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.

The post Why Danny Cox beat up his ex-brother-in-law in 1985 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.

Enjoy this post? Then you’ll love The Trades That Made The St. Louis Cardinals, available now on Amazon!

[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.

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.

The post Why the Cardinals traded Joaquin Andujar in 1985 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

With two outs in the ninth and the Cardinals trailing by a run, Clark hit a three-run homer off Tom Niedenfuer on October 16, 1985, to give St. Louis a 7-5 win and a six-game series victory over the Dodgers.

In a game that featured two of the National League’s top pitchers that season in the Cardinals’ Joaquin Andujar (21-12, 3.40 ERA during the regular season) and the Dodgers’ Orel Hershiser (19-3, 2.03), the game came down to bullpens and managerial strategies.

Until Clark’s home run, the Dodgers had led the entire game. Mariano Duncan led off bottom of the first with a double, then scored on an RBI single by Bill Madlock. Duncan made it 2-0 with an RBI single in the second before Tom Herr answered with a run-scoring single of his own.

The Dodgers took a 4-1 lead in the fifth as Pedro Guerrero drove a run in with a sacrifice fly and Madlock followed with his third home run in three games.

In the seventh, the Cardinals evened the score as Willie McGee hit a two-run single that chased Hershiser from the game and Ozzie Smith followed with a triple off Niedenfuer to score McGee.

The following inning, the Dodgers appeared poised to reclaim the lead. Duncan led off with a triple, and after Cardinals reliever Todd Worrell got Ken Landreaux to pop out, Guerrero returned to the plate for the Dodgers. Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog opted to intentionally walk the big man even though that brought Madlock to the plate with runners on first and third.

The move paid off. Madlock hit into a 6-4-3 inning-ending double play.

“Well, the choice was to take two shots with a man on third to get two outs or shoot craps and hope to get a ground ball,” Herzog said. “Worrell made a good pitch and we were out of the inning.”[1]

“An amazing move,” Dodgers right fielder Mike Marshall said. “I thought Whitey would walk both guys (Guerrero and Madlock) to load the bases, but it worked this time.”[2]

Though Herzog’s machinations allowed the Cardinals to escape the seventh inning, Marshall led off the eighth with a solo home run that gave the Dodgers a 5-4 lead heading into the top of the ninth.

Niedenfuer opened the inning by striking out pinch-hitter Cesar Cedeno. McGee singled and Smith drew a walk, but when Tom Herr grounded out to Niedenfuer, the Cardinals had just one out remaining with Clark coming to the plate. Los Angeles manager Tommy Lasorda suddenly had a decision to make: with first base open, should he walk Clark and pitch to Andy Van Slyke?

On the one hand, Clark, whom the Cardinals acquired in a February trade with the Giants, had hit just one home run since he suffered a rib injury on August 23. In Clark’s last at-bat in the seventh inning, Niedenfuer had struck him out on three sliders.

On the other, Clark was the Cardinals’ primary source of home run power, having hit 22 homers and driven in 87 runs during the regular season, and he was hitting .350 for the playoffs. Van Slyke, meanwhile, was just 1-for-10 for the series and hitting .067 in the playoffs.

Lasorda chose to pitch to Clark.

“If I was Tommy Lasorda, I’d pitch to me rather than Jack Clark,” Van Slyke said. “When they started to pitch to him, I’m sure Jack’s eyes got three inches wide. He must have lit up inside.”[3]

After striking out Clark with sliders two innings prior, Niedenfuer figured that Clark would be looking for that pitch again.[4] Instead, he opened the at-bat with his best pitch, a fastball.

He was right – Clark wasn’t looking for that pitch. He hit it anyway.

“Maybe I wasn’t expecting them to walk me intentionally,” Clark said, “but I thought they might at least try to work around me. Maybe some pitches away, but not a fastball in on me.”[5]

“Tommy may have been a little too pumped up, but he’s got a lot of heart and he was going after Clark with everything he had,” Dodgers catcher Mike Scioscia said. “You’ve got to give Clark credit.”[6]

The ball sailed about 20 rows into the left-field stands. Before it even landed, Clark turned to look at his teammates in the dugout.

