Don Eaddy Donald Johnson Eaddy ( February 16 , 1934 – July 9 , 2008 ) was an American baseball , football , and basketball player . He played Major League Baseball for the Chicago Cubs in 1959 . He played college baseball , football , and basketball at the University of Michigan from 1951 to 1955 . He was an All - American in baseball and an All - Big Ten Conference selection in basketball . Early years . Eaddy was born in Grand Rapids , Michigan in 1934 . He graduated from Ottawa Hill High School . University of Michigan . Eaddy attended the University of Michigan from 1951 to 1955 . He was a three - sport athlete at Michigan , competing in baseball , basketball and football . In football , Eaddy played at the halfback position in 1951 . He appeared in three games for Michigan during the 1951 season , completing a pass against Michigan State for a 23 - yard gain . He carried the ball nine times for the Wolverines for - 49 net yards resulting from plays in which he was sacked . ( The halfback was the player with principal passing responsibility in the Michigan offense of the late 1940s and early 1950s . ) Eaddy dropped football after his freshman year . He later recalled : " First of all , I was too small to mess around with those big fellows , being a 160 - pound halfback . And , secondly , I preferred to concentrate on baseball and basketball . " In basketball , he played at the guard position and was selected as an All - Big Ten Conference player . In baseball , Eaddy was a third baseman and was selected as an All - American in 1955 . He helped lead the Michigan Wolverines baseball team to the NCAA baseball championship in 1952 . In 1955 , he compiled a . 353 batting average in Big Ten play and led the conference with 11 stolen bases in 15 games . After receiving his bachelor ' s degree , Eaddy returned to Michigan in the fall of 1955 to pursue a master ' s degree in education . Professional baseball . After graduating from Michigan , Eaddy signed to play professional baseball with the Chicago Cubs . He explained his choice as follows : " I thought I would have a better chance to reach the major leagues sooner with them , because they are not loaded with material . " Eaddy played in the minor leagues for Burlington Bees in the Illinois - Indiana - Iowa League in 1955 . He compiled a . 304 batting average in 32 games with three doubles and three triples . In a March 1956 feature story about Eaddy in " The Sporting News " , Chicago coach Ray Blades predicted great things for Eaddy : " I ' ve seen him for only a couple of weeks now and I know that he has less than a years ' s experience in professional ball . However , I can promise you at this early stage of his career that this young fellow is destined to be a big leaguer . He just can ' t miss . " Blades added that Eaddy was already " a big leaguer on defense , " and the only question was with his hitting . Eaddy was assigned to the Des Moines Bruins in the Western League in 1956 . In 41 games with Des Moines , he hit . 390 . After a fast start with Des Moines in 1956 , Eaddy ' s career was interrupted when he was drafted to serve in the United States Air Force . He missed the most of the 1956 season and the entire 1957 and 1958 seasons to military service . After completing his military service , Eaddy returned to the Chicago Cubs organization . He made his major league debut with the Cubs as a pinch runner on April 24 , 1959 , and appeared in 15 games during the 1959 season . He was used principally as a pinch runner , and his only appearance as a position player in the major leagues was on August 1 , 1959 , as a third baseman . He replaced Art Schult in the bottom of the fifth inning , committed an error in the bottom of the sixth that allowed a run to score , and struck out in the top of the seventh inning . Despite striking out in his only at bat , he scored three runs for the Cubs . Eaddy spent most of the 1959 season playing in the minor leagues for the Lancaster Red Roses of the Eastern League and the Fort Worth Cats of the American Association . Eaddy continued to play minor league baseball for another five years , but did not return to the major leagues . He had his best minor league season in 1960 at Lancaster , batting . 304 in 457 plate appearances with a . 425 on base percentage , 17 doubles , eight triples , eight home runs , 33 RBIs and nine stolen bases . Eaddy also played in Cuba during the winter of 1960 for the Cienfuegos . He led the Cuban league in bases on balls and helped lead the Cienfuegos to the 1960 Caribbean Series title . Later years . After retiring from baseball , Eaddy became a franchisee for the Burger King restaurant chain . He was inducted into the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame in 1996 . In July 2008 , he died of cancer in Laconia , New Hampshire at age 74 .