KINGMAN — Plans are underway for a day to recognize former Kingmanite Don Lock, a former Wichita State University basketball player and Major League Baseball player. Don Lock Day will be held Friday March 20, 2015. That is the same day the Kingman High School baseball team will hold its annual alumni game. County resident Sophie Sawyer said Lock is interested in doing a meet-and-greet, and perhaps autograph signings with Kingman residents and others who wish to attend, and that he would love to have some of his former MLB and WSU teammates be part of the event. Plans are to air a baseball-themed movie for the community at 3 p.m. at the Kingman Historic Theater. After the movie, a short parade of cars will head to Riverside Park, at which a ceremony will be held at 5 p.m. to reveal a plaque honoring Lock, to be placed at one of the ball fields. Following the ceremony, a cookout will be held at 5:30 p.m., at which time visitors will be able to meet Lock and any of his former teammates who are able to attend. That will be followed by the KHS alumni baseball game at 6:30 p.m. Lock was a multi-sport star for the Kingman Eagles and played basketball at Wichita State University. While playing for WSU, he received All-Missouri Valley honors. He was a charter inductee of the WSU Hall of Fame in 1979. Lock was signed by the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1958. He never played a major league game for the Yankees, but was later traded to the Washington Senators in 1962, where he made his major league debut on July 17, 1962. He played for the Senators until 1966, and he played for the Philadelphia Phillies for the 1967 and 1968 seasons. He was with the Phillies for four games in 1969, before joining the Boston Red Sox for the rest of the season. Lock was particularly known for his great defensive play as an centerfielder. According to Baseball-Reference, Lock had a .976 fielding percentage with 1,789 putouts in 1,893 chances. Of particular note was his 1963 campaign, in which he led all American League outfielders in putouts with 377, and turned six double plays. He finished second in assists among outfielders that season with 14, then led all outfielders with 19 assists in 1964. As an MLB hitter, Lock had 122 home runs in 2,695 at bats, with 373 runs batted in and 359 runs scored. He was sixth among all American League players in 1963 with 27 home runs. In 1964, he was 10th in home runs with 28 and eighth in walks drawn with 79. He finished his MLB career with a .238 batting average and a .331 on-base percentage.
Posted on: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 15:54:12 +0000
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