Pendleton’s path to St. Louis was far from conventional. Born in Los Angeles on July 16, 1960, he was not heavily recruited out of high school and began his college career at Oxnard College. The 1979 team was the first baseball team in school history, and Pendleton helped lead the program to a state championship berth. He later transferred to Fresno State University, where he became an All-American and set a school record with 98 hits in 1982. His performance revived his professional prospects and led the Cardinals to select him in the seventh round of the 1982 draft.

Pendleton moved quickly through the Cardinals’ minor league system. Initially a second baseman, he was shifted to third base in Triple-A Louisville during the 1984 season. The move proved decisive. St. Louis believed enough in Pendleton’s future at the hot corner that the club traded incumbent third baseman Ken Oberkfell and began preparing for Pendleton’s arrival.

That opportunity came on July 18, 1984, against the San Francisco Giants. Batting sixth in his major league debut, Pendleton collected three hits in five at-bats during an 8-4 Cardinals victory. It was an immediate statement that he belonged. Over 67 games that season, he hit .324 with 20 stolen bases and finished tied for seventh in National League Rookie of the Year voting. The Cardinals had found their everyday third baseman.

Pendleton entered 1985 as the starting third baseman on a St. Louis team built to contend. Managed by Whitey Herzog, the Cardinals emphasized speed, defense, and aggressive baserunning. Pendleton fit that style perfectly. Though he hit .240, he contributed 17 stolen bases and brought steady defense to the left side of the infield. One memorable moment came in June at Shea Stadium, when he hit an inside-the-park grand slam against the rival New York Mets after two outfielders collided chasing the ball.

The Cardinals captured the National League pennant that season and advanced to the 1985 World Series against the Kansas City Royals. Pendleton played a meaningful role, delivering the Cardinals’ only triple of the series in Game 4 and contributing timely offense throughout. St. Louis won three of the first four games before Kansas City rallied to win in seven.

The 1986 season brought offensive struggles for Pendleton, but it also reinforced his value. Though he hit just .239 with one home run, he stole 24 bases and excelled defensively. Cardinals management reportedly questioned his offensive production, but Herzog defended Pendleton’s importance, citing his baserunning and fielding. It was a reminder that Pendleton’s impact extended well beyond the batter’s box.

He answered all criticism in 1987 with the finest season of his Cardinals tenure. Pendleton improved his batting average to .286, finished second on the club in home runs, ranked third in RBIs, and remained one of the team’s best all-around contributors. His defense earned him the first Gold Glove Award of his career, the first won by a Cardinals third baseman since Ken Reitz in 1975. He also received MVP consideration as St. Louis captured another pennant.

Pendleton’s 1987 season also featured one of his most famous regular-season moments: a dramatic ninth-inning home run at Shea Stadium against the Mets during a critical September series. The blast helped preserve the Cardinals’ division lead and remains one of the signature swings of that pennant race.

In the 1987 World Series against the Minnesota Twins, Pendleton was limited by a rib cage injury. Even so, his switch-hitting ability allowed him to serve as a designated hitter in games at the Metrodome, where he collected three hits in seven at-bats. Again, however, the Cardinals lost in seven games.

Injuries hampered Pendleton during 1988, but he rebounded impressively in 1989. He played all 162 games, finished ninth in the National League in hits, and captured his second Gold Glove Award with a .971 fielding percentage. By then, he had firmly established himself as one of baseball’s premier defensive third basemen.

Pendleton’s final Cardinals season came in 1990. His offensive numbers declined, and rookie Todd Zeile began splitting time at third base. When the season ended, Pendleton entered free agency, closing the chapter on a significant St. Louis career.

He went on to greater individual acclaim with the Atlanta Braves, winning the 1991 National League MVP Award and helping launch their run of dominance. Yet Pendleton often spoke fondly of St. Louis, crediting the Cardinals organization for teaching him how to play winning baseball.

In seven seasons with the Cardinals, Pendleton helped win two National League pennants, reached two World Series, won two Gold Gloves, and became a respected clubhouse leader. He may have reached his peak elsewhere, but in St. Louis, Terry Pendleton became the player fans still remember.

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Born October 20, 1953, in San Francisco and raised in nearby San Bruno, Hernandez grew up in a baseball household. His father, John Hernandez, had once been a promising prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals’ farm system before eye trouble ended his playing career. Baseball remained central to the family, and Keith spent countless hours honing his skills. In his autobiography, he recalled standing on the lawn as a child, throwing a tennis ball against the garage wall, imagining himself as a major league star.

The Cardinals drafted Hernandez in the 42nd round of the 1971 amateur draft, a selection that initially seemed insignificant. Hernandez himself later acknowledged how unusual his signing bonus was for such a late pick. “Usually, guys taken that late aren’t even signed,” he wrote.

The organization quickly learned it had made a wise investment. Hernandez moved steadily through the Cardinals’ farm system and debuted in the majors in 1974. Early on, his reputation centered as much on his glove as on his bat. Managers and teammates noticed how effortlessly he handled the responsibilities of first base. Years later, Whitey Herzog would reflect on Hernandez’s defensive brilliance, saying he was “the greatest defensive first baseman I’ve ever seen.”

Hernandez’s defensive excellence became a constant throughout his career. Between 1978 and 1988, he won 11 consecutive Gold Gloves, the longest streak ever by a first baseman and a remarkable testament to both his athleticism and his preparation. His fielding ability was not simply about quick reflexes or soft hands. Teammates often remarked on his positioning, his anticipation, and his deep understanding of opposing hitters.

Pitcher Bob Forsch once described how valuable Hernandez could be during games. “When Keith Hernandez talked out there, I listened,” Forsch recalled. Hernandez would sometimes approach the mound and explain how a hitter should be pitched. “He was very astute about watching hitters hit.”

While Hernandez quickly became known for his defense, his offensive development took a little longer. That changed dramatically in 1979. At age 25, Hernandez produced one of the most impressive seasons in Cardinals history. He batted .344 to win the National League batting title, led the league with 48 doubles and 116 runs scored, collected 210 hits, and drove in 105 runs. Just as important, he reached base at a remarkable .408 clip, one of the highest on-base percentages in the league that year and a reflection of the disciplined approach that defined his offensive game.

The season culminated in an unprecedented moment in baseball history. Hernandez and Pittsburgh’s Willie Stargell finished tied in the National League MVP voting – the first tie in the award’s history. Hernandez embraced the shared honor with humility. “A tie makes it all the better because Willie’s a great man,” he said. “It’s an honor just to have my name next to his.”

The MVP season elevated Hernandez from a promising player to the centerpiece of the Cardinals’ lineup. St. Louis rewarded him with a five-year contract worth roughly $3.8 million, making him the highest-paid player in franchise history at the time.

Hernandez remained a key figure in St. Louis throughout the early 1980s. Between 1979 and 1982, he was among the National League’s most consistent hitters, regularly finishing near the league leaders in batting average, doubles, and on-base percentage. By the time he left the Cardinals, he had compiled a .299 batting average in a St. Louis uniform and established himself as one of the club’s most dependable offensive performers. Modern statistical measures underscore his importance during those seasons: Hernandez accumulated more than 30 wins above replacement during his tenure with the Cardinals, placing him among the most valuable first basemen in franchise history.

His best moments with the Cardinals came during the club’s championship season in 1982.

That year, under Herzog’s aggressive “Whiteyball” style, the Cardinals combined speed, defense, and situational hitting to win the National League pennant. Hernandez served as the club’s steady offensive anchor, batting .299 with 94 RBIs while providing his usual Gold Glove defense at first base.

In the postseason, he was just as valuable. During the National League Championship Series against Atlanta, the Cardinals swept the Braves to reach the World Series. In the seven-game Fall Classic against Milwaukee, Hernandez drove in eight runs as St. Louis captured its first championship since 1967.

Despite his success, Hernandez admitted that the pressure of the World Series affected him deeply. Looking back on the decisive Game 7, he remembered standing at first base as closer Bruce Sutter prepared to secure the final outs.

“I had a pit, a knot, in my stomach,” Hernandez recalled. “I couldn’t even bend over to get in my fielding position. I was out there at first base thinking, ‘Don’t hit the ball to me.’”

The moment perfectly captured the emotional stakes of the championship run. When Sutter finally recorded the final out, the Cardinals had completed one of the most memorable seasons in franchise history—and Hernandez had been central to it.

Yet Hernandez’s relationship with the Cardinals was never entirely smooth. In his memoirs, Herzog wrote that by 1983, Hernandez remained an exceptional defender but had begun to change in other areas of his game.

“I’ve never seen a ballplayer bear down as much at first base as he does,” Herzog said. “But on offense, he was loafing.”

The manager also criticized Hernandez’s preparation habits, claiming that during batting practice he would sometimes return to the clubhouse to relax.

“His practice habits were atrocious,” Herzog wrote. “He’d come out for batting practice, then head back to the clubhouse to smoke cigarettes and do crossword puzzles.”

Hernandez strongly disputed those characterizations later in his career, insisting that crossword puzzles were simply a way to relax before games.

Despite the tension, Hernandez remained an outstanding player. Even Herzog acknowledged that Hernandez and George Brett were the two best hit-and-run hitters he had ever managed, adding that Hernandez was “a very intelligent ballplayer.”

Still, in June 1983, the Cardinals traded Hernandez to the New York Mets for pitchers Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey.

The news stunned many Cardinals fans. When the trade announcement appeared on the Busch Stadium message board, it was met with loud boos from the crowd. Hernandez, however, later said he had sensed the deal coming.

“I could tell a trade was coming,” he recalled. “I knew I wasn’t in Whitey’s good graces.”

The trade became one of the most debated transactions in Cardinals history. Herzog later defended the decision bluntly, saying that removing Hernandez from the clubhouse had been “addition by subtraction.”

Hernandez, for his part, always maintained a complicated affection for the organization that drafted and developed him. “I grew up a Cardinal,” he once said. “I was taught the Cardinal way to play… the pride it was to be a Cardinal.”

The trade did not mark the end of Hernandez’s success – it simply shifted the stage. In New York, he quickly became the stabilizing presence the Mets had been searching for. In 1984, his first full season with the club, Hernandez batted .311 with 15 home runs, won another Gold Glove, captured a Silver Slugger Award, and finished second in the National League MVP voting. The Mets won 90 games that season, their first strong showing in years, and Hernandez’s leadership and steady play were widely credited with helping transform the culture of the franchise.