“I knew it was gone,” he said. “It didn’t matter where it landed. I just wanted to see my teammates’ reactions, because it was for all of them, for Whitey, for my mom and father, for my wife and two children, and last of all for me.”[7]

Clark wasn’t the only one to know it was a home run well before it landed.

“That would have had to hit the blimp and come back down to stay in the ballpark,” said Niedenfuer, who also had allowed Smith’s game-winning homer in Game 5. “He must have hit it 500 feet.”[8]

“As soon as I heard the ball hit the bat, my ears were ringing,” said Van Slyke. “The ball looked like a laser beam.”[9]

“There’s a particular sound that his home runs make – a bat-meeting-ball sound that can’t be described, but one which tells you this is a Jack Clark home run,” added Tito Landrum. “Today, if you were listening, you heard that sound.”[10]

“You can look at it on the replay,” Terry Pendleton said. “You’ll see him looking at us. Everybody knows it when Jack Clark hits a home run. He gave us the signal – ‘We got it.’”[11]

After Van Slyke flied out to end the inning, the Cardinals put the game in the hands of reliever Ken Dayley. Dayley retired the side in order, striking out Duncan and Enos Cabell before Guerrero flied out to McGee in center field.

“Oh man,” McGee said. “I didn’t think it would ever come down.”[12]

With the win in hand, the Cardinals celebrated in the Dodger Stadium visitor’s clubhouse. As the National League champions poured champagne over one another, the second-guessing regarding Lasorda’s decision to pitch to Clark was in full swing.

“My theory has always been if you have one guy making $1.3 million and another guy making $100,000, I pitch to the guy making $100,000,” Herzog said.[13]

He then admitted that if the Dodgers had walked Clark, he already planned to pinch-hit for Van Slyke.

“It’s easy to second-guess and I don’t mean to, because Tommy is an outstanding manager with good strategies, and I’m sure he’s got good statistics on Clark against Niedenfuer,” Herzog said, “but I was expecting him to bring in Jerry Reuss, walk Clark, and leave the decision up to me what to do. I would have used Brian Harper.”[14]

“I couldn’t figure it out,” Herr said. “Jack Clark’s the kind of guy that can hurt you, and the next guy hasn’t been having a good series. I felt great when I saw they were pitching to Jack.”[15]

The Dodgers’ Cabell said, “I was hoping they would pitch around him. Jack’s a home-run hitter and he can hit ‘em out of Yellowstone.”[16]

Both catchers were more forgiving of Lasorda’s decision.

“I don’t think it was the wrong choice at all,” Scioscia said. “I don’t think the pitch selection was bad either. I think Tom just tried to overthrow it. He was too pumped up and the ball went down the middle instead of outside, where we wanted it to go.”[17]

“I’m just glad I’m not a manager,” said Darrell Porter.[18]

In Los Angeles, the media reaction was clear – Lasorda had made a mistake.

“He should not have pitched to him,” wrote Mike Downey in the Los Angeles Times. “That’s all there is to it. He should have walked Jack Clark, or hit Jack Clark in the ribs with a change-up, or offered Jack Clark several billion dollars to leave the bat on his shoulder. Anything but pitch to him.[19]

“The easiest thing in the world is to second-guess,” Lasorda said. “But I’m the manager. I have to accept responsibility for my actions. The guy makes an out, I look good. But the guy hits a home run, and even my wife knows I should have walked him.”[20]

In St. Louis, Clark’s home run instantly joined Smith’s in Cardinals lore.

“They will be talking about this game for a long, long time,” wrote Kevin Horrigan in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “They will talk about it like they talk now about Enos Slaughter’s mad dash home in 1946. They’ll talk about it like they talk about Bob Gibson blowing down the Red Sox and the Tigers, like they talk about Lou Brock’s 118^th steal and like they talk about the Man named Musial. It is now part of the Cardinal legacy, a shiny memory to be brought out and cherished for as long as the Birds sit on the bat. Where were you when Jack Clark hit his homer?[21]

Facing the Royals in the World Series, the Cardinals initially continued their momentum, winning three of the first four games before Kansas City won Games 5, 6, and 7 to win the title.

