Ted Savage

[Michael Trzinski]

Theodore Ephisian Savage was born in Venice, Illinois just across the border from St. Louis. Savage was a three-sport star in high school and would play basketball and baseball at Lincoln University before graduating in 1958. Savage joined the US Army and would serve for three years. In 1960, he signed as an amateur free agent with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Savage had a pair of great minor league seasons before getting called up to the Phillies for the 1962 campaign. Despite a solid rookie season that included a batting line of .266/.345/.373, seven home runs and 16 stolen bases across 335 at-bats, he didn’t get a single Rookie of the Year vote. And for his reward, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates the week after Thanksgiving.

The 1963 season was tough for the right-handed outfielder, as he missed a month with a ‘severe virus infection.’ He finished the year with a slash line of .195/.268/.322 in 85 games. After struggling with Triple-A Columbus (Ohio) in 1964, Savage was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals just before Christmas.

Savage played mostly at the Triple-A level in 1965 and 1966 and was purchased by the Chicago Cubs in May 1967. He played in the Windy City for a good portion of 1967 and then was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in April 1968. Savage played in 61 games for LA and was traded to the Cincinnati Reds before the 1969 season. A year later, he became a Milwaukee Brewer.

The 1970 season in Milwaukee was the best of Savage’s career. He set highs in triples (5), home runs (12), RBIs (50), slash line (.279/.402/.482), and OPS+ (144). After going only 3-for-17 in early 1971, Savage was traded to the Kansas City Royals. After a similar stint with the Royals, Savage was released in early 1972. Savage played two years in Mexico before retiring in 1973.

After his playing career is where Savage shone. He earned a Ph.D. in Urban Studies and spent nine years as the athletic director at Harris-Stowe State University. He returned to the Cardinals organization in 1987 and spent 25 years as assistant director of community relations and minor league instruction, before moving to a director position in the Cardinals Care and community relations department.

Savage passed away in January 2023.

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