Jim Blackburn (baseball)

Blackburn was able to return to baseball in 1946. In July 1948 he was recalled to Cincinnati for his first major-league stint, and he appeared in 16 games, all in relief, for a second-division Reds' team. He proved to be highly effective through his first 11 games, but three rough September outings saddled him with two losses and inflated his earned run average from 1.59 to 4.18.^[3] Blackburn then missed the entire 1949 season. In 1950, he returned to baseball in the minor leagues, winning 21 games with a stellar 2.73 ERA in the Double-A Texas League. As a result, the Reds gave him a second trial in the early weeks of 1951, but he was ineffective in two appearances, posting a 17.18 ERA in only 32⁄3 innings pitched.

He resumed his career in the minors, where he played into the 1952 campaign, his last in baseball. In his 18 major-league games, all in relief, he compiled an 0–2 record and a 5.50 ERA, with no saves; in 36 innings pitched, he allowed 46 hits and 16 bases on balls, with 11 strikeouts. Jim Blackburn died in Cincinnati at the age of 45 on October 26, 1969.

• Career statistics from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
• Bedingfield, Gary, "Jim Blackburn: Ballplayers Wounded in Combat," profile from Baseball in Wartime

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