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[1] Gordon Edes, “Dodgers Pitch to Clark … It’s His Pitch,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[2] Gordon Edes, “Dodgers Pitch to Clark … It’s His Pitch,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[3] Mike Smith, “Dr. Clark Provides Cures,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[4] Ron Cobb, “Niedenfuer Is Foiled Again,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[5] Mike Smith, “Dr. Clark Provides Cures,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[6] Ron Cobb, “Niedenfuer Is Foiled Again,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[7] Mike McKenzie, “Lasorda brings out second-guessers by pitching to Clark,” Kansas City Times, October 17, 1985.

[8] Ron Cobb, “Niedenfuer Is Foiled Again,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[9] Gordon Edes, “Dodgers Pitch to Clark … It’s His Pitch,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[10] Mike Smith, “Dr. Clark Provides Cures,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[11] Richard Hoffer, “Cardinals Had No Doubts That Clark Had Connected for the Big Blow,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[12] Kevin Horrigan, “Cards Savor Feeling After Clark’s Blast,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

[13] Mike McKenzie, “Lasorda brings out second-guessers by pitching to Clark,” Kansas City Times, October 17, 1985.

[14] Mike McKenzie, “Lasorda brings out second-guessers by pitching to Clark,” Kansas City Times, October 17, 1985.

[15] Mike Downey, “They Should Have Taken the Bat Out of Clark’s Hands,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[16] Mike Downey, “They Should Have Taken the Bat Out of Clark’s Hands,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[17] Gordon Edes, “Dodgers Pitch to Clark … It’s His Pitch,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[18] Mike Downey, “They Should Have Taken the Bat Out of Clark’s Hands,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[19] Mike Downey, “They Should Have Taken the Bat Out of Clark’s Hands,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[20] Gordon Edes, “Dodgers Pitch to Clark … It’s His Pitch,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1985.

[21] Kevin Horrigan, “Cards Savor Feeling After Clark’s Blast,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 17, 1985.

The post How Jack Clark homered to win Game 6 of the 1985 NLCS first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

After trading Keith Hernandez to the New York Mets in 1984 and allowing Bruce Sutter to leave for Atlanta via free agency, Cardinals fans feared that star shortstop Ozzie Smith, entering the last year of his contract, would be the next Redbird out the door. Reports indicated that the Wizard and the Cardinals were as much as $800,000 per year apart in their negotiations[1] and that Smith could be dealt to the Dodgers, Yankees, Mets, or Pirates.[2]

“I think obviously if we can’t sign him that there’s got to be some thought about trading him,” Cardinals chief operating officer Fred Kuhlmann said prior to the season.[3]

Meanwhile, the former ace of the Cardinals’ pitching staff, Bob Forsch, entered the season as the team’s fifth starter after a 1984 campaign that never got off the ground due a back injury. Forsch, who had won at least 10 games in each of the seven previous seasons, went just 2-5 with a 6.02 ERA in 1984 and required surgery in June that limited him to just 52 1/3 innings.

Forsch’s spring hadn’t been much better, as he lost his first four exhibition starts, allowing 12 earned runs in 15 innings.[4]

“Everybody has doubts,” Forsch said. “It doesn’t matter who it is. I haven’t been very dazzling down here.”[5]

On April 15, Smith, Forsch, and the Cardinals began to get the answers that would help carry the club to the National League pennant.

