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 Walter Hammersmith SP 1953-1968 | In 1964, the Philadelphai Phillies hadn't been to a World Series in 16 years. They hadn't won a title since 1912. And despite winning over 100 games in 1963, everyone in baseball fully expected the Phillies to finish well behind the powerhouse New York Mets in '64 Hammersmith did his best to make sure that didn't happen, posting one of the great seasons in the history of the franchise. At the end of the regular season, Hammersmith had 21 wins and an ERA under 2.5. And when that 162nd game was over, the Phillies found themselves with 96 wins, exactly the same amount as the Mets. The two teams would go off to a one game playoff and Hammersmith was given the ball. Facing a powerhouse Mets offense led by Reggie Dunlop, Hammersmith turned in one of the most memorable performances in baseball history. In winning a pennant for his team, Hammersmith shut out the mighty Mets, allowing just 2 hits, no walks, and striking out an astounding 15 players. Despite not bringing home a title against the Yankees in the World Series, the season was magical, and Hammersmith's name was etched in Philadelphia lore. Due to financial constrains, Hammersmith was traded in 1965, going to Pittsburgh to win a title and finish out his Hall of Fame career. | He used to say he never slept when he lost. He'd see the sun come up without ever having closed his eyes. He'd see those base hits over and over and they'd drive him crazy. James Rossi |  | ||||||||||||
 Dutch Hendricks LF 1954-1966 | A highly rated prospect coming out of high school in Little Rock, Arkansas, Hendricks turned down an offer from the New York Yankees to play baseball, deciding he wanted a college degree. Staying loyal to his southern roots, Henricks spent four years getting a degree in history from the University of Mississippi, and when he had some free time playing baseball for the team. Only in his final college year did he fully devote himself to baseball once again, and upon graduation he signed a contract with the Milwaukee Braves. His rookie year was electric. Dutch won Rookie of the Year in 1954 slugging 25 home runs and knocking in 118 runs. With Dutch and Carl Sears' arrival, the Braves turned from a 72-win team in 1953 to a 98-win team in 1954. The team fell in the fall classic to the White Sox, and never made it back to the World Series in Dutch's tenure. Hendricks would play until 1966, earning a ring with the Reds in 1962. From 1954 to 195, Henricks never fell below 24 home runs, posting a career year in 1964 when, with the Red Sox he slugged 51 home runs and knocked in 137 runs for that pennant winner. | Taking a pitch, Dutch said he actually followed the ball with his eyes right into the catcher's mitt, and he maintained he could see the bat hit the ball. I don't usually believe those kind of boasts, but with Dutch it wouldn't surprise me. Sportswriter Tom Meany |  | ||||||||||||
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 Arturo Dueñas OF 1951-1968 | A perennially overlooked player, Denuas is one of only 21 men to ever collect 3,000 hits, and along with a wonderful eye reached based more times than all but 8 men in baseball history. A marvelously consistent player, Duenas started out his career as a journeyman, spending 3 years in Cincinnati and four years in Chicago. In 1958 he resettled in Kansas City, and spent the next 11 years of his life with the Athletics. Three times he led baseball in batting average; a pesky hitter, Duenas had a knack for flipping balls into left field. While early onion his career these bloopers were chalked up to luck, they ended up coming so often and in such quantities for year and year, and thus had to be recognized as a skill unto itself. With little power, Duenas made up for his small stature by swiping a good amount of bases each year, drawing a high amount of walks, and playing Gold Glove defense at all three outfield positions. By the time he retired in 1968, Duenas was one of the most accomplished hitters in baseball history, and although it took many years, people are finally recognizing that fact. | From the perspective of pitching against him, he sure lived up to his nickname. He was a rat all right. Always scurrying around on the basepaths, making my life hell. Thank god he's retired. Mel Troy |  | ||||||||||||
 Carl Sears SP 1951-1968 | Make no mistake about it - Carl Sears is one of the three or four most dominant pitchers in the history of baseball. When he broke into the major leagues in 1954, the only reason he didn't win Rookie of the Year (despite his 24 wins and blistering 247 strikeouts) was that his teammate Dutch Hendricks was also on the ballot, and white. In his second year, Sears was so dominant that no writer could possibly deny him his due recognition, and the 25 year old was named Pitcher of the Year. So dominant was Sears that when he failed to lead the league in strikeouts it was something of a surprise. After being traded to the Athletics in 1961, Sears feasted on the expanded American League. In his first two seasons with the A's, Sears won 48 games and lost only 14, posted an ERA under 2, and struck out 330 and 349 batters. In 1962 he earned his second Pitcher of the Year award. Stress took its toll on Sears early; playing years in the Negro Leagues and then suffering the indignities endemic to all black baseball players in the 1950s, Sears was done as a dominant pitcher by age 35. Despite trying to hold on as long as possible, Sears was demoted to the Minor Leagues in 1969, unable to return to his old form. After retiring Sears returned home to Florida, and today organizes and teaches youth baseball in his home state. | It's like he came down from a higher league. Dale Rittenauer | | ||||||||||||
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 Gerald Boodoo P 1952-1965 | There are some records that are meant to be broken. Guy Fontana's single season home run title was taken over by Huey Kleinschmidt. Even those that are supposed to last forever like Royal Chesterfield's career hits records and Paul Drumheller's career wins record might come to be broken some day. But there is one record that will never be broken: In 1954, Gerald Boodoo of the St. Louis Cardinals pitched two consecutive no-hitters. In order to break this record, a pitcher would have to pitch three consecutive no-hitters — simply impossible. 1954 was Boodoo's third full season; however, the often wild throwing righty was having his most difficult year yet, losing more than he won. But for 2 games in May it sure didn't seem like it. On May 25th at Sportsman's Park in St. Lous, Boodoo walked 5 while striking out seven and allowing no hits against the Brooklyn Dodgers. No Brooklyn player even made it past first base. Four days later in Cincinnati, he was a little less steady. He walked five again but struck out just three. He needed a little help from some spectacular plays by his teammates and almost ended the streak himself when he walked the bases full in the ninth, but a well placed pop up by Carl Switzer ended the threat In his fourteen year career, he never again recreated the magic of this, his monumental feat. He would win a Pitcher of the Year award in 1957, and won 4 rings with St. Lous. But the six-time All-Star will never be remembered as fondly for those efforts as he will be for his two magical spring performances in 1954.. | Undervalued to an immense degree. The Cardinals will not win anything unless Gerald Boodoo leads them there. Sports Illustrated, 1956 season preview |  | ||||||||||||
 Stanley Loudry P 1946-1966 | When Stanley Loudry came over from the Negro Leagues and signed with the New York Giants, he was already considered an old man. At age 27, he was older than most of the Negro Leaguers who had made their way over to the big leagues. By the time he retired in 1966, people would be hard-pressed to remember when Loudry was anything younger than 35. Loudry found his greatest success in St. Louis after having proven himself with the Dodgers. From 1956 to 1961, Loudry and his Cardinals made 5 World Series in 6 years, winning 4 titles. Despite never winning a Pitcher of the Year award, Loudry was widely considered the ace of the team. In 1962, Loudry was traded to the A's; the Cardinals thought he was washed up at age 36, and he proved them right for a while. In his first year in Kansas City, he was injured and won only 5 games. There was little hope for a future. In 1963, at age 37, Loudry put up one of the great seasons ever by a pitcher over age 35, winning 24 games while losing only 3, and posting an ERA of 2.03. The A's made the World Series, and Loudry was the team's best pitcher in a losing effort. 2 years later at age 39, Loudry was even better, winning 21 games and posting an ERA under 2. When he retired after winning 9 games at age 40, Loudry was widely hailed as one of the great pitchers in baseball history, having racked up over 350 wins from his start in the Negro Leagues. | He had an elegant beauty about the way he pitched. When in his windup, his whole body evoked a bow, and his pitch the arrow. S.W. Robinson | | ||||||||||||
 Matt Urban 3B 1950-1967 | In his early days as a up-and-coming slugger with the A's, the former General Manager of the Washington Senators famously said that Urban would be good, but never great, and never a player that a team could rely on to win a championship. There's a reason that GM is "former". Like the two men elected alongside him, Matt Urban won a few titles with St. Louis in the 1950s. But Urban will always be an Athletic. When speaking of the greatest sluggers in the history of the Athletics franchise, few can hope to compete with Fibber Paine, but Matt Urban is about as close as anyone has yet gotten. With a swing as balanced as it was strong, Urban was the whole package, a Gold Glove winning third baseman who hit for average, knew how to draw a walk, and slugged 476 home runs. His best year was in 1956, when he won Batter of the Year for slugging 45 home runs and knocking in 138 runs. He was equally great in the World Series that year, slugging 3 home runs, but ultimately falling short to a St. Louis Cardinals team he was soon to join. After spending 1 year in Baltimore and Chicago, and then 4 in St. Louis, Urban returned to the A's, spending 6 more years with the team. When the team announced that they were moving to Oakland after the 1967 season, Urban retired, choosing to go home to Buffalo rather than make a new life in California in an attempt to get 3000 hits and 500 home runs. He fell short of those numbers, but it doesn't matter. No one in Philly or Kansas City is ever gonna forget him. | I've only know three or four perfect swings in my lifetime. This lad has one of them. Whitey Murphy | | ||||||||||||
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 Dick Bong P 1951-1965 | Dick Bong was pretty much always the best pitcher around. As a high schooler in his hometown of Poplar, Wisconsin, Bong was already famous in the midwest for his incredible ability. Nearing the end of his senior year, Bong made national news due to his record in high school; he was 36-0, and was trying to become the first known high schooler to never lose a game. He accomplished the feat (ending 38-0), and with scouts knocking down his parents front door, he nonetheless decided his next step would be college. In 4 years at the University of Wisconsin, Bong was just as good. He won College Pitcher of the Year in 1950, his senior year when he went 13-1 with an ERA under 1.50. After finally graduating with a degree in history, Bong was signed by the Cleveland Indians. In 1951, Bong went 11-1 in single A ball. In AA, his record dropped to 7-6 but his ERA was a stirling 2.5. Bong was brought up to the big club in September for a tryout. While he struggled to get wins (he went 1-4), his ERA was a very respectable 3.8. In his first full season with the Indians, Bong won 20 games and the team improved by 15 wins. In his second season, he was spectacular, winning 22 games with an ERA of 2.33, and was named Pitcher of the Year. After suffering an injury in 1954, he came back in 1955 with 27 wins and an ERA of 2.01; it was his second Pitcher of the Year season, and the Indians won the American League for the first time in almost 20 years. For the next decade, Bong was a master, regularly proclaimed the best pitcher in the American League. Despite never winning a World Series, Bong is known as the greatest pitcher to ever come out of Poplar, WI where today a statue stands outside his high school. | He won all those games with a tremendous assortment of pitches that seemd to have five forward speeds, including a slow one that ought to have been equipped with backup lights." Shirley Povich |  | ||||||||||||
 Jimmy Dean P 1950-1964 | The Boston Red Sox were the last major league baseball team to integrate their roster. In 1959 -- 12 years after Johnny Casey broke the league's color barrier by joining the Philadelphia Phillies -- the Red Sox signed starter Jimmy Dean up from the collapsing Negro Leagues. The history of Boston's intransigence goes back to before baseball was integrated. Oddly enough, the Red Sox held a tryout at Fenway Park for Johnny Casey and a few other Negro Leaguers in April 1945. But with only management in the stands, someone yelled "Get those niggers off the field," according to a reporter who was there that day. Two years later, Casey joined the Phillies. This wasn't the only time the Red Sox blew a golden opportinity. In 1949, the Red Sox gave up the chance to sign future Hall of Famer Tommy Jeffords, who would go on to hit more career home runs than all but four men before him and electrify crowds with his defensive play. As Juan Williams reports, "one of the team's scouts decided that it wasn't worth waiting through a stretch of rainy weather to scout any black player. That decision killed the possibility that Jeffords and Ken Heinz might have played in the same outfield for the Red Sox." When they signed Dean for the 1959 season, Boston quickly saw what they had been missing. Dean won 23 games and was named Rookie of the Year for a team which surprised baseball by winning the American League and then toppling the mighty Cardinals (with Tommy Jeffords himself) in the World Series. Dean's career record of 91-35 in the Major Leagues left him with the highest winning percentage in baseball history when he retired. | It starts out like a baseball and when it gets to the plate, it looks like a marble. Jack Parkman |  | ||||||||||||
 Huey Kleinschmidt 1B 1947-1965 | In 1955, Huey Kleinschmidt was enjoying a huge season. It would end up being his first of 3 MVP years, and going into the All Star game he had 29 home runs and was looking to break Guy Fontana's record of 61 in a season. The midsummer classic that year was in Cleveland, and Huey was eager to give his hometown fans something special. In the first inning, the National League got off to a lead with a 2 run homer by Luke Fender, a shot so deep that August Campbell still says its the longest home run he ever surrendered. In the bottom of the inning, NL starter Carl Sears allowed singles to John Harnden and Matt Urban to lead off the inning, setting the table for Huey. On the first pitch from Sears, Kleinshmidt hammered the ball to dead center field. Tommy Jeffords ran for it but quickly found himself blocked by the center field fence. The ball was over it. The crowd erupted in appreciation for the home run and the lead. The AL won the game. One year later, the All-Star game came again, this time in New York. Before the game, reporters asked National League starter Harry Keogh how he was going to face the AL sluggers. Keogh went right after Kleinschmidt: "Huey hit us hard last year, but that's not gonna happen this time. First, he can't hit lefties. We all know that. And second, this is the Polo Grounds. You seen how far it is out to center? Huey can hit it as far as he wants, like he did last year, but Tommy [Jeffords] will run it down no matter what." The stage was set. In the second inning, Huey came up with 1 out against Keogh. The first pitch was a 98 MPH fastball up and in. The crowd gasped. The second pitch was 99 MPH, even higher and more inside. Another gasp. Huey dug in even harder and the crowd cheered the epic confrontation. The 2-0 was another fastball, again up and in. This time Kleinschmidt swung hard. So hard, in fact, his bat split with a crack heard all over the Polo Grounds. But he made contact. Hacking at it like he did, the ball was a popup, pulled looping down the line. Axler went after it, seeing an easy catch. But wouldn't you know it, the ball kept lifting and lifting, until eventually it just barely crept over the wall in right. It was a home run on a broken bat, over a wall less than 300 feet from home plate. The crowd went wild, appreciating battle between Keogh and Kleinschmidt, and the absurdity of the mammoth slugger dinking a ball over a 290-foot fence. As Kleinschmidt rounded the bases, you could see him smirking. Keogh didn't smirk. | Huey and I were the greatest hitting teammates of all time. Between the two of us we hit over 600 homers. | | ||||||||||||
 Norville Pugh OF 1944-1961 | One of the most consistent players in baseball, Norville Pugh was the man who integrated the Cleveland Indians in 1950 and was a key part of the great Indians teams of the last 50s. Pugh entered organized baseball in 1944 as a bench player for the Philadelphia Stars of the Negro Leagues. By 1946 he was a ready to break out, and there were rumors swirling that he was to be the man to break the color barrier in baseball. After Johnny Casey broke in with the Phillies, Pugh stayed in the Negro leagues for 3 more years before signing with the Indians. Scouted by everyone in baseball, Pugh was a long and agile fielder, and had enough speed and power that scouts said he was destined to hit 40 doubles, 10 triples, and 20 homers a season. With the Indians, Pugh never quite reached the heights of fellow Negro Leaguer Tommy Jeffords, but he was the best black player in the American League. Never playing less than 145 games, Pugh was a routine .300 hitter, and was good for 20 doubles 5-10 triples, and 15-25 homers every year until he retired. In his worst season he hit .282, and he earned 5 All Star selections. When he retired after the 1961 seasons, Pugh had over 2000 hits and 200 homers in Major League Baseball. In addition to his statistics in the Negro Leagues and his monumental importance in the continued integration of the Major Leagues, his place in the Hall of Fame is beyond doubt. | Norville Pugh could field a ball in Cleveland and throw out a guy in Cincinnati. Bill Cicero | | ||||||||||||
 Lee Roy Quiqley 1B 1933-1952 | If there's a single most famous event in Negro Leagues history, it's the home run that Lee Roy Quigley supposedly hit completely out of Yankee Stadium, which would perhaps make him the only man to accomplish the feat. From James A. Riley's opus, "The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues": Quigley was idolized by black youngsters, and in every ballpark they would point to a spot in the remotest part of the outfield and say, "Lee Roy hit one over there." He is even credited with hitting a fair ball out of Yankee Stadium, and his prodigious homers have taken their place in baseball lore. Indeed, and Quigley hit a lot of them. But his most famous home run came in 1946. Quigley's Memphis Red Sox were in the midst of a late season series against the New York Lincoln Giants. With the clubs squaring off in a best-of-11 series, the Grays won four of the first six, at which point everyone traveled to New York for two doubleheaders at Yankee Stadium. Quigley was already 35 years old, and rumors were his legs were aching. Nevertheless, on Sept. 27, Quigley hit what biographer John Holway describes as "perhaps the longest home run ever hit in a major league stadium." It seems likely that if Quigley really had hit the ball completely out of the ballpark, somebody at the time would have written about it, or Quigley would have later bragged about it. But it also seems likely that Quigley's 1946 home run ranks as one of the longest ever hit at Yankee Stadium, along with two blasts hit by Carl Swagger (one of the strongest hitters ever), and a famous homer by Luke Fender in 1950 that came within a few inches of leaving the stadium well beyond right field. | The first game I ever pitched was against the Memphis Red Sox. I walked the first two I was so nervous. Quigley was up and I was terrified. But I came through. I managed to hold him to a triple, which I thought was pretty good. Calmed my nerves, that. Bob Aarons | | ||||||||||||
