Otto Denning
Otto George Denning (December 28, 1912 – May 25, 1992) was an American professional baseball player and manager. His 20-year (1932–51) career was confined to minor league baseball except for 129 games at the Major League level during the World War II manpower shortage for the 1942–43 Cleveland Indians. He was a native of Hays, Kansas, and attended high school in Chicago, Illinois. Nicknamed "Dutch," Denning was a , catcher and first baseman who threw and batted right-handed. He began his pro baseball career in 1932 with the Davenport Blue Sox in the Class D Mississippi Valley League. In 1938, he joined the Minneapolis Millers of the top-level American Association and finished second to teammate Ted Williams in the league's batting race. He hit over .300 for Minneapolis for four consecutive seasons, then was selected by the Indians in the 1941 Rule 5 Draft. Denning made his big-league debut on April 15, 1942 against the Detroit Tigers, and lashed two hits in four at bats, including a double, off Dizzy Trout in a 6–2 Cleveland defeat. He started at catcher again the following day, and went one for two, with another double (off Tommy Bridges). But, although he was the