Grabowski was one of a number of American athletes in the first half of the 20th century to be nicknamed "Nig", being referred to as such in newspaper reports as early as October 1924.

[2] Grabowski began his professional baseball career in 1922 with the St. Joseph Saints, then spent 1923 and 1924 with the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association.

[3] He was traded to the Chicago White Sox in July 1924 and made his major league debut that month.

Grabowski appeared in 70 games for the 1927 Yankees, sharing the catching duty with Pat Collins and Benny Bengough in 1927.

In seven major league seasons, Grabowski appeared in 296 games, 282 as a catcher, and compiled a career .252 batting average and .295 on-base percentage.