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 Levi Cairncross CF 1949-1963 | In 1949, the St. Louis Cardinals featured 2 young rookies trying to make their marks in the big league. The first was Levi Cairncross, a highly touted slugger fans in St. Louis had been talking about all winter. The other was Tommy Jeffords, a young outfielder who was to be the first black player in the history of the St. Louis Cardinals. The fanbase in St. Louis was split in half, with the white population rooting for Cairncross and the black population Jeffords. It was a an uncomfortable situation for Jeffords, who came with great promise but even greater pressure. In his first at bat with the team, Jeffords didn't look very promising. Facing the Cubs' Lex Carpathian, he was tense and nervous. He swing at three pitches and missed each of them badly. His first time at bat and he didn't get within a foot of the ball. Slowly he walked to the dugout with his head down, with a chorus of mocking jeers from the fans in Chicago. He picked out a seat on the end of the bench and sat there with his head in his hands. Cairncross was batting right after Jeffords. Just one week earlier, Cairncross had hit two homers off of the Cubs ace in the preseason, and every knew it. Levi was no easy out. But something extraordinary was about to happen. Levi Cairncross went up to the plate and missed three pitches in a row - each of them by at least 2 feet. Then he walked slowly to the end of the bench and sat down next to Jeffords. He put his head in his hands. Did Levi Cairncross strike out that day deliberately? We will never know. However it is worth nothing that for their two years together in St. Louis, every time Tommy Jeffords went out on the field from that day on, he first picked up Levi Cairncross' glove and tossed it to him. | If ever anyone wields a blunt instrument at home plate, it is Levi Cairncross. There is nothing subtle about the Arizona strongboy and it is always his intention to mash a pitched ball as hard and as far as he can. Bill Cicero |  | ||||||||||||
 Sid Farkus P 1951-1964 | The son of a Jewish lingerie manufacturer and seamstress mother, Farkus was a fireballing pitcher who had never started a game in professional baseball until he joined the St. Louis Cardinals. A Bronx High School All-American, Farkus tore a muscle in his arm in his freshman year in college which limited his ability to pitch for long stretches; limited to 40 pitches at a time, Farkus was considered a great reliever, but unable to start. When he signed with the Washington Senators after graduating from Brandeis, General Manager Learned Hand was convinced that Farkus would never be able to start a major league game. In an era when relief pitchers were less valuable, Hand included Farkus in a trade which has gone down in history as perhaps the greatest exchange of prospect talent in baseball history: the Washington Senators sent James Axler and Sid Farkus to St. Louis in exchange for Levi Cairncross. All three men now find themselves in the Hall of Fame. Upon arriving in St. Louis, GM Thomas Griffin immediately sent Farkus to a famed doctor in town, Isaac Jeffries, hoping Learned Hand's negative prognosis was short-sighted. Griffin was right. Jeffries had a new surgery he was interested in trying, and Farkus agreed to give it a shot. If successful, normal use of his arm would be returned and with a full and speedy recovery, Farkus would be able to throw longer than he had been in years. It worked. Farkus healed in a few months and was a full time starter in 1951. He was a smash success, winning 21 games and winning Rookie of the Year. Throughout the 1950s Farkus was an anchor on one of the greatest dynasties in baseball history, winning Pitcher of the Year in 1958 and 1959, winning 4 World Series rings, and earning selection to 5 All Star games. Has he pitched just 10 years earlier, he would never have been able to capitalize on the medical advances which allowed him to earn his selected to the Hall of Fame. | The paper called him "a Moses come to lead Redbirds out of the wilderness of bitter disappointment and frustration." I'm not sure about Moses, but we sure did win, didn't we? Donnie Bragger | | ||||||||||||
 Josh Glover P 1954-1964 | It's hard to imagine anyone making a better first impression. Every team had to integrate at some point - there was a "first black player" for every franchise in baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies broke the baseball color line in 1947 when they played Johnny Casey. Detroit did the same in the American League with the introduction of Hank Jefferson. The first black pitcher in baseball was the great Roy Cross in Cincinnati. Of all the players who broke the lines on their particular teams, no one broke in quite as well as Josh Glover. In 1954 the Yankees finally signed their first black player, signing Glover away from the Kansas City Monarchs, and he might have been the best pitcher in the American League that year. Starting 39 games, Glover won 22 and lost only 8, posting a miniscule ERA of 2.00. Just 28 years old, the Yankees had struck gold. A mediocre team, Glover was a huge draw for the fans. New York's black population was sizeable, and the ticket sales were impressive. But the Yankees front office knew that they were not in a position to compete and it would serve the team better to trade Glover now, after his amazing first season when his value was highest. But they wanted to avoid a revolt among New York black baseball fans. Finding the perfect solution, Glover was dealt to the Brooklyn Dodgers, keeping the now revered pitcher in the city. Glover struggled with the Dodgers. Going 14-18, his ERA went up over 3. Brooklyn won just 75 games, and now they, too, were looking to deal their ace. The Dodgers management, already in talks to move out West, were less interested in avoiding antagonization of the New York faithful, and dealth Glover out of the city, to Washington. With the Senators, Glover found his groove. Put in a rotation with August Campbell and then Hooper Smith, Glover joined the Senators as they crested. In his 8 years as a starter with Washington, the team won 100 games 5 times and never dropped below 91. The team's lone ring in their run was their 1961 title, a year where Glover went 27-8 and won Pitcher of the Year. Glover retired in 1965 after spending a year in the minor leagues serving as a player/coach. | Nicest guy in the world. Couldn't be more generous. Except with hits. He'd give you his first born son in the name of charity but wouldn't let you reach first if he could help it. Norville Pugh | | ||||||||||||
 Mike Medeiros OF 1946-1964 | Henry Falterson, former General Manager of the Cincinnati Reds, used to say that the best trade he ever made was getting rid of Mike Medeiros. It was, he said a learning moment: "Without that trade I never would have learned anything. It taught me patience; trading away Mike when I did was such a mistake it taught me to never do it again." Medeiros, a tall, barrel-chested kid out of Jupiter, FL, broke into professional baseball when he was just 16. His power was immediately evident, but his low batting averages perennially frustrated the management in Cincinnati. As a rookie in 1946 he hit just .188. In 1949 he hit .210. In 6 years with the Reds, he only got his average above .233 twice. Disillusioned with their young slugger, the Reds shipped him off to Philadelphia in 1952. There he would thrive. In his first year with the A's, Medeiros hit .253 - not good, but much better than his career average, and he slugged 28 home runs. It was in 1954, at age 27, when Big Mike really came into his own, slamming 55 home runs and hitting a as-of-then career best .267; so prodigious was his power and run-producing skills (he had 169 RBI) that he was named Batter of the Year in the American League. Even though he spent just 5 years with the Athletics, Mike Medeiros is still 8th all time in franchise home runs, and their most recent Batter of the Year winner. After spending one years with the White Sox in 1957, Medeiros finally found a home in Cleveland. Returning to Ohio, the slugger stayed with the Indians for seven years as a player and took a coaching job after retirement. Ater hitting 50 home runs at age 35 in 1962, Medeiros hit his 600th home run in 1963 off Nate Chisolm of the Orioles; he is one of only three major leaguers to reach that mark. One of the great sluggers in baseball history, Medeiros has been inducted into the Oakland Athletics' Hall of Fame, the Ohio Sports Hall of Fame, the Cleveland Indians Memorial Hall, and now the highest honor a baseball player can achieve, the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. | The homers he hit against us would be homers in any park, including Yellowstone. Tippy Cavanaugh | | ||||||||||||
 Barnabas Stinson 2B 1944-1963 | Both Barnabus Stinson, the great second baseman, and Dutch Hendricks, outfielder for the Milwaukee Braves, were fond of the practical joke. According to legend, in 1955 the Giants second baseman spent two weeks preparing for a prank he planned to pull on Hendricks, doctoring a baseball by pounding it with a bat, soaking it in soapy water, and rubbing dirt into it, then coating it with white shoe polish to restore its resemblance to a baseball. The result was a ball "as dead as Abe Lincoln" - a mushball which would look like a regular baseball when thrown by would drop like a dead weight when hit. Stinson sprang his trick on September 17, 1955, during a meaningless late-season game between New York and Milwaukee. During an inning in which Hendricks was due to bat, Stinson ran out to his position with the doctored ball in his pocket; as Hendricks stepped up to the plate, Stinson walked out to the mound and switched balls with the Yankee pitcher, Longfellow Styles. Styles enticed Hendricks by grooving Stinson's "mushball" down the middle on his next pitch, and Hendricks predictably took a mighty swing at the offering, hitting it solidly. But instead of soaring into the outfield, the ball thudded harmlessly fould behind the plate, and a puzzled Hendricks stood in the batter's box while the other players and the crowd burst into laughter. Hendricks was not amused. The home plate umpire that day, Rich Bulkeley, refused to toss Stinson from the game, though he agreed not to call a strike on Hendricks. While years later Hendricks recalls the incident with a smile, Stinson and other testify to his fury on the day: "he thought he had a sure home run, and instead it went about 2 feet behind it. One of my best if I may say so. Granted, I think he homered about 3 pitches later anyway, but still...I got him!" | My best pitch? Anything the batter grounds, lines, or pops in the direction of Barney. John Homer |  | ||||||||||||
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 Roy Cross P 1947-1963 | The first outstanding black pitcher in ML history, Cross was the first hurler to join the major leagues after Johnny Casey broke the color barrier in Philadephia. Physically imposing, the 6'3" 220-lb Cross was sometimes criticized as lethargic, but his explosive fastball was likened by James Axler to those of AL stars Karl Doomer and Victor Starfin. He and Hall of Fame teammate Harry Keogh anchored the pitching rotation for the championship Reds of the 1950s and was one of baseball's dominant forces from 1947 to 1963. Cross' best season is hard to pinpoint; he was so consistent that his littany of 20 to 24 win seasons just merge together as a long stretch of dominance. But if one had to pick a best, it would probably be 1951, when Cross posted his career best ERA of 2.00. He and Keogh were a blistering force for that Reds team, but the relative lack of offense kept them out of the posteason. Cross did make an appearance in 4 different World Series, though, including his memorable final performance as a 37 year old in 1962. Facing the Boston Red Sox, Cross won 2 games with an ERA barely over 3, helping the Reds take the title in seven. | Roy Cross is the luckiest pitcher in baseball. He is always pitching when the other team doesn't score any runs. Wayne Cooley |  | ||||||||||||
 Ken Heinz OF 1945-1963 | Very few players in Major League history could be accurately described as institutions, players who anchored a team as well as came to symbolize the era in which they played and, by extension, baseball itself. Institutions are people who's name is known by everyone, not merely the an of their team, and greeted with respect and admiration. A few names in history jump out when discussing such individuals: Bob Rooney, Royal Chesterfield, Carroll Edwards, and Paul Drumheller are foremost on the list. With his induction to the Hall of Fame, Ken Heinz joins them. For his first six seasons, Heinz was a productive if unspectacular player. He kept his average around .300 and hit enough doubles to stay productive, but he didn't become a major force until his Batter of the Year season in 1951. Heinz broke out in a huge way, hitting .325 and slugging 46 homer runs. While no one was going to catch the legendary White Sox that season, the Boston club won 98 games. The next year, Hein was equally devestating, and the Red Sox shocked the American League by stealing the pennant away from Chicago. In 1953 Heinz was traded to the Giants, where he became a symbol of the franchise. He ranks as one of the greatest sluggers in Giants history, and one of the most productive hitters in the history of Major League baseball. As of his election to Cooperstown, Heinz is the all time leader in runs scored and finished 1 base short of Royal Chesterfield's career record for total bases. Heinz is probably the greatest player in baseball history to never win a World Series ring, and simply one of the best players to ever play baseball. | He was the one player that players on other teams didn't want to miss. They'd run out of the clubhouse to watch him take batting practice. He could make a 10-year veteran act like a 10-year-old kid. Hank Hagar |  | ||||||||||||
 Tommy Jeffords CF 1949-1963 | When Tommy Jeffords recounts the story of his best single moment in baseball, and there were many, he tells of a play he made on August 12, 1956. The St. Louis Cardinals, who led the Pittsburgh Pirates by 7 ½ games, had just lost the day before and were determined not to let the Pirates gain any more ground. The score was 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning. With one out Felix Gaeta, still a fairly fast runner at that point in his career, was on third for Pittsburgh, while pitcher Joachim Braun was on first. There was only one out. Tony Wonder, one of baseball's most underrated players, was facing St. Louis' big righthander, Gerald Boodoo. The St. Louis outfield was playing Wonder to slice, with left fielder Studs Terkel shaded toward the left field line, right fielder James Axler playing well off the line in right, and Tommy Jeffords almost in left center. Boodoo went into the stretch, checked the runners at first and third, and delivered. Wonder hit a fly ball to right center field that everyone thought would be deep enough to score Gaeta with the lead run. Everyone was wrong. Jeffords broke to his left and running at full speed, made the catch, a play that most good center fielders would make, but he had to run towards the right field foul line, so he was moving away from home plate. If he stopped running to set for the throw home, there would be no chance to throw out Gaeta. Tommy didn't break stride. He planted his left foot, made a complete whirling pivot on the dead run as if he were a discus thrower, and fired a guided missile home. As the throw came flying toward the plate, first baseman Johnny Stewart, the cut off man, let it go through. Catcher Douglas Quiad caught the throw belt high and tagged out the incredulous Gaeta. The crowd's initial reaction was silence. No one believed what he saw. Then reality set in and there was a tremendous noise; the play was so good even the home crowd acknowledged it, not with a cheer but a rumble of respect and admiration. It was one of the greatest plays of all time, and everyone knew it instantly. Hundreds of outfielders could have caught the ball, but only Tommy Jeffords could catch the ball and throw out the runner. The headlines in the papers next day called the throw "incredible," and "brilliant." After the game, players on both teams continued express amazement at the play. Cardinals' General Manager Thomas Griffin called it the greatest play he had ever seen." Johnny Stewart, who let the throw go through, commented, "It wasn't a throw, it was a pitch." All that Tony Wonder, who was a great competitor and the victim of the catch, could say was, "He'll never make another throw like that one, the lucky slob." Pirates manager Gil Fry said he couldn't comment "...because he'll have to do it again before I'll believe it." So there it is. The greatest play by maybe the greatest player of all time in the words of those who saw it. | They invented the All-Star game for guys like him. I'm not sure what the hell charisma is, but I've got a feeling it's Tommy Jeffords. Huey Kleinschmidt | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Cicero Jarvey 2B 1943-1961 | The 2nd half of a legendary, Hall of Fame keystone, Cicery Jarvey was a consistent force for the Boston and Milwaukee Braves for 19 years. Along with his shortstop partner Dan Federici, Jarvey anchored the Braves lineup and infield defense for decades, and it is proper that he takes his place in the Hall alongside his keystone teammte. Jarvey broke into baseball in the war years, becoming a full time starter at the age of 18. For his first few years, the young infielder struggled to compete with watered-down competition, hitting just 3 home run in his first 2 seasons. When the war players came back in 1946, Jarvey was made to platoon with John Frost, and shone hitting .350, the first real sign that the Braves had a gem on their hands. From 1947 until his retirement in 1961, Jarvey was the unquestioned starter for the team, only missing time in 2 seasons due to injuries. His best season came in 1951 when he became the first man to win an MVP while being a pure 2nd baseman in a non-War year since Bad Bart Martin in 1923. He hit .334 and began to show up a power stroke that he would develop more as he aged, slugging 15 homers. Between 1953 and 1960, Jarvey would hit 10 or more homers every season, peaking in 1953 when he hit 21. In the postseason, Jarvey won his only ring as a rookie in 1943, but he played in 3 series and was an extremely productive hitter. In his last 2 series, Jarvey hit .400 with 6 doubles, but he wasn't able to take home another ring. | I hate to play a single game without him. It's like trying to drive an auto without spark plugs. He's the heart of the team. Dan Federici | | ||||||||||||
 Ricardo Linares P 1935-1950 | Ricardo Linares is widely considered the be one of the greatest two-way players in baseball history, famous for being known for the skills he didn't specialize in, along with Gene Lassiter and Sam Kreitenberg. The Matanzas native was the first man to be a member of the Hall of Fame, Salon de la Fama (Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame), and Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame. Linares played every position except catcher during his career, which ran from 1935 to 1950. Most of the time, Linares was confined to the mound, his managers not wanting to risk injuries to the hurler on his off-days. His pitching accomplishments were many in the Negro Leagues. He won 4 Pitcher of the Year awards in the 1940s, winning almost 250 games while losing less than 100. But his achievements in the Negro Leagues don't reflect the true breadth and depth of this incredible skills. He had many more accolades; these included Mexican League single-season records for ERA and strikeouts, and the Cuban Winter League career record for wins. While being solely a pitcher in the Negro Leagues, Linares was a considerable hitter in the Latino circuit. At the plate, his records included the most doubles in a Cuban Winter League game and the first six-hit game in Mexican League history. Throughout his career, he played year-round, spending summers in the United States, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela and the winters in Cuba. He managed championship teams in Cuba, Venezuela and Mexico. Linares won four Cuban Winter League MVP awards, the most of any player. | He threw the ball as far from the bat and as close to the plate as possible. H.K Edgerton | | ||||||||||||
 Theo Peoples OF 1933-1944 | A lefthanded power hitter, he teamed with legendary hurler Cornell Cullen to lead the Homestead Grays to multiple league titles at the outset of the Negro Leagues. The duo was dubbed the "Thunder Twins" by the black press; one with the ball and one with the bat. Peoples was called a black Mack Bolan, Cullen a black Ed Schultz. While Cullen tossed shutout afte shutout, the pull-hitting Peoples, who feasted on fastballs, demonstrated his smooth, powerful stroke by hitting line drives off and over the walls. Peoples was equally smooth and consistent in the field. His sure-handed glove work was compared with that of Richard Concannon and Marshall Frobisher. He was a smart fielder who always made the right play. Dependable and respected by his teammates, he was a steadying influence on the Grays.
