{{Short description|American baseball player (1912–2007)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name=Milt Bocek |image=Milt Bocek.jpg |position=Left fielder |bats=Right |throws=Right |birth_date={{Birth date|1912|7|16}} |birth_place=Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |death_date={{death date and age|2007|4|29|1912|7|16}} |death_place=Brookfield, Illinois, U.S. |debutleague = MLB |debutdate=September 3 |debutyear=1933 |debutteam=Chicago White Sox |finalleague = MLB |finaldate=August 2 |finalyear=1934 |finalteam=Chicago White Sox |statleague = MLB |stat1label=Batting average |stat1value=.267 |stat2label=Home runs |stat2value=1 |stat3label=RBI |stat3value=6 |teams= *Chicago White Sox ({{mlby|1933}}–{{mlby|1934}}) }} '''Milton Francis Bocek''' (July 16, 1912 – April 29, 2007) was an American professional baseball outfielder. He played parts of two seasons for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). During his playing career, he was listed at {{convert|6|ft|1|in|m}} and {{convert|185|lb|kg}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.historicbaseball.com/players/b/bocek_milt.html/|title=Milt Bocek|publisher=Historic Baseball|accessdate=November 21, 2012|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130427085425/http://www.historicbaseball.com/players/b/bocek_milt.html|archivedate=April 27, 2013}}</ref>
==Early life== Bocek was born in Chicago, Illinois, and was popularly known as "Beltin' Bo from Cicero".<ref name= "ap obit">"[http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/whitesox/chi-ap-il-obit-bocek,1,1977996.story?coll=chi-sportstop-hed Former Chicago White Sox outfielder Milton Bocek dead at 94]", the Associated Press, published April 30, 2007, accessed April 30, 2007.</ref> He graduated from Crane High School (Chicago) in Chicago and played college baseball at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=bocekmi01| title= Milt Bocek Stats|publisher= Baseball Almanac |accessdate= November 21, 2012}}</ref>
==Professional career== While Bocek was a student at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he became a fairly prominent summer amateur and semipro player in baseball and softball.<ref name="ap obit" /> Chicago White Sox manager Lew Fonseca noticed him and arranged a tryout at Comiskey Park, during which Bocek hit several balls into the upper deck.<ref name="ap obit" /> He signed with the White Sox in the second half of 1933, becoming the fifth-youngest player in Major League Baseball that season, and then spent the first part of the 1934 season with the team as well. Subsequently, he played several years in the minor league systems of the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees.
==Post-playing career== After the end of Bocek's playing career, he worked as a draftsman for Danly Machine Company and later at a family owned business, also serving in the United States Army during World War II.<ref name="ap obit" /> He was married to his wife Victoria for 58 years before her death in 2006, and they had three children and eight grandchildren.<ref name="ap obit" /> At the time of his death, he held the distinction of being the oldest living White Sox player.<ref name="ap obit" /> He died on April 29, 2007, in Brookfield, Illinois, after a brief illness. He is buried next to his wife at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bocekmi01.shtml/| title= Milt Bocek |website=Baseball-Reference.com |accessdate= November 21, 2012}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{baseballstats |br=b/bocekmi01 |brm=bocek-001mil |retro=B/Pbocem101}}, or [https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=bocekmi01 Baseball Almanac]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bocek, Milt}} Category:1912 births Category:2007 deaths Category:Major League Baseball left fielders Category:Chicago White Sox players Category:Longview Cannibals players Category:Elmira Red Wings players Category:Columbus Red Birds players Category:Sacramento Senators players Category:Dallas Steers players Category:Cedar Rapids Raiders players Category:Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Category:Binghamton Triplets players Category:Decatur Commodores players Category:Asheville Tourists players Category:Gastonia Cardinals players Category:Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball players Category:Baseball players from Chicago Category:People from Brookfield, Illinois Category:United States Army personnel of World War II Category:Crane High School (Chicago) alumni Category:20th-century American sportsmen