Violinist Edwin Frank Basinski has Died, Aged 99

(Photo courtesy: David Eskenazi Collection)

Edwin “Eddie” Basinski had been the second-oldest former Major League Baseball player. He passed away at a care facility in Gladstone, Oregon, where he had been residing for the past seven years.

Born in 1922 in Buffalo, New York, into a working-class Polish-American family, Basinski was encouraged by his mother, who was a pianist, to begin playing the violin at age five. 

He attended the University of Buffalo and played in the orchestra there, later taking on a casual position as a violinist for the Buffalo Symphony Orchestra. 

He would occasionally be asked to play his violin for a baseball audience, but Basinski did so reluctantly. “I’m a perfectionist,” he confessed. “If I can’t play well then I prefer not to do it.”

From left to right: Eddie Basinski, serenading Portland Beaver teammates Art Pennington, Luis Marquez, and Frankie Austin in 1949 (Image courtesy: The Oregonian)

According to his biography on the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR), his Dodgers teammates and manager became doubtful of Basinski’s musical ability, due to his reluctance to play at the clubhouse. On a bet, however, he proved them wrong by playing selections of Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Victor Herbert, and a Strauss waltz. 

Along with being inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and Pacific Coast League Hall Of Fame, his name was also featured in David Frishberg’s famous song, “Van Lingle Mungo.” Basinski was the last surviving player among the 33 players whose names constitute the lyrics.

“The good side is, he lived 99 years and 65 days,” his son, Dave Basinski, said. “He had a full life, like Betty White. His spirits were good right up until the end.”

Our condolences to Mr. Basinski’s family, friends, and colleagues.