{{Short description|American baseball player (1934–2019)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name=Johnny Romano |position=Catcher |image=John Romano 1965.jpg |bats=Right |throws=Right |birth_date={{Birth date|1934|8|23}} |birth_place=Hoboken, New Jersey, U.S. |death_date={{death date and age|2019|2|24|1934|8|23}} |death_place=Naples, Florida, U.S. |debutleague = MLB |debutdate=September 12 |debutyear=1958 |debutteam=Chicago White Sox |finalleague = MLB |finaldate=August 21 |finalyear=1967 |finalteam=St. Louis Cardinals |statleague = MLB |stat1label=Batting average |stat1value=.255 |stat2label=Home runs |stat2value=129 |stat3label=Runs batted in |stat3value=417 |teams= *Chicago White Sox ({{mlby|1958}}–{{mlby|1959}}) *Cleveland Indians ({{mlby|1960}}–{{mlby|1964}}) *Chicago White Sox ({{mlby|1965}}–{{mlby|1966}}) *St. Louis Cardinals ({{mlby|1967}}) |highlights= *4× All-Star (1961–1962²) }} '''John Anthony Romano Jr.''' (August 23, 1934 &ndash; February 24, 2019) was an American professional baseball player.<ref name="John Romano">{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/romanjo01.shtml |title=John Romano |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=14 November 2010 }}</ref> He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Chicago White Sox (1958–1959, 1965–1966), Cleveland Indians (1960–1964) and St. Louis Cardinals (1967). He threw and batted right-handed.<ref name="John Romano"/> A four-time All-Star, Romano was considered one of the top catchers in the American League during the early 1960s before injuries prematurely ended his playing career.<ref>{{cite news |title=Romano's Powerful Hitting Spurs Chicago To Victory |agency=Associated Press |work=Lawrence Journal-World |page=8 |date=30 July 1965 |access-date=22 November 2010 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=CkIyAAAAIBAJ&pg=7184,2595384&dq=john+romano&hl=en}}</ref>

==Early life== Born and raised in Hoboken, New Jersey, Romano graduated from Demarest High School (now Hoboken High School), where he hit .681 during his senior season, breaking a record that had been held by his older brother, Anthony.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Newville |first=Todd |title=John Romano |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/7ad8ef44 |access-date=August 5, 2019 |website=Society for American Baseball Research |quote=Romano, who was born on August 23, 1934, in Hoboken, New Jersey, always had the ability to hit with power.... Romano attended Demarest High School in Hoboken, where, he says, 'My (older) brother Anthony set a record at Demarest by hitting .631 and then I broke it by hitting something like .681 my senior year.'}}</ref>

==Professional baseball career== Romano was signed by the Chicago White Sox as an amateur free agent in 1954. In {{Baseball year|1955}}, while playing for the Waterloo White Hawks, Romano hit 9 home runs in nine consecutive games.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Bryson, Bill |date=June 1965 |title=Romano Holidays |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fTIDAAAAMBAJ&q=john+romano+baseball+digest&pg=PA46 |access-date=21 November 2010 |magazine=Baseball Digest}}</ref> He accumulated 38 home runs with a .321 batting average and led the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League with 108 runs scored and 124 runs batted in.<ref name="The Baseball Biography Project: John Romano">{{cite web |last=Newville |first=Todd |title=The Baseball Biography Project: John Romano |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/7ad8ef44 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111013023419/http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=v&v=l&bid=1398&pid=12185 |archive-date=13 October 2011 |access-date= |website=Society for American Baseball Research}}</ref> His 38 home runs in 1955 set a league record.<ref name="The Baseball Biography Project: John Romano"/>

Romano split the {{Baseball year|1956}} season between the Vancouver Mounties and the Memphis Chickasaws.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=romano002joh |title=John Romano Minor League Statistics |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=22 November 2010 }}</ref> In {{Baseball year|1957}}, Romano played for the Indianapolis Indians of the American Association. The Indians' manager was former major league All-Star catcher Walker Cooper, who tutored Romano and helped to greatly improve his catching skills.<ref name="The Baseball Biography Project: John Romano"/> Romano was called up late in the 1958 season, making his major league debut with the Chicago White Sox on September 12, at the age of 23.<ref name="John Romano"/>

The White Sox' manager, Al López was also a former major league catcher who helped Romano improve his catching skills.<ref name="The Baseball Biography Project: John Romano"/> Playing as a backup to Sherm Lollar in 1959, Romano hit .294 with 5 home runs and 25 RBIs in 53 games, as the Go-Go White Sox won their first American League Pennant in 40 years.<ref name="The Baseball Biography Project: John Romano"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHW/1959.shtml |title=1959 Chicago White Sox |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref> He made one plate appearance as a pinch hitter in the 1959 World Series as the White Sox were defeated by the Los Angeles Dodgers in a six-game series.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1959_WS.shtml |title=1959 World Series |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref>

