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January 23
Daily Rewind - January 23 - Ducky Medwick
January 23 Cooperstown Call:
1962 — Pitcher Bob Feller and infielder Jackie Robinson; 1979 Willie Mays, Warren Giles and Hack Wilson; 1975 Ralph Kiner; 1973 Mickey Welch and Mike Kelly; 1968 Joe “Ducky” Medwick;
This is a HUGE class. Before we dive into an overview of these historic players!
Lets talk Ducky Medwick he hit .379 with 11 hits, including a triple and a homer, in the 1934 World Series against Detroit. In Game Seven he tripled into deep center and slid hard into Tiger third baseman Marv Owen. Detroit fans responded the next inning with a 34-minute riot - pelting the field with rotten fruit and garbage, most of it aimed at Medwick in left field. Commissioner Landis removed Medwick from the game for his own safety, the game well in hand for the Cardinals. Years later, Owen was asked whether Medwick had slid in to hurt him. "No, it was my fault. I was on the bag, faking as if the throw was coming to me, and Joe did what any good runner would do. It was not his fault." - Listen to the game & his interview about the event on Classic baseball broadcasts.
Jackie Robinson burst onto the scene in 1947, breaking baseball’s color barrier and bringing the Negro leagues’ electrifying style of play to the Majors. He quickly became baseball’s top drawing card and a symbol of hope to millions of Americans. With Robinson as the catalyst, the Dodgers won six pennants in his 10 seasons. He dominated games on the basepaths, stealing home 19 times while riling opposing pitchers with his daring baserunning style. Robinson was named National League MVP in 1949, leading the loop in hitting (.342) and steals (37), while knocking in 124 runs.
Bob Feller’s blazing fastball set the standard against which all of his successors have been judged. Rapid Robert spent his entire 18-year career with Cleveland, amassing 266 victories and 2,581 strikeouts, while leading the league in strikeouts seven times. He missed nearly four full seasons in his prime serving his country during World War II, for which he was decorated with five campaign ribbons studded with eight battle stars. Fresh from high school, Feller struck out 17 Athletics in 1936. The fireballer authored three no-hitters and 12 one-hitters while winning 20 or more games six times.
Joe "Ducky" Medwick - In his brilliant 17-season career, Medwick was a .324 hitter with 205 home runs and 1383 RBI. A ten-time All-Star, in 1937 he won the Triple Crown and was named the National League MVP. He batted .300 in 14 of 17 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Giants and the Boston Braves.
'Smiling Mickey', who posted a 307-210 (.594) during his 13 years in the National League, and 'King Kelly', Kelly stole as many as 84 bases and scored 154 runs in just 118 games. He was baseball's first matinee idol, will be joined Billy Evans, nicknamed 'The Boy Umpire', who, at age 22, became the youngest arbitrator in major league history.
Ralph Kiner hit 369 home runs over a 10-year career, leading the National League in home runs each season from 1946 to 1952. In one of the narrowest margins ever, Kiner is elected by just one vote over the 75 per cent minimum required for induction.
Willie Mays In the minds of many baseball experts, Willie Mays is the greatest all-around player the game has ever produced. The “Say Hey Kid” excelled in every facet of the game, and he did so with a joyful abandon that made him one of the most popular sports figures of his era. Among baseball’s immortals, few can boast offensive totals that are as balanced as those compiled by Mays; he is the only player in history to finish his career with over 600 home runs, 3,000 hits, 1,900 RBIs, 2,000 runs, and 300 stolen bases. Fewer still could match Mays’ bravura in the outfield, where his blinding speed and howitzer arm earned him 12 Gold Gloves and 7,095 putouts – both records among outfielders. Mays broke into the big leagues with a Rookie of the Year campaign in 1951, and in the 22 brilliant years that followed, he collected two MVP trophies, a World Series ring, and a record 24 All Star Game appearances. Fans and fellow players were drawn to Mays not only by his breathtaking ability, but also by the boyish exuberance he exuded on the playing field, a winning and winsome charisma that made him, in the words of manager Leo Durocher, “a super superstar.”
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Best,
Tom
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Jackie Robinson Radio Show Episode 29 Joe Campbell
HR Derby Episode 16 Frank Robinson vs Dick Stuart
1934 Pennant Race - World Series Highlights and Ducky Medwick Game 7 removal
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Trivia:
Who was the last player to win the (hitting) triple crown in the National League?
Willie Mays
Barry Bonds
Frank Robinson
Ducky Medwick
Albert Pujols
Hint: The answer is below
January 23, 1932, the Brooklyn Dodgers acquire future Hall of Fame outfielder Hack Wilson from the St. Louis Cardinals for a minor league pitcher and $45,000 in cash. Wilson will bat .297 with 23 home runs and 123 RBIs for Brooklyn in 1932.
January 23 1958 — The Washington Senators trade shortstop Pete Runnels to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for first baseman Norm Zauchin and outfielder Albie Pearson. Runnels will win two batting titles, in 1960 and 1962, and just miss a third by six points this season he will compile a .320 BA during his five years with the team.
January 23 1967 -- The St. Louis Cardinals name future Hall of Famer Stan Musial as their new general manager.
January 23, 1981, the Boston Red Sox trade one-time American League MVP Fred Lynn and pitcher Steve Renko to the California Angels for outfielder Joe Rudi and pitchers Frank Tanana and Jim Dorsey. Lynn will struggle in his first year with the Angels, batting only .219 in 76 games.
January 23, 1989, George Washington Case, George Case was the fastest man ever to play baseball,” declared Clyde Milan, who himself swiped 88 bags in 1912. “He was faster than Ty Cobb, Eddie Collins, [or] Max Carey.” Milan wasn’t alone in his assessment. Bill Dickey called Case “the most dangerous baserunner I’ve encountered.”
January 23, 2015 — Hall of Famer Ernie Banks, one of the best hitting shortstops ever and the most popular player in the history of the Chicago Cubs, dies at age 83. Known for his sunny disposition and perpetual love of the game of baseball, Ernie Banks remains, almost 40 years after his retirement, the most popular player in Chicago Cubs history.
HIGHLIGHTED GAME OF THE DAY:
1934 World Series Game Seven - St Louis Cardinals vs Detroit Tigers - Ducky Medwick loses his chance to set World Series Record for hits in a series.
MILESTONES
Birthday Boys!
Bob Moorhead, Charlie Spikes, Chico Carrasquel, Don Nottebart, Frank Sullivan, Jack Quinlan, Jack Saltzgaver, Joey Amalfitano, Johnny Sturm, Paul Ratliff, Randy Gumbert and Sam Jethroe.
Passings.
Ed Bouchee, Ernie Banks, Frank Doljack, George Case, Heinie Mueller, Paul Foytack and Saul Rogovin
Quote of the day:
A professional ball player has just so many years of productivity in his chosen career and should cash in as much as he can, while he can. That's the American way in all other businesses, and that's the way it should be in baseball too."
Hall of Famer - Bob Feller
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Trivia Answer: Ducky Medwick, 1937