Two years later, Hernandez again found himself at the center of a championship run. The 1986 Mets won 108 games and then survived a dramatic postseason that included a six-game National League Championship Series victory over the Houston Astros and a seven-game World Series triumph over the Boston Red Sox. Hernandez played a significant role throughout October. He collected seven hits and three RBIs in the NLCS and delivered key offensive moments in the World Series, including a two-run single in Game 7 that helped erase a 3–0 Boston lead.

Over the course of his 17-year major league career, Hernandez accumulated 2,182 hits, 162 home runs, and 1,071 RBIs while posting a .296 lifetime batting average and a .384 on-base percentage. Yet the foundation of that career was built in St. Louis.

During his nine seasons with the Cardinals, he had established himself as one of the finest players in the National League. He won the 1979 batting title with a .344 average, shared the league’s MVP Award with Willie Stargell, captured multiple Gold Gloves, and helped lead the Cardinals to the 1982 World Series championship. He is also one of the very few first basemen in Cardinals history to win both a batting title and a Most Valuable Player Award while wearing the uniform.

Those years also produced one of the most respected defensive reputations in baseball history. Whitey Herzog—who had clashed with Hernandez but never doubted his ability—once summed up his view of the first baseman simply: Hernandez was “the greatest defensive first baseman I’ve ever seen.”

Even after his playing career ended, Hernandez continued to maintain a connection to the game, becoming a broadcaster and one of the most recognizable figures in Mets history. Yet he never forgot where his career truly took shape.

“I grew up a Cardinal,” Hernandez once said, reflecting on the organization that drafted and developed him. “It was so ingrained in you the pride it was to be a Cardinal.”

In recognition of that legacy, Hernandez was inducted into the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2021, an honor that formally cemented his place in franchise history. The induction acknowledged not only his statistical achievements but also the influence he had on the Cardinals teams of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Keith Hernandez’s career ultimately spanned far more than one city or one championship. But his years in St. Louis formed the foundation of everything that followed: the batting title, the MVP award, the Gold Gloves, and the championship that confirmed him as one of the most complete first basemen the game has ever seen.

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The St. Louis Cardinals, still searching for consistent middle-of-the-order thunder in the post-Whitey Herzog years, took a calculated swing when they acquired Guerrero from the Los Angeles Dodgers for left-hander John Tudor in August 1988.

Guerrero’s path to St. Louis was never conventional. Born June 29, 1956, in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic, he grew up in circumstances that demanded adult responsibilities early. As a teenager, he left school to help support his family, working in the island’s rum industry and cutting cane for wages that underscored how far removed his world was from major-league stadium lights. Baseball, like it was for so many young players in the Dominican Republic, offered a different kind of possibility.

Latin scouting pioneer Reggie Otero, then working for the Cleveland Indians, saw a wiry teenager with broad shoulders and room to grow, and he signed Guerrero with a modest bonus. Not long after, the Dodgers obtained Guerrero in an April 1974 trade for minor-league left-hander Bruce Ellingsen, a deal that became a defining heist for Los Angeles.

For years, the Dodgers let that bat ripen in the minors, not because Guerrero lacked ability, but because the major-league roster was stacked and Los Angeles had the luxury of patience. Guerrero hit everywhere he went, flashing both average and power, and even when a fractured ankle in 1977 disrupted his timeline, he kept advancing through the Dodgers’ system. He reached the majors late in 1978, collected his first hit in a pinch-hitting appearance, and began carving out a role that quickly expanded beyond a bench spot.

By 1981, Guerrero was no longer a curiosity. With an opening in right field and his offensive numbers surging, he became a central figure on a Dodgers club that navigated a strike-split season, survived October pressure, and won the World Series. Guerrero’s defining moment came in Game 6 against the Yankees, when he drove the offense with a triple, a homer, and a bases-loaded single. By the end of the night, he had amassed five RBIs and eight total bases, and he shared World Series MVP honors with teammates Ron Cey and Steve Yeager.

Over the next several seasons, Guerrero established himself as a rare hitter who could pair impact power with a threatening batting average. In 1982, he won a Silver Slugger and became the first Dodger to hit 30 home runs and steal 20 bases in a season, then repeated the 30/20 combination again in 1983. His peak as a pure offensive force arrived in the mid-1980s, when he was capable of carrying a lineup for weeks at a time.

His 1987 season, his last full campaign in Los Angeles, underscored that he remained an elite offensive force. Guerrero hit .338 with 27 home runs, 89 RBIs, and a .955 OPS, ranking among the league’s best. Even as injuries had interrupted earlier seasons, his bat had not diminished.

He carried that impact into 1988. In 59 games with the Dodgers before the August trade, Guerrero was hitting .298 with five home runs and 35 RBIs, continuing to profile as a productive middle-of-the-order presence despite battling injury. After the trade to St. Louis, he hit .268 with five home runs and 30 RBIs in 44 games for the Cardinals.

The trade itself reflected two teams chasing different solutions. The Dodgers were pushing toward another postseason run and wanted rotation stability; Tudor, an accomplished left-hander, offered that. The Cardinals, sliding out of contention, chose to turn pitching into offense and acquired Guerrero, who arrived with the unusual profile of a player who had already been a postseason centerpiece and was still producing at a high level.

Guerrero’s time with the Cardinals effectively began in earnest in 1989, and it was the season that defined his St. Louis chapter. Installed primarily at first base, he delivered what the club had hoped it was buying: a long, productive summer of run production and authoritative contact. He hit .311, drove in a career-high 117 runs, and tied for the National League lead with 42 doubles. St. Louis did not win the division, but the Cardinals stayed relevant deep into the year, and Guerrero’s at-bats were central to that push.

Teammates and opponents alike understood what kind of hitter he was in that season’s biggest moments. Joe Magrane, a left-handed pitcher on that 1989 club, later described Guerrero as one of the best clutch hitters he had seen with two strikes, a player who could spoil borderline pitches, work himself back into a count, and then flick a slider the other way for a single when a defense was desperate for an out. That ability to extend an at-bat and still do damage was part of what made Guerrero so valuable to St. Louis in 1989: the Cardinals had seen plenty of sluggers over the years, but fewer who could blend power with situational discipline in the middle of the lineup.

The numbers reinforced the feel of it. The 42 doubles led the National League and showed how often Guerrero squared the ball up and drove it with authority, turning good contact into extra bases and run-scoring opportunities. His 117 RBIs that season marked a career best.

In 1990, Guerrero’s production was a step down from his 1989 peak, but it was far from a collapse. He hit .281 with 13 home runs and 80 RBIs, and those 80 RBIs led the Cardinals that season.

In 1991, Guerrero continued to contribute, hitting .272 and driving in 70 runs, though the physical toll became harder to ignore. A collision with Cardinals catcher Tom Pagnozzi on a foul ball resulted in a hairline fracture in Guerrero’s right leg, and even though he pushed through the moment to deliver late-inning run production in that game, the larger season reflected a player fighting his body as much as opposing pitching. By 1992, shoulder trouble limited him to just 43 games, and the end came quietly: one home run, a .219 average, and the understanding that his time in the majors was complete.

Across four-plus seasons in St. Louis, Guerrero hit .282 with 44 homers and 313 RBIs.

Guerrero arrived as a proven star who was still performing at a high level, delivered one of the most productive seasons of his career in 1989, and remained the club’s leading run producer into 1990 before injuries gradually narrowed his impact. His Cardinals years may have been shorter than his Dodgers tenure, but they were neither accidental nor ceremonial. For several seasons, Pedro Guerrero was exactly what St. Louis had hoped for: a veteran hitter with the ability to drive in runs in an offense that was otherwise light on middle-of-the-order bats.

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As it turns out, they had no idea just how right they were.

On October 3, 1985, Cox earned his 18^th win of the season, holding the New York Mets to two runs over six innings and giving St. Louis a two-game lead over the Mets in the National League East pennant race with three games remaining. The next morning, he asked Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog for permission to leave the team, drove home to Warner Robins, Georgia, and punched out his former brother-in-law.

Cox had heard from family that his sister Maxine’s ex-husband was threatening his sister and their parents, who also lived in Warner Robins.

“I started it. I finished it,” said the 26-year-old Cox. “It only took two punches. When you start threatening my family, that you’re going to do them some physical harm, I’m going to retaliate.”[1]

Cox knew that his ex-brother-in-law, Richard Diebold, worked as a varsity sports director at Robins Air Force Base. Since his father, a former master sergeant in the Air Force, had been stationed there and still worked on the base, Cox knew right where to find Diebold.

Diebold told the Macon Telegraph that he tried to explain himself when he saw Cox coming, but the Cardinals right-hander was having none of it. Cox’s punches chipped two of Diebold’s teeth before he ran away.

“I took off through the gym and through the softball fields,” Diebold said. “He said, ‘I hope you can run all day, because I can. And as soon as you stop, I’m going to kill you.’”[2]

Cox returned to the Cardinals in time for their next day’s game against the Cubs.

“It was my job,” Cox said. “I think anybody in that situation would have done the same thing. If you wouldn’t have, then you’re not a man, and you don’t love your family. You’ve only got one family.”[3]

Though the Cardinals were concerned about elbow soreness that had recently been giving Cox issues, they weren’t too worried that their 18-game winner might break his hand with the playoffs looming.

“I never worry what they do with their family,” Herzog said. “If he’d hurt his hand, I just would have to pitch somebody else.”[4]

Eight days later, Cox made his playoff debut, starting Game 3 of the National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the first inning, the Dodgers loaded the bases with one out before Cox retired Mike Marshall and Mike Scioscia to escape the jam.

Cox went on to earn the win, allowing two runs over six innings.

“A big inning there and the series might have been all over,” second baseman Tommy Herr said. “He’s a tough guy. He battles.”[5]

Nonetheless, Cox’s off-field battles had gotten more attention than he imagined, drawing headlines in newspapers across the country. Before his Game 3 start, he skipped an NLCS press conference, and after the game, he only granted interviews to the Cardinals’ regular beat reporters.[6]

“I knew what they were going to ask about,” Cox said of the national media.[7]

After the Cardinals beat the Dodgers in six games, Cox made two appearances against the Royals in the World Series. In Game 2, he allowed two runs over seven innings, receiving no decision in the Cardinals’ 4-2 win (St. Louis rallied for all four runs in the ninth).

Cox was even better in Game 6, throwing seven shutout innings and striking out eight. However, Kansas City starter Charlie Leibrandt was equally impressive, and the game was still scoreless when Cox left the game without a decision. The Royals went on to win the game, 2-1, before taking the series in Game 7.

Cox reached double-digit wins in 1986 (12) and 1987 (11) and shut out the Giants in Game 6 of the NLCS to send the Cardinals to the ’87 World Series before an elbow injury cut his 1988 campaign short. By the time he made his next major league start in 1991, he was a member of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Over six seasons with St. Louis, Cox went 56-56 with a 3.40 ERA. After leaving the Cardinals, he pitched for the Phillies, Pirates, and Blue Jays, appearing primarily in relief. He retired after the 1995 season.