The day began with a press conference at Busch Stadium, where the Cardinals, who had won just once during a five-game, season-opening road trip, were set to play the Montreal Expos in their home opener. The Cardinals announced that they had signed Smith to a four-year extension worth $8.7 million. The deal, which Smith’s agent, Ed Gottlieb, said made Smith the highest-paid player in baseball, included primary consideration for an Anheuser-Busch wholesalership.[6] According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the contract included a $700,000 signing bonus, a $1.8 million annual salary for 1986 and 1987, and a $2.2 million annual salary for 1988 and 1989.[7]

“There was real doubt about whether I’d stay here, but my memories are here, we won a World Series (in 1982), my family is happy here,” Smith said. “I’m delighted to stay. I work hard at what I do, and I try to be sure people who come to the park get their money’s worth. Success and contracts like this one seem to go hand in hand.”[8]

“It’s a great deal, but he deserves every cent,” said Expos shortstop Hubie Brooks. “He’s an excellent fielder.”[9]

“If I’d known about this, I would have been a shortstop,” added Expos third baseman Tim Wallach.[10]

The contract made Smith something of an outlier – a player with a multimillion-dollar contract who was paid based on the value of his glove instead of his ability to hit home runs. While Smith hit just .257 in 1984 with one homer and 44 RBIs, he had won five consecutive Gold Glove awards and been on four straight all-star teams. He was coming off a season in which he had committed just 12 errors in 682 chances.

“He’s the best,” Expos catcher Steve Nicosia said. “If he saves you 150 runs a year, then it’s the same as paying somebody a lot to drive in 150.”[11]

Once the game started, it was Forsch who looked like a million bucks, retiring the first 11 Expos he faced. With two outs in the fourth inning, Andre Dawson doubled for Montreal’s first hit of the game and Dan Driessen singled before Forsch got Brooks to ground out. In the fifth, Vance Law hit a one-out single and, with the hit-and-run play on, Mike Fitzgerald doubled to bring home the first run of the ballgame.

St. Louis answered in the bottom half of the inning. Mike LaValliere walked and Smith singled to lead off the inning. Forsch laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance runners to second and third, and Tom Herr, who entered the game batting .400, hit a two-run single. Smith was called safe on a close play at the plate, drawing the ire of Expos starting pitcher Bill Gullickson, Fitzgerald, and Expos manager Buck Rodgers on home-plate umpire Jerry Dale.

“From where I stood he missed the plate by that much,” said Gullickson, holding his hands about a foot apart. “It was a pretty dumb call.”[12]

Terry Pendleton followed with an RBI single to make it 3-1 after five innings.

The Cardinals rallied for three more runs in the sixth. Jack Clark led off with a single, chasing Gullickson from the game. With Dan Schatzeder now on the mound, Brian Harper doubled. Clark scored on a groundout by Andy Van Slyke and LaVallierre hit a sacrifice fly that scored Harper, who bowled over Fitzgerald on the play at the plate.

Smith struck the game’s final blow with a solo home run that made the score 6-1. Smith, whose only home run of 1984 also had come in the Cardinals’ home opener, received a standing ovation from the crowd of 42,986.

“The people here have always treated me and my family well,” Smith said. “It makes you want to go out there and perform that much better for them.”[13]

Tom Herr, Smith’s double-play partner, said, “He’s the kind of player who rises to the occasion, but the thing I like about him is that, sure, he had a good game tonight, but he plays hard every night. It’s a lift for the other guys because of his intensity.”[14]

Forsch held the Expos in check in the game’s final innings with the assistance of outstanding outfield play. After Law singled with one out in the seventh, Fitgerald hit a line drive into right field. Van Slyke made a diving catch, then doubled up Law at first base. An inning later, center fielder Willie McGee caught a fly ball from Tim Raines and threw out Miguel Dilone trying to score from third.

“The play of the game,” Forsch said.[15]

McGee strained a muscle in his left thigh during the game, an injury that led the Cardinals to call up speedster Vince Coleman to make his major-league debut a few days later.[16]

In the ninth, Forsch retired Driessen, Brooks, and Tim Wallach in order for his first nine-inning complete game since September 26, 1983, when he no-hit the Expos.

“People have written off Bob Forsch,” Smith said. “He proved he’s still capable of throwing. Anything we get from him is gravy.”[17]

Forsch scattered eight hits on the night without walking a batter.

