Larry Ciaffone

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Stats
Game Logs
Given name: Lawrence Thomas Ciaffone
Nicknames: Symphony Larry
Primary Pos: Leftfield
Hght/Wght: 5'9" / 185 lbs
Bats/Throws: R / R
Born: Aug 17, 1924 in Brooklyn, NY
Died: Dec 14, 1991 in Brooklyn, NY (67 years old)
Debut: Apr 17, 1951

Lawrence Thomas Ciaffone (August 17, 1924 – December 14, 1991), nicknamed "Symphony Larry", was an American professional baseball player whose ten-year playing career (1946–55), largely as an outfielder, catcher and first baseman, included a six-game trial with the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball during the opening weeks of the 1951 season. Ciaffone threw and batted right-handed, stood 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg).

Born in Brooklyn, New York, he attended Lafayette High School before transferring to Abraham Lincoln High School to be teammates with his cousin Frank Ciaffone, a star pitcher. Both signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers upon graduation but their baseball careers were delayed by military service in World War II. Larry entered the United States Army, and saw combat at the Battle of the Bulge in 1944–45. Frank enlisted in the United States Marines and was fatally wounded in the Battle of Iwo Jima on March 3, 1945.

Returning from wartime service at the age of 22, Larry Ciaffone began his playing career in the Brooklyn farm system, but was drafted by the Cardinals after only one season at the Class B level. He progressed through the Cardinal system, and after batting .324 for the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings in 1950, he made the Cardinals' early-season, 28-man roster in 1951. Ciaffone appeared in six games as a pinch hitter and substitute left fielder. He went hitless in five at bats with one base on balls, then returned to Rochester for the balance of the season.