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Cox Punches Former Kin,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 6, 1985.

[2] Steve Goldberg, “Cox throws pitches Thursday, then throws punches Friday,” Macon Telegraph, October 6, 1985.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Cox Punches Former Kin,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 6, 1985.

[4] Mike Littwin, “Cards call upon ‘Rambo’ to get things going right,’” Asbury Park Press, October 13, 1985.

[5] Mike Littwin, “Cards call upon ‘Rambo’ to get things going right,’” Asbury Park Press, October 13, 1985.

[6] “Duncan’s status still uncertain after Game 2 spiking,” Sacramento Bee, October 13, 1985.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Dodgers Are Next Challenge For Cox,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 12, 1985.

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In advance of the April 1988 publication of his new autobiography Wizard, which Smith wrote with St. Louis sportswriter Rob Rains, the Cardinals shortstop sat down with Washington Post writer Thomas Boswell for a three-hour, cover-story interview for GQ Magazine. In the ensuing article, Boswell either quoted or paraphrased Smith criticizing a wide range of baseball colleagues, including former teammate Jack Clark, manager Whitey Herzog, umpires, the New York Mets (particularly third baseman Howard Johnson), and the San Francisco Giants (particularly catcher Bob Brenly).

“I feel that it was an injustice,” Smith said. “It came out totally opposite of the way I thought it was going to come out.”[1]

Ozzie vs. Jack Clark

The previous September, Clark tore a ligament in his ankle while attempting to avoid a tag at first base. Originally believed to be relatively minor, Clark’s injury kept him out of the playoffs, and without their top slugger, the Cardinals fell to the Twins in a seven-game World Series.

“A lot of players soured on Jack Clark when he didn’t try to come back … (he) should have taken a shot … everybody would have at least known that he had tried,” Smith was quoted as saying in Boswell’s GQ article.[2]

It was a similar statement to what was published the following month in Wizard: “I think Jack should have taken a shot to try to kill the pain in his ankle so he could play – at least to find out if he could play. It was a way he could have shown the club how hard he was trying to play, since he was in the middle of negotiating a new contract. If he had taken the shot and still hadn’t been able to play, everybody would have at least known he had tried.”[3]

The truth, however, was that painkillers would not have allowed Clark to play through a torn ligament.

“I don’t know what got into him to say those things. He must have done one too many backflips,” Clark fired back. “Both Dr. (James) Andrews and our team physician, Dr. (Stan) London, told me a shot wouldn’t do any good. It wasn’t that kind of an injury. There was a tear in there that they said would take four to five months to heal – which it did. They told me to stay off it.”[4]

In fact, Clark – who signed with the Yankees during the offseason – was still recovering when the 1988 season began, forcing him to miss New York’s first nine games. He was, however, feeling well enough to take aim at his former teammate.

“Ozzie’s obviously bitter about something,” Clark said. “He thinks he should be both the manager and the team doctor now. I think maybe it’s because he was paid $2 million a year when he was a .230 hitter, and now that he’s finally earning his money, he can speak out like that. I know this, I was going into free agency and I had a chance to win the MVP. Don’t you think I wanted to play?”[5]

In a 1991 Sports Illustrated article, Clark later suggested that Smith made those comments to gain favor with Cardinals ownership in advance of his own upcoming contract negotiations.[6]

“If you ask me, he should apologize,” Clark said. “Not to me. I don’t care. I’m starting a new life over here with the Yankees and I’ve never been happier. But he owes an apology to Whitey and (Cubs outfielder Andre) Dawson.”[7]

Why would he owe those gentlemen apologies? We’re getting there …

Ozzie vs. Whitey Herzog

In the GQ article, Smith criticized Herzog’s comments to the media during the World Series.

In the magazine article, Smith said, “I felt that the team needed a vote of confidence. For the manager to say, ‘You guys are as good or better than they are.’ But Whitey kept saying, ‘I don’t know why we’re here,’ like he expected us to lose. I kept waiting for him to say something positive, but he never did. Maybe he figured we knew how he felt, and he was just trying to lull the other team to sleep. But some guys didn’t understand that. We needed a boost.”[8]

Herzog subsequently explained his postseason comments that painted the Cardinals as clear underdogs as they played without Clark and third baseman Terry Pendleton, who was also out with an injury.

“You lose Jack Clark. Do you think we should beat the Giants?” Herzog said. “We lost Clark and Terry Pendleton. Do you think we should beat anybody in a seven-game series? What I meant was that we overachieved to get there. What I was saying was a compliment to what we accomplished without those guys.”[9]

Nonetheless, Herzog said he wasn’t bothered by Smith’s comments.

“Ozzie is a hell of a good ballplayer, a hell of a guy, and a good friend,” he said.[10]

Instead, Herzog was more concerned about the comments attributed to Smith regarding major league umpires.

Ozzie vs. the Umpires

In discussing baseball’s umpires, Boswell quoted Smith saying, “Their judgement is bad, their eyesight is bad, their level of consistency is terrible. … Since my contract, my strike zone has all of a sudden become a lot larger. I have to think a lot of umpires are trying to call me out just so they can show me they’re the boss.”[11]

While Herzog brushed aside the quotes regarding his World Series performance, he immediately arranged for a telephone conversation between Smith and National League President A. Bartlett Giamatti to clear the air.[12] With a new season about to begin, Herzog wanted to halt a feud between his star shortstop and the league’s umpires before it began.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, umpires Frank Pulli, Gerry Crawford, and Eric Gregg expressed surprise at Smith’s remarks. “I’ve always gotten along well with Ozzie,” Crawford said.[13]

Smith, meanwhile, said that Boswell had misconstrued his point by indicating the umpires were “prejudiced” against him.

“I’d never say something like that,” Smith said. “I said that in any business, there are people who are incompetent at what they do, not only in baseball. You find players who are incompetent, umpires who are incompetent. I don’t know where the prejudice comes from.”[14]

In Wizard, Smith struck a similar tone and seemed to be saying that any “prejudice” on the umpires’ part was due to his recent, high-paying salary.

“Unfortunately, since I signed the contract, my strike zone seems to have suddenly become a lot larger,” he wrote. “I like to think I have a pretty good eye at the plate, but it sure seems like all of the close pitches now go the pitcher’s way. I want to think that it hasn’t been malicious, but it has happened so often that it suggests a lot of umpires resent my contract.”[15]

Ozzie vs. Andre Dawson

Boswell’s GQ article also hinted that Smith believed he should have won the previous year’s NL MVP award over Cubs outfielder Andre Dawson.

Dawson won the MVP trophy with 11 of 24 first-place votes after batting .287 with 49 homers and 137 RBIs. Smith, meanwhile, received nine first-place votes after batting .303 with 75 RBIs, 104 runs scored, and 43 stolen bases.

Smith discussed the MVP results in Wizard, writing, “There is a gray area in MVP voting, in that nobody has ever established whether the award should be for the most “valuable” player – which is what it says – or the most “outstanding” player. Dawson was definitely the most outstanding player in the league. But his club finished in last place. Where would the Cubs have finished without him? How valuable could his performance have been? To me, the MVP should be a player who had an integral role in his club’s winning.”[16]

Ozzie vs. the New York Mets

Smith’s comments regarding the MVP race were nothing compared to what he had to say about the Mets. In Boswell’s article, he wrote that Smith believed Mets third baseman Howard Johnson should have an asterisk beside his stat line due to suspicions that Johnson corked his bat.[17] Johnson hit 36 homers and drove in 99 runs in 1987.

“Someone ought to drill that disrespectful jerk, and that’s all I want to say,” said Keith Hernandez, Smith’s former teammate in St. Louis.[18]

“I’m surprised he said it, but I’d rather not comment,” Dwight Gooden said.[19]

“I’m not going to say anything about it,” Howard Johnson said. “I don’t think it would be too wise to say anything about it.”[20]

Ozzie vs. Bob Brenly and the San Francisco Giants

In both the GQ article and his autobiography, Smith noted that as much as he disliked the Mets, the Giants were even worse.

Boswell paraphrased Smith’s feelings, writing that “the New York Mets are disrespectful jerks but the San Francisco Giants are worse. They’re scared loudmouths.”[21] In his own book, Smith used similar phrasing, calling them “loudmouth overachievers.”[22]

Smith particularly called out Giants outfielder Jeffrey Leonard, calling him “one of the main loudmouths,” and was especially irked when catcher Bob Brenly said that Smith misplayed a ball during the NLCS because he was “styling.”

“Bob Brenly, who in my opinion is mediocre at best … once made four errors in the same game playing third base, and he’s telling me about playing defense,” Smith wrote in Wizard. “I don’t tell him how to catch or say anything about all his passed balls. If you walked down the street and asked 20 people if they know who Bob Brenly is, I guarantee 19 of them wouldn’t know him.”[23]

That summer, Smith and Brenly’s war of words turned physical when Giants first baseman Will Clark slid hard into Cardinals second baseman Jose Oquendo to break up a double play. In the ensuing brawl, Brenly appeared to get a few shots in on Smith, bloodying his lip.

“I don’t know if somebody stepped on him or what,” Brenly said. “Maybe his lip got caught rolling over on my hand.”[24]

Ozzie vs. Thomas Boswell

In response to the GQ article (his book wasn’t due out until April), Smith called a press conference before the Cardinals’ March 29 game against the Pirates.

“Anybody who knows Ozzie Smith knows that it’s completely out of character,” Smith said. “What you have here is a situation where Ozzie Smith is saying one thing, and Tom Boswell is saying another. That puts Ozzie Smith in a very vulnerable position. You pick it up, and you read it, and you’re not going to be able to read between some of the lines.”[25]

Boswell, meanwhile, stood by his work, noting that his editor was in the room during the three-hour interview.

“It’s a good thing Ozzie has good hang time because he doesn’t have a leg to stand on,” Boswell said. “In 19 years, this is the first time I’ve ever had the senior editor of the publication sit in on the whole interview.