“It’s been so long since I was around when the game was over,” Forsch said. “I’m really happy the way things went tonight. The guys made some great plays. Mike Lavalliere called a really good game. And six runs – we get that every time, we’re gonna win a lot of ballgames.”[18]

Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog agreed.

“We played good,” he said. “God Almighty, we played good.”[19]

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie, Cards At Odds On A New Contract,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985: E1

[2] “Rumors Abound On O. Smith Deal,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 4, 1985: D1.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Trade ‘Possible’ For Ozzie Smith,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 1, 1985: C1.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Forsch Goes 6, Finds His Solace,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 7, 1985: 5G.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Forsch Goes 6, Finds His Solace,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 7, 1985: 5G.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Intoxicating: Ozzie’s $8.7 Million Deal Called Baseball’s Richest,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, April 16, 1985: A1.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Intoxicating: Ozzie’s $8.7 Million Deal Called Baseball’s Richest,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, April 16, 1985: A6.

[8] Brian Kappler, “Wizard of Ozzie discovers pot of gold over Cards’ rainbow,” Montreal Gazette, April 16, 1985: F1.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie’s HR Helps Cards Win,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C2.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie’s HR Helps Cards Win,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C2.

[11] Brian Kappler, “Wizard of Ozzie discovers pot of gold over Cards’ rainbow,” Montreal Gazette, April 16, 1985: F1.

[12] Brian Kappler, “Cardinals look impressive in handing loss to Expos,” Montreal Gazette, April 16, 1985: F2.

[13] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie’s HR Helps Cards Win,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C1.

[14] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie’s HR Helps Cards Win,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C1.

[15] Brian Kappler, “Cardinals look impressive in handing loss to Expos,” Montreal Gazette, April 16, 1985: F2.

[16] Tom Wheatley, “Coleman Express Arrives At Busch,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 18, 1985: D1.

[17] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie’s HR Helps Cards Win,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C1.

[18] Tom Wheatley, “Forsch: I Never Lost Hope,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C2.

[19] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie’s HR Helps Cards Win,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 16, 1985: C1.

The post How Ozzie Smith signed a new contract, then homered in the Cardinals’ 1985 home opener first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

“Call it a 3,000-to-1 shot,” Rick Hummel wrote in the next day’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “That’s nearly how many at-bats Ozzie Smith had in the major leagues without hitting a home run lefthanded.”[1]

Los Angeles Times scribe Gordon Edes wrote that, “Ozzie Smith, the only man alive with a $2 million glove, turned his bat to gold with one swing.”[2]

Fellow L.A. Times writer Mike Downey added Smith’s Babe Ruth imitation “was the last thing anybody expected, seeing as how Smith is approximately the size of Babe Ruth’s bat.”[3]

Smith and the Cardinals entered Game 5 with momentum on their side. The Dodgers won the first two games of the series before the Cardinals stormed back with 4-2 and 12-2 wins. Smith entered Game 5 batting .438 (7 for 16) for the series, and after batting eighth in the lineup for the first three games, Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog moved him up to the second spot in the order ahead of Game 4.

Smith was coming off a regular season in which he hit .276 with six homers and 53 RBIs, all career highs.

“I’ve felt all along that I was a much better offensive player than I was given credit for,” Smith said. “Just because I didn’t have a high average, people were thinking I couldn’t hit. This year, I did hit for a high average.”[4]

With lefthander Fernando Valenzuela taking the mound for the Dodgers in Game 5, Herzog again slotted Smith in the second spot between Willie McGee and Tom Herr. It didn’t take long for the lineup to pay dividends.

After a scoreless first inning from Cardinals starting pitcher Bob Forsch, McGee and Smith drew back-to-back walks. After Smith walked on four pitches, Herr jumped on the first pitch he saw, smacking a double that scored both base runners and gave St. Louis a 2-0 lead.

