1961 Houston Buffs Roster
Team Record: 73-77
Finished 4th in the AA
Manager: Grady Hatton (0-0), Fred Martin (0-0), Lou Klein (0-0), Harry Craft (0-0)
Affiliation: Chicago Cubs
Location: Houston, Texas
Ballpark: Busch Stadium
Attendance: 120,104, Avg. 1,601
Playoffs - Houston Buffs 4 games, Indianapolis Indians 1
Finals - Louisville Colonels 4 games, Houston Buffs 2
The Houston Buffs of the American Association ended the 1961 season with a record of 73 wins and 77 losses, finishing fourth in the AA.
The Buffs scored 703 runs and allowed 672 runs. Jim McKnight led Houston with 24 home runs, while Bud Zipfel walloped 15 or more, too. Jim McKnight drove in 102 runs. Henry Mitchell paced batters with significant playing time with a .292 average. Al Lary topped the team with 15 wins and a team-best 3.58 ERA, best among pitchers with enough qualifying appearances.
Cholly Naranjo, J C Hartman, Jim Campbell, Bud Zipfel, Al Schroll, Mel Wright, Ben Johnson, Moe Thacker, Tom Hughes, Aaron Pointer, Dave Giusti, Phil Mudrock, Jim McKnight, Gordon Massa, Ed Donnelly, Ray Noble, Wally Wolf, Barney Schultz, Jim Proctor, Sammy Drake, Dave Gerard, Cal Browning, George Freese, Dave Roberts, Pidge Browne, Al Lary, Jim McAnany, Ron Davis and Harvey Branch were all players from the 1961 Houston Buffs who played in the Major Leagues during their careers.
Grady Hatton, Fred Martin, Lou Klein and Harry Craft served as manager.Click on column headings to sort.
| Player | Bats | Throws | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phil Borders | R | R | June 18, 1939 | 6'0" | 185 | |
| Harvey Branch | R | L | February 8, 1939 | 6'0" | 175 | Memphis, TN US |
| Pidge Browne | L | L | March 21, 1929 | 6'1" | 190 | Peekskill, NY US |
| Cal Browning | L | L | March 16, 1938 | 5'11" | 190 | Burns Flat, OK US |
| Jack Caffery | R | L | June 30, 1934 | 6'1" | 175 | Kingston, ON CA |
| Jim Campbell | R | R | June 24, 1937 | 6'0" | 190 | Palo Alto, CA US |
| Wayne Connally | R | R | August 13, 1934 | 5'11" | 155 | |
| Ron Davis | R | R | October 21, 1941 | 6'0" | 175 | Roanoke Rapids, NC US |
| Antonio Diaz | R | R | June 13, 1938 | 6'0" | 175 | La Habana, La Habana CU |
| Ed Donnelly | R | R | December 10, 1932 | 6'0" | 175 | Allen, MI US |
| Sammy Drake | S | R | October 7, 1934 | 5'11" | 175 | Little Rock, AR US |
| Layton Ducote | R | R | November 7, 1935 | 6'4" | 195 | |
| George Freese | R | R | September 12, 1926 | 6'0" | 190 | Wheeling, WV US |
| Dave Gerard | R | R | August 6, 1936 | 6'2" | 205 | New York, NY US |
| Dave Giusti | R | R | November 27, 1939 | 5'11" | 190 | Seneca Falls, NY US |
| Bill Griffin | R | L | February 14, 1935 | 6'2" | 180 | Omaha, NE US |
| J C Hartman | R | R | April 15, 1934 | 6'0" | 175 | Cottonton, AL US |
| Tom Hughes | L | R | September 13, 1934 | 6'2" | 180 | Ancon, Canal Zone PA |
| Ben Johnson | R | R | May 16, 1931 | 6'2" | 190 | Greenwood, SC US |
| Al Lary | R | R | September 26, 1928 | 6'3" | 185 | Northport, AL US |
| Boyd Linker | R | R | 5'11" | 180 | ||
| Gordon Massa | L | R | September 2, 1935 | 6'3" | 210 | Cincinnati, OH US |
| Jim McAnany | R | R | September 4, 1936 | 5'10" | 196 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| Jim McKnight | R | R | June 1, 1936 | 6'1" | 185 | Bee Branch, AR US |
| Henry Mitchell | R | R | December 17, 1936 | 5'11" | 169 | Panama, Panama PA |
| Wallace Mixon | R | R | October 28, 1939 | 6'0" | 180 | |
| Phil Mudrock | R | R | January 12, 1937 | 6'1" | 190 | Louisville, CO US |
| Cholly Naranjo | L | R | November 25, 1933 | 5'11" | 165 | La Habana, La Habana CU |
| Lenny Neal | R | R | December 2, 1924 | 5'11" | 185 | Scio, OR US |
| Gerry Nelson | R | R | April 1, 1934 | 6'3" | 200 | Beaumont, TX US |
| Ray Noble | R | R | March 15, 1919 | 5'11" | 210 | Central Hatillo, CU |
| Aaron Pointer | R | R | April 19, 1942 | 6'2" | 185 | Little Rock, AR US |
| Jim Proctor | R | R | September 9, 1935 | 6'0" | 165 | Brandywine, MD US |
| Dave Roberts | L | L | June 30, 1933 | 6'0" | 172 | Panama, Panama PA |
| Al Schroll | R | R | March 22, 1932 | 6'2" | 210 | New Orleans, LA US |
| Barney Schultz | R | R | August 15, 1926 | 6'2" | 200 | Beverly, NJ US |
| Moe Thacker | R | R | May 21, 1934 | 6'3" | 205 | Louisville, KY US |
| Jack Waters | R | R | December 6, 1932 | 5'11" | 168 | |
| Wally Wolf | R | R | January 5, 1942 | 6'0" | 191 | South Gate, CA US |
| Mel Wright | R | R | May 11, 1928 | 6'3" | 210 | Manila, AR US |
| Bud Zipfel | L | R | November 18, 1938 | 6'3" | 200 | Belleville, IL 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.