“Everything that’s in the story is in the book at least three times over,” Boswell continued. “Every paraphrase of mine is a weakened, watered-down version of what’s in the book. What he said was not as strong in the interview as he was in the book. And if he changes the book, we still have the manuscript he showed us.”[26]

Interestingly, while the GQ interview created a brief stir, the St. Louis media seemed disappointed by Smith’s autobiography once it was published. Post-Dispatch reporter Rick Hummel wrote that Wizard “isn’t as controversial as the recent Gentlemen’s Quarterly article would suggest.”[27]

Sports editor Kevin Horrigan, who was collaborating with Herzog on his own autobiography, White Rat: A Life in Baseball, wrote that, “If Ozzie Smith’s book was a shortstop, it would be Don Buddin. He gives us the standard career recap, never telling us much about himself. But that’s nothing new. In his seven years in St. Louis, Ozzie has never really opened up. He is a careful, cautious, precise man who happens to be the greatest shortstop who ever lived.”[28]

Of course, given all the controversies Smith initiated in his GQ interview, maybe caution was a better path for the star shortstop.

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[2] Bryan Burwell, “Ozzie: Clark, Whitey costs us Series,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[3] Ozzie Smith and Rob Rains (1988), Wizard, Contemporary Books, Pages 163-164.

[4] Bill Madden, “Clark: He’s flipped too many times,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[5] Bill Madden, “Clark: He’s flipped too many times,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[6] Rick Reilly, “This is the life that Jack built,” Sports Illustrated, July 22, 1991.

[7] Bill Madden, “Clark: He’s flipped too many times,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[8] Bryan Burwell, “Ozzie: Clark, Whitey costs us Series,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[11] Tom Wheatley, “Ozzie Charged With Error For Not Accepting Blame,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 2, 1988.

[12] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[13] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[14] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[15] Ozzie Smith and Rob Rains (1988), Wizard, Contemporary Books, Page 113.

[16] Ozzie Smith and Rob Rains (1988), Wizard, Contemporary Books, Page 168.

[17] Bryan Burwell, “Ozzie: Clark, Whitey costs us Series,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[18] Bryan Burwell, “Ozzie: Clark, Whitey costs us Series,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[19] Bryan Burwell, “Ozzie: Clark, Whitey costs us Series,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[20] Bryan Burwell, “Ozzie: Clark, Whitey costs us Series,” New York Daily News, March 30, 1988.

[21] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[22] Ozzie Smith and Rob Rains (1988), Wizard, Contemporary Books, Page 171.

[23] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Says ’89 Could Be Last Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1988.

[24] Edvins Beitiks, “Fighting-trim Giants ready for Dodgers,” San Francisco Examiner, July 25, 1988.

[25] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Criticizes GQ Article,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 30, 1988.

[26] Tom Wheatley, “Ozzie Charged With Error For Not Accepting Blame,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 2, 1988.

[27] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie Says ’89 Could Be Last Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1988.

[28] Kevin Horrigan, “Latest Book On Ozzie Smith: Good Field, No Write,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 20, 1988.

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Mize was selected by the Veterans Committee alongside Negro Leagues founder Rube Foster. He and Foster were inducted alongside Bob Gibson, who received 84% of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) vote in his first year on the ballot.

It was an unexpected honor for Mize, who had never eclipsed the 43.6% of the vote he received in 1971 in his ninth year on the ballot. Though he knew the Veterans Committee was voting that day, Mize decided not to wait by the phone awaiting a call that may never come. Instead, with a new second-floor porch being constructed on his home in Demorest, Georgia, he decided to assist with the project.

“After always being the next man in line, I told Marge I was either going fishing or golfing on the 11^th,” Mize said. “But with the carpenters here, I decided to help until the noon news came on. I figured I might as well see if they said anything. When it got to be 12:30, I told Marge, ‘Well, that’s it.’”[1]

Incredibly, the call from the Hall of Fame didn’t come because the Hall had the wrong number for Mize. Instead, he was reached by a reporter, who shared the news with him shortly after the Hall’s announcement.

“I knew they were voting again today, but I had already given up hope because no one had called,” Mize said. “It comes as kind of shock, especially since I’ve seen so many guys go in who were behind me when I first became eligible years ago. I’m happy it finally came. Most of all because throughout this long wait, I never knew so many people cared.”[2]

In fact, so many people cared that Mize had to halt construction for the day rather than try to speak to his many callers over the din of their labor.[3]

“I’m just a little disappointed they didn’t see to vote me in earlier,” Mize admitted. “My mother is 87 years old and in the hospital after having both her legs removed after five operations. She always had looked forward to me getting in the Hall. Last year would have been fine, but now she just barely recognizes me and doesn’t realize what’s going on any more than the man in the moon.”[4]

Mize began his path to the Hall of Fame with the Cardinals after Branch Rickey’s brother Frank discovered Mize and placed the 17-year-old with the Cardinals’ farm team in Greensboro, North Carolina.[5] Mize soon became one of the top sluggers in the Redbirds’ system, but in 1934 he suffered a serious leg injury that hampered his movement.

Ironically, the injury helped to keep him in the St. Louis system.

That December, under new ownership that was looking to make a splash, the Reds purchased Mize for $55,000, surpassing the $50,000 the Yankees had paid the San Francisco Seals that November for another highly touted prospect named Joe DiMaggio. However, the high-paying deal came with a caveat – if Mize’s injury hampered him in any way, the Reds could return Mize and get their money back.

Ultimately, the Reds selected that option. Spurs had developed on Miz’s pelvic bone, and that spring it became clear that Mize was playing through an injury. Uncertain whether Mize would ever be able to play on an everyday basis, the Reds voided the deal and sent him back on April 15.

That proved fortunate for the Cardinals.

Mize played in 65 games for the Cardinals’ minor-league club in Rochester that season, batting .318 with 12 homers, before the pain became too much and he required surgery. When Mize came back, he not only was assigned to the Cardinals, but he beat out incumbent Ripper Collins for the first base job. The rookie Mize hit .329 with 19 homers and 93 RBIs and led all of baseball with 21 intentional walks.

“There is not a ballplayer in the major leagues playing better baseball than Johnny Mize,” Cardinals manager Frankie Frisch said.[6]

In each of his six seasons with the Cardinals, Mize hit at least .314 with an on-base percentage above .400. In 1939, he won the National League batting crown with a .349 average. He also led the league with 28 homers, a .626 slugging percentage, a 1.070 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage), and 353 total bases. That year, he finished second in the NL MVP voting behind Cincinnati’s Bucky Walters.

“He was a great hitter right when he came up,” said Terry Moore, who roomed with Mize in their Cardinals days. “He never swung at a bad pitch. It was a pleasure to watch him hit.”[7]

In 1940, Mize may have been even more impressive. His 43 home runs led all of baseball and set a Cardinals single-season franchise record, one that would hold up until Mark McGwire finally broke the record on his way to 70 homers in 1998. Mize led the NL in slugging percentage (.636), OPS (1.039), and total bases (368), and led all of baseball in intentional walks (24). Once again, Mize finished second in the MVP voting to a Red, this time finishing behind Frank McCormick.

After the season, Mize held out for an increase on his $16,000 salary.

“Why, they even suggested I take a cut,” he said, before noting that the Cardinals later offered him the same salary from the previous year. “My home runs were more than any St. Louis player ever hit,” he argued. “I led the National League in runs batted in with 137, in total bases with 368, and I batted .314 for the season. If that isn’t enough to get a raise, I don’t know what is. Of course, my batting average was the lowest in the five years I have been with the Cardinals, or the five years I spent in the minors, but I think the other records are enough to warrant a little more money.”[8]

Finally, after missing the first 2 ½ weeks of spring training, Mize and the Cardinals agreed to terms, giving the slugger a $1,000 raise over the previous year.[9] Though Mize went on to hit .317 with 16 homers, 100 RBIs, and a league-high 39 doubles, an arm injury forced him to miss the final 10 games of the season. The Sporting News reported that Cardinals manager Billy Southworth was disappointed that Mize spent the final games watching from the grandstand or the press box instead of sitting on the bench.[10]

That December, the Cardinals traded Mize to the New York Giants for Bill Lohrman, Johnny McCarthy, and Ken O’Dea.

“When you hold out a couple of times against the Cardinals you know you’re finished with the organization,” Mize said. “I sensed the change in attitude toward me during the season, and when the schedule was over I cleared out all my belongings in the clubhouse. That’s the first time I ever did that, but I was pretty certain I wouldn’t be with the club in ’42.”[11]

Despite missing three seasons in the prime of his career serving in World War II, Mize proved to be more than worth the cost for the Giants. In 1942, he led the National League with 110 RBIs and a .521 slugging percentage on his way to a fifth-place finish in the MVP voting.

After returning from the war, he led all of baseball in 1946 with 51 homers, 138 RBIs, and 137 runs scored in 1947, finishing third in the MVP race. The following year, at age 35, he led baseball again with 40 homers.

“I’ve always wondered how many more (championships) we would have won if we hadn’t dealt two power hitters in that period, Mize and Walker Cooper,” said Cardinals outfielder Stan Musial, who led the Redbirds to World Series titles in 1942, 1944, and 1946.[12]

In 1949, the Yankees purchased Mize’s contract from the cross-town Giants for $40,000. Used primarily as a part-time player for much of his Yankees career, Mize hit drove home the winning run in Game 3 of the 1949 World Series, then hit 25 homers in just 305 plate appearances in 1950.

When he retired after the 1953 season, Mize’s 359 career home runs ranked sixth all-time. He also had a .312 career batting average, .397 on-base percentage, 2,011 hits, and 1,337 RBIs over 15 major-league seasons. Altogether, Mize had won five World Series titles, been selected for 10 all-star games, won a batting title, and finished in the top five of the MVP voting four times, including two runner-up finishes.

“I was mostly impressed with that sweet swing and the fact that he was a power hitter who rarely struck out,” Musial said. “He had the greatest batting eyes I’ve ever seen.”[13]

“He was proud of hitting all those home runs, and when he was voted into the Hall of Fame, I guess that had to be the day he was most proud,” Moore said.[14]

At his induction speech, Mize referenced his long wait to arrive in Cooperstown.

“I’ve been asked if being elected by the Veterans Committee means going in the back door,” Mize said. “To that I say look who’s on it – ex-players, managers, and executives, most of whom are in the Hall of Fame. Who else would you want to pick you? They were my peers.”[15]

He also noted that years earlier, several sportswriters had told him he was sure to be voted into the Hall.

“So I made a prepared speech,” he said, “but somewhere along the way it got lost.”[16]

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[1] Ken Picking, “It’s Mize’s Moment,” Atlanta Constitution, March 12, 1981.

[2] Bill Madden, “Mize gains Hall of Fame with Negro loop founder,” New York Daily News, March 11, 1981.

[3] Ken Picking, “It’s Mize’s Moment,” Atlanta Constitution, March 12, 1981.

[4] Ken Picking, “It’s Mize’s Moment,” Atlanta Constitution, March 12, 1981.

[5] “Mize, Through Exercise, Will Try To Prove Cards Got a Break When $55,000 Deal For Him Fell Through,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 8, 1935.