Years before John Strangefellow brought Johnny Casey to the Phillies, Tigers owner Alfred Reed approached Peoples and Cullen about playing in the majors. But Reed backed down, deciding not to disturb the status quo. When the color line was finally broken, Dennis Whitestone contacted Peoples about playing in the majors, but the veteran felt he was too old. He said he "didn't want to embarrass anyone or hurt the chances of those who might follow." His only appearance in organized ball came at age forty-six, in 1951, when he played 10 games for Portsmouth (Piedmont League) and batted .333. | Theo had a lurching, patient hitting stance; he looked like a cross between Ichabod Crane and Rip Van Winkle. He was easy to imitate and funny to watch, unless you were the pitcher trying to get him out. Langston Carney | | ||||||||||||
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 James Axler RF 1946-1961 | James Axler, one of baseball's greatest hitters, enjoyed an extraordinary career with the Washington Senators and St. Louis Cardinals from 1946 through 1961. Axler won eight batting championships, including six in a row, a Gold Glove, and a Batter of the Year Award. Undoubtedly he would have won more if not for the presence of his brilliant teammate Tommy Jeffords. Among his many great achievements, Axler is most well known for being the last major leaguer to hit .400, a feat he accomplished at age 33 in 1959. His .410 average in a single season is the highest all time for a right handed hitter, as is his career .349 average. Accommodating to fans and the media both during and after his playing career, Axler is considered one of the game's most gentlemanly and down-to-earth ambassadors. He came from upstate New York, never graduated from high school, and sometimes stammered in public. His love for baseball overcame all obstacles, however, and he became known nationwide as a symbol of batting excellence. "I was a poor boy who struck it rich in many ways through the wonders of baseball," Axler said in his autobiography. | How do I deal with Axler? I throw him four wide ones and then try to pick him off first base. Cornelius Ford | | ||||||||||||
 Al Bennett Manager 1910-1931 VC | One of the great managers of early baseball, Al Bennett's election to the Hall of Fame comes decades after those his his contemporaries Tom Stahl and Henry Shaver. Bennett, along with Darby Hoffman, was underrappreciated in his day. For the first decade in New York, the Yankees were a mediocre team, not finishing any higher than 4th for Bennet's first 8 seasons. Then in 1919, when the Yankees thoroughly dominated the AL and won the World Series, the accolades were tempered when the Cincinnati Blacks scandal broke. Even though Bennett won 2 more titles and finished with the 2nd most wins for a manager, he wasn't given the credit he deserved. 35 years after his retirement, the Veterans Committee saw fit to induct him to the Hall of Fame. | I have seen Bennett go onto ball fields where he is as welcome as a man with the black smallpox. I have seen him take all sorts of personal changes. He doesn't know what fear is. Monty Slocum |  | ||||||||||||
 Carl Bozic SS 1932-1947 VC | Carl Bozic did everything well. He hit for average, winning 2 batting titles and settling at a .314 clip for his career. He had good power to the gaps, topping 10 triples in 5 different seasons. He ran the bases with effortless speed, swiping 40 bases thirteen straight years. His defense was top notch, as evidence by his four Gold Glove awards won at two different position. He was a consistent valuable player who went 15 straight seasons with enough plate appearances to qualify for the leaderboards. Bozic did everything - except for the one thing which fans like the most. hHe didn't hit home runs. His relative lack of power kept him out of the Hall of Fame for twenty years until his induction by the Veterans Committee. Of course, there was another thing about him that probably helped him get elected to the Hall — he was famous, for he was a great player who also happened to be a clown of the highest order. There are many, many Bozic stories, and a lot of them are actually true. If you needed a player to wax another player’s bat with soap, or swallow a goldfish, or jump into a hotel pool fully clothed, or offer a pair of eyeglasses to an umpire after a bad call, Bozic was your man. If you needed a player to go drinking with Rocky Graziano, and swing through tree branches screeching like Tarzan, or to be dangled outside the 15th floor of a Manhattan hotel by Graziano (with one arm), Bozic was your man. If you needed a player to paint iodine streaks on a hapless ump, or to throw buckets of ice at fellow train passengers (which he did as a player-manager), or trick a teammate into thinking he had accidentally killed him, Bozic was your man. | I may have got Carl out, but I never fooled him. No one could fool him. Bernard Cooper | | ||||||||||||
 Lex Carpathian P 1943-1961 | His numbers can't help but inspire awe. 348 career victories. 3 World Series rings. 3 Pitcher of the Year Awards. No-hitters in consecutive seasons. 20 win seasons for 4 different teams. It is possible that no pitcher in baseball history enjoyed such varied and wide-ranging success both on a personal and team level. Born and raised in Washington, DC, Carpathian's father was a civil servant who was transplanted from Chicago. Growing up, Carpathian was an equal-opportunity Chicago fan. He says he rooted for the 1927 White Sox when he was a mere toddler, and then rooted for the Cubs in the 30s when Jack Birdsong was leading that club to greatness. In 1942, Carpathian went to a tryout for the Chicago Cubs and was signed on the spot. He climbed from the lowest ranks of the minor leagues to the majors all in one season, and he made his pitching debut at age 20 in Wrigley Field. After 6 masterful years with the Cubs, the club owners made it known that they were willing to trade their young star in an effort to save money and rebuild an older team. The trade speculation ran rampant, with the nation expecting Carpathian to draw one of the greatest trade values in baseball history. A month before opening day in 1950, the Chicago Tribune broke the news of The Windy City Swap. Carpathan was traded to the White Sox, with the Cubs recieving 9 players in return. The Sox wouldn't regret the high price, as they won two titles with Carpathian. Lex would end his career bouncing between Chicago, Philadelphia, Kansas City, and San Francisco. | Career highlights? I had two. I got an infield single off Lex Carpathian and I got out of a rundown once in spring training. Mike Powers |  | ||||||||||||
 Harry Keogh P 1942-1961 | Freak of nature. A mythic creature. The left arm of a Greek god. These were just some of the many labels tagged to Harry Keogh in his hayday. As a member of the Browns, Reds, Pirates, and Senators, the legend of Harry Keogh's left arm followed him. Schoolboys around the country swapped rumors. He had surgery to add extra muscles. He spent his summers skinning animals to exercise his biceps. He hired a special doctor to inspect his arm every day and kept him on staff. No one really knew what to believe, because no one had ever seen a pitcher quite like him. In the early part of his career, Keogh was a physical phenom above all else. His speed was spectacular, but his control was lacking. Up until age 30, Keogh was never able to walk less than 100 men in a season, but he was still an incredibly valuable pitcher due to his incredible strikeout rate and his ability to saw off the handles of the batting who dared try to pull his fastball. He won Pitcher of the Year awards in 1950 and 1952, helping the Reds defeat the White Sox in the latter season. After over 7 great seasons in Cincinnati, Keogh was dealt to the Pirates, with the expectation that he would continue to be a powerful yet unpredictable pitcher. Keough took it as a personal challenge to prove he was better than the Reds thought he was, and worked tirelessly on controlling his incredible fastball. It worked. For the next and a half seasons Keogh was better than ever, and his 1956 campaign is one of the great efforts in the history of baseball. Keogh retired in 1961, saying he wanted to go out while he still felt he could contribute. He had won 15 games in 1961 and didn't feel like he would be as productive in 1962, when he would have been 38. His career numbers are astonishing; 400 wins places him 4th on the all time leaderboards, and his 4827 strikeouts is a record that won't be approached for quite some time, if ever. | A foul ball was a moral victory. Jerry Pershek | | ||||||||||||
 Hamilton Porter C 1945-1961 | Porter was known for his loud and boistrous personality; if you were his teammate, you loved him. If not, you didn't. Ossie Allenson relays a typical story about Porter: "It's a game early in 1946. We're in Boston, and I go up to hit for the first time of the night. First time I've ever seen Porter. I go up there and say hey to the kid, and he tells me "Hurry up, batter" - he called me 'batter' - "this better be a short game, I gotta get home for dinner." Ball comes in, its strike out. Porter laughs and says "that's one." Next pitch is a ball. He says to me "You know, if my dog was as ugly as you, I'd shave his butt and tell him to walk backwards." Next pitch I swing an miss. Porter says "here it comes, it's coming I tell ya...STRIKE THREE!" He yells that as the ball crosses the plate. Well the umpire didn't agree with him. Another ball. So its two and two. Happens again - pitcher throws another ball, but Porter yells "YOUR OUT!" Now I'm annoyed at this little snot for being such a knucklehead, and the ump is annoyed that he keeps second-guessing the pitches. "So it's a full count, pitcher goes into his wind up, and Porter speaks again. He says "Is that your sister in the stands out there behind first base? Is she naked? I think she's naked!" I swing and miss. I couldn't believe it. The little bastard got in my head! So I'm annoyed as all hell, staring at the kid before I walk back to the dugout, and he says to me "Hey, hey, hey, I'm just trying to start a friendly conversation, come on." I start to walk away. 'Think she'll go out with me?' Needless to say I knocked him on his ass. Got tossed for that one." | He seemed to be doing everything wrong, yet everything came out right. He stopped everything behind the plate and hit everything in front of it. Gil Fry | | ||||||||||||
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 Bob Aarons P 1943-1960 (NNL) | It is estimated that Bob Aarons was born on July 7, 1922. The mere idea that his birthday is an estimate is a perfect microcosm to the mystery of his life. Al Grimaldi called Bob Aarons "the best and fastest pitcher I've ever faced". His pitching was amazing and his showboating was legendary. Pronounced the greatest pitcher in the history of the Negro Leagues, Aarons compiled such feats as 64 consecutive scoreless innings, a stretch of 21 straight wins, and a 27-5 record in 1952. For 18 years, Aarons mauled the competition in front of sellout crowds. Sure, he liked the attention, but to him, there was only one goal - to pitch in the Major Leagues. Aarons' dream never came true. The closest he got was in 1957; the Chicago White Sox were in need of extra pitching for the pennant race. Legendary Ned Whitestone tested Aarons' accuracy before offering him a big league contract. As the story is told, Whitestone placed a cigarette on the ground to be used as a home plate. Aarons took aim at his virtually nonexistent target. He fired five fastballs, all but one sailing directly over the cigarette. Whitestone was indeed pleased, and Aarons signed a contract on August 18. The next day, Aarons was walking out of a restaurant when he was hit by a car. While the injuries were not serious, he wasn't able to pitch for the rest of the year. By the time he was healthy and ready in 1958, the White Sox were no longer in contention and Aaron's chance was gone. In 1966, Bob Aarons was given the ultimate honor, he was elected to join the very best in baseball history in the Hall of Fame. He was the first player ever elected to Cooperstown who never participated in in a game of Major League Baseball. | If Bob and I were pitching on the same team, we would cinch the pennant by July fourth and go fishing until World Series time. Bill McNeal | | ||||||||||||
 Zolly Bosco SS 1919-1940 VC | It took him 25 years, but Zolly Bosco is finally in the Hall of Fame. For a guy with a career batting average of .341, that's far too long a wait. As a rookie in 1920, Bosco made a big impact with a small swing. Bosco was raised in Memphis, and has said that he learned his batting stance playing ball with African American kids, who taught him that he should crouch as much as possible in order to shrink the strike zone. Bosco maintained that crouch stance throughout his entire career. In 1920, the Pirates wanted to make him change his unusual stance, but he was so productive they decided it was better to just let it be. Bosco hit .345 in his first full season, and .404 the next. Zolly would hit over .330 in every full season he played until 1935. | If consistency is a jewel, then Mr. Bosco is a whole rope of pearls. Sportswriter Joe Williams |  | ||||||||||||
 Ty Galen P 1947-1959 | Ty Galen was only a full time starter for 10 years, but that decade was good enough to earn his selection to the Hall of Fame. Signed during the war years, Galen bounced around the Pirates' minor league system for 4 years, improving all the time. In 1947, the Pirates were just a bad team in search of some signs of hope, so they brought Galen up, who proceeded to have one of the best September calups of all time; 5 starts, 4 wins, 2 shutouts, and an ERA of 0.63. In the next 10 years Galen would rack up wins and accolades, anchoring a brilliant Pirates pitching staff and winning Pitcher of the Year in 1953. Galen was especially brilliant in the World Series. In 1949, he allowed 0 runs in 16 innings, but the Pirates fell. In 1951, he gave up just 4 runs in 16.7 innings, but again the Pirates fell. In 1955, Galen allowed just 2 runs in 17.3 innings, and the Pirates finally won their ring. Galen's career World Series ERA of 1.08 is the best all time for anyone with 50 innings tossed. | I don't know if we're the oldest battery in baseball, but we're certainly the ugliest. Roy Sexton | | ||||||||||||
 John Harnden CF 1945-1960 | A titanic figure in baseball in the 1950s, John Harnden was the poster boy for the game in much the same way Mack Bolan was in the thirties and Victor Starffin was in the fourties. Harnden was the captain and leader of one of the great teams of all time, an idol both on and off the field. As a rookie with Detroit, Harnden quickly made his mark by winning Rookie of the Year in 1945. He had difficulties adjusting to the return of the Wartime Players, and in 1946 his production dropped. In the offseason, Harnden was included in The Swap, joining the Chicago White Sox. It was the perfect venue for him; Harnden was built to be a big city star, and the media loved him. He grew into his role, not fully blossoming as a dominant force until 1950, when the 25 year old slugged 40 home runs and knocked in 133 runs. For the rest of the decade, he dominated the league. In 1950 and 1951, he was the best hitter on the dominant champion White Sox. In 1952 the White Sox fell to 2nd place, and Harnden took it upon himself to lift the team back to the promised land. He came back in 1953 with his best season yet, slugging 37 home runs, knocking in 145 runs, and walking 132 times. The Sox avenged their 1952 failure and made it back to the Series, but were once again foiled by the Reds. No matter - the White Sox promptly won the title in 1954. His propensity for slugging towering home runs should not overshadow the completeness of Harnden's game. He was a graceful and barrel-chested fielder, winning four Gold Gloves in center field. He stole over 200 bases, including 57 one year. He was good in the clutch, too - in 1954 Harnden scored 10 runs in the World Series, an American League record. As of his election, Harnden's career is far from over. A hero in the Chicago sports scene, he is expected to remain an integral member of the White Sox organization for years to come. The fans are glad to have him. | John Harnden only had one advantage over me; he was a better ballplayer Ken Heinz |  | ||||||||||||
 Darby Hoffman RF, Manager 1901-1908 (P), 1916-1939 (M) VC | For many years Darby Hoffman was the dominant figure in National League baseball. He was an excellent player - certainly the best ever to become a great manager during his heyday - yet his success derived from more than athletic talent. He had a profound understanding of the game and was alert to all the opportunities each inning offered. "The main idea," he always said, "is to win." His personality was indeed that of a "Little Napoleon": arrogant, abrasive, and pugnacious. He outgeneraled his opponents while abusing them verbally and, sometimes, with his fists. His players suffered his tyranny as the price of victory, proud to be Giants. In his 24 full seasons as Giants manager he finished first or second 9 times, winning 4 pennants and three World Series. Hoffman's managerial style was reminiscent of his antics as a player. He swaggered through every city in the league, battling opposing teams, managers, owners, umpires, and league officials. He had a genius for inciting crowds and the Giants quickly became the most despised team in the league, often dodging rocks and bottles as they left enemy ballparks. In 1922 Hoffman arrogantly had "Champions of the World" emblazoned across the front of the team's jerseys. Strategically, Hoffman favored the hit-and-run and disdained the sacrifice bunt. He had a sharp eye for playing talent and traded daringly, getting useful work from drinkers and neurotics other clubs had given up on. And with tips from his many friends in bush leagues across the country, he found bright young stars to replace fading older ones. Nowadays he is remembered fondly by Giants fan in New York and San Francisco as the manager who cemented their franchise as a paradigm of success. | I got along with him fine. He only suspeneded me once for two weeks. It was on account that I socked him. Murphy Battle |  | ||||||||||||
 Ronan Keough C, Manager 1901-1914 (P), 1915-1920 (M) VC | He is remembered as the manager of the most infamous baseball team ever, but less well known as a versatile and gutsy ballplayer of the first decade of baseball's rise to national prominance. Keough's counseling and humor became crucial to the success of many big leaguers in his years as both player and manager. He was the Kid from the coal country who rose above his humble beginnings to become a much-loved figure in the national pastime. Promoted to manager prior to the 1915 season, Keough led the team to the pennant with a record of 92-62. In 1917 he won his first ring as manager, repeating the feat in 1918. In 1919 is all fell apart. The Reds were a tough club which battled the Cardinals to the very end of the season, showing he same spark at bat and in the field that Keough had shown in his playing career. He later said, "I think they're the greatest ball club I've ever seen. Period." After his Reds lost in the series to the Yankees, Keough was despondent, sure he had a better club and at a loss to explain their poor play in the series. When the news broke that the team had thrown the series, Keough was embarrassed, mortified, and furious. He stepped down as manager immediately after the 1920 season. Keough was quickly cleared of any wrongdoing, and has long been seen as one of the great victims of the "Cinicinnati Blacks" scandal, and although he passed away several years before his election to the Hall of Fame, his induction is sure to enshrine his memory as a baseball great. He was a man of integrity and honor, and that way he shall be remembered. | It is fashionable to say that successful people, in any field, could have been whatever they wanted, but you could not picture Ronan Keough being anything else but what he was; he simply was baseball, and nothing else would have suited him. Ring Lardner | | ||||||||||||
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 Ray Evangelides 3B 1939-1956 | Evangelides is the seventh player elected to the Hall of Fame to win both Rookie of the Year and Batter of the Year in his career, joining Arnold Colfax, Al Grimaldi, Joel Praetorius, Mack Bolan, Michael Bones, and Dan Federici. A third basemen with the Tigers, Red Sox, White Sox, and Athletics, Evangelides was a dominant force in the American League throughout the 1940s, helping the Tigers win consecutive titles in 1947 and 1948. After winning Rookie of the Year in 1940, Evangelides was a mainstay of the Detroit infield through the war years. That team had a core of great young players who build a camaraderie that would carry over into the post-war years. Teammates like Jack Blazejowski, Luke Fender, Perry Dawsey, and Ray McCrory fueled a competition in Evanglides, and he would later comment that the intra-squad practice sessions was where he learned to focus his competitive energies into a disciplined approach to hitting and fielding. In 1946, the first year when all the great players returned from wartime service, it was Evangelides who was named American League Batter of the year over luminaries like Al Grimaldi, Like Fender, Hero Styles, and Glenn Hallaway. A year later the Tigers won the World Series, a feat they repeated in 1948. In 1953, after 13 years in Detroit, Evangelides was dealt to the Boston Red Sox, and then again in midseason to the White Sox, where he started in the World Series. At age 39 he would make one more World Series appearance with the Kansas City Athletics, connecting on a pinch hit single. That hit would be his final appearance in baseball; Ray Evangelides retired at the age of 40. | The best since Chesterfield. Maybe the best period. Third base sees talent like that once a generation. Jesse Summers |  | ||||||||||||