The Dodgers tied the score in the fourth when center fielder Ken Landreaux hit a leadoff single. Two batters later, Bill Madlock tied the game with a home run. Forsch then walked Mike Marshall, and Mike Scioscia reached on catcher’s interference. After Forsch hung a pitch to Greg Brock and it was smashed foul, Herzog turned to relief pitcher Ken Dayley.

With the left-handed Dayley on the mound, Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda called upon the right-handed-hitting Enos Cabell to pinch-hit. The matchup didn’t pay off, however, as Dayley got Cabell to hit into a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning and keep the game tied, 2-2.

“If we didn’t win this game, I didn’t think we had a chance,” Herzog said. “I wanted (Dayley) to get to the seventh inning. It worked like we hoped it would, not like I knew it would.”[5]

As the Cardinals stranded two runners apiece in the fourth and fifth innings, Dayley did exactly as Herzog hoped. After Scioscia led off the seventh inning with a walk and Cabell singled, Herzog again made a pitching change, this time turning to rookie Todd Worrell. After falling behind in the count 3-and-0, Worrell struck Steve Sax out. He then retired the next five hitters before Jeff Lahti entered the game for a perfect ninth inning.

Valenzuela left the game for a pinch-hitter after eight innings, having allowed just two runs while working around four hits and a playoff record eight walks. Despite his control issues, Valenzuela allowed just two hits after the second inning.

In his place, Lasorda called upon Tom Niedenfuer, a 6-foot-5, 225-pound righthander who had posted a 2.71 ERA in 106 1/3 regular-season innings.

Niedenfuer opened the inning by getting McGee to fly out to the infield. After Smith took a big swing on strike one and swung through strike two, longtime Post-Dispatch sports editor Bob Broeg nudged Cardinals staffer Paul Faulks in the press box.

“Criminy, Paul,” he exclaimed. “Oz looks as if he’s trying to hit a home run.”

Faulks laughed in response. Broeg continued: “Left-handed, he could stand on second base and couldn’t hit a home …”[6]

Even as Broeg spoke, Niedenfuer threw Smith an inside fastball that appeared to be off the plate. The all-star shortstop turned on it, pulling it over the right-field wall to win the game.

“I’m a line-drive hitter,” Smith said. “That’s what I do. If I was 6-3 and 220 pounds, I’d try to be a power hitter. Who the hell wouldn’t? But I’m 5-9 and 155, and I have to work for what I get, so I try to hit line drives. In fact, I tried to hit a line drive in the ninth inning, but nobody’s perfect.”[7]

Niedenfuer said he was looking to jam Smith inside after throwing three consecutive outside pitches.[8]

“I thought it would be on the warning track,” Niedenfuer said. “It’s just one of those things. I have to put it out of my mind and look ahead to the future. Let’s give Ozzie some credit, too. He’s really improved left-handed, and he got around on my fastball today.”[9]

Niedenfuer wasn’t the only one surprised by Smith’s blast.

“You don’t think he’s going to hit one lefthanded or righthanded,” Cabell said.[10]

Dodgers pitcher Orel Hershiser said, “He’s the type of hitter that Buff (Niedenfuer) usually knocks the bat out of his hands.”[11]

Perhaps the only witnesses who thought Smith had a chance to pull the ball out of the yard were Herzog and Cardinals pitcher Joaquin Andujar.

“The little midget is a strong little guy,” Andujar said. “He’s stronger than people think.”[12]

In the postgame media scrum, a reporter asked Herzog what he was hoping Smith would do during his ninth-inning plate appearance.

“I’m hoping he hits one out,” Herzog replied.

“But Ozzie had never hit one out lefthanded in his life!” the reporter exclaimed.

“I know,” said Herzog. “I’ve been hoping for five years.”[13]

As Smith crossed home plate, he was mobbed by his teammates, including rookie outfielder Vince Coleman, who threw aside his crutches to join in the celebration. One day earlier, Busch Stadium’s automated tarp had run over Coleman’s leg. The injury would keep him out of action for the remainder of the postseason.

In all the excitement, however, Cesar Cedeno kept his head.