[6] Ralph McGill, “An Atlanta Doctor Sent Mize To the Majors!” Atlanta Constitution, May 17, 1936.

[7] Mike Eisenbath, “Mize Is Recalled By Former Mates As A Great Hitter,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 3, 1993.

[8] Associated Press, “Mize’s Slugging Entitles Him to Raise, He Says,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, February 2, 1941.

[9] Sid C. Keener, “Mize Signs Contract And Works Out With Cardinals,” St. Louis Star and Times, March 17, 1941.

[10] “Mize-To-Giants Deal Surprises Breadon,” The Sporting News, December 18, 1941.

[11] Donald H. Drees, “Mize Not Surprised At Deal Sending Him to Giants,” St. Louis Star and Times, December 12, 1941.

[12] Bob Broeg, “M&M’s Bats Didn’t Melt In Their Hands,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 12, 1981.

[13] Bob Broeg, “M&M’s Bats Didn’t Melt In Their Hands,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 12, 1981.

[14] Mike Eisenbath, “Mize Is Recalled By Former Mates As A Great Hitter,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 3, 1993.

[15] Bill Madden, “Hall of Famers win the cheers of bitter crowd,” New York Daily News, August 3, 1981.

[16] Bill Madden, “Hall of Famers win the cheers of bitter crowd,” New York Daily News, August 3, 1981.

The post Why Johnny Mize was shocked to be elected to the Hall of Fame first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

White’s hire came two years after Dodgers general manager Al Campanis was fired for saying during a Nightline interview that black people did not have the “necessities” to serve as a manager or general manager. Campanis was fired two days later, but baseball continued to face questions about the lack of black executives in the game. At the time White was hired, no Major League Baseball team had a black president or general manager and the Orioles’ Frank Robinson was the only black manager.

Though White helped to break down barriers in MLB executive offices, he preferred that he be recognized for his knowledge of the game.

When the news media started talking about “firsts,” I wish they had paid as much attention to another “first” that I represented: I was the first National League president in more than 70 years who had ever played baseball in the major leagues,” White said.[1]

In his 2011 autobiography, White wrote that he was first contacted about the job by Dodgers owner Peter O’Malley, who was on the search committee alongside Mets president Fred Wilpon, former NL president Chub Feeney, Braves chairman William Bartholomay, and outgoing NL president A. Bartlett Giamatti, who was slated to become the new baseball commissioner on April 1. O’Malley told White that the committee was interested in interviewing him for the job. After asking if O’Malley was serious, White politely declined the opportunity. O’Malley thanked him for his time, and White assumed the matter was over.[2]

Approximately a week later, O’Malley called again to say that while he understood that White was not interested, the committee still wanted to interview him. This time, White decided it was worth at least a discussion. When he arrived at the Helmsley Palace Hotel in New York, just a few miles away from MLB headquarters, he realized he wasn’t the only former player-turned-announcer in the running, as he saw former Reds second baseman Joe Morgan in the lobby.[3]

In his 90-minute interview, White spoke about his conflict management and leadership style and discussed how he would handle a variety of issues. He also made clear to the committee members that if he was to be offered the job, it had to be on his merits.

“I wasn’t naïve,” he wrote. “I knew that baseball was under a lot of pressure about minority hiring. But I insisted that if I were to take the job, I would want to be the president of the National League, not the black president of the National League. The committee members assured me that they would hire the best person, regardless of race.”[4]

The committee unanimously voted to name White the 13^th president of the National League. White was selected over another black candidate, Simon Gourdine, the former NBA deputy commissioner who was serving as the director of labor relations for the Metropolitan Transit Authority in New York. Gourdine took his runner-up finish in stride.

“The appointment of Bill White is historic and very meaningful,” he said. “The symbolism is terribly important to all Americans and to all people interested in baseball and in sports. It’s a start. … The reason that the process was so exhaustive was because they wanted to ensure that they chose the very best person to represent the National League.”[5]

The Sporting News reported that White’s extensive baseball background gave him the edge over other candidates. An eight-time all-star and seven-time Gold Glove Award winner, White played 13 major league seasons, including eight with the Cardinals. St. Louis acquired him in a trade with the Giants in March 1959.

While White was initially concerned about coming to St. Louis, he quickly became a star. In eight seasons with the Cardinals, he hit .298 with 140 homers and 631 RBIs, and finished third in the NL MVP voting in 1964, when he helped lead the Cardinals to the World Series championship. Between 1962 and 1966, he hit at least 20 homers and drove in at least 102 runs in four of the five seasons.

In addition to his impact on the field, White was one of the Cardinals who played a key role in integrating the team’s living arrangements during spring training.

After his playing days were over, White transitioned to broadcasting. In 1971, he became part of the WPIX-TV broadcast team, where he partnered with former Yankees shortstop Phil Rizzuto. By accepting the NL president position, White was giving up a comfortable seat in the booth.

“There were a lot of good reasons not to take it,” White wrote. “I was well paid in my broadcasting work, and had plenty of free time for fishing, tennis, just enjoying life. I would be giving all that up for an executive job that promised long hours, extensive business travel, and constant headaches. But in the end there was one overriding reason why I decided to accept the position as president of the National League. It was a challenge. And throughout my life, a challenge has been something that is hard for me to resist.”[6]

In speaking with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, White explained it a different way.

“I got to thinking that after 18 years, there’s only so many ways you can say, ‘There’s a ground ball to short, and the throw to first,’” he said. “Maybe I am ready for something different.”[7]

Though it was reported at the time that White was being paid $200,000 per year, a six-figure pay cut from the $300,000 he earned as a Yankees broadcaster,[8] White wrote that his new job actually provided a 30% pay increase with better benefits.[9]

At the press conference announcing his hire, the assembled media wanted to focus on the history of the moment and White’s role as the highest-ranking black executive in baseball. In Newsday, Steve Marcus wrote that, “Minorities clearly will see this appointment as a sign of hope that baseball is ending what has been an unofficial but undeniable existence of sparse opportunities in minority hiring.”[10]

White, however, preferred not to focus on his race in discussing his hire with reporters.

“From the moment my selection as … president of the National League was announced in February 1989, the “firsts” began,” White wrote in 2011. “In every newspaper and magazine and television report, it went something like this: “Bill White will be the first black president of baseball’s National League …” Again, I wasn’t naïve. I knew that after the spotlight the Campanis incident cast on baseball, the team owners wanted a black man for the job. I also knew that being the first African American to hold the position would be news in and of itself. That’s the way the news business works; there’s no escaping it. But I felt the same way I had when I was the “first full-time black broadcaster” in Major League Baseball. I didn’t intend to fail, but if somehow I did, I wanted it to be Bill White who had failed, not a black man who had failed.”[11]

Clifford Alexander, former Secretary of the Army who consulted on the search, cautioned reporters about proclaiming the issue solved by the hire of one black executive.

“I don’t try to set history the day it happened,” Alexander said. “Breaking barriers are useful only if other things happen.”[12]

Despite White’s protestations, several of his friends said that breaking that barrier was more important than he let on.

“Bill is not a crusader, but he understands social responsibility,” said William Eastburn III, White’s attorney and a friend for 25 years.[13]

“He felt this was important for baseball, for himself, and for blacks in general,” Rizzuto added.[14]

Henry Aaron, who had moved into an executive role himself as vice president for player personnel for the Braves, “You can say that Jackie Robinson is resting a little more comfortably in his grave now, because he went through hell. If it weren’t for him, there would not have been a Hank Aaron or a Larry Doby or a Bill White.”[15] In a separate interview, he said, “I don’t think they could have found anyone more qualified than Bill White. He is a baseball man. He knows baseball. There will be nothing that will surprise him.”[16]

That knowledge came in handy as National League president, a role that included overseeing the umpires, mediating conflicts, and handing out discipline. Early in his tenure, White was with Giamatti when Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda called to accuse Astros pitchers of doctoring baseballs during a recent series. Lasorda told White that he was sending pitcher Orel Hershiser over to his office with the doctored baseballs.

Lasorda was shocked when White laughed and told him that not only would the balls need to come from the umpires to be considered evidence, but that he knew for a fact that Dodgers pitchers doctored balls because he had been forced to hit against them while they did it. When Lasorda hung up, Giamatti looked at White with amazement.

“That’s the advantage you have from being in the game so long,” he said. “I never would have been able to talk to Lasorda like that.”[17]

During White’s tenure as NL president, the league expanded to include the Rockies and Marlins. White also overcame conflicts with the umpires union and Reds owner Marge Schott, whose own racist comments had embarrassed the sport. He retired from the post in 1994, and in 2020 he was elected to the Cardinals Hall of Fame.

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[1] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 191.

[2] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 186.

[3] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 187.

[4] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 187.

[5] “Runner-Up Calls Election ‘A Start,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 4, 1989.

[6] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 189.

[7] Dan Caesar, “White Picked For NL’s Top Job,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 3, 1989.

[8] “N.L. President White Fills the Bill,” The Sporting News, February 13, 1989.

[9] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 193.

[10] Steve Marcus, “A Giant Step Forward – White, officials downplay racial aspect of hiring,” Newsday, February 4, 1989.

[11] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 190.

[12] Steve Marcus, “A Giant Step Forward – White, officials downplay racial aspect of hiring,” Newsday, February 4, 1989.

[13] Steve Marcus, “A Giant Step Forward – White, officials downplay racial aspect of hiring,” Newsday, February 4, 1989.

[14] “N.L. President White Fills the Bill,” The Sporting News, February 13, 1989.

[15] “Runner-Up Calls Election ‘A Start,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 4, 1989.

[16] “N.L. President White Fills the Bill,” The Sporting News, February 13, 1989.

[17] Bill White (2011), Uppity: My Untold Story About the Games People Play, Grand Central Publishing, Page 192.

The post How Cardinals great Bill White became NL president first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

Maxvill was hired to replace Joe McDonald, who served three years in the role but resigned at the request of the Cardinals’ executive committee in January. Upon McDonald’s resignation, Cardinals president August A. Busch Jr. issued a statement in which he said, “In selecting a new general manager, we will look for a person with a strong baseball operations background.”[1]

While Maxvill had plenty of baseball experience, the Cardinals’ general manager job was his first front-office position. The Granite City, Illinois, native earned a degree in electrical engineering from Washington University before the Cardinals gave him his start in professional baseball in 1960 as a light-hitting but solid defensive shortstop.

He wound up spending 11 of his 14 big-league seasons with the Cardinals, playing for three World Series teams and winning the Gold Glove Award in 1968 despite hitting just .217 for his career. He set a record for the highest career fielding percentage by a shortstop with a career of 10 years or more, posting a .9762 fielding percentage.