 Luke Fender 1B 1941-1959 | Known for his towering homers, Fender said that the "hardest ball I ever hit" came in the 9th inning on June 6, 1950 at Yankee Stadium. Leading off in the top of the 9th, with the score tied 8-8, Yankees pitcher Luther Ramage tried to blow a fastball past the Texas Tornado. Bad idea. Fender stepped into it and, with perfect timing, met the ball with the sweet spot of his bat, walloping it with everything he had. The sound of the bat colliding with the ball was likened to a cannon shot. The players on both benches jumped to their feet. Ham Porter shouted, "That's it!" The ball rose in a majestic laser-like drive, rocketing into the night toward the farthest confines of Yankee Stadium. The question was never whether it was a home run or not. The question was whether this was going to be the first ball to be hit out of Yankee Stadium. That it had the height and distance was obvious. But would it clear the façade, the decoration on the front side of the roof above the third deck in right-field? "I usually didn't care how far the ball went so long as it was a home run. But this time I thought, 'This ball could go out of Yankee Stadium!' I knew no one had ever done that before." Just as the ball was about to leave the park, it struck the façade mere inches from the top with such ferocity that it bounced all the way back to the infield. That it ended up winning the game was an afterthought. Fender just missed making history. It was the closest a ball has ever come to going out of Yankee Stadium in a regular season game. | Confidence oozed out of him. He took something away from you even before you threw a pitch. Ernie Pagan | | ||||||||||||
 Sam Kreitenberg P 1944-1959 | In 1946, the Chicago Cubs shocked the world. The team was extreme to the point of self-parody; the roster was incredibly young, with only three important contributors over the age of 30, but they were helmed by the oldest manager in baseball history. The young batsmen ran rampant when they reached base, but never got caught. They were basically unchanged from the squad which finished out 1945 with a losing record, but came back the next year looking like a dominant new club. Through two months, the Cubs were making the sort of gradual improvement the front office expected; heading into the summer months of June, the Cubs were 25-21. Then they went off, and Sam Kreitenberg was the catalyst. Kreitenberg was the highly touted ace for the team, a quiet man who earned admiration for his work ethic. He started 1946 roughly, winning just one of his first 5 starts. The rest of the way Kreitenberg, like his team, was lights out. Kreitenberg went 25-9 after that initial stumble, winning his first Pitcher of the Year award at age 22. The Cubs were equal to Sam's effort, going 73-35 from June 1 to the end of the season and make their way into the World Series. Reflecting back on his career, Kreitenberg has many times said 1946 was his favorite year in baseball. The league was in good spirits with the war over, he was achieving commanding professional success for the first time at a young age, and of course a World Series ring makes everything smell a bit more rosy. Between 1945 and 1958, Kreitenberg would only fall short of 300 innings once, and that 'lacking' year he had 295. He would win 29 games and another Pitcher of the Year in 1954. He would be celebrated as the greatest hitting pitcher of all time, slugging an incredible 46 home runs. He would win over 300 games, strike out over 2,500 hitters, and earn induction to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. But it was that ring in 1946, earned with one of the most shockingly good and enjoyably wacky teams of all time, which he cherished best of all. | Sam Kreitenberg is the best pitcher, day in and day out, that I have ever seen. He's unbelievable. He didn't pitch for just one or two starts, or one or two weeks. He pitched all the time. John Henry Duffin | | ||||||||||||
 Bill McNeal P 1946-1959 | Very few pitchers have had the good fortune, talent, and credentials to be known as the undeniably preeminent pitcher of a baseball dynasty: Jurgen Verherrsch. Monty Slocum. Ed Schultz. Bill McNeal. From 1950, when the White Sox of the 1950s won their first ring, to 1954, when they won their last, McNeal was the face of the rotation, the counterpart to John Harnden's presence in the vaunted White Sox lineup. In those 5 years, McNeal won 125 games and lost only 32. He pitched in 4 World Series, winning 5 games and never posting an ERA over 2.25. He won a Pitcher of the Year award in 1954, winning 29 games, and posted one of the most remarkable seasons in league history when he won 26 games while losing only 2 in 1951. He was everything you wanted an ace to be, and his teammates and fans loved him for it. | I've never seen anybody who wanted to play more than Bill did. In Spring Training, you had to run him off the field to get him to rest, and I mean literally run him off. Tucker Flintock | | ||||||||||||
 Bull Norris 1B 1943-1955 (NNL), 1956-1959 (MLB) | Bull Norris, premier Negro League slugger and baseball icon, was promoted by many as the greatest player of all time. He played on just one team in his Negro League career, an abberation when players skipped between teams all the time. When asked why only the one team, Norris replied, "Where the money was, that's where everyone else played. Where home was, that's where I played." A tall, angular man with a Dick Tracy profile, Norris was a nondrinking, soft-spoken gentleman who seldom cursed. He was a complete professional, on and off the field. When Mack Bolan was interviewed by legendary announcer Bill Cicero, he was asked who was the greatest player of all time. Bolan asked, "You mean major leaguers?" "No," replied Cicero, "the greatest player anywhere." "In that case," responded Bolan, "I'd pick Bull Norris." Norris' election to the Hall of Fame signifies the first time a player has ever been elected who spent the majority of his career outside of the Major Leagues. Norris is the second African-American elected to the Hall of Fame. | I am honored to have Bull Norris called the black Wallop. It is a privilege to be compared to him. Bob Wallop | | ||||||||||||
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 Dan Federici SS 1941-1958 | In 1941, Dan Federici made his debut with the Boston Braves. Elsewhere in the National League, Ray Johnson and Benny Lava broke in with the Chicago Cubs, while Charles Ruffin showed up in the American League with the Boston Red Sox. By the time they retired, all four men would be in the top 25 all time in stolen bases, and Lava, Johnson, and Federici all stole over 1,000 bases retired as the three greatest thieves in history. Of the '41 Boys, Dan Federici was the best all around player, and the first elected to the Hall of Fame. As a rookie in 1941, Federici hit .319 with 73 stolen bases, winning Rookie of the Year. Two years later, Federici had one of the great seasons of all time, hitting .326 with with 90 walks and 72 stolen bases in an offensively depleted league, and winning the World Series with the Braves. Two years after that, Federici was named Batter of the Year as he led his Braves to yet another World Series. To get a good grasp on just how excellent Federici was, you need to look at his consistency and his unique set of skills. Federici stole 50 bases and had 75 walks 10 times in his career; the most all time among all position players, one more than the great Tommy Jeffords. Among shortstops, only three other players have ever accomplished that, and they all only did it once each. Among shortstops, Federici is second all time in walks, first in stolen bases, and sixth in hits. He was also a swift and sure-handed fielder, winning three Gold Glove awards. He was a combination of offense and defense the league had never before seen at shortstop, and probably won't see again. | I've known three or four men in my life who actually knew the way to run the bases. Dan was one of them. Artemas Hane | | ||||||||||||
 Carl Switzer 3B 1943-1957 |
When world War II broke out in the winter of 1942, 18 year old Carl Switzer went to his local recruitment office and signed up for the army. During the physical examination, the doctor's discovered an abnormality in his heart. Switzer was rejected from the military. Angered and disheartened, Switzer asked what he could do to contribute to the war effort. The doctor, a local, mentioned he had seen Switzer play ball in high school. Perhaps he could contribute that way, to provide a breath of escapism to the millions of Americans who would be without their baseball heroes for the duration of the war. Switzer debuted with the Yankees in 1943, joining a dispirted team which had just lost its best player and national icon Al Grimaldi to the war effort. The team needed a hitter, but more importantly they needed a star, someone to rally around and bring the people of New York to their feet. Switzer gave them one. The rookie was not anticpated - his performance in the minor leagues in 1942 was less than exceptional, and the manager Isaac Flick only played Switzer out of desperate need for warm bodies. In his first year the 20 year old hit .285 and, along with fellow rookie Gareth Shanahan, provided the team with something more than just stats; he gave New York a ballplayer who genuinely seemed to be having fun. In 1944, Switzer was joined by Rick Blaine and Frank Bellisimo, and for the first time since the war began there was a legitimate champsion in baseball. The 1944 and 1945 Yankees were the crown jewel of baseball, and the wartime heart of New York City. Switzer won Batter of the Year in 1944, leading the the World Series for a second straight year. In 1945 the Yankees won the title, their first since the early 1920s. Switzer and his young teammates are an icon of baseball history, human symbols that America was able still able to enjoy those uniquiely American blessings in the middle of its most trying times. | Everyone called him Alfalfa. I'm not sure why. I don't think I ever saw him eat anything that wasn't born or hatched. Frank Bellisimo | | ||||||||||||
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 Rick Blaine P 1943-1957 | From 1940 to 1950, Rick Blaine was the only pitcher in baseball to beat out Victor Starffin for a Pitcher of the Year award. That alone should tell you something about his quality. He won three of those awards in the 1940s, posting ERAs and win totals which belied what many scouts saw as unspectacular pitches.
Blaine first made his name in 1944, anchoring the great pitching staffs of the War year Yankees. He won 25 games in 1944 and 25 games in 1945, winning Pitcher of the Year both years. Skeptics were still not high on the Yankee hurler; with all the 'real' players coming back after the end of the war, 1946 was to be Blaine's real test, his first chance of facing the great hitters and trying to match the performances of the great pitchers like Starffin. Despite an injury limiting his time, Blaine put all criticism to bed in 1946, spinning a brilliant 14-2 record with an ERA under 2. In 1948, Blaine won another Pitcher of the Year. After 12 seasons in New York, he was traded to Pittsburgh, where he won 21 games in 1955, leading the team to a victory in the World Series. Blaine retired after 1957, finishing with 297 wins, an ERA under 3, and the respect of everyone in baseball. | I don't care what the situation was, how high the stakes were -- the bases could be loaded and the pennant riding on every pitch, it never bothered Rick. He pitched his game. Cool. Craft. Nerves of steel. Carl Switzer | | ||||||||||||
 Jack Blazejowski SS, OF 1938-1957 | Near the end of his career, the report I.F. Bailey was able to sit down to a substantial interview with the notoriously press-shy Jake Blazejowski. Blaze, as he was known, had been in baseball for 20 years. He'd entered the league hitting against Tom Paladin and Randall Flagg, and was about to leave is teammates of August Campbell and Hooper Smith. The interview Bailey and Blaze engaged in contained this exchange: Bailey: In 1947, you played for both the White Sox and Braves. Can you tell us what the game was like with integration going on? Did you notice a difference between the two leagues? Blazejowski: I'll tell you the truth - I didn't like it. I'm from Cicero, near Chicago, and playing there at the time there was a lot of prejudice, you know. That's what it was like, that was the culture. That's how I was raised. When the team heard that the Phillies were gonna play Casey, we all sort of mocked it. I don't think any of us were really angry; it was just something of a joke. I came up with Philadelphia, and I was sure this wasn't gonna work - the city wouldn't take to it. And I admit I thought Casey couldn't handle it. I was prejudiced myself, much as anyone. But then I was traded to Boston, and my first game was against Philadelphia. First time I'd ever seen Casey face to face. Before the game he came up to me and offered to shake my hand, saying he was a big fan and he modeled his batting stance on my own. Tell you the truth I was shocked - I don't believe I'd ever shaken the hand of a Negro before. But I shook his and took the compliment. He shook my hand and said it was nice to meet me. That simple. Changed me a bit. Changed me. | Every time he walked up to the plate, you know you were about to be taught a lesson. He didn't get a hit every time, but he always did it right. I always found something new to learn just watching him swing. Ray McCrory | | ||||||||||||
 Hieronymous "Hero" Styles 2B 1939-1956 | “He was a real quiet guy, all shy and embarrassed,” the great John Faultless recently said. “His family didn't have much, so when he arrived in Chicago they say he only had a straw suitcase, two pairs of slacks and one blue sports jacket that probably cost only about $8.00.” Hero may have well been entering a foreign land. “I was a real bumpkin,” Styles himself recalled later. “I had never seen buildings so tall and had never really experienced anything . . . I mean anything . . . like Chicago!” Heronymous Styles was listed in Sport Magazine as being from Boston, but he was actually from a small town in Western Massachussetts, and had never even been to the big city.
It’s not easy becoming a Hall of Famer. However, legends do begin somewhere and on April 23, 1939 the Chicago White Sox traveled to Cleveland's League Park to take on the Indians in their home park. That is when destiny would bring Styles face to face with one Clay Reddish, a brilliant youngster who was in the middle of a Pitcher of the Year season, and who had just come off a briliant game where he had made the AL champion Washington Senators look like a minor league team. In an interview with Mr. Reddish, he vividly recalled the game and his confrontation with Hero. He remembered facing the young rookie, knew about the press expectations but thought he would fool the youngster with a change-up. After all, Reddish reasoned, the working class lad was now in the big leagues! But, Reddish related to us, “Hero smacked the ball in dead center field right into the bullpen . . . it must have traveled 450 feet in the air!” Years later, we were told that Styles asked Reddish if he remembered “his first home run.” Indeed, Reddish did then and does to this day! In fact, he chuckled, “Hero hit another off me later that year . . . a towering shot in Chicago.” | I once asked him why he always seemed to know where each pitch was going. He told me to just watch for the spinning of the seams. He thought everyone could do it. It was just that easy for him. Glenn Hallaway | | ||||||||||||
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 Herb Philipp P 1944-1956 | Herb Philipp got his start in major league baseball because of the depleted rosters of WWII; he didn't make his debut until he was already 25 years old. He gained a reputation as a fireballer, but for his first two years his efforts on the field yielded little success. Philipp didn't put up a winning season until age 27, when he went 19-16 for a bad 1946 team. For the next 6 years, Philipp came into his own. He became renowned for his rising fastball and devestating curve, finishing in the top 5 in strikeouts 6 times and ERA 4 times. He was selected to 6 All-Star games and won 2 Pitcher of the Year awards, and perhaps most impressively guided the previously hapless Phillies to only their 3rd World Series appearance in 1948. In a striking case of irony, Herb tossed a perfect game versus Brooklyn in 1948, only the 9th such game in baseball history. He would then join the Dodgers and toss his second no hitter, this time against the Phillies. Philipp is still the only pitcher to pitch a no-hitter for one team against another, and then do the same in reverse. Philipp was a quiet man, not showing outward signs of aggressiveness or anger. He would theorize later in his career that his low-key personality was one of the reasons he stayed in the minor leagues so long despite impressive statistics, his managers didn't think he had enough passion for the game, and thus didn't trust him enough to recommend promotion. They could not have been more wrong. Inside, Philipp was a feirce competitor, a man who held a grudge and never forget when a hitter got the best of him. At his best, Philipp reached heights very few baseball players have ever reached, and he did so with a gentility and good-natured personality which endeared him to his teammates and fans. | A powerhouse with a barrel chest. When that ball came whirling from the mound, you didn't know whether to swing or run for your life. Pony Ragland | | ||||||||||||
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 Charlie Bartlett P 1914-1928 VC | Rarely has a young pitcher ever been put under the kind of pressure that Charlie Bartlett was put under. From 1913 to 1916, the Washington Senators were the most dominating force in baseball, a whirlwind of talent spearheaded by the beloved and toughminded Jurgen Verherrsch. The Hall of Fame pitcher had led to team to 2 titles and 3 pennants, dominating the American League. But when World War I broke out and anti-German sentiment reached a fevered pitch, Verherrsch asked to be sent out of the Capital City, back to Cincinnati. Washington management obliged, netting the young Bartlett in the trade. The young hurler came into Washington with lot of promise, but his time with the Reds was frustrating - the year before he had lost more games than he won, and Washington fans were despondent at the thought that their titanic offense wouldn't be enough to win with the loss of the German fireballer Verherrsch. Bartlett was determined to prove himself, and he did so with brilliance. On opening day, Bartlett was tasked with starting the season for the Senators and he had to face the one pitcher no one ever wanted to face - Caroll Edwards. The old man wasn't quite the presence he used to be, but he was still a sight to behold, and Bartlett later admitted he was terrified to face the legend. But with the support of his teammates, who battered Edwards for 6 runs that day, Bartlett earned a win. His nerves gone, he pitched a brilliant season, winning 25 games and taking home Pitcher of the Year honors. The Senators against made the World Series. In 1918, Bartlett won the league's highest pitching honor again. It took over 30 years for Bartlett to get elected to the Hall of Fame, but it was worth the wait; at his induction ceremony, he was brought to tears when a 78 year old Jurgen Verherrsch stood up and applauded when Bartlett took the stage. | He came in and had huge shoes to fill. Just huge. But he never moped and never let any somberness come over him. He just pitched. I can't tell you how much I respected that. Ham Iburg | | ||||||||||||
 Johnny Casey 2B 1947-1955 | When Johnny Casey traveled to Philadelphia for a meeting with Phillies GM John Strangefellow he was unaware that he was going to be asked to become the first Black player in major league baseball. The decision to open up "America's favorite pastime" to African-Americans was in no small part due to the contribution they had made to the country's war effort. Happy Chandler, the newly installed Baseball Commissioner, was quoted as saying that: "if they (African-Americans) can fight and die on Okinawa, Guadalcanal (and) in the South Pacific, they can play ball in America." Strangefellow agreed, but everyone knew that the first Black to break through the color barrier would not only have to be talented enough to play in the majors but strong enough to withstand with dignity the inevitable racial taunts that would be hurled his way. Johnny Casey was their man. In that meeting, the two men had a conversation which pressed upon Casey the urgency of his task, and the great burden he carried:
