| Moe Morhardt | |
| Position: | First baseman |
| Bats: | Left |
| Throws: | Left |
| Birth Date: | 16 January 1937 |
| Birth Place: | Manchester, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Died: | - |
| Debutleague: | MLB |
| Debutdate: | September 7 |
| Debutyear: | 1961 |
| Debutteam: | Chicago Cubs |
| Finalleague: | MLB |
| Finaldate: | May 19 |
| Finalyear: | 1962 |
| Finalteam: | Chicago Cubs |
| Statleague: | MLB |
| Stat1label: | Batting average |
| Stat1value: | .206 |
| Stat2label: | Home runs |
| Stat2value: | 0 |
| Stat3label: | Runs batted in |
| Stat3value: | 3 |
| Teams: |
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Meredith Goodwin "Moe" Morhardt (born January 16, 1937) is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played parts of the 1961 and 1962 seasons with the Chicago Cubs, appearing in 25 major league games.[1]
Morhardt attended the University of Connecticut, where he was a two-sport All-American in soccer and baseball, also playing basketball during his freshman year.[2]
After three seasons of baseball at Connecticut, Morhardt was signed by the Chicago Cubs as an amateur free agent in summer 1959. He spent the remainder of 1959 at three minor league levels, spending most of the season with the Class D Paris Lakers. He spent all of 1960 with the Class A Lancaster Red Roses. He was assigned to the minor leagues again in 1961 and played much of the season with the Class B Wenatchee Chiefs.[3] In September, he was called up to the Cubs and made his major league debut on September 7, 1961. He appeared in seven games for the Cubs that month, starting each at first base and hitting .278.[4]
Morhardt began the 1962 season with Chicago, appearing in 18 games as a pinch-hitter. After hitting .125 with the Cubs, Morhardt was sent down to the minor leagues and split the rest of the season between Class B Wenatchee and Class AA San Antonio.[5]
He spent 1963 and 1964 in the minor leagues before retiring from professional baseball following the 1964 season.
After his playing career, Morhardt was the head baseball coach at The Gilbert School in Winsted, Connecticut from 1967 to 1987, also serving, at times, as the school's boys' soccer coach, boys' basketball coach, and athletic director. As head baseball coach, Morhardt had a record of 299–134, winning eight league titles and four Class M state championships.[6] Starting prior to the 1988 season, Morhardt coached for seven seasons for the Hartford Hawks college baseball team, serving as an assistant from 1988 to 1992 and head coach from 1993 to 1994.[7] From 1997 to 1999, he was the head coach of the Western Connecticut Colonials baseball team.[8] [9] Morhardt also spent time as the head coach of the Danbury Westerners of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, coaching the team from 1998 - 2004.[10]
Morhardt was elected to the Manchester Sports Hall of Fame on May 20, 1980.
Morhardt had three sons and one daughter, Kyle, Darryl, Greg and Wendy. Darryl played baseball professional in the Atlanta Braves farm system before transitioning to coaching. Greg played professionally in the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers systems before transitioning to coaching.[11] As a scout for the Los Angeles Angels, Greg Morhardt was credited with discovering Mike Trout as a high school baseball player.[12]
| Season | Team | Record | Standing | Playoffs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25–17 | 2nd | Semifinals | |||
| Danbury | 23–19 | T–4th | Finals | ||
| Danbury | 21–20 | 5th | |||
| Danbury | 17–23 | 4th (National) | |||
| Danbury | 25–16 | 1st (Western) | Semifinals | ||
| Danbury | 22–17 | 5th | Quarterfinals | ||
| Danbury | 15–25 | 7th (Southern) | |||
| Total | 148–137 | ||||