1953 Ventura Oilers Roster
Team Record: 52-88
Finished 8th in the CL
Manager: Jose Perez (0-0), Dario Lodigiani (0-0)
Location: Ventura, California
Ballpark: Babe Ruth Field
Attendance: 30,632, Avg. 438
The Ventura Oilers of the California League ended the 1953 season with a record of 52 wins and 88 losses, finishing eighth in the CL.
The Oilers plated 636 runs, worst in the league, and allowed 910 runs. Jose Perez led all regular batters by hitting .373. Tony Ponce topped Ventura with 15 wins and a team-best 4.42 ERA, tops among pitchers with enough qualifying appearances.
Members of the 1953 Ventura Oilers who played in Major League Baseball during their careers were Dave Melton, Dick Adams and Dario Lodigiani.
Jose Perez and Dario Lodigiani served as manager.Click on column headings to sort.
| Player | Bats | Throws | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Adams | R | L | April 8, 1920 | 6'0" | 185 | Tuolumne, CA US |
| Elmer Ammons | R | R | February 10, 1934 | 5'10" | 160 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| Augie Amorena | L | L | October 1, 1931 | 5'11" | 175 | Sacramento, CA US |
| Samuel Ball | L | 5'11" | 145 | |||
| Allan Cameron | ||||||
| Harlan Cohen | R | R | November 6, 1934 | 5'7" | 148 | Chicago, IL US |
| Jim Collins | S | L | September 15, 1930 | 6'0" | 160 | Santa Rosa, CA US |
| Homer Coreris | ||||||
| Jack Coyle | L | L | December 29, 1931 | 5'11" | 175 | Hamilton, OH US |
| Donald Domenichelli | R | R | March 2, 1935 | 5'9" | 165 | San Francisco, CA US |
| Chuck Donley | R | R | April 10, 1934 | 6'1" | 175 | San Francisco, CA US |
| Shelly Edwards | ||||||
| Stan Fabiano | R | R | February 10, 1932 | 5'11" | 175 | San Jose, CA US |
| Fred Garner | R | R | August 29, 1929 | 6'0" | 175 | Tulsa, OK US |
| Bill Gelsinger | R | R | May 10, 1932 | 5'11" | 165 | Glendale, CA US |
| Lawrence Ghio | R | R | August 24, 1929 | 6'2" | 180 | San Pedro, CA US |
| Billy Girdley | L | L | January 24, 1934 | 5'10" | 162 | Osceola, AR US |
| Harry Higgins | R | R | April 28, 1934 | 6'0" | 165 | Terre Haute, IN US |
| Don King | R | L | March 23, 1934 | 6'6" | 235 | Elkins, AR US |
| Dario Lodigiani | R | R | June 6, 1916 | 5'8" | 150 | San Francisco, CA US |
| Ubaldo Lopez | R | R | August 14, 1934 | 5'6" | 145 | La Jara, CO US |
| Dave Melton | R | R | October 3, 1928 | 6'0" | 185 | Pampa, TX US |
| Alberto Mendoza | L | L | October 25, 1934 | 6'0" | 150 | Santa Paula, CA US |
| Donald Mirandette | R | R | September 18, 1928 | 5'10" | 155 | San Francisco, CA US |
| Michael Moore | L | L | September 18, 1934 | 5'9" | 155 | West Palm Beach, CA US |
| Al Neufeld | R | R | May 13, 1930 | 6'0" | 185 | Scotia, CA US |
| Pete Nitrini | R | R | January 25, 1931 | 5'11" | 181 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| John Noce | R | March 3, 1932 | 6'0" | 175 | ||
| Frank Nubin | R | R | April 4, 1924 | 5'10" | 170 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| Ronald Odekirk | ||||||
| Jose Perez | R | R | May 20, 1926 | 5'11" | 180 | Long Beach, CA US |
| Robert Perry | R | R | July 5, 1926 | 6'0" | 175 | , MA US |
| Tony Ponce | S | R | August 12, 1921 | 6'1" | 205 | Rivera, CA US |
| Robert Poole | R | 6'0" | 183 | |||
| Terry Porter | L | L | September 3, 1932 | 5'11" | 179 | San Pedro, CA US |
| Robert Sangster | ||||||
| Stan Stewart | R | R | November 28, 1932 | 6'0" | 162 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| George Surprenant | R | R | August 19, 1927 | 6'0" | 175 | Oakland, CA US |
| Jack Taylor | May 23, 1932 | |||||
| John Thomas | R | 6'3" | 225 | |||
| Mark Torres | R | R | September 16, 1926 | 5'8" | 185 | , MX |
| Rafael Valdez | R | R | October 24, 1933 | 5'5" | 160 | Ciudad Obregon, Sonora MX |
| Pinky Vargas | R | R | February 15, 1915 | 5'5" | 170 | |
| Ken Wright | R | R | January 9, 1932 | 5'10" | 180 | Sunnyside, WA 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.