'There's more here than just playing, Johnny,' Strangefellow warned. 'I wish it meant only hits, runs and errors-things you can see in a box score. But life will get in the way. There will be hatred from everyone, including other players. Other pitchers might try to take your head off.' 'Mr. Strangefellow,' Casey said, 'they've been throwing at my head for a long time.' Strangefellow's voice rose. 'Suppose I'm a player. . . in the heat of an important ball game.' He drew back as if to charge at Casey. 'Suppose I collide with you at second base. When I get up, I yell, 'You dirty, black son of a -' 'He finished the castigation and added calmly, 'What do you do?' Casey blinked. He licked his lips and swallowed. 'Mr. Strangefellow,' he murmured, 'do you want a ballplayer who's afraid to fight back?' 'I want a ballplayer with guts enough not to fight back!' responded Strangefellow. Casey understood, and served as a role model for history. |
They call his name in a way no other player's name is called. They plead to shake his hand or ask for his autograph. They touch his clothes as he walks by, unhurrying, pleasant, friendly, cooperative, because Johnny has never lost sight of what the game has meant to him, and what he has meant, means now, and will always mean to his people. Milton Gross | | ||||||||||||
 Alfred Reed CF, Manager 1902-1920 (P), 1922-1939 (M) VC | PARAGRAPH | He was a titan in the game and in America at large. When you think of Detroit, you think of 2 names: Henry Ford and Alfred Reed. S. Burton Heath | | ||||||||||||
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 Lelton Hazel P 1937-1954 | Five years younger than his brother Hurley, Lelton Hazel's induction into the Hall of Fame is the first time any family has had multiple members be inducted to the hallowed hall of Cooperstown. For the first six years of his career, Hazel's career path signaled anything other than a Hall of Fame career. From 1937 to 1942, Hazel went 51-81 pitching for a bad Braves team. In 1943, the Braves added players like Cicero Jarvey and John Frost, and saw other players like Dan Federici and Barry Chipchase come into their own. Hazel won 21 games as the Braves took the pennant. The next year, in the war ravaged 1944 season, Hazel won 22 games and earned his first and only Pitcher of the Year award. From 1943 until the end of his career, Hazel went 233-144, finishing his career with 284 wins and induction to the Hall of Fame | When I about 9 years old, I remember thinking I was the better pitcher. That's the last time I thought that. Hurley Hazel | | ||||||||||||
 Jesse Summers SS, Manager 1922-1942 (P), 1932-current (M) | For the second election in a row, the Baseball Writers Association inducted a man who was renowned as both a player and a manager. As a player, Jesse Summers was a model of consistency. From 1924 to 1939, he never played less than 133 games. From 1923 to 1940, his batting average never dropped under .282, hitting .300 in 14 of those 18 seasons. By the time of his retirement from playing in 1942, Summer was one of only 13 players with 3000 hits and is still the only shortstop to achieve that mark. In 1932, Summers became the player-manager of the White Sox, taking over for Howie Hamish. In 1947, he moved over to the Detroit club in the Front Office Flip which exchanged many players between Chicago and Detroit, including fellow Hall of Fame manager Tom Axelrod. Summers is only the 2nd man to be elected to the Hall of Fame while still managing, the first since Tom Stahl was inducted in the very first Hall of Fame class in 1936. | We started calling him "coach" back when he was only a kid. He was always the guy you went to for advice. Karl Wojciechowski | | ||||||||||||
 Henry Wing 2B 1915-1930 | A slick-fielding shortstop for the Yankees and Cubs, Henry Wing was finally inducted to the Hall of Fame 30 years after his retirement, due to the grandfather clause which allowed Wing to stay on the ballot well after most of his contemporaries had fallen off. Wing was a prize second basemen throughout the 1920s, garnering 8 Gold Glove awards between 1917 and 1928. Wing and Bart Martin were frequently mentioned as the pre-eminent second basemen of their generation, comparing a rare combination of skill with the bat and glove. As a hitter, Wing's peak came early in his career. As a member of the legendary 1919 Yankees, Wing hit .308 in the post-war season. He and shortstop Waylon Campbell were a keystone force, leading that team to 99 wins and a World Series victory over the notorious Black Stockings of Cincinnati. In 1926, after 11 years in New York, Wing was traded to the Chicago Cubs where he helped that team win 2 pennants in the late years of that decade. Overall, Wing played in 6 World Series, and his 137 at bats in those games ranks 6th all time. | It's an honor just to be put in Wing's class. I don't mean to sound corny. For years, I've watched Henry make the tough play look easy. The way he makes the double play is a thing of beauty. Waylon Campbell | | ||||||||||||
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 Tom Axelrod OF, Manager 1915-1931 (P), 1943-1953 (M) VC | No one man has ever had more success as both a player and a manager, and his joint successes were instrumental to his induction to the Hall of Fame. As a player with the Detroit Tigers, Axelrod was a rookie phenomenon at age 19. In that first season, Axelrod his a respectable .277 and stole an astonishing 96 bases, a new major league record. 2 years later Tom would steal a clean hundred, a mark which lasted 25 years. After 17 years in the big leagueS, he finished with 1,051 stolen bases, and was the only player in four figures until the run-happy '41-Boys (Benny Lava, Ray Johnson, and Dan Federici, who all debuted in baseball in 1941) passed him up. All told, Axelrod was a fixture in Detroit, ending with over 2000 hits. And even though he never played in the World Series, he was a member of the Champion Tigers in 1931, and was given a ring for his efforts. After a 12 year absence from the spotlight, Axelrod then rejoined his Tigers as the manager in 1943. He won 99 games in 1945, and after a change in management he left Detroit to manage the White Sox, where he had unparalled success. In his 7 years in Chicago, Axelrod won 3 pennants, 2 rings, and posted a winning percentage of .609, the best mark of all retired managers. | Once he hit a line drive right past my ear. I turned around and saw the ball hit his ass sliding into second. Alden Wolfe | | ||||||||||||
 Dub Breslin C 1927-1945 | A five-sport star at St. Lawrence High School in Pulaski, Illinois, Breslin chose to sign a minor-league baseball contract in 1926. He played for Portland of the Pacific Coast League under the eye of Victor Pushkin, who saw the potential in Breslin right away. Breslin joined Tom Stahl’s Washington Senators in 1927, and became the full time catcher in 1930 where he caught 91 games and batted .362, the best mark for a catcher since the early days of Bob Rooney. He hit .342 again in 1931 and stayed above .330 every year for the next five. Known for his athletic build, Dub hit over 10 triples 5 different times and is 2nd all time in triples among all catchers. Although prodigious with his bat, Breslin was even better with the glove, grabbing 10 Gold Glove Awards, tying him for the most all time for anyone at any position along with fellow Hall of Famers Bart Martin and Clark Manning. Breslin was known as a prickly fellow, easy to become annoyed with his battery-mates who didn't follow his pitch calls or infielders who didn't play at the proper depth. While short with his temper and unforgiving on the field, he was known to never curse and never show any signs of violence, and his teammates came to respect and admire his dedication to the game. After his playing days, Breslin returned to Pulaski, IL to run the sports program at the high school he once dominated. | I once got a five step jump when trying to steal second, and I thought I had it easy. When I get there, the ball is just sitting in Risner's glove. I have no idea how Breslin got it there in time. His arm was a tommy gun. Emmanuel Valliere | | ||||||||||||
 Emmanuel Valliere SS 1931-1947 VC | A seven-time All Star, Emmanuel Valliere was consistent and terrifyingly fast shortstop who bedeviled major league pitchers and catcher for 17 years. As a rookie in 1932, Valliere won Rookie of the Year, hitting .318 and stealing 75 bases. He led his league in stolen bases 8 times, the 2nd best mark behind Tom Axelrod's 9. But Valliere was a substantially better hitter than Axelrod, keeping his career average at .295 and drawing walks at an extremeley impressive rate. He was an incredibly gifted shortstop, garnering five Gold Gloves, the 2nd best number in American League history. Valliere played in the World Series three times with three different teams, winning each time. His performance in the 1947 series, his final season at age 38, was phenomenal, as the old shortstop his .474 and smashed his only postseason home run. | Val was so fast he could get out of bed, turn out the lights across the room and be back in bed under the covers before the lights went out. August Kinsolving | | ||||||||||||
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 2B 1926-1946 | The top five players of all time in the category of "times reaching base" are Royal Chesterfield, Bob Rooney, Jack Blazejowski, Dave Brunkhorst, and Douglas Guthrie. You simply can't ask for better company. Every since breaking into the league as a 19 year old with Philadelphia, Guthrie was known as a bunter extraordinaire, and man with brilliant baseball instincts. He know how to draw four balls, how to swipe second at the perfect moment, and how to make the absolute most out of one of the least powerful swings in baseball history. Guthrie was a 3 time all star and 2 time champion, playing until his late thirties as a productive second baseman. He is one of the only 3 players in history with 3000 hits and 1000 walks. | One of my absolute favorites. He knew when to listen to me and, thankfully, when not to. Patch Samuelson | | ||||||||||||
 P 1938-1953 | In 1938, Gygax was the ace pitcher for the NL champion Brooklyn Dodgers. He made a debut unlike anyone in baseball history, tossing a no-hitter in his first career start. In the World Series against the Cleveland Indians, although his Dodgers lost the series, Gygax pitched 18 innings allowing 0 runs. 2 years later in the World Series against the Philadelphia Athletics, Gygax pitched 18 more innings, allowing just one run, but again losing the series. 10 years later as a reliever with the Chicago White Sox, Gygax pitched 3.2 more scoreless innings and finally got his ring. His World Series statistics of a 0.23 ERA and only 4.5 hits allowed per 9 innings remain records that will likely never be broken. Gygax was a fireballer when he came into the league as a 23 year old rookie in 1923. He had chosen to pursue his degree before entering professional baseball, getting a bachelors in Statistics from the University of Wisconsin. Putting his mathematical future on hold, he used his rocket arm to join the Brooklyn Dodgers, winning 20 games as a rookie in 1938. In 1941 he was named Pitcher of the Year in the national league. Due to a heart condition, Gygax pitched through World War II, winning another Pitcher of the Year award in 1945. When the war ended and his old teammates returned to Brooklyn, Gygax was unfairly resented by his teammates, who felt angry he hadn't served. Eventialy Gygax was traded away to quell the hostility, and from 194 to 1953, Gygax finished his career bouncing between 4 times, and never regaining his youthful mastery. | Gary was a extremely gentle and kind man. Unfortunately for me he didn't act like it when he pitched. Rick Rhett |  | ||||||||||||
 OF 1927-1946 | Known for his towering and, at the time, unprecedented home runs, Guy Fontana was as much of a spectacle as anything baseball has ever put forth. As a 17 year old rookie in 1927, Fontana won a Gold Glove, his first of four in five years. By 1930, his defensive skills had diminished as he focused more and more on his incredibly powerful swing. As a 20 year old, Fontana hit 53 home runs, the record for the National League, and only one behind Bob Wallop's total that year. 2 years later, Fontana hit 61 in a single season, a record which stood for 27 years and cemented his fame in the eyes of schoolboys everywhere. By the age of 25, Fontana's career had begun to decline. His prodigious power numbers dropped from an average of 45 a season from ages 19 to 24, to 25 a season from ages 25 to 29. In 1940 with the Philadelphia Athletics, Fontana had one final great year, hitting 46 homers and driving in 123 runs as his A's made the World Series. Fontana hung on as a useful player until he was 35, racking impressive career totals which included the major league record in home runs and RBI. His low batting average kept him from being an all-time great player, but his intense fame and prodigious peak earned him a spot in the Hall of Fame 10 years after he retired. | I think Red Barder invented the word "moonshot" just for him. My lord could he hit that ball a ton. Dean Cawdor | | ||||||||||||
 LF/1B/P 1914-1934 VC | One of the most idiosyncratic players in baseball history, Lassiter was rare in more ways that one. In addition to being the first great power hitter baseball ever saw, Lassiter won Rookie of the Year as a pitcher in 1914 before moving to right field as his manager Richard Rum saw his incredible hitting skills. Lassiter wouldn't take the mound again for 17 years. As a slugger for the Giants, Dodgers, and Athletics, Lassiter displayed a consistency which was at times admirable and at time frustrating. While constantly putting up impressive power numbers (he led baseball in home runs 8 times and hit 20 or more ten straight seasons), Lassiter was never able to bring his batting average up to there his managers expected him to. Rum and Karl Grosz both said they thought Lassiter had the potential to hit over .300 on a consistent basis, but the big slugger was never able to get over .294, and his career average sat at .249. Nonetheless, his great power combined with a constantly improving eye at the plate made him a very valuable hitter. When Lassiter returned to the mound at the age of 37 in 1930, he showed his skills had barely deteriorated, as he won 12 games while losing 10. He retired in 1933 after 20 years in baseball. | I admired him greatly, both for his skills and his flaws. He taught me how to be a better ballplayer and a better man. Jake Renfro | | ||||||||||||
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 Eckard Burlingame CF 1916-1932 | Rejected in an open tryout by the Reds in 1911, a discouraged Eckard Burlingame put off his dreams of being a Major League ballplayer and went to work for his father's pharmaceutical company. In 1913, upon hearing of a new league opening, Burlingame tried out for the Buffalo team, and was signed on the spot. Behind the offense of Burlingame, Buffalo was the most financially successful franchise in the Federal League's two year existence. Burlingame earned the moniker “Milton Shifman of the Feds” with his dominance of offensive categories in 1915. Upon the folding of the Federal League, Burlingame finally got his shot to play in the big leagues with the Reds, the team which turned him away 5 years earlier. He would find tremendous success with the Reds and then Giants, winning a Batter of the Year award and leading his teams to 5 appearances in the World Series. He retired in 1932 as a member of the Philadelphia Athletics. Burlingame is hailed as a franchise player by both Reds and Giants fans alike. Upon being told his Hall of Fame cap would be that of the New York Giants, Burlingame took out a full page ad in both The Cincinnati Enquirer and the New York Post thanking the fans of the cities for all their support and that in his heart he was both a Red and a Giant. | He never held a moment's anger or even a hint of resentment towards me, even though I was the guy who said no the first time around. He had class. Ronan Keough | | ||||||||||||
 Randall Flagg P 1919-1938 | Famously intimidating, Flagg was well known throughout baseball as one of the meanest, most upleasant characters in the league. Known for berating teammates, insulting the press corps, and being extremely stingy, Flagg bounced around in his career, no doubt due to the limited tolerance that managers and teammates alike had for his personality. Nonetheless, Flagg was one of the great pitchers of the high-offense 1920s and 30s. He won 20 games six times in his career, though he never led the leage. In fact, for a Hall of Fame pitcher, Flagg leaderboard is remarkably slim; he never held the top spot in wins, ERA, or strikeouts, though he consistently found himself in the top 10 in all of those categories. In the 1933 World Series, Flagg was sent out as the Reds' ace, pitching games 1, 4, and 7, winning the final time to clinch the title. | He scared me, on and off the field. Jedediah Dalrymple | | ||||||||||||
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 Dick Deutsch 3B 1915-1930 | A college man, Dick Deutsch didn't enter professional baseball until he was 22, and didn't get a crack at the big leagues until he was 24. As a rookie in 1915 Deutsch hit .336, leading the league in hits and total bases. He won both Rookie of the Year and Batter of the Year, the first person to accomplish the feat. Deutsch was productive for more than decade, splitting his time between the White Sox and Dodgers. Elected to the Hall of Fame 26 years after his retirement, Dutch made the trip from Berkeley, California, where he is a professor of sociology, to Cooperstown, New York to accept his long awaited induction. | [Hitting coach Pete] Trent always used to tell us that we were idiots, but that was all right since only idiots knew how to hit a baseball. When Dutch came to the club he had to stop saying that. Perry McIntyre | | ||||||||||||
 Al Grimaldi 1B, LF 1936-1954 | Al Grimaldi was a beautiful hitter with a classic swing. He had an exceptionally wide stance that gave him a controlled short stride, strong wrists that generated enormous power, and the ability to wait until the last instant before lashing into a pitch. His 51 homers in 1945 remain a Yankee record. What makes his HR total more impressive is that he played half his games at Yankee Stadium, then the toughest power park in baseball for righties. At the time left-centerfield, known as "Death Valley", extended 457 feet from the plate. Grimaldi also hit as high as .334 in 1939, and walked over 1300 times in addition to his 584 homers. Grimaldi's impact goes far beyond his feats on the field. His presence as a outwardly proud Italian-American made him a hero to Italians all across the country, and his service in World War II cemented his status as a courageous and patriotic person. Many experts consider Al Grimaldi the best player in the history of the game. He is admired not only for his achievements but for his refusal to rest on his natural skills, working instead to constantly improve his play. He was responsible to himself, his teammates, and his fans. He had pride. He was more than an exceptional athlete; he was the consummate professional. | Al Grimaldi was the greatest all-around player I ever saw. His career cannot be summed up in numbers and awards. It might sound corny, but he had a profound and lasting impact on the country. Daniel Houlihan | | ||||||||||||
 Roger Harkness P 1938-1954 | Roger Harkness was a middling-to-good pitcher for the first 4 years of his career, establishing himself as a reliable starter for the New York Giants. In the winter of 1941, Harkness worked on developing his curveball, a pitch he had never been totally comfortable with; he spend hours a day practicing the pitch as well as studying the mechanics of the arm and wrist, and learning how to complement his already blazing fastball and extremely effective change-up. All the hard work payed off, and in 1942 Harkness put up the season of a lifetime, going 26-7 with an ERA you would need a microscope to see. His incredible success in New York City made him a national figure. In addition to his brilliance on the mound, Harkness gained a certain level of notoriety due to his inept hitting. His career batting stats place him among the worst in baseball history: .053 batting average, only 48 walks in over 1500 at bats, and just 4 homers despite playing in the Polo Grounds for a good amount of time. In his magical pitching season of 1942, Harkness had perhaps the worst batting performance of anyone in history - just 2 hits in 125 at bats, with 2 walks. It's hard to say how many games his own inept hitting cost his teams, though his pitching easily made up the difference. Harkness was dealt to the Washington Senators in 1948 where he joined Victor Starffin on the D.C. staff. He was effective there for 3 years before a terrible season in 1951 had sportswriters everywhere saying the 35 year old hurler was finished. Traded to Boston for the 1952 campaign, Harkness proved everyone wrong, going 25-7 and leading the Red Sox to a shocking AL pennant, dethroning the mighty Chicago White Sox. | I learned a ton watching him pitch. Victor Starffin | | ||||||||||||