Following his playing career, Maxvill coached for the Mets and Cardinals and had been a member of the Braves’ coaching staff since 1982. He also operated a travel agency called Cardinal Travel Inc. alongside former St. Louis pitcher Joe Hoerner.

“I’ve had a chance to do just about everything else in baseball,” he said.[2]

The Cardinals’ search for a new general manager was run by Cardinals CEO Fred Kuhlmann, attorney Lou Susman, and consultant Tal Smith, and it was Susman who first suggested that the team should consider Maxvill for the position.[3] On February 23, 1985, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Maxvill would be interviewed for the Cardinals’ general manager job.[4]

“If I had a chance to do it, I would welcome the opportunity,” Maxvill said. “I sure would welcome the opportunity to talk about it with them.”[5]

The paper reported that Bob Quinn, who had served more than 12 years in charge of the Indians’ scouting and player development, also applied for the job.[6] Additionally, the Cardinals reportedly considered former Cardinals players Joe Torre and Tim McCarver.[7] However, the Cardinals’ interview with Maxvill obviously went well, and on February 25, the Cardinals announced that they had given Maxvill a one-year contract.

“We were looking for someone who had a strong baseball background,” Kuhlmann said. “Although Dal hasn’t had general manager’s experience, he’s had enough experience in baseball that a general manager should have for the game and its problems. More than that, he knows the Cardinals organization. We were looking for someone with a sense of business ability to go along with his baseball experience, the innate ability to cope with the business aspects of being general manager.”[8]

Although Busch repeatedly called Maxvill “Maxwell” in discussing the hire, he expressed excitement for what his former shortstop could do in the role.

“Of all the people we considered, myself and the other members of the executive committee unanimously agreed that Dal Maxvill has the qualifications we were looking for in a general manager,” Busch said in a team statement. “When he was a player with the Cardinals, Dal was committed to being the best. I’m sure we’ll see the same type of performance from him as a general manager.”[9]

For his part, Maxvill said he wasn’t concerned to receive just a one-year contract, nor was he bothered by the Cardinals’ decision-making structure in which any big decisions would need to be approved by the executive committee.

“I don’t feel restricted by this in any way,” he said. “Ten or 15 years ago, trades could be made without consulting anyone else. But if I had a ballclub, wouldn’t you not want to sign someone to a $4 or $5 million contract without at least discussing it with someone?”[10]

Though he wasn’t part of the hiring committee, two-time former Cardinals general manager Bing Devine gave Maxvill his vote of confidence.

“Why shouldn’t he be a good general manager?” said Devine, now president of the St. Louis football Cardinals. “He always has done everything better than any of us expected. I think the selection was excellent.”[11]

Maxvill wound up serving almost 10 years in the role before he was fired in September 1994. During that span, he saw the team lose its biggest supporter at the brewery when August Busch Jr. died in 1989, then lose arguably the most popular manager in franchise history when Whitey Herzog resigned in 1990.

In six of Maxvill’s 10 seasons, the Cardinals posted winning records above .500, and in 1985 and 1987, the Cardinals won the National League championship. Over that span, the Cardinals went 814-757 for a .518 winning percentage.

Especially after the passing of Busch Jr., Maxvill often found himself unable to gain approval for requested moves, particularly for free agents. After the 1994 season, he admitted that he entered his final year knowing the team needed additional pitching to be competitive. Not surprisingly, the team finished the strike-shortened season with a 53-61 record.

“The pitching we needed was unavailable for an assortment of reasons, mostly money,” Maxvill said. “I feel we had a good nucleus of players, but I knew we didn’t have enough pitching. Sometimes, you have to go with what’s available to you.”[12]

During his tenure as GM, Maxvill’s key trades included sending:

• shortstop Angel Salazar to the Mets for infielder Jose Oquendo,
• outfield prospect Mark Jackson to the Reds for outfielder/first baseman Cesar Cedeno,
• pitcher Joaquin Andujar to the Athletics for catcher Mike Heath and pitcher Tim Conroy,
• outfielder Andy Van Slyke, catcher Mike LaValliere, and pitcher Mike Dunne to the Pirates for catcher Tony Pena,
• outfielder Lance Johnson, pitcher Rick Horton, and cash to the White Sox for pitcher Jose DeLeon,
• second baseman Tom Herr to the Twins for outfielder Tom Brunansky,
• pitcher John Tudor to the Dodgers for first baseman Pedro Guerrero,
• pitcher Bob Forsch to the Astros for utility player Denny Walling,
• outfielder Curt Ford and catcher Steve Lake to the Phillies for outfielder Milt Thompson,
• Brunansky to the Red Sox for closer Lee Smith,
• outfielder Willie McGee to the Athletics for outfielder Felix Jose, third baseman Stan Royer, and pitcher Daryl Green,
• outfielder Felix Jose and utility player Craig Wilson to the Royals for infielder Gregg Jefferies and outfielder Ed Gerald,
• pitcher Mark Clark and shortstop Juan Andujar to the Indians for outfielder Mark Whiten,
• and Smith to the Yankees for pitcher Rich Batchelor.

“He made some fine trades,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz wrote following the end of Maxvill’s tenure. “But as he became more entrenched, he was less willing to take risks. Maxvill was passive at the worst moments: times when the Cardinals were desperate for a late-season tourniquet to stop massive bleeding. Maxvill’s idea of a daring rescue was Todd Burns.

“Maxvill also overrated his own player development system. He’d hyped it for years, proudly telling us how much money the Cardinals were spending on the farm. While Maxvill didn’t enjoy the freedom of being able to spend at will for free agents, he was given a generous budget for scouting and player development. But the Cardinals weren’t churning out any all-star caliber players, and that shortfall couldn’t be blamed on the brewery.

“Moreover, Maxvill was terrible PR for the Cardinals because he reinforced the organization’s arrogant image. When interviewed, he came across as defensive and hostile. He often made a point of declaring that he didn’t worry about what the fans (and media) think. Well, it’s OK to sneer when you’re on top, but you can’t continue to insult the paying customers when your team is in the tank and attendance is falling.”[13]

Maxvill served out the remainder of his Cardinals contract through 1995 doing some specialized scouting. Afterwards, he also scouted for the Yankees on a limited basis.

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[1] Neal Russo, “McDonald Quits As GM Of Cardinals,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 4, 1985.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Maxvill Back With Cards As GM,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 1985.

[3] Bob Broeg, “Maxie’s Forte: Doing Better Than Expected,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 1985.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Dal Maxvill Candidate For GM Post,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 23, 1985.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Dal Maxvill Candidate For GM Post,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 23, 1985.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Dal Maxvill Candidate For GM Post,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 23, 1985.

[7] “Baseball-Business Mix Boosts Maxvill,” The Sporting News, March 11, 1985.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Maxvill Back With Cards As GM,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 1985.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Maxvill Back With Cards As GM,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 1985.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Maxvill Back With Cards As GM,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 1985.

[11] Bob Broeg, “Maxie’s Forte: Doing Better Than Expected,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 1985.

[12] Rick Hummel, “Maxvill Accepts Fate ‘Like A Good Soldier,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 22, 1994.

[13] Bernie Miklasz, “Lamping’s First Big Decision Right On Mark,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 22, 1994.

The post How Dal Maxvill became Cardinals GM in 1985 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

The dichotomy between Magrane’s mound dominance and his relatively small win total still stands as the record for the fewest wins by an ERA champion in a non-strike-shortened season.

A former first-round draft pick out of the University of Arizona, Magrane raced through the Cardinals’ minor leagues, making his major-league debut as a 22-year-old in 1987. That season, he went 9-7 with a 3.54 ERA in 170 1/3 innings, finishing behind only Padres catcher Benito Santiago and Pirates pitcher Mike Dunne in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting.

Though Magrane sought to build upon that success early in 1988, he encountered early frustrations, receiving no decision in his first three starts before he was sidelined with a strained rib cage that kept him out until June. In his second start back, he earned his first win of the season, a 7-3 victory over the Pirates in which he allowed two earned runs over eight innings. It was the worst performance he would have in a win all season.

In July, Magrane made five starts, compiling a 1.75 ERA over 36 innings. In all five starts, he went at least seven innings while allowing two or fewer earned runs; nonetheless, he went 0-2 that month, dropping his season record to 1-4.

After dropping his first two starts of August, including a loss to the Phillies in which he allowed two runs (one earned) over eight innings, Magrane finally claimed his second win of the season on August 12. Wearing a T-shirt under his uniform that read, “Throw Strikes. Babe Ruth’s Dead,”[1] Magrane was dominant, throwing a complete-game one-hitter and striking out six in a 4-0 win over the Cubs.

“I thought it was going to take an effort like that to get over the hump,” he said.[2]

It proved to be Magrane’s only win that month. Incredibly, he went 1-4 in August despite posting a 2.03 ERA in 44 1/3 innings. As he entered the final month of the season, he had a 2.32 ERA over 18 starts, yet had just a 2-8 record to show for it.

With Magrane’s innings total beginning to pile up, it was becoming more and more likely that he would become eligible for the NL’s ERA crown. When asked by reporters, Magrane expressed mixed feelings about celebrating his ERA in an era when pitchers’ won-loss record was significant in measuring their success.

“I would rather have 15 victories and a 5-something ERA,” he said. “There’s really no barometer for a pitcher except wins. I’m not focusing on the ERA thing.”[3]

In another interview, he said, “I can’t lie, (it) would be nice. In the scheme of things, it doesn’t mean anything. Winning ballgames is what’s going to keep me here. I heard (Rick) Sutcliffe allude to it earlier this year. He said that there was no better feeling than to be out there in the ninth inning and get out with a win. That is your job.”[4]

Ultimately, pitching all nine innings was how Magrane earned his final three wins of the season. On September 2, he shut out the Astros over nine innings, allowing just three hits and two walks.

“That guy should be a 20-game winner,” Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog said after the game.[5]

Five days later, Magrane threw a complete-game shutout against the Phillies, scattering seven hits and three walks while striking out seven. It was his first home win of the season and the first time all year that he had won back-to-back games.

“The run support hasn’t been outstanding this year, but that certainly has made me a much better starting pitcher,” Magrane said. “I’m thinking more about things that can hurt me in a close game.”[6]

Magrane struggled in his next start against the Expos, then received no decision in his next two, including an eight-inning, one-run performance against the Mets. In his final start of the season, Magrane threw another complete game, this time holding the Pirates to one run on eight hits.

