouser | ||||||
| Alfred Gandolfi | L | 5'10" | 170 | |||
| Carlos Gil | ||||||
| Felix Gomez | R | 5'10" | 162 | |||
| Bascom Hamm | R | R | 6'5" | 220 | ||
| Abraham Hardee | ||||||
| James Hardison | L | R | November 20, 1934 | 6'2" | 175 | Plymouth, NC US |
| Kenneth Huffman | ||||||
| George Hughes | L | 5'11" | 165 | |||
| William Long | R | 6'0" | 175 | |||
| Manuel Luces | ||||||
| Enio Martinez | R | 5'11" | 158 | |||
| Douglas McPartland | ||||||
| Juan Monge | R | R | March 8, 1929 | 5'10" | 176 | |
| Herman Niehaus | R | R | January 4, 1929 | 6'3" | 200 | St. Louis, MO US |
| Rolando Ortega | R | 5'8" | 150 | |||
| Glen Prescott | L | 5'10" | 180 | |||
| Randy Randle | L | August 9, 1930 | 5'11" | 170 | Red Dragon, WV US | |
| Bobby Roberts | R | May 7, 1934 | 5'11" | 175 | ||
| John Scargle | R | R | October 2, 1932 | 6'0" | 175 | |
| Morton Schreiber | R | R | 6'2" | 195 | ||
| Del Shanle | ||||||
| Edward Sharkey | ||||||
| Leo Simard | L | November 18, 1930 | 6'0" | 195 | ||
| James Turner | R | 6'0" | 180 | |||
| John Wantz | R | L | 6'0" | 175 | ||
| Mason Whidden | ||||||
| Les Witherspoon | S | R | June 7, 1926 | 6'1" | 190 |
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.
