The wiry, durable Brinkman was a poor hitter until manager Ted Williams changed his batting style in 1969; his BA jumped nearly 80 points to .266. In 1972 with Detroit, he won a Gold Glove while setting four single-season records for shortstops: consecutive errorless games (72), consecutive errorless chances (331), fewest errors (7), and best fielding percentage (.990). The older brother of ML catcher Chuck Brinkman, Ed was a teammate of Pete Rose at Cincinnati’s Western Hills High. He joined the White Sox as a coach in 1983.
