Born and raised in Georgia, Tipton played amateur baseball until the Cleveland Indians signed him. He spent two years in the minor leagues before serving in World War II. He played two more years in the minor leagues upon his return, then made his MLB debut with the Indians in 1948. The Indians traded him to the White Sox in 1949, then the White Sox sent him to the Philadelphia Athletics in 1950. Tipton spent two and a half years with the Athletics before returning to Cleveland. After spending a season with the Washington Senators, he played and managed in the minor leagues for a few seasons before being banned from the minor leagues. After the ban, he moved to Birmingham, Alabama where he died in 1994.