Romano was traded to the Cleveland Indians on December 6, 1959, and replaced Russ Nixon as the Indians' starting catcher.<ref name="John Romano Trades and Transactions">{{cite web |url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/trades.php?p=romanjo01 |title=John Romano Trades and Transactions |publisher=Baseball Almanac |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CLE/1960.shtml |title=1960 Cleveland Indians |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref> In 1960, he produced 16 home runs and 52 runs batted in along with a .272 batting average.<ref name="John Romano"/> He continued to improve in 1961, hitting for a .310 batting average by mid-season to earn the starting catcher's position for the American League team in the 1961 All-Star Games (two All-Star games per year were played in {{Baseball year|1961}} and {{Baseball year|1962}}).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=romanjo01&t=b&year=1961 |title=1961 John Romano Batting Log |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NLS/NLS196107110.shtml |title=1961 All-Star Game 1 |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ALS/ALS196107310.shtml |title=1961 All-Star Game 2 |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=22 November 2010 }}</ref> He ended the season with a career-high .299 batting average, eighth highest in the league, along with 21 home runs and 80 runs batted in.<ref name="John Romano"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1961-batting-leaders.shtml |title=1961 American League Batting Leaders |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref> Romano had another good year in 1962, hitting 13 home runs by mid-season, and was selected as a reserve catcher for the American League in the 1962 All-Star Games.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=romanjo01&t=b&year=1962 |title=1962 John Romano Batting Log |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ALS/ALS196207100.shtml |title=1962 All-Star Game 1 |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NLS/NLS196207300.shtml |title=1962 All-Star Game 2 |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=22 November 2010 }}</ref> He ended the season with career-highs of 25 home runs and 81 runs batted in.<ref name="John Romano"/>

On May 26, 1963, Romano fractured his little finger while making a tag at home plate.<ref name="John Romano"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Birds Take Pair From Cleveland |agency=Associated Press |work=Meriden Record |page=4 |date=27 May 1963 |access-date=22 November 2010 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=hilIAAAAIBAJ&pg=1768,3645967&dq=john+romano&hl=en}}</ref> He tried to return to play too soon, and the injury never healed correctly and affected his batting.<ref name="The Cleveland Indians Encyclopedia">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zjLiv-NNsiQC&q=why+did+the+indians+trade+davalillo%3F&pg=PA243 |title=The Cleveland Indians Encyclopedia |author=Schneider, Russell |year=2004 |publisher=Sports Publishing LLC |isbn=9781582618401 |access-date=8 February 2011 }}</ref> Romano missed 40 games that year and his batting average would drop to .216.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=romanjo01&t=b&year=1963 |title=1963 John Romano Batting Log |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=22 November 2010 }}</ref> In 1964, he platooned alongside catcher Joe Azcue, hitting .241 with 19 home runs.<ref name="John Romano"/> He was traded back to the White Sox on January 20, 1965, as the White Sox sought more offensive production from the catcher's position.<ref name="John Romano Trades and Transactions"/><ref>{{cite news |date=28 February 1965 |title=Romano Heads Sox Newcomers |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=T9geAAAAIBAJ&pg=6434,6663502&dq=john+romano&hl=en |access-date=22 November 2010 |work=Sarasota Herald Tribune |page=6 |via=Google News Archive |agency=Associated Press}}</ref>

Romano had a productive season in 1965 with the White Sox, hitting 18 home runs with a respectable .355 on-base percentage in cavernous Comiskey Park.<ref name="John Romano"/> He also helped guide the White Sox pitching staff to finish second in the league in team earned run average and in shutouts as, the White Sox won 95 games to finish the season in second place behind the Minnesota Twins.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1965.shtml#teams_standard_pitching::7 |title=1965 American League Season Summary |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref> Romano followed this performance with 15 home runs and a .344 on-base percentage in 1966 as he guided the White Sox pitching staff to lead the league in earned run average and in shutouts.<ref name="John Romano"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1966.shtml#teams_standard_pitching::7 |title=1966 American League Season Summary |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=21 November 2010 }}</ref>

On December 14, 1966, the White Sox traded Romano along with Leland White to the St. Louis Cardinals for Don Dennis and Walt Williams. He played one final season as a backup catcher for Tim McCarver in 1967.<ref name="John Romano Trades and Transactions"/> He hit for a .121 batting average in 24 games for the Cardinals as they won the {{Baseball year|1967}} National League pennant.<ref name="John Romano"/> They also captured the 1967 World Series title, but Romano was not on the postseason roster and was released on October 20, 1967.<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 20, 1967 |title=Cards release Romano, Woodeshick |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19671020&id=D3NQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qloDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3550,5778597 |work=St. Petersburg Times |page=4-C |agency=Associated Press}}</ref>

==Career statistics== In a ten-year major league career, Romano played in 905 games, accumulating 706 hits in 2,767 at bats for a .255 career batting average along with 129 home runs, 417 runs batted in and a .354 on-base percentage.<ref name="John Romano"/> A good defensive player, he ended his career with a .990 fielding percentage.<ref name="John Romano"/> Romano led American League catchers once in baserunners caught stealing, once in assists and once in range factor.<ref name="John Romano"/> At the time of his retirement, he held three team records for Indians catchers with most career home runs (91), most home runs in a season (25) and most RBIs in a season (81).<ref name="The Cleveland Indians Encyclopedia"/>

==Death== Romano died on February 24, 2019, at the age of 84.<ref>[https://www.fullernaples.com/tributes/John-Romano John A. Romano]: ''Fuller Funeral Home''. Retrieved 7 March 2019.</ref>

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{baseballstats|mlb=|espn=|br=r/romanjo01|fangraphs=|brm=romano002joh|retro=}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20111013023419/http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=v&v=l&bid=1398&pid=12185 John Romano SABR Biography]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Romano, Johnny}} Category:1934 births Category:2019 deaths Category:American League All-Stars Category:American people of Italian descent Category:Chicago White Sox players Category:Cleveland Indians players Category:Dubuque Packers players Category:Hoboken High School alumni Category:Indianapolis Indians players Category:Major League Baseball catchers Category:Memphis Chickasaws players Category:St. Louis Cardinals players Category:Baseball players from Hoboken, New Jersey Category:Vancouver Mounties players Category:Waterloo White Hawks players Category:20th-century American sportsmen