George J. Cisar, 99, Believed to be the second-oldest former major-league baseball player
Matthew Kruk
chicagotribune.com
George J. Cisar, 1910-2010: Believed to be the second-oldest former
major-league baseball player
Cisar spent one month with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1937
By Bob Goldsborough, Special to the Tribune
9:52 PM CST, March 3, 2010
Although George J. Cisar's major-league baseball playing career was very
short - just one month with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1937 - he enjoyed a
renaissance of sorts in the 1990s and 2000s, as he signed autographs at
many area baseball memorabilia shows.
He even appeared at the annual SoxFest convention in 2005 as a special
guest of Chicago White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf.
"We went to so many baseball card shows in the '90s," said his daughter,
Gayle. "He was signing autographs alongside former players like Joe
DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle."
A North Riverside resident, Mr. Cisar, 99, died of a malignant brain
tumor Friday, Feb. 19, in hospice care in Elmhurst, his daughter said.
Mr. Cisar was believed to be the second-oldest former major-league
baseball player at the time of his death, behind his fellow 1937
Brooklyn Dodger Tony Malinosky, who turned 100 last year.
Born in Chicago, George Joseph Cisar grew up on the Southwest Side and
attended Harrison High School, his daughter said.
He began playing baseball in what is now Piotrowski Park, at 31st Street
and Keeler Avenue on the Southwest Side. After traveling around the
country trying out for various minor-league baseball teams, he was
signed by the Dodgers' lowest minor-league team in Leaksville, N.C.
Mr. Cisar lied about his birth date to make himself appear younger than
he really was, his daughter said. As a result, many baseball references
state that he was born in 1912. His correct year of birth, however, is
1910, she said.
After Mr. Cisar led the Illinois-Indiana-Iowa League with 63 stolen
bases in 1937, the Dodgers promoted him to the major leagues that
September.
"The Dodgers' manager, Burleigh Grimes, was the one who saw promise in
him," Gayle Cisar said. "He's the one who brought him up."
In his major-league debut on Sept. 9, 1937, Mr. Cisar struck out twice.
In 1938, the Dodgers cut Mr. Cisar during spring training in Clearwater,
Fla. He played for Dodgers minor-league teams before quitting
professional baseball after the 1940 season.
The Army drafted Mr. Cisar in 1943. He played for the baseball team at
Fort Sill in Oklahoma, then was shipped to France. He also served in
England and South America, his daughter said.
In 1946, Mr. Cisar settled in Cicero and played semi-pro baseball until
the late 1950s. He worked as an automatic screw machine operator in
Chicago until his 1982 retirement.
In addition to his daughter, Mr. Cisar is survived by two
granddaughters. His wife of 58 years, Irene, died in 2001.
Services were held.
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