 Victor Starffin P 1934-1954 | There's never been a pitcher quite like Victor Starffin before, and there likely won't be again. Born in Nizhny Tagil, Russia in 1916, Starffin moved to upstate New York as a toddler when his parents had to emigrate after the Russian Revolution of 1917. His father died as a young boy when he accidentally sliced his foot with an axe and contracted gangrene. As a 15 year old, hoping to get some money to help his seamstress mother, Starffin showed up to an open tryout the Cleveland Indians held in a scouting trip to the Buffalo region. He was signed on the spot. After reaching the majors he was quickly traded to Washington. For the next 20 years, Victor Starffin was simply the greatest pitcher who ever lived. For 15 consecutive seasons, Starffin won at least 23 games. He won 5 straight Pitcher of the Year awards, interrupted by his service in World War II; he won 8 in total. In 1942 Starffin won a record 33 games carrying his team to the American League title, getting his final win in a one game playoff when he beat the Athletics to win the pennant. In 1946, coming back from his 3 year stint in the South Pacific serving in the Navy, Starffin struck out a record 324 hitters and won 27 games. He retired in 1954 with 416 wins and 4090 strikouts, second all time in both categories. Had he not missed nearly three full years of his prime during the War years, he surely would have dwarfed all records which had come before. | When I saw Starffin for the first time I had to steal that great line from Dorothy Parker: "What fresh hell is this?" Jesse Summers | | ||||||||||||
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 Eddie Deal C 1913-1929 | The first great power-hitting catcher, Deal was considered something of an underperformer for the first few years of his career, suffering from the incredbily high expectations placed upon him by Cincinnati management. Deal settled into a groove, hitting in the .270s with great power and incredible defense, and just kept it up for 15 years. In four World Series with the Reds, Deal had only one good series at the plate, but his defense and rocket arm were everpresent, helping the Reds secure two rings. When it was revealed in 1920 that his teammates had colluded to lose the World Series the year before, Deal's confidence was so shaken that he was immediately traded away from the club. His integrity was something the Reds' fans never forgot and continue to honor. | He threw me out trying to steal so often that I came to regret getting a hit when he was playing. Trevor Sway | | ||||||||||||
 Clay Reddish P 1937-1953 | Clay Reddish, a burly, hard-nosed competitor, treated every ballgame as if it were a war. His durability helped him lead the American League in innings and wins two times. Reddish won Pitcher of the Year in 1939 and although his production never tailed off until the 1950s, his opportunity to gather accolades and awards was stolen by the presence of Victor Starffin, who kept Reddish out of the spotlight. During his career with the Indians, Reddish won 312 games, highlighted by nine 20-win seasons, 44 shutouts and seven All-Star selections. During the lean years of World War II, Reddish stayed in the major leagues due to a heart condition which kept him from serving. Reddish pledged to donate half his salary to the war effort and was beloved in Cleveland for the reverence he showed the city and his teammates, and the respect with which he played the game. | Clay was a brute artist, an absolute force on the mound. Baseball fans didn't appreciate what they had with him. They still don't. Body Auslander | | ||||||||||||
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 Brian Boru SS 1924-1944 | One of baseball's great stories of hard work, optimism, and determination, Boru earned respect and admiration by grinding out over 20 years in the major leagues, rising from mediocrity to the Hall of Fame. For his first 9 years, split between the Reds, Red Sox, and Senators, Boru was a modest shortstop, an effective hitter who was branded as an underperformer. After being traded to the Browns on his 31st birthday, Boru determined to prove himself. From 1933 to 1944, Bory was a staple in the Browns' lineup, putting up massive totals of hits, doubles, triples, and home runs. His incredible 1934 season was followed the next year with St. Louis capturing the World Series title. A full time starter through age 41, Boru remains one of the greatest shortstops of all time. | Being a shortstop in high school and a St. Louis Browns' fan, Brian Boru was my boyhood hero. I thought he and the 1935 Browns were the greatest! Cicero Jarvey |  | ||||||||||||
 David Brent P 1911-1930 VC | David Brent, baseball's most consistent pitcher for two decades, won 287 games in his 20 seasons with the moribund Detroit Tigers and champion Brooklyn Dodgers. After jumping straight through the minors leagues at age 18 and joining the Major Leagues, he won 20 games six times, leading the league twice. In 1922, the 29-year-old Brent enjoyed his most redemptive season, winning 27 games, leading his Dodgers to the World Series, and then winning MVP in that series for his pivotal role in securing the title. | David Brent was one of the toughest I ever hit at. Great stuff, great control. Royal Chesterfield | | ||||||||||||
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 Michael Bones CF 1925-1944 | As highly touted youngster in the early 1920's, Michael Bones could do it all. He had tremendous bat speed, power, discipline, and played excellent defense. But Bones was raised by a father who worshipped baseball like a religion, and no drunken Jim Dane could change his dogma. So it was no wonder that Michael also took on his father's traditional attitude and shelved his free swinging power talents early on, concentrating on always putting the bat on the ball. And he did, over and over, year after year. Bones accumulated over 200 hits in a record 10 seperate seasons, and when he retired with his .332 career batting average, he was second on the all-time hit list with 3,529. He won the NL Batter of the Year Award in 1928 at the age of 21, and thirteen years later he won another one - a testament to his longevitity, consistency and talent that helped him lead the Reds to four pennants and three World Series titles. | Anybody who saw him play loves him because he was a bust-tail ballplayer who hated to lose. Zolly Bosco | | ||||||||||||
 Dave Brunckhorst 3B 1928-1946 VC | In 1928 the Washington Senators hired Bill Cicero as their radio man. He went to work announcing ball games in the big cities of America; being hired from a country radio station in Iowa, he was inexperienced and thoroughly frightened. He didn't know one major league player by sigh. In his first week on the job, Cicero was in the lobby of the Blanton Hotel in Philadelphia looking for interviews. Not knowing anyone by sight nor sound, he was put to the embarassment of going around asking healthy looking men if they were baseball players. Time was running short as air time approached, and he could envision a one-way ticket back home. Then a fellow got up off the davenport and said, 'My name's Brunckhorst. I just joined the Pittsburgh club, and I doubt anyone will know who I am, but I'll be glad to do the show with you.' Cicero never forgot that kindness to a kid who was hanging on the ropes, lobbying for Brunckhorst's induction to the Hall and eventually introducing him at the induction ceremony. | I knew him as a rookie and I know him now, 30 years later. He's the same humble, generous man he's always been, and thank god for that. Linus Scobie | | ||||||||||||
 Julius Coltrane 3B 1911-1925 VC | Playing in an era which favored slap hitters, Julius Coltrane developed a reputation as a slugger when he hit 26 doubles, 11 triples, and 6 home runs in 1913, and then hammered 6 doubles in the 1918 World Series for the Philadelphia Athletics. Coltrane led the American League in slugging twice, and set a then-record for RBI in a season when he knocked in 141 runs for Washington in 1922. A career .313 hitter, Coltrane is one of the few players to win a Batter of the Year award for two different teams. | Julius Coltrane is a dangerous man at all times, and I don't care what they pitch him. Al Bennett, Yankee's manager | | ||||||||||||
 Hal Demarast C 1903-1923 VC | Demarast was one of several players who became a close friend of Bill Horton. With Jimmy Hardy, another friend, it was an attraction of opposites. Hal could have been Bill's twin: built, pugnacious, fiercely concentrated on the game, and skilled in all the ways it takes to play it. Temperamental like his manager, he was an unabashed Dutch-Irish brawler, tough on teammates who did less than their best, tough on opponents, toughest on umpires, whom he baited and bedeviled. He was frequently ejected, fined and suspended, gave headaches to League officials, and engaged in noisy confrontations with at least three club owners Perhaps his most notable contributions to the game were in protective equipment. In 1906, after being hospitalized for a back injury from twisting his torso to avoid a beaning, he experimented with a batting helmet manufactured by the A.J. Reach Company. It was like the leather football helmet of the period sliced vertically: one half for covering the left side of a righthanded batter's head, the other for the lefty hitter. Although beanballs were frequent, the idea did not find favor. Two years later he devised catcher's shin guards. The first ones, evidently modeled after a cricketer's leg pads, were large and bulky, with a knee flap that came up to the thigh. They were greeted with ridicule and protest, but soon caught on. By 1909 they had more utilitarian shape and size, and were in general use. About 1908 he improved the flimsy wire catcher's mask with leather-bound rolls of padding to absorb the shock of foul-tips.. | Hal is a fighter; he was a fighter when a pupil of Lowery's and he has instilled this fighting spirit into his team. Fred Lieb, Baseball Magazine 1915 | | ||||||||||||
 Jack Graziano 2B 1933-1947 | In the early 1930s, Browns' owner Phil Buck had spent thousands of dollars to purchase established stars like Brian Boru, Archie Godfrey, and Andrew Wiggins in an effort to rebuild the dipping club. But his best acquisition was Graziano, who arrived as a 23-year-old rookie in 1933, having played pro ball since 1930. He was signed by Hector Volk on the same scouting trip that netted Albert Hickey. As the team's established second baseman in his rookie year, Graziano batted .313 and never dropped below an OBP of .340 in his next 15 seasons with the Browns, his only major league team. In those years Graziano thrice topped .300 and led the league in walks four times. Graziano played in six All Star games. During his career his chief rivals in all-round second base play were Stuart Archibald of the Senators and the rising Hero Styles of the White Sox and Tigers. | He is one of the few who played the game hard and retired with no enemies. Eddie Gelfen | | ||||||||||||
 Hurley Hazel P 1932-1950 | By the end of his career, Hurley Hazel was hailed as the greatest journeyman pitcher to have ever played the game. Racking up over 300 wins, almost 3000 strikouts, and pitching in 5 World Series, Hazel never played so much as 7 years with any one team, splitting his time between the Giants, Dodgers, Yankees, and Braves, lifting the title hopes of each along the way. The pride of large baseball family, Hazel retired 12th all time in wins and 8th in strikeouts. | One of the grandest guys ever to wear a baseball uniform, one of the greatest pitching teachers I have seen, one of the truest pals a man ever had and one of the kindliest men God ever created. Buddy Dineen | | ||||||||||||
 Whitey Murphy LF 1917-1931 | Whitey was, first of all, a physical phenomenon. There were 210 pounds of him on a 6'1" frame: the perfect proportion of weight and height. As a young man it was all muscle: a barrel-chested upper body, blacksmith arms, and sleek thighs and calves on the sculptured legs that tapered to tiny feet. And until the liquor overmastered him, he could hit a ton. His nickname derived either from Whitey Hackenschmidt, an old-time wrestler, or from a resemblance to Whitey Miller, another sawed-off heavyweight who preceded him in Chicago. | For years, it was impossible for me to look at any tall, well-built outfielder who could rope one over the shortstop without deciding I had found myself another Whitey Murphy. Jack Shaver | | ||||||||||||
 Hiram Webber 3B 1901-1920 VC | Hiram Webber was the hustling captain and clutch-hitting third basemen on the New York's Giants teams of the first 20 years of baseball, playing up until the Darby Hoffman era and the rise of the home run. His outstanding arm, exceptional range and quick release earned him great respect in the field. He also amassed over 2000 hits and compiled four .300-or-higher seasons at the plate. Milton Shifman praised Webber by saying, "In all the years I watched him, playing with him and against him, I never saw him make a mistake." | The greatest bunter I ever saw. Tom Axelrod | | ||||||||||||
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 Buster Brubaker OF 1924-1941 | Iwo Jima, 750 miles south of Tokyo, is the middle island of the three tiny specks of the Volcano Islands. Five miles long with Mount Suribachi at the southern tip, the island is honeycombed with excoriated volcanic vents. Hundreds of natural caves communicate with deep sulphur-exuding tunnels. Steep and broken gulleys cut across the surface, ragged sea cliffs surround it. Only to the south is there level sand, but it is fine, shifting, black pumice dust making the beaches like quicksand and rendering it impossible to dig a fox-hole when in need of cover. The island was riddled with pillboxes, gun-pits, trenches and mortar sites and a three-day naval bombardment beginning on February 16 was intended to rid the island of much of its defense. But despite its enormity the bombardment had minimal effect and US forces met fanatical resistance when they hit the beaches on February 19. On March 6, 1945 – as American troops moved inland - First Lieutenant Buster Brubaker was killed. It was a month before his wife, Ethel McKay Brubaker, received news of his death from the Navy Department. Before Opening Day in 1946, baseball commissioner Kenessaw Mountain Landis anounced the recently created award for the best player in all of baseball would be renamed the Buster Brubaker Memorial Award. | Everyone wants to remember Bru as a guy who gave his life for his country. And he was that. But he was more than that; he was a great guy, a fun teammate, and I'm proud to say my friend. Revelation Brown | | ||||||||||||
 Clark Manning 3B 1931-1948 | His nickname was "The Kid", but Manning was widely known around the league as a mature and professional ballplayer. Coming from the northern part of the Michigan Upper Peninsula, Manning was raised in a difficult atmosphere, his father a tailor and his mother a maid. Manning used to say that he didn't care how much press or accolades he got, he just wanted to play well enough to support his family. That he did, becoming one of the most consistent players in baseball history. Clark made the every All Star game between 1933 and 1940, the only such player to do that. When he got his 3000th career hit in 1947, the Dodgers surprised him by bringing his parents out from Michigan. When seeing them clap from the stands, Manning showed a rare display of emotion, removing his cap to acknowledge the crowd and the family which raised him. | I saw Manning make a sliding catch while falling into the third base dugout, only to pick himself up and get the double play at first. Best play I ever saw. Toby Shaftoe | | ||||||||||||
 Tom Paladin P 1921-1938 | Famously prickly, Tom Paladan bounced around between 6 different teams in his 18 years, winning 20 or more for four of them. In 1931, Paladan had his best year, winning 27 games for the pennant-winning Boston Braves. After winning a world series with the New York Giants in his rookie season, Paladan got back to the Series three times, twice with the Cubs, but never got another title. His 325 career wins is the ninth best mark in history. | His curveball was so good that a couple times I damn near ran back to the dugout thinking I was gonna be hit in the head, only to be punched out by the ump. Napoleon Mantooth | | ||||||||||||
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 Bill Blake P 1926-1944 | Rumor has it when Blake signed with Pittsburgh in 1926 at age 19, he asked the GM, "So, what spot am I playing?" Most general managers would give the obvious answer, but this one said "how about everywhere?" Such a gifted athlete was Blake that not only was a top-caliber pitcher but he'd field batting practice balls with such ease that his teammates believed him to be one of the most talented glove men on the team. Luckily for the Pirates, Blake's pitching was so good they never needed to experiment. Blake's election to the Hall was all but a formality. The Pirates starter is going in for his 312 wins (15th All-Time), 2 Pitcher of the Year awards and over 2,300 strikeouts; we'll never know if he could have made it in as a hitter and fielder, though some say he would have had he focused on it. 9 times Blake threw 300 innings for the Pirates, and he won 20 or more 8 times in his illustrious career. | For years we used to get teased for using our money on Blake when we could have had Colfax. They don't tease us anymore. Fred Fulk | | ||||||||||||
 Arnold Colfax OF 1926-1943 | One of the most prodigious sluggers of the late 1920s and 1930s, Arnold Colfax was a star from the day he joined the Senators in 1926; as an 18 year old rookie Colfax flirted with hitting .400 late into the season. The deep left-field fence at Griffith Stadium significantly hampered Colfax's slugging records, but he showed his prowess nonetheless, becoming the first and still only player in history in the 30/30 club. He collected more than 200 hits for three straight seasons (1929-31), leading the AL the last time. Colfax is the only player in history to have 3,000 hits and 250 home runs, and with over 400 stolen bases is still the greatest combination of speed and power in major league history. | One of the very greatest who ever lived. Golly, he hit like blazes: 30 home runs and 30 steals in a single season. He was unbelievable with that bat. Really, you had to see it to believe it. John Baird | | ||||||||||||
 Arthur Deck P 1930-1946 VC | A product of the Ohio coal mines, Arthur Deck learned control as a youngster by throwing rocks at tin cans that swung from a tree. Though he lost nine games and won nothing in his first big league season with the Red Sox in 1930, it was the screwball he later learned in the minor leagues that helped make him a star. A seven-time 20-game winner with four teams en route to 279 career victories, he never made it to the World Series. Deck posted one of the best seasons of all time in 1938, winning 28 games and propelling a mediocre Tigers team to the first division. | I've seen Deck throw that screwball to a right-handed hitter and he'd fall to the ground and that ball would break over the plate. It would break from your head down to the ground, like hitting a butterfly. Moses Lutske | | ||||||||||||
 Brewster Jennings P 1918-1939 VC | Remembered as much for his colorful personality as his blazing fastball, Brewster Jennings was one of baseball's greatest winners, ranking second in Senators history in regular-season wins and being one of the few majors leagues to achieve the 300 mark. His 3-1 World Series record helped his team win three titles, and he famously threw the very first pitch in the history of the All-Star Game. Jennings has openly said he's more proud of starting the first All-Star game than of his record 4,112 strikeouts. Jennings' loud and fun-loving persona set him apart from the decorous Senators of the 1930s. He once held up a World Series game, exasperating manager Tom Stahl (as he did with some frequency), due to a fit of laughter when he caught a particularly large woman in the bleachers rip her skirt - Jennings paused the game for some time while he regained his composure. Jennings got away with needling his buddy, Arnold Colfax, because Colfax, like everyone else, enjoyed the Jennings wit, which produced such statements as: "I've got a new invention. It's a revolving bowl for tired goldfish." | Ha! Brewster Jennings, known for the loudness of his short bursts of laughter | | ||||||||||||
 Milton Shifman SS 1901-1915 | One of seven brothers from Cleveland, Shifman was a premier dead ball slugger. Shifman was named Batter of the Year three straight years for the Braves, but never managed to take his otherwise sub-par team to the World Series. A well built six-footer, the quiet cleanup man covered South End Grounds' spacious center field, winning a Gold Glove three times. Shifman's specialty was to have no specialty at all; he pops up on the leaderboards for hits, doubles, triples, and walks. His combination of extra bases and contact made him a model of dead-ball power. | Shifman was a really great center fielder and an outstanding lefthanded hitter. He was a choke hitter, who would rap hits everywhere with good power. Reach Guide, 1912 | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Billy Bacon LF 1901-1911 VC | Billy Bacon's motto of Hit 'em where they ain't garnered him three batting titles, six straight years of .300 hitting or better and a 35-game hitting streak in 1902. Gifted with a keen eye and exceptional quickness, Bacon's place-hitting prowess resulted in a a career batting average of .339, good for seventh all time. Though he began his professional career as a left-handed third baseman, the versatile Bacon went on to become an outstanding left fielder. 27 years old when the major leagues formed in 1901, Bacon was a teacher and friend to the young Carroll Edwards, teaching the pitcher how to think like a hitter and identify weaknesses in a batting stance. | He may have been small in brains but he was huge with the bat. Arthur Rice, teasing his friend |  | ||||||||||||