“I’m pleased because when I wasn’t hurt, I went out there and kept us in the game for seven, eight, nine innings,” he said. “That’s the earmark of a good starting pitcher. I know I’m going to be involved in a lot of low-scoring games as long as I’m a Cardinal, so I have to do the little things that can help me – like quickening my move to home plate.”[7]

The win improved Magrane’s record to 5-9 and lowered his ERA to 2.18. That placed him .05 below David Cone of the Mets and .07 below John Tudor, who had been traded to the Dodgers a few weeks earlier. Both Cone and Tudor still had regular-season starts upcoming. If Cone threw five scoreless innings against the Cardinals, he once again would pass Magrane.

“Right now, I don’t think my chances of keeping it are very good,” Magrane said.[8]

Herzog said he would use Magrane in the Cardinals’ regular-season finale against the Mets if the Cardinals southpaw fell behind in the ERA race, but Magrane said he didn’t want to pitch again solely to try and win the ERA title.

“I would prefer that things like that be accomplished on things done during the season, and not ducking in for one or two innings,” he said. “I’d say that more than likely this was my last start.”[9]

It proved to be a non-issue. Though Cone shut out the Cardinals through the first five innings of his start on September 30, the Cardinals scratched across two runs in the sixth inning and Cone finished the season with a 2.22 ERA, .04 behind Magrane.

The Dodgers’ Orel Hershiser finished the year with a 2.26 ERA, Tudor was fourth with a 2.32 ERA, and the Reds’ Jose Rijo posted a 2.39 ERA to rank fifth among National League hurlers. While the win over the Cardinals marked Cone’s 20^th of the season, Hershiser finished with 23, Rijo won 13 games, and even Tudor – who spent most of the season with the same Cardinals offense as Magrane – won 10.

“I would like to have gotten a lot more offensive support this year, but it could be a different case next year,” Magrane said. “I could have 15 wins and a 5.00 ERA and I’d be more than pleased with that.”[10]

Three of Magrane’s five wins that season came via shutout. In his other two wins, he allowed one and two runs.

“I’m more than satisfied with this,” Magrane said before adding, “I’m more than relieved that the season is over.”[11]

Magrane did get better run support in 1989, as he went 18-9 with a 2.91 ERA. He finished tied for fourth in that year’s NL Cy Young Award voting.

After such a promising start, however, arm injuries derailed Magrane’s career. He went just 10-17 with a 3.59 ERA in 1990, then missed all of the 1991 and most of the 1992 season with injuries. He never regained his previous form, posting a 4.97 ERA in 1993 before the Cardinals released him.

In six seasons for the Cardinals, he went just 51-54 despite posting a 3.34 ERA. Following his retirement in 1996, Magrane became a broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Rays and the MLB Network.

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Magrane One-hits Cubs,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 13, 1988.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Magrane One-hits Cubs,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 13, 1988.

[3] John Sonderegger, “Magrane Keeps Throwing 0’s,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 9, 1988.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Makes Do With Two,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 4, 1988.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Makes Do With Two,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 4, 1988.

[6] John Sonderegger, “Magrane Keeps Throwing 0’s,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 9, 1988.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Takes Lead In Race For ERA Title,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 30, 1988.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Takes Lead In Race For ERA Title,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 30, 1988.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Takes Lead In Race For ERA Title,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 30, 1988.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Takes Lead In Race For ERA Title,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 30, 1988.

[11] Rick Hummel, “Magrane Takes Lead In Race For ERA Title,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 30, 1988.

The post How Joe Magrane won the 1988 ERA title with just five wins first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

In Game 7 of the 1985 World Series, that bomb finally detonated. Pitching in relief with the Cardinals trailing 9-0, Andujar blew up at home plate umpire Don Denkinger, who one night earlier had missed a crucial call in the Cardinals’ 2-1 Game 6 loss. Andujar was ejected from the game, fined by the commissioner and – less than two months later – traded to the Athletics for catcher Mike Heath and pitcher Tim Conroy.

Even before they obtained Andujar in a trade with the Astros in 1981, the Cardinals had been warned that Andujar could be a one-of-a-kind personality. In a pre-trade discussion with Whitey Herzog, Houston manager Bill Virdon had shared a story from earlier that season, when Andujar took his turn in the rotation and then, after the next two games were rained out, insisted that he should start the next game.

Virdon, whose staff also included Nolan Ryan, Vern Ruhle, J.R. Richard, and Joe Niekro, was flabbergasted. “The other four guys ain’t even been out to the mound yet and he thinks it’s his turn!” Virdon told Herzog. “Whitey, I’m telling you. This guy is out of his mind.”[1]

Andujar was no easier for Herzog to manage, but the Cardinals manager found ways to satisfy his high-strung ace.

“He’d steam through the clubhouse: “I’m pissed, Whitey, I’m pissed!” Sonofagun was always worked up about something,” Herzog wrote in 1999. “I almost never knew why he was pissed and mostly had no desire to find out. I’d say, ‘Pissed, huh, Goombah? Come on by my office at five o’clock, and we’ll talk about it.’

“‘Okay, Whitey,” he’d say, and he’d stomp off mumbling to himself en Español. Well, five o’clock would roll around, and I’d see him on his way out the door. I’d buttonhole him: ‘Hey Goombah, wanna talk?’ He’d look at me like he barely knew who I was, think for a second, then remember. ‘Oh, no thanks, Skip,’ he’d say. ‘I’m not mad anymore!’ And happy as a lark, he’d go home. … If I just showed him I noticed, let him blow off steam and waited for him to cool down, we made a hell of a pair.”[2]

Herzog found that a similar strategy helped him overcome one of Andujar’s greatest pet peeves – being removed from a game.

“When he’d lost his stuff, I’d go to the hill, put my hand right on his shoulder and say, ‘Hey, Goombah, great job. Gimme the ball, and I’ll see you Tuesday,’” Herzog recalled. “‘Okay, Whitey,” he’d say with a big smile. ‘See you Tuesday!’ And he’d stride off to the showers like a proud son. It wasn’t logical. Joaquin already knew he was pitching Tuesday. He knew he’d pitched great. But he like to hear me tell him when he was pitching again. He liked to hear me tell him how good he was.”[3]

Under Herzog’s guidance, the mercurial pitcher certainly was good. Andujar won 15 games in his first full season in St. Louis in 1982, then won two more in the World Series – including Game 7 – to help the Cardinals win the championship. Andujar suffered through a 6-16 season in 1983 but he bounced back in style, leading the league in wins (20), innings pitched (261 1/3), and shutouts (four) in 1984. It could have been termed a career year, but he was just as good in 1985, going 21-12 with a 3.40 ERA over 269 2/3 innings.

ANDUJAR EXPLODES IN GAME 7

As Andujar emerged as one of the National League’s best pitchers, however, his temper once again sabotaged him. Just one day after umpire Don Denkinger missed a key call at first base in a 2-1 Royals Game 6 win, Denkinger was behind the plate and the Cardinals were getting blown out, 9-0. With his bullpen running on fumes, Herzog called on Andujar to pitch in relief. He never recorded an out.

Denkinger called Andujar’s first pitch a ball, and the pitcher gestured with his hand, either indicating that he believed the pitch was high or, as Herzog suggested, asking whether the pitch was high.[4] Either way, Denkinger said something to Andujar, prompting Herzog to jump out of the dugout to defend his pitcher and get himself ejected in the process. Andujar threw one more pitch, Denkinger called it a ball, and Andujar charged the umpire.

When the dust settled, Andujar was ejected as well and found himself in the clubhouse with Herzog. “I’m in the clubhouse minding my own business, having a nice cold Michelob, when who should come huffing and puffing in the door but Goombah himself. Denkinger threw him out too!” Herzog recalled. “That was the only time I ever had a beer with one of my pitchers before the game was over.”[5]

Major League Baseball was embarrassed by the scene, as Andujar became the first player kicked out of a World Series game since Reds pitcher Clay Carroll in 1970. In response, commissioner Peter Ueberroth gave Andujar a 10-game suspension to be served at the beginning of the 1986 season.

“The brewery was embarrassed, too,” Herzog wrote. “It’s been reported that (general manager Dal Maxvill) and I were ordered to trade Joaquin, and I won’t deny that. I will say, though, that he might well have been traded anyway. The other players were tired of his griping and his bitching, and it had gotten to the point where he was dividing the clubhouse.”[6]

Adding to Andujar’s troubles, he faced even more severe potential punishment after former Cardinal Lonnie Smith identified him as a cocaine user during that summer’s drug trials in Pittsburgh.

CARDINALS TRY TO STRIKE A DEAL WITH BOSTON

At the 1985 winter meetings, the Cardinals proposed a trade with Boston that would have sent four Redbird pitchers to the Red Sox for lefthander Bruce Hurst.

Hurst, 27, was coming off his third consecutive season of double-digit wins, going 11-13 with a 4.51 ERA over 229 1/3 innings. His 189 strikeouts that season ranked second in the American League, and he was considered to have one of the circuit’s best curveballs.

In exchange, the Cardinals offered the Red Sox Andujar, Jeff Lahti, Rick Horton, and Kurt Kepshire.

“It was a typical Whitey Herzog deal,” Red Sox general manager Lou Gorman said. “It was more than legitimate and almost overwhelming. But there were so many considerations involved that you couldn’t do it in a matter of a few hours.”[7]

In the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, reporter Rick Hummel outlined just a few of the considerations Gorman and the Red Sox likely were considering.

“If the offer of Andujar, Jeff Lahti, Rick Horton, and Kurt Kepshire for Hurst can be believed, it was a substantial one,” Hummel wrote. “However, some of those pitchers may not have particularly strengthened the Red Sox, who already have a righthanded reliever they are paying $1 million a year in Bob Stanley and a righthanded starter, Al Nipper, who probably is at least the equal of Kepshire. It was conceivable the Red Sox thought that Andujar might not win any more games pitching for them than Hurst, who was 11-13 last season.”[8]

Meanwhile, the Cardinals were declining trade proposals of their own. Though they needed a starting catcher after Darrell Porter left via free agency, they declined Philadelphia’s offer of Ozzie Virgil for Van Slyke and Horton, then turned down another proposal that called for St. Louis to send Van Slyke, Horton, and Lahti to Philadelphia for Virgil and former Cardinals pitcher John Denny.[9]

Instead, in their trade with the A’s, the Cardinals found another answer to their need for catching – one that didn’t require them to give up Van Slyke or any additional pitching. On December 10, 1985, the Cardinals traded Andujar to the Athletics for catcher Mike Heath and pitcher Tim Conroy.

Heath had been a second-round draft pick of the Dodgers out of his Tampa, Florida, high school in 1973. Now heading into his age-31 season, Heath had spent the past seven years with the A’s. In addition to catching, he also played third base and the outfield.

