Brown was born in
Greensboro, North Carolina, and was nicknamed "Skinny" by his parents because he was a chubby child. He attended
Greensboro High School and the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He weighed and stood tall during his active career. Brown was 26 years old when the White Sox purchased his contract from the
Triple-A Seattle Rainiers and he made his major league debut with the team on
April 19, 1951. He spent two years with the White Sox before moving to the Red Sox, the team that had originally signed him to a pro contract in 1946. In , Brown went 11–6 in 25 starts. He joined the Orioles in
July 1955, winning 34 games for them from 1956 to 1959. In , he compiled a 12–5 mark with a career-low 3.06
ERA for a contending Baltimore team that finished second in the
American League. The
next year, he went 10–6 with a 3.19 ERA. He was sold to the pennant-bound Yankees in
September 1962. Brown worked in two late-season games for the Yankees, but was ineligible for the Bombers'
1962 World Series roster because he was sold to them after September 1. He was purchased by the Colt .45s at the outset of the season. It was the third time that Houston
general manager Paul Richards, who managed Brown in Seattle in 1950, had acquired the right-handed pitcher — he had done so in 1951 when Richards managed the White Sox and in 1955 when he was both general manager and field manager with the Orioles. With Houston in 1963, Brown was a victim of poor run support, as he
walked just eight batters in 141 innings and posted a 3.31 ERA, but tallied a 5–11 record. In , his last major league season, he finished 3–15 with a 3.95 ERA. In a 14-season major league career, Brown posted an 85–92 record with a 3.81 ERA in 358 appearances, including 211 starts, 47
complete games, 13 shutouts, 11
saves, 1,680
innings pitched, and a 1.83
strikeout-to-walk ratio (710-to-389). He allowed 1,677
hits, but only 389
bases on balls, 14
hit by pitches and 37
wild pitches as a major leaguer. ==League leader==