 Mack Bolan OF 1930-1945 | One of the greatest power hitters in major league history, Bolan was scouted as a catcher but gained fame as an outfielder with the Cardinals and Senators. Born in the outskirts of Chicago, IL, Bolan grew strong doing chores on his father's farm. At age ten, he had had enough of farm life, and tried to join the army. Rejected by the military, he turned to sports, especially his first love, track. He played high school baseball and was soon demonstrating the combination of speed and power which would make him famous. His power displays caught the attention of Alfred Bachelor, who was managing Easton of the Eastern Shore League. After being invited for a tryout, Bolan soon became Bachelor's protege and soon signed with St. Louis. At bat, Bolan presented a menacing picture. A strong, powerful man, he held the bat at the end and stood fairly deep in the batter's box, using a wide stance and a full stride into the ball. As the pitch approached, his powerful arm muscles flexed visibly before he hit the ball. | I'd rather pitch to any other hitter in the league. He's bad news all the time. No game is ever won against the Cardinals until Bolan is out in the ninth. Braxton Mandrell | | ||||||||||||
 Jim Brush P 1901-1910 VC | A stocky pitcher with a blinding fastball, Jim Brush racked up phenomenal totals in the early days of baseball when the major leagues were still unformed and barnstorming teams played year round. Brush reportedly went 37-27 for Buffalo in 1887, his rookie season and the first of six straight 20-win campaigns. By the time the big leagues formed in 1901, Brush was 33 and already a legend. He joined a team which trounced the newly professional league in his first few seasons, joining fellow Hall of Famers Caesar Geist and Jim Joy on the Dodgers. Though he never pitched in a World Series and only stuck around in the majors for 10 years, Brush won 174 games, all after his prime, and earned his induction to the Hall of Fame. | If I had Brush to catch, no one would ever steal a base on me. That fellow keeps them glued to the bag. Reginald Magruder | | ||||||||||||
 Bub Copley P 1915-1930 VC | Some say consistency is the key to success. Well, as evident by Bub Copley's career, consistent dominance is the key to excellence. Over an 11-year window Copley won a stellar 216 games, finishing in the top-10 in NL ERA 9 of those seasons. He won a Pitcher of the Year award with the Cardinals in 1919 and after coming to the Giants he immediately won 2 titles as a standout 2nd starter for the team. Tragically, in April of the next year, 1927, he went down for the year with an injury. He, and the Giants, were never quite the same. Copley's ability to locate the baseball was that of legends, and now that he's been enshrined into the Hall Of Fame, he will be one as well. | As a ballplayer, Bub Copley was a natural phenomenon, like the Grand Canyon or the Great Barrier Reef. Nobody ever taught him baseball and he never had to learn. Red Smith | | ||||||||||||
 Paul Drumheller P 1925-1946 | PARAGRAPH | For more than two decades, the name "Pirates" and the name "Drumheller" have gone hand in hand. I speak for the organization when I say we got the better end of that deal. Gerald Rodgers, Pittsburgh GM | | ||||||||||||
 J.P. Herring P 1922-1940 | With his slow, cartwheel-like delivery of his drop curve, the lefthander off the Florida shipyards recorded eight consecutive 20-win seasons (and 12 total) for the Athletics and Red Sox and helped propel his teams to World Series competition in 1933 and 1939. He was a true workhorse; for 15 straight years he pitched over 330 innings. With his gaunt, smiling face, big, floppy ears, and an arm permanently dipped in ice to cool the straight of his massive workload, Herring appeared unlikely to strike fear in the hearts of opposing batters, but once the arms was out of the ice and on the mound, his piercing stare and pinpoint delivery put hitters on notice. Herring is one of the great pitchers in history and joins few other players in having the distinction of being the greatest pitcher of two different franchises | He could throw an egg through a keyhole and not break the shell. Dominic Abbruzzese | | ||||||||||||
 Daniel Houlihan P 1927-1944 | PARAGRAPH | He's the only guy I know who could hit .350 in the dark. Tippy Cavanaugh | | ||||||||||||
 Arnold Kellogg 1B/3B 1902-1918 VC | PARAGRAPH | By the sinews of Joshua, how he could hit! He had those flat stretching muscles that enabled him to extend his stroke far past normal. His self-control from wrist to ankle was sublime. Henry Shaver | | ||||||||||||
 Sully McTeague CF 1901-1920 VC | Sully McTeague was a magician with the glove and a terror with the bat. A feared clutch hitter for the Boston ball clubs, he batted .336 in 1910 and the following season. McTeague drew 80 walks or better eight times, was Boston's manager during its 1940s surge in the midst of a comeptitive American League, and led his club to their two World Championships. His defensive wizardry in center field neutralized the opposition's gap hitters. He's been the symbol of a franchise for half a century. | With a swoop like that of a chicken hawk, Sully would catch up to the long fly and throw it accurately to whoever should receive it. Spalding Guide, 1902 | | ||||||||||||
 Ed Schultz P 1926-1942 | PARAGRAPH | There was never a finer guy -- charitable and friendly to his foes and always willing to help a youngster breaking in. D.J. Hoegersteyer | | ||||||||||||
 Carl Swagger RF 1916-1931 VC | The Veterans Committee named outfielder Swagger to the Hall of Fame 17 years after his final season. He is still the Indians' all-time leader in home runs, with 259 big flies (thanks in part to the short fence in old League Park) and holds Cleveland career records in six offensive categories, including at-bats, runs, total bases, triples, and RBI. His number 3 is one of only three retired by the Indians. Late in the 1931 season, just before a September game, Swagger suffered temporary paralysis in his legs. X-rays revealed a congenital spinal malformation which forced him to change his batting style. His BA and home run output, which had collapsed that season, was explained and Swagger retired. He played one more season in the minor leagues in 1932, "because baseball is just fun". Upon his official retirement he was showered with gifts, including a new Cadillac, on "Carl Swagger Day" in Cleveland in 1931. | No other left-hander gave me so much trouble. I thank the good Lord he wasn't twins. One more like him would probably have kept me out of the Hall of Fame. Brewster Jennings | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Frank Albanese SS 1918-1936 VC | Turningdown the chance to be a bank clerk, his father’s profession, FrankAlbanese came up as a slow and clumsy shortstop for New York. He spent2 years in the minor leagues honing his skills in the field beforegetting a chance to play in the big leagues. The Giants had RichGloucester at shortstop, and in 1920 took over for the successfulveteran, and he bloomed, winning Rookie of the Year. He would anchorthe left side of the Giants’ infield for the next decade, breaking themold for his position. Albanese proved a rare combination of skillfulfielding and a powerful stroke – 9 times he topped 15 home runs in aseason, something only 3 other men have done even once. His 246 homersplaced him 8th all time when he retired, with no other middle infieldercoming remotely close. Spitting his time between the Giants andYankees, he won three rings and two gold glove awards rounding out anincredibly balanced career. | He's a seven-day-a-week ballplayer. Darby Hoffman | | ||||||||||||
 Frank Barbuto IF 1915-1933 VC | Barbutobroke into baseball with a splash – he was named a starter for thechampion Washington Senators at the age of 17. Barbuto hit .322 thatfirst year, and racked up over 400 hits before he even turned 20. Afteronly 4 years with the Senators he was sent to Detroit where hecontinued to crank out hits – over 3,000 of them. Barbuto only gotbetter as the years went on, putting up his best numbers in his 30s. Atage 32 he hit .382, his best career mark, and pounded out 232 hits. Formany years, Barbuto was seen as the natural claimant to RoyalChesterfield’s career hit mark, but the early start to his career andextensive playoff experience left him burnt out at an early age.Frank’s last full season was at the age of 34, and he retired wellshort of Chesterfield’s record target. | He worked out for uswhen he was just sixteen. I thought he was too young, but I asked Tom[Stahl] what he thought. Tom just said "I think he can hit." Waldo Weaver | | ||||||||||||
 Herman Iburg P 1905-1921 VC | Iburgwas a steady, humorous junkballer whose long life in the first divisiongained him entrance to the select 300-win club. With Chicago's lineuppacked with hitters like Rooney and its staff stacked with Luck andSanders, Iburg would make 6 trips to the World Series with the Cubs.After being traded to Washington, Ham again culled benefit from thesticks of Abercrombie and Chesterfield, along with the arm of JurgenVerherrsch, pitching in 3 more Series. His totals in those 9 playoffbouts are masterful: 9 wins, 2 losses, and an ERA barely over 2. Iburg’sgreat humor and lightness made him just as valuable as hisindestructible arm. In both Chicago and Washington, as well as in hisbrief stint in Cincinnati, Iburg became a quick fan favorite and a joyto his teammates, constantly joking and creating a buzz ofunadulterated joy. Ham loved to win and loved to pitch, but even morehe just loved coming to the park every day, and he made sure everyoneknew it. His 303 wins and 5 championship rings were just icing on thecake. | Ham is funniest goddamm guy I've ever known. Had a pretty good arm, too. Jeff Loughran | | ||||||||||||
 Gabriel Poe P 1910-1927 VC | Poepitched with grace, economy, and style. Nothing he did wasoverpowering; everything he did was tantalizingly effective. A typicalPoe game had quite a few strikeouts, but only a few walks. He washittable. Over 18 years, he allowed a hit an inning, yet those hitssomehow produced only 3.25 earned runs a game. He seemed to give upmany lazy flies to the outfield. Even-tempered, Poe never got rattledunder pressure. He threw with an effortless, unvarying motion, and itwas said that a peek inside his head would reveal the weakness of everybatter in the league. He pitched 28 shutouts. Originally an unpromisingfirst baseman, Poe found his true talent on the mound, pitching ano-hitter in 1906 in a junior league, which his catcher, Will Stahl,brought to the attention of his father, Tom. Word got around to Boston,and only 18 when he joined the Braves, Poe steadily improved. Heanchored the 1920 champion club, and 2 years later had his legendary27-4 season. | He could throw strikes at midnight. I never saw another pitcher who could so fascinate the opposition the way Poe did. Mike Woolf | | ||||||||||||
 Joseph Tempkin P 1926-1938 VC | Aftermaking a name for himself as a sandlot pitcher, Tempkin signed for $200a month with Indianapolis in 1920. They optioned him to Canton in theCentral League, where he won 23 and lost 13. After he won his firstIndianapolis start, 2 to 1, against Kansas City in 1908, a newspaperaccount said, "He is so tall and skinny (6'3" 180-lbs) he looks like abig number one when he stands on the mound, like he’s got an axe for anarm ready to chop down anyone who dares challenge him." They called himChop ever after. Tempkin relied more on control and a forkballchangeup than his fastball. "Any hitter can hit a fast one," he said."But not many can hit slow ones." No matter how many innings he rackedup, Chop claimed he never had a sore arm. In 1927 he pitched a shutoutagainst Detroit in one hour, 16 minutes. After a 6 years with Chicago,he missed his old coach, Brick Haggerty, and was getting tired of HowieHamish's riding. With Hamish's permission, he arranged his own trade toBoston. He bounced around after Boston, splitting time betweenPhiladelphia, Brooklyn, Washington, and New York and retired at the ageof 35. | His fastball was so fast that by the time you'd madeup your mind whether it would be a strike or not, it just wasn't thereanymore. Bernie Slovack | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Isaac Flick SS 1905-1920 VC | Oneof baseball's most colorful and best-loved characters, Flick rose frombreaker boy in the Pennsylvania anthracite fields to the Hall of Fame.The redheaded, freckled firebrand wore a major league uniform for morethan two decades as a player and coach. He also earned a law degree andbuilt a successful off-season legal practice. Flick's best years cameas captain of the powerful, brawling Philadelphia Phillies, NationalLeague champions twice in 4 years, 1909 and 1912, and winners of the1912 World Series. Operating within and outside the rules, Flick andteammates Joel Praetorius, Alfred Reed, David Organ, and Stony Lynchwere the scourge of opponents and umpires. Though durable, Flicksuffered an incredible string of mishaps on and off the field. He wasoften the victim of nagging injuries; 4 times he missed over 30 gamesin a season. Two skull fractures, one the result of an accidental diveinto an empty swimming pool, slowed but did not stop him. A nervousbreakdown after the 1920 season, however, brought his baseball days toan end. | Few were better or more deadly with two strikes than Flick. He just waited for the pitch he wanted and lashed into it. Sportswriter Arthur Daly | | ||||||||||||
 Gerald Rodgers P 1901-1918 VC | Rodgerswas a man of contrasts. Playing his entire 18-year career in theNational League with St. Louis, his career consisted of many brilliantseasons punctuated by an occasional goose egg. Rodgers had seasons of28-13 an d 25-7, but also 6-15 and 7-21. He was beloved in his earlydays with the club, but unceremoniously dumped when they no longer haduse for him. Contemporary accounts describe him as a Virginiagentleman of easy charm and boyish humor. In teammates' memories, hewas a fierce competitor, crafty on the mound, but hot-tempered after aloss and destructive to clubhouse furniture. | Great big, strong, good-looking fellow. He threw aspitball -- I think that ball disintegrated on the way to the plate andthe catcher put it back together again. I swear, when it went past theplate it was just the spit went by. Saul Koeppel | | ||||||||||||
 Chuck Sciarraba SS 1913-1929 VC | Sciarrabawas the classic shortstop. He had quick hands for a ground ball or adeft tag, quickness afoot for covering a middle infielder's territory,and quick-wittedness for lightning response to defensive opportunity.At bat, he was a dexterous lefty, ideal for the leadoff or second spot.In his time, he was considered by most to be better than Flick, whichmeant he was the best. A beauty from the start, he was a key player inthe 1913 Senators’ pennant drive and five subsequent AL championships.Chuck was renowned for his consistency – 17 years with a single team,playing a single position, and by the time he retired, racking up morehits and runs than any shortstop in history. Known as a great cog in asystem filled with superstars, Sciarraba’s election to the Hall of Famecements his place as a great unto himself. | Oh, my yes, Chuckis the best there is in the clutch. With a man on third and one out,I'd rather have Sciarraba hitting for me than anybody I've ever seen. Tom Stahl | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Biff Best P 1918-1937 | Rumorhas it that Biff Best could throw a baseball across the street and hita doorknob squarely. With his impeccable control of his fastball andhis dazzling ability to will his curveball to jump when necessary, BiffBest befuddled and confused major league hitters for 20 seasons.Pitching in New York, Best won 20+ games 9 times en route to 351 wins,the 5th most of All-Time. He won 60% of his decisions and led his teamsto 3 World Series rings in his career. A consummate professional andone of the crown jewels of New York sports culture, Best officiallygoes down as one of the spectacular pitchers of his era. | Biff is a wonder. Always in there winning that important game for you. Silas Chilton | | ||||||||||||
 Roy Harrison LF 1920-1938 | Theyused to say Roy Harrison's eyesight was so good, he could read thebranding on a baseball as it curved toward the plate. Harrison himselfdenies this particular skill, but he can't deny he was one of the besthitters baseball saw for over two decades. His time was split in awonderfully even manner. He spent the 1920s with the Boston Red Sox,where he garnered fame, fortune, and a reputation as the deadliesthitter in the league. In the 1930s he split time between the Reds,Yankees, and Giants, findings for himself the awards, titles, andveteran's perspective which rounded out an incredible career. Itwas Harrison's time with Boston which launched him into the pantheon ofbaseball great, as he joined forces with his brothers Clyde and Rick toform an offensive trio which anchored the city for a decade. But therelationship between the three was tumultuous, and by the end theywould be broken up. Roy was the best of the bunch, and everyone knewit, but he was also the hardest to get along with. Surly in his earlydays, it was in his later years with New York's Giants that Roy finallyfigured out how to be a teammate and friend. In an effort ofreconciliation and nostalgia, Harrison was dealt back to the Red Sox tofinish his career, and bring the story of his success to its triumphantresolution. | Son, when you throw a strike, Mr. Harrison will let you know it. Umpire Bill Klem, to a rookie pitcher complaining about the strike zone | | ||||||||||||
 Mick Rooker LF 1901-1917 | Forthe first ten years the game was played, no one was as consistently andprodigiously great a hitter as Mick Rooker. As a 21-year old in 1901,Mick was already the best hitter on his club, and stayed that was forthe next 15 years. His 1904 season still ranks as perhaps the greatsingle season of hitting in the history of baseball. Rooker had nodeficiencies in his approach to hitting, equally skilled in power,precision and a legendary patience. Not content with being thebest batter in the game, Rooker was anxious to improve his fielding andlater recalled, "When I was a rookie, Buck Flaherty used to hit meflies to sharpen my abilities to judge in advance the direction anddistance of an outfield-hit ball." Blessed with great speed and apowerful batting swing, he also worked to make himself a better batterand baserunner. Rooker played a shallow leftfield to catch potentialhits. | None of them can hit them quite as hard as Rooker. Hestands up at the plate like a brick house; there's no moving him awayfrom it. And he hits all the pitchers, without playing favorites. Whenhe's hitting, they all look alike. Vincent Wexler | | ||||||||||||
 Bob Wallop 1B 1922-1939 | Atowering slugger with weak fielding skills, Wallop spent his careerwith the Athletics, Yankees, Red Sox, Giants, and Dodgers. He broughthis lumbering bat with him in every city, launching titanic home runsand driving in men all over the field. Five times he was named the besthitter in the league, all with Philadelphia; only the great LarryAbercrombie was similarly honored. Known for his great power,Wallop desired to be remembered as more than simply a home run hitter.Late in his career Wallop announced his goal of attaining 2,500 basehits. He played a year beyond when he should have retired but stillcame up 111 short. Looking back, he grieved about the times he hadbegged off playing to nurse a hangover or left a one-sided game earlyfor a quick shower and a night's pleasures. Proud of his battingtechnique, Wallop, as a grizzled veteran with the Dodgers, imparted hisrealization to another player in whom he saw a budding talent. "Neverrelax on any time at bat; never miss a game you can play," he advised ayounger Clark Manning. | When he'd grab hold of a bat and digin, he'd squeeze the handle of that doggone thing and throw the barrelof that bat toward the pitcher in his warm-up swings. He looked so mad- in batting practice Joseph Zoltan | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 John Rollins 3B, OF 1919-1939 | Ofall the players in baseball history, none possessed as much talent andhumility as John Rollins. His accomplishments on the field made him anauthentic American hero, and his tragic early death made him a legend. Afterbeing diagnosed with a fatal disease near the end of 1939, wheneverplayed again, and although, in his capacity as team captain, hecontinued to carry the lineup card out every day, eventually even thatproved more than he could handle. He was diagnosed as having arare,almost unknown, and incurable disease, amyotrophic lateralsclerosis,forever after known as John Rollins's disease. It was notannounced that he was doomed, although many suspected it and Rollinsknew. On September 14, 1939, John Rollins Day was held at Bees Field.It may be the most famous ceremony in baseball history, with Rollins'sassertion that "today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the faceof the earth"; an unforgettable statement. The waiting period for thenew Hall of Fame was waived, and he was admitted immediately uponretirement. John Rollins died on January 2, 1941. | John was the kind of man that if you had a son, he's the kind of person you'd like your son to be. Mike Woolf | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Jack Birdsong P 1920-1937 | Consistency, durability, and heart are the three words former ChicagoCubs manager Gentleman Jack Shaver used to describe his ace. Birdsongdid not do it with flashiness or the bravado of some of hiscontemporaries; rather, he used a hard sinking fastball and adevastating slider to silence hitters for the better part of the1920’sand 30’s. Acquired from the St. Louis Browns before the 1922season,Birdsong was instantly penned by the Chicago sportswriters asthe next Avery Luck and Shep Sanders combined, destined to be thesavior of a franchise that just had their first winning season since1914. The city of Chicago immediately adopted Birdsong as their own,and from 1923 until his retirement, Jack pitched over 520 games withoutmissing a single start, winning two Pitcher of the Year awards, hissecond at age 37, and four National League pennants. | Hitting a pitch from Jack Birdsong was like trying to hit a bowling ball with a broomstick. Dean Wooster | | ||||||||||||