“Heath was the only front-line catcher we could get without giving up any of our front-line outfielders,” Herzog said. “Now I like our lineup, I like our bench, and I feel we have enough pitching depth to overcome the loss of Andujar.”[10]

Heath hit .250/.313/.408 with 13 homers and 55 RBIs in 1985 and threw out 35% of would-be base stealers in 1985 (by comparison, Cardinals catchers threw out 23%). The year before, he posted career highs with 13 homers and 64 RBIs.

By the end of the season, however, Heath’s relationship with the A’s had run its course. That summer, controversy had ensued when Heath failed to run out a ground ball. The catcher attributed the incident to a sore foot, but A’s management didn’t seem convinced. The Oakland Tribune also reported that A’s pitchers complained of Heath’s game calling.[11]

The charges of a lack of hustle were ironic, given that Heath had built his career around his reputation as a fearless and emotional competitor.

“When Mike Heath steps onto the field, his No. 1 objective is to win,” Heath said, speaking of himself in the third person. “No. 2 is to win and No. 3 is to win. With the A’s, No. 1 was being compatible and No. 2 was winning. When I joined the A’s from the Yankees, it seemed like they were going through the motions. I don’t want to hear after games that old pat-on-the-back stuff, that ‘we’ll get them tomorrow.’ Bull. I say we should get them today.”[12]

With Mickey Tettleton deemed ready to play a larger role after playing 78 games in 1985, the A’s told Heath that he would be the short side of a catching platoon in the upcoming season, getting his starts against lefthanded pitchers. In turn, Heath told the A’s that he wanted to be traded.

“I felt I was an everyday player and I felt I wouldn’t be happy there,” Heath said.[13]

Heath penciled in as the Cardinals’ new starting catcher ahead of the light-hitting Tom Nieto.

“This is probably the happiest day in my career, except for the first day when I signed with the Yankees out of high school,” Heath said. “It’s overwhelming to have the opportunity to play for a team like the Cardinals and I’m really honored to see that Andujar was the one traded for me. I’d like to have had a chance to work with him, but it makes me feel good that the Cardinals felt I was important enough to do something like that. They wanted to improve the position they felt they were weak in, and I know I’ll be able to do it.”[14]

In the 25-year-old Conroy, the Cardinals were getting a wild card. In 1983, Conroy started 18 of his 39 appearances, going 7-10 with a 3.94 ERA over 162 1/3 innings. While his stuff was impressive, he walked 98 batters compared to 112 strikeouts that season, and he had spent much of the past two seasons in the minors. In Triple-A Tacoma, Conroy went 11-3 and struck out 167 batters in 129 1/3 innings.

“He’s sneaky fast with a good breaking ball,” said Maxvill, who also indicated that the inclusion of Conroy had helped seal the deal for the Cardinals. “Anybody who strikes out 167 in that many innings has to be either sneaky or have a trick pitch.”[15]

When reporters reached Andujar in the Dominican Republic for his reaction to the trade, he expressed frustration with the St. Louis media and said they had made it impossible for him to continue playing with the Cardinals.

“I hope the change will be good for me,” he said. “I make my living in baseball, and I’ll go wherever they send me. I’m a competitor, and the proof is that I won 20 games the past two years. I’m very satisfied with the trade. There’s no problem.”[16]

In a column following the trade, Kevin Horrigan of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote that while he would treasure the memories of Andujar’s highs with the Cardinals, the relationship had run its course.

“Clearly, it was time to trade him in, and the suspicion here is that someone down at Anheuser-Busch made that perfectly clear,” Horrigan wrote. “The people at the World’s Largest Brewery were not willing to abide the World’s Goofiest Pitcher, and who could blame them? Andujar is an all-time front-runner. When he pitched well, he was the greatest, the Cardinals were the greatest, St. Louis was the greatest, you were the greatest. When things went badly, he still was the greatest but you and everything else – particularly you – were horse manure.”[17]

For the Athletics, who were desperate for pitching, Andujar represented a risk worth taking, even if he already was suspended for 10 games and could face even greater punishment in the wake of the drug trials.

“We came in with the purpose of adding a pitcher at the top of our rotation,” A’s general manager Sandy Alderson said. “We lost Don Sutton and felt we needed a pitcher who could pitch a substantial number of innings. We are fully aware of the 10-day suspension at the beginning of the season and it is not something we are happy with. We have made inquiries both with St. Louis, other administrative elements of major league baseball, and resources close to Joaquin. And if there is a suspension of more than 10 days, that is a risk we have to assume.”[18]

There was an argument to be made that Oakland was the perfect place for Andujar, whose next-door neighbor in the Dominican Republic, Alfredo Griffin, was the A’s shortstop. Athletics coach Ron Plaza, who spoke fluent Spanish, knew Andujar from their days in the Reds’ organization, and Andujar’s childhood hero, Juan Marichal, was an instructor in the A’s system.[19]

Oakland Tribune columnist Dave Newhouse wasn’t convinced, arguing that whatever the A’s issues were with Heath, those difficulties would be tenfold with Andujar.

“Heath’s only serious problem is that he wants to win,” Newhouse wrote. “Maybe he didn’t run out a ground ball, maybe he’s not alone. But no A’s player ever gave more to this team, day in and day out, in heart and dedication. … I want the A’s to win as much as anyone, but I suspect this trade may not work out – for Oakland. I sense that Whitey Herzog knows exactly what he has done in unloading Andujar, and that he feels he has outfoxed the A’s. He may be right.”[20]

Years later, Cardinals shortstop Ozzie Smith wrote in his autobiography that even as he expected the trade, he felt that it was a mistake.

“Joaquin got a bad rap from a lot of people, but it was his reputation that allowed him to be as good as he was,” the future Hall of Famer wrote. “When you come right down to it, he had a decent fastball, but not a great fastball. He had a decent slider, but not a great slider. His advantage was the threat he posed to hitters; here was this pitcher on the mound who could sometimes be wild, and it was that image that helped him succeed. We missed his talent and his demeanor in the clubhouse.”[21]

WHO WON THE TRADE?

The A’s caught a break when Andujar and six other players named in the Pittsburgh drug trials received season-long suspensions that were reduced to anti-drug donations and community service.

That season, Andujar went 12-7 with a 3.82 ERA over 155 1/3 innings. His 12 wins ranked second on the team to Curt Young, who posted a 13-9 record. In 1987, injuries limited Andujar to just 13 starts and he finished the season with a career-worst 6.08 ERA.

That offseason, Andujar returned to the Astros as a free agent, where he was slated to pitch out of the bullpen. Due to injuries in the rotation, he made 10 starts and finished the year with a 4.08 ERA over 78 2/3 innings.

It proved to be his final major league campaign. Across 13 big-league seasons, Andujar compiled a 127-118 record with a 3.58 ERA. In his five seasons with the Cardinals, he went 68-53 with a 3.33 ERA.

Andujar’s time in Oakland was relatively subdued compared to Heath’s tenure in St. Louis. Heath opened the season with a 4-for-56 slump, then flipped the bird to fans at Busch Stadium and got into an altercation with another set of fans in San Diego. He also had an incident in the Busch Stadium parking lot in which he argued with an attendant until the police got involved. By July, Mike LaValliere had claimed the starting job.

“I’m trying to get my stuff together,” Heath said. “I’m out here taking extra batting practice every day. Think you’d read about that? No. I’m just buried every day in the papers here. I let the organization and the fans down, I know that. But it’s not like I haven’t tried.”[22]

In August, the Cardinals traded Heath to the Tigers for Ken Hill and a player to be named later. In September, the Tigers sent Mike Laga to St. Louis to complete the trade.

“He had a good spring training and then he didn’t hit anything down there in the last week,” Herzog said. “Then he got off to that 4-for-56 start. And then a lot of things happened and the fans wouldn’t let him forget it.”[23]

Conroy pitched two seasons for the Cardinals, going 8-13 with a 5.31 ERA over that span. He spent the entire 1988 season in Triple-A Louisville before he was released. He played one more season with the Pirates’ Double-A and Triple-A clubs before retiring.

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[1] Whitey Herzog and Jonathan Pitts (1999), You’re Missin’ a Great Game: From Casey to Ozzie, the Magic of Baseball and How to Get It Back, New York; Berkley Books, Page 156.

[2] Whitey Herzog and Jonathan Pitts (1999), You’re Missin’ a Great Game: From Casey to Ozzie, the Magic of Baseball and How to Get It Back, Berkley Books, Pages 157-158.

[3] Whitey Herzog and Jonathan Pitts (1999), You’re Missin’ a Great Game: From Casey to Ozzie, the Magic of Baseball and How to Get It Back, Berkley Books, Page 158.

[4] Whitey Herzog and Jonathan Pitts (1999), You’re Missin’ a Great Game: From Casey to Ozzie, the Magic of Baseball and How to Get It Back, Berkley Books, Pages 176-177.

[5] Whitey Herzog and Jonathan Pitts (1999), You’re Missin’ a Great Game: From Casey to Ozzie, the Magic of Baseball and How to Get It Back, Berkley Books, Pages 176-177.

[6] Whitey Herzog and Kevin Horrigan (1987), White Rat: A Life in Baseball, Harper & Row Publishers, Page 186.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Cards Deal Andujar To A’s For Heath,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Winter Meetings End; Rosters of 24 Likely,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 13, 1985.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Cards Deal Andujar To A’s For Heath,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Cards Deal Andujar To A’s For Heath,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[11] Kit Stier, “A’s obtain Andujar from Cards,” Oakland Tribune, December 11, 1985.

[12] Rick Hummel, “Heath Happy To Leave A’s,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[13] Rick Hummel, “Heath Happy To Leave A’s,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[14] Rick Hummel, “Heath Happy To Leave A’s,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[15] Rick Hummel, “Cards Deal Andujar To A’s For Heath,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 11, 1985.

[16] “Andujar Rips Sportswriters,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 13, 1985.

[17] Kevin Horrigan, “Trade-In Time,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 13, 1985.

[18] Kit Stier, “A’s obtain Andujar from Cards,” Oakland Tribune, December 11, 1985.

[19] Rick Hummel, “Winter Meetings End; Rosters of 24 Likely,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 13, 1985.

[20] Dave Newhouse, “A’s a contradiction,” Oakland Tribune, December 12, 1985.

[21] Ozzie Smith and Rob Rains (1988), Wizard, Contemporary Books, Page 144.

[22] John Sonderegger, “Cardinals Notebook,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 11, 1986.

[23] John Sonderegger, “Cardinals Notebook,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 11, 1986.

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