George David "Slick" Coffman (December 11, 1910 – May 8, 2003) was an American baseball pitcher. He played 18 years of professional baseball, including four years in Major League Baseball with the Detroit Tigers (1937–1939) and St. Louis Browns (1940). In his major league debut in May 1937, Coffman won in an 11-inning, 4–2 pitching duel with Lefty Grove. Coffman compiled a career record of 15–12 in innings pitched with a 5.60 earned run average. Biography Early years Coffman was born in Veto, Alabama, a "little town about 25 feet south of the Tennessee state line." He graduated from high school in Athens, Alabama. Coffman's older brother, Dick Coffman, was a major league pitcher for 15 seasons. The older brother made his major league debut in April 1927 while "Slick" was a 16-year-old high school student. Minor leagues After graduating from high school, Coffman played semi-professional baseball with the local team in Athens, a member of the Bee Line League. After one year with Athens, he played with minor league team in Montgomery, Alabama, and Dothan in the South Atlantic League. He won 12 games and lost 10 in 1934 for the Charleroi Tigers in the Pennsylvania State Association. Coffman's pitching ultimately drew the attention of major league scouts, and he was signed by the Detroit Tigers. In 1935, Coffman was assigned to the Charleston Senators in the Middle Atlantic League. Despite an 8–13 record in 1935, Coffman's 2.87 earned run average and his fastball showed promise. In September 1935, the Tigers announced that Coffman would report to Beaumont, Texas for the 1936 season. At the time, the Charleston Daily Mail summarized Coffman's performance and prospects as follows:"Coming from a southern family that has already produced one big league pitcher, Coffman has a thorough knowledge of his position. His blazing fast ball is his biggest threat and it has enabled him to strike out 161 batters this year while walking 82. While his control isn't as good as Twardy's, it is good enough considering he is a fast ball pitcher." In 1936, Coffman won 13 games and lost 12 for Beaumont. Coffman later recalled, "I had a fine season with Beaumont, and expected to make this my last season in the minors, for a spell." After the final game at Beaumont, the Tigers called three players up to the majors -- Birdie Tebbetts, George Gill and Coffman. Detroit Tigers In