Preston Ward

Preston Ward
First baseman
Born: (1927-07-24)July 24, 1927 Columbia, Missouri
Died: Las Vegas, Nevada
Batted: Left Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 20, 1948, for the Brooklyn Dodgers
Last MLB appearance
August 18, 1959, for the Kansas City Athletics
MLB statistics
Batting average	.253
Home runs	50
Runs batted in	262
Teams
Brooklyn Dodgers (1948) Chicago Cubs (1950, 1953) Pittsburgh Pirates (1953–1956) Cleveland Indians (1956–1958) Kansas City Athletics (1958–1959)

Preston Meyer Ward (July 24, 1927 - June 2, 2013) was a lefty-hitting, righty-throwing first baseman/outfielder/third baseman, who played 9 seasons in the major leagues, playing in both the National and American Leagues. In the National League, he played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1948), Chicago Cubs (1950 and 1953) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1953–1956). In the American League, he played for the Cleveland Indians (1956–1958) and the Kansas City A's (1958–1959).

Ward got opportunities in the major leagues twice—in 1948 and 1950—before finally "sticking" in 1953. He became a utility player/platoon player, seeing most of his action as a first baseman (438 games at first base vs. 95 in the outfield vs. 74 at third base).

His batting numbers are low for a first baseman. His career batting average is .253, while the league average for the years he played is .269. His highest home run total was 12, and his highest RBI total was 48. He only twice made double-digits for home runs.

He was born in Columbia, Missouri, United States.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)