Ferrell, "Rick" (Richard B.)
Baseball
b. Oct. 12, 1905, Durham, NC
d. July 27, 1995
He never led a league in a single offensive category, but Ferrell was a solid hitter and one of the finest defensive catchers of his era. He entered the major leagues with the AL's St. Louis Browns in 1929, batting .306 in 1931 and .315 in 1932, then was traded to the Boston Red Sox during the 1933 season.
In 1934, Boston acquired his brother Wes, a right-handed pitcher. Throwing to Rick, Wes won 59 games during the next 3 seasons. The brothers were traded together to the Washington Senators early in the 1937 season./p>
Wes went to the New York Yankees in 1938, but Rick remained with Washington until May of 1941, when he went back to the Browns. He returned to the Senators in 1944 and remained with them until retiring after the 1947 season.
In 1,884 games, Ferrell had a .281 batting average on 1,692 hits, including 324 doubles, 45 triples and only 28 home runs. (Wes, one of the best-hitting pitchers of all time, hit 38 career home runs and had a .280 career average.)