 Arch Murtaugh P 1901-1909 VC | Murtaugh was 33 when the big leagues formed, and so lasted only 9seasons, but earned his reputation as one of the great rough and readymen in the game. He often pitched both halves of doubleheaders, and asarookie with the 1901 Chicago White Sox, he led the American League with23 victories. Murtaugh was a rough, tough player who, when he ran asaloon, never had to hire a bouncer. He welcomed diminutive umpire TomConnolly into the majors by spitting in the man's face. His durabilityin his short career was remarkable. He started and went the route moretimes than any AL pitcher in 1901, and tosses more goose eggs than anypitcher in 1901 and 1902. He never did see the World Series. | He was one mean son of a bitch. Robert Crouch | | ||||||||||||
 Joel Praetorius 2B 1907-1924 | Praetoriusgraduated from high school in 1906 after starring therein baseball,football, basketball, and track. He joined the Phillies playing lessthan a year in the minors. A natural athlete with great speed anddexterity, Praetorius was tutored long and hard by manager Cash Harveyon batting and sliding technique. The youthful Praetorius quicklybecame a favorite of Harvey, who named him team captain. Although hisfirst four seasons produced good if unspectacular results,his fieldingwas superb and his speed admirable. In his 5th season his truegreatness emerged, and he won Batter of the Year twice in a row,leadinghis Phillies to a World Series title. In 18 full seasons, only once didhis batting average drop under .280, and he was among the first playersto reach 3,000 hits. | His range was such that he played second base, some of center field, and a slice of right field, too. Damon Runyan | | ||||||||||||
 Dieter Vogel P 1901-1910 VC | Manager Roy Van Patten proclaimed Vogel "one of the greatest ofpitchers," but complained about his ace's perpetual psychologicaldemands, chiding that "he won't pitch if scolded." Vogelwasintelligent, sensitive, handsome, and generally subdued, but was notabove certain acts of indiscretion on the field. In one game, hepitched a lemon instead of a ball to prove to the umpire that it wastoodark to continue play. His contemporaries considered him a calculating,scientific pitcher who carefully analyzed every hitter'sweaknesses.Peering out from deep-set dark eyes, his long, lean fingers cradlingthe ball, he had a slow, assured pace to his delivery, and he may wellhave dominated some hitters by intimidation alone. | Deet was not the fastest, not the trickiest, and not the possessor of the most stuff; but he was just the greatest. Jim Baxter | | ||||||||||||
 Dean Wooster 2B 1916-1937 | "Woooooostah!"was the chant you were assured to hear wherever Deanwas playing thatday, one of the few players that was loved by fansleague wide. Startinghis career for the American League Philadelphia Athletics, it didn'ttake him long to become one of the league's mostpopular players - byage 23 he was a star. Just three years later, theAthletics traded himto the National League's Cincinnati Reds, where he won two World Serieschampionships and spent 14 seasons feasting onpitch after pitch. As amark to his popularity, the Baker Bowl, home ofthe PhiladelphiaPhillies, sold out in every one of his trips back toPhiladelphia asAthletics fans swarmed the stadium. Wooster was awardedhis third goldglove at the old age of 39, and by the time he retiredat age 40, hewould be the career leader in runs batted in. | I doubt ifany second baseman has had so great an influence onthe work of a clubas a whole or has been so important a factor in itssuccess andresurrection as Wooster has been with Cincinnati. Brick Haggerty | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Caesar Geist LF 1901-1912 | AllHail! Men who met Caesar Geist had to admit he was a handsome fellow,although there was an air about him that indicated he was a roughneck atheart and no man to temper with. He had that wide-eyed, half-smiling,ready-for-anything look that is characteristic of a certain type ofGerman. He had a towering impatience, too, and a taste for liquor andexcitement. He created plenty of excitement for opponents and spectatorswhen he laid his tremendous bat against a pitch. He was the titan of thegame in its infancy, steering the barge of the Brooklyn team toprodigious heights, turning the opposing mound into a Vesuvian storm. Hehad only two skills in life, as he liked to say: drinking beer andplaying ball. | I think Caesar was the best hitter I ever saw. Bob Rooney | | ||||||||||||
 Handsome Jack Hartung P 1901-1916 | HandsomeJack Hartung was one of baseball’s first successful power pitchers,firing his fastball on his way to 319 career wins, a total surpassed byjust six pitchers in the history of the game. An immediate success afterhe was signed at the urging of Boston manager Gib Mulroney in 1901,Hartung won 18 or more games in his first ten seasons in the majorleagues. His given name John soon gave way to “Handsome Jack” – thejuvenile tagged on him by his Boston teammates because of his youth andslight build (he was just5’9” and 155 pounds in his rookie season). Buthis small frame belied his powerful arm, as Hartung pitched more than380 innings four times. | I saw a pitcher named Hartung strikeout twenty-two members of a girls' team at Van Buren, Arkansas lastyear. Get him for me. If he can strike out twenty-two girls, perhaps hecan strike but two men. And I don't have any pitchers who can. Gib Mulroney | | ||||||||||||
 Jim Joy P 1901-1911 | Aprofessional through and through. While not a dour man, he was perceivedas such, maybe due to an unfair expectation of nomenclature.He wasnever angry or mad, he used to say – just focused. The secret of hispitching success was, according to comments he gave to The SportingNews, "keeping batters guessing. I study the batsman in every way: hisposition in the box, his general attitude, the way he holds the bat, andany other individual characteristics he may have.” After 1904, a seasonin which Joy dominated baseball more than any pitcher in history hadever before done, there was talk that off-season of reducing to threethe number of balls that would result in a walk. Joy did not think thiswould affect him: "It is a cold day when I get three balls on a man, andthat’s usually just to warm up my shoulder." | What pitcher oftoday could go in day after day and give the performances that Joy did.No other pitcher ever pitched his team into a championship singlehanded. He had the brain, the arm, the strength, the endurance, thepluck, the curves and the speek. He was equal to any emergency, wascoolness itself and a great general. Caesar Geist | | ||||||||||||
 Bartholomew Martin 2B 1913-1932 | Leadership - The ability to affect behavior so as to accomplish a common goal. Bartholomew"Bad Bart" Martin not only displayed leadership in the clubhouse, butalso in the field. A generously listed 5'10" and only 170 pounds if hewas soaking wet, Martin continually was at the heart of talented Giantsteams, winning not only numerous individual accolades, but helping themighty Giants claim 4 World Series titles. He won a record 10 Gold Gloveawards for his outstanding defense at second base, even sacrificing thechance to win more when he graciously offered his services at third whenit was needed. At the plate, he roped over 3000 hits (3030, 7thAll-Time) and was named the NL Batter of the Year in 1923. 5 times hehit over .360 in a season and in the World Series he stepped up his gameeven further, hitting .358 in 30games and earning the 1926 World SeriesMVP award. Bart Martin, a consummate professional and legendary leader. | Whata ball player that man was! Every play he made was executed sogracefully that it looked like it was the easiest thing in the world. Hewas a pleasure to play against, too, always laughing and joking. Evenwhen the son of a gun was blocking you off the base, he was smiling andkidding with you. You just had to like the guy. Rod Luedke | | ||||||||||||
 Fibber Paine 1B 1901-1916 | Oneof the most powerful and consistent left-handed hitters of the dead-ballera, Paine is often rated the greatest first baseman in baseballhistory. Handsome, graceful, talented, and popular with both fans andteammates, he was an important figure in the launching of the AL and thesurvival of the Philadelphia franchise. Playing inthe dead-ball era, Paine was not a home run hitter. He was, however,a powerful pull hitter and his smashes down the right-field foulline were legendary. His 661 doubles rank third all-time and he hit tenor more triples in four seasons. In the field, the 6'4" 220-lb Painewas known for his grace despite being considerably bigger thanmost infielders of his day. | He was the greatest batter thatever walked up to hit at a baseball thrown by a pitcher. I have seenthem all from his day to this. I played against him and I know. He was afine, big, honorable man on and off the baseball field. Al Bennett | | ||||||||||||
 Shep Sanders P 1901-1919 | Evenat six foot six and 230 pounds, Shep Sanders was still stuck behind theshadow of Avery Luck throughout his career. But he got his moment in the1907 Fall Classic. After a start on September 17th, Luck began to feelpain in his throwing elbow and Chicago Cubs manager Henry Shaver shuthim down for the rest of the season. The team erupted in discord at theloss of one of their two leaders (the other being Bob Rooney) but thestoic Shep Sanders remained confident. Sanders pitched Game 1 of theWorld Series versus the Cleveland Naps giving up only one run in acomplete game effort. Sanders followed up his Game 1performance withanother brilliant effort in Game 4, only giving up one run in his secondcomplete game. Sanders was named World Series Most Valuable Player forthe second time that year and will always be remembered as one of thegreatest clutch pitchers of all time. His career numbers stack upimpressively against anyone who has ever pitched, and no one has done itwith less flash or more substance. | That fellow has a lot ofstuff. He's got the best drop curve that I've seen along the line forsome time. And his spitter is a pippin too. Darby Hoffman | | ||||||||||||
 Monty Slocum P 1918-1931 | Montymay not have been the best pure thrower during the 20's, he may not havestuck out the most batters, or threw the most attention gettingshutouts, but he sure was a winner, and he looked good doing it. Slocumonly played fourteen seasons in the majors, but he spent those yearsdominating both the American and National Leagues, winning three Pitcherof the Year Awards and three World Series Titles with the Yankees, thenearning one more of each with the Reds late in his career. He never hada losing season, and notched 30 victories in 1929.All told, Slocum won317 regular season games and owns the highest all-time winningpercentage for pitchers. | You haven't space enough to tell ofall the grand deeds of Monty on and off the field. Plenty of nerve,ability and willingness to work at all times under any conditions. Thecrowds never bothered him. There was never a finer character --charitable and friendly to his foes and ever willing to help a youngsterbreaking in. Henry Wing | | ||||||||||||
| Player | Biography | Quote | Cap | ||||||||||||
 Larry Abercrombie LF 1910-1925 | “It’s like he was playing catch with his bat.” OnApril 13, 1910, Larry Abercrombie slapped his first hit, a double sliceddown the left field line. He would get three more hits that day,prompting Henry Beckley, the Yankee pitcher, to give the quote above.For 16 years, Larry Abercrombie swatted pitch after pitch, racking uphit after hit against everyone. And that means everyone. So thorough washis concentration, and so deadly was his swing, that he had a hitagainst every pitcher he ever faced more than 5 times. There may neverbe a player again quite like the man they called Lobo – a quiet leaderon a great team, who was honored as his league’s best hitter five times,and who’s swing was so sweet, it barely felt like he was hitting the ballat all. But he did hit it, to left and right and up the middle, for twodecades. The purest hitter baseball has ever seen. | Some 20years ago, I stopped talking about Lobo for the simple reason that Irealized that those who had never seen him didn't believe me. Marcus PBRLK8O | | ||||||||||||
 Ryan Cawdor OF 1913-1933 | RyanCawdor's career dates back to 1913, when at the age of 19, he joined theBraves after less than a year in the bush leagues. He stuck around for along time – 21 years as one of the best hitter ever, and years after asthe team skipper. The numbers in those 21 years speak for themselves:3,306 base knocks, a lifetime batting average of.351, and a coupleyears over .400, in 1916 and 1924. His .427 average of 1916 still ranksas the best in the history of the game, and his 242 hits of 1924 leaveshim tied with Larry Abercrombie at the top of that category. He led hisclub to the World Series three times, and they won it all in 1920 behindhis .423 Series average. He was named the best hitter in his league 4times, more than anyone else in National League history. For the betterpart of 15 years, he sat atop his league, and there he still remains. | The greatness of Ryan Cawdor was something that had to be seen, and to see him was to remember him forever. Gordon Cullen | | ||||||||||||
 Royal Chesterfield 1B/3B 1905-1927 | WilliamKennedy was born in 1864. Joe Bob Grimshaw was born in 1907 – 43 yearslater. Royal Chesterfield hit against them both, and for the 23 years ofhis long career faced many, many more such hurlers. Between his first atbat at 18 years old and his last at 40, he racked up more hits, games,and at bats than anyone has ever come close to. But that’s onlypart of what made him special. Even as a young kid on the 1909 ChampionWhite Sox, the then-22 year old was the wise, stoic leader. Histeammates, some ten years his senior, let him lead the team onto thefield. Known to the fans as a quiet man, he was more than willing totalk to anyone, including younger teammates looking for advice, orhaving just come to the big city for the first time, needing someone toshow them around the nation’s capital. Chesterfield was a great player,to be sure, but like many other things in Washington D.C., he was and isan icon, a symbol of the grandeur, dignity, and endurance of thenation’s great game. | He wasn't just the greatest third baseman ever. He was the greatest everything ever. Victor Pushkin | | ||||||||||||
 Caroll Edwards P 1902-1921 | CarrollEdwards, the tall, slender kid from a little town in Michigan named BigRapids grew up to become one of the greatest pitchers in the history ofthe baseball. Perhaps the most striking accomplishment of his career isnot the no-hitter he pitched against Detroit in 1904 or the perfect gamehe tossed against the Yankees in1906, or the 2 championships to whichhe led the Browns. No, what is most astonishing about the career ofEdwards is his remarkable career ERA, an unbelievable 2.15 runs per nineinnings over 20 seasons and 703games. 2.15. Perhaps one of theonly records on book, offensive or defensive, that will never be beaten.A 2.15 career era and a staggering 118 career shutouts. In what may bethe single greatest single season pitching performance ever, Edwards in1906, along with the perfect game, posted a 29-8 record with a 1.07 ERAover 337.1innings and 39 starts. 14 of those starts were shutouts. Ofthe 39starts, 34 were complete games. He allowed a mere 0.71 total walksand hits per innings pitched in that season. No season record has evercome close, and no pitcher has come close to gaining 9 straight POTYawards. Carroll Edwards remains to this day one of, if not the greatestplayer the league has ever seen. | He is the one player in our league who could win the pennant for any of the seven teams that were not in first place. Umpire Bill Klem | | ||||||||||||
 Avery Luck P 1901-1917 | LegendaryChicago Cubs manager Henry Shaver once said about Avery Luck “he isn’tthe smartest player on this team but he knows how to count to three andthat’s enough.” Surely it was as he rung up 3,277 batters in hisillustrious career. Luck debuted at age 18, won 26 games at age 19, andby the time he finished up he had been named the Senior Circuit’s toppitcher five times, leading the Chicago Cubs to three World Serieschampionships. Luck’s legend is not contained wholly between the chalk,though. Showing the same heart and passion he displayed on the mound for17seasons, Luck voluntarily ended his career early, enlisting inthe United States Marine Corps in 1917 to fight for his country inThe Great War. Many players soon followed in Luck’s footsteps, and hiscourage has never been forgotten by Chicago or the country. | Luckpitched against Cincinnati yesterday. Another way of putting it is thatCincinnati lost a game of baseball. The first statement means the sameas the second. Writer Damon Runyun | | ||||||||||||
 Bob Rooney C 1901-1922 | In1901, at the age of 18, Rooney debuted as starting catcher for theChicago Cubs. By 1902, he had already become a household name hitting aleague best .379. By 1903, Rooney had almost single-handedly made theChicago Cubs a contender that went on to win seven National Leaguepennants over the next nine seasons, including three championships. ButRooney’s play on the field was not his only asset. His legendaryleadership and boisterous personality on and off the field made him theyoung league’s first superstar. His exuberance for the game was wellreceived by fans across the country; friends and foes alike would comeout to the ballpark just to catch a glimpse of the man who was largerthan the sport they paid to see. Rooney became an ambassador of thegame, traveling to remote regions of the country in the off-season,introducing young kids to the game. All the while though, Rooney stayedtrue to himself and honored his commitment to his craft. He neverslacked off or boozed up, and he was rewarded with nine straight GoldGloves at catcher and a record for walks which may never be touched. | Inhis prime (he was) the greatest player of the game from the standpointof supreme excellence in all departments: batting, catching, fielding,base running, throwing and baseball brains. A player without a weaknessof any kind. Reach Guide, 1919 | | ||||||||||||
 Henry Shaver Manager 1902-1920 | Legendarymanager of the Chicago Cubs, he won 7pennants in 15years, taking home 3titles. He is the patriarch of one of the most accomplished and famousbaseball families. | There has been only one manager, and his name is Henry Shaver. Tom Stahl | | ||||||||||||
 Tom Stahl Manager 1912-1946 | Thewinningest manager in baseball history. Stahl took over the Washingtonclub in 1912, taking the reigns of a team which had never appeared in aWorld Series and was coming off a losing season. Stahl got his first often American League titles in his second season, and his first of fiveWorld Series titles in his 4th. He has guided his team through the upsand downs and helped maintain a consistency which no team in baseballhas seen over the last 25 years. | Tom entered the game whenit was a game for roughnecks. He saw it become respectable, he lived tobe a symbol of its integrity, and he enjoyed every minute of it. Sportswriter Red Smith | | ||||||||||||
 Jurgen Verherrsch P 1903-1922 | Whenyou strike out Ryan Cawdor, you know you're a good pitcher. When youstrike him out every other time you see him, you know you're great. Butthat comparison is backwards. Using another player to gaugethe abilities of Jurgen Verherrsch puts the burden on the wrong player,as Verherrsch is possibly the greatest pitcher of all time. Almostnobody can hold a candle to his accomplishments, particularly hisastounding 406 career victories. Playing his entire career shuttlingbetween Cincinnati and Washington, he holds the unique distinction ofbeing the best pitcher in the history of two ball clubs; he took both tomultiple World Series titles, four in total and all in a row, decimatinghitters in the late teens. Notching a World Series MVP along the way, hewas the archetypical champion who never backed down, never let up, andseta standard for leadership and dominance that will echo downthe generations. | He had a slingshot delivery with nice, easymovement, which didn’t seem to be putting any strain at all on his arm.But he could propel that ball like a bullet. Hiram Webber | | ||||||||||||
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