“I wanted to be sure he touched that plate, so I grabbed his leg and put his foot on it myself,” Cedeno said.[14]

Smith’s home run proved to be the biggest blow in the series. Two days later, the Cardinals beat the Dodgers 7-5 to claim the National League pennant and set up a historic World Series matchup against the Kansas City Royals.

“To get beat on a home run by Ozzie Smith,” lamented Lasorda. “That’s unbelievable.”[15]

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Longshot Ozzie Pays Off,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[2] Gordon Edes, “Cardinals Take the Yellow Brick Road to L.A. – Oz’s Dramatic Home Run Tops Dodgers, 3-2,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1985.

[3] Mike Downey, “Ozzie Contributed a Little Pregame Jaz, Left-Handed Homer,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1985.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Longshot Ozzie Pays Off,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Longshot Ozzie Pays Off,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[6] Bob Broeg, “Hero Ozzie Is Unlikely But Deserving,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[7] Mike Downey, “Ozzie Contributed a Little Pregame Jaz, Left-Handed Homer,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1985.

[8] Bob Pastin, “Niedenfuer: I’m The Goat,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Longshot Ozzie Pays Off,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[10] Bob Pastin, “Niedenfuer: I’m The Goat,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[11] Gordon Edes, “Cardinals Take the Yellow Brick Road to L.A. – Oz’s Dramatic Home Run Tops Dodgers, 3-2,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1985.

[12] Rick Hummel, “Longshot Ozzie Pays Off,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 1985.

[13] Mike Downey, “Ozzie Contributed a Little Pregame Jaz, Left-Handed Homer,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1985.

[14] Mike Downey, “Ozzie Contributed a Little Pregame Jaz, Left-Handed Homer,” Los Angeles Times, October 15, 1985.

[15] Frank Blackman, “Lasorda’s moves – or non-moves – backfire,” San Francisco Examiner, October 15, 1985.

The post Ozzie Smith, Cardinals go crazy with walk-off homer first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

On May 21, 1985, the rookie outfielder hit his first career homer, Willie McGee stole three bases, and Ricky Horton threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings of relief to lift the Cardinals to a 6-3 win over the Braves.

The Cardinals had gotten off to a slow start to the season, and their 14-0 March 20 win over the Braves in the series opener only improved their record to 17-19. Though the Cardinals were intrigued by what Coleman could bring to their offense, they didn’t bring him up to the major-league club to start the season, instead opting to send him to Louisville to get playing time.

When McGee and Tito Landrum both went down with injuries just seven games into the season, however, Coleman was called up and immediately made an impact. By the time he and the Cardinals faced the Braves on May 21 in a matchup that pitted the Cardinals’ 6-foot-4, 235-pound right-hander Danny Cox against the Braves’ 6-foot-5, 225-pound Len Barker, Coleman already had stolen 28 bases, including two in his major-league debut and two more in the first game of the Braves series.

This time, however, though the Cardinals stole four bases in the game, Coleman made his impact with the bat.

After Coleman led off the game with a walk, Willie McGee scored him on a groundout and Jack Clark added a deep sacrifice fly to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead. In the second, Bob Horner turned on a high fastball and hit it 20 rows into the left-field seats[1] to cut the Cardinals’ lead in half.

One inning later, with the Braves shading him the opposite way, Coleman pulled a drive off the right-field wall. Atlanta right fielder Claudell Washington leaped for the ball but missed, and by the time he recovered, Coleman had raced around the bases. He crossed the plate standing up.

“I was surprised. I thought it was going to be caught at the warning track,” Coleman said. “Then I thought I was just going to get a triple, but I watched (third base coach Hal Lanier) and he was waving me home. I’ve got some pop. I didn’t know I had that much power.”[2]

It was just Coleman’s fourth home run in 1,382 previous professional at-bats, and his first inside-the-park homer.[3]

“I thought if the ball came off the wall and headed towards (Dale) Murphy that he had a chance,” Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog said, “but as soon as it hit the ball and rolled, I knew he had one inside the park.”[4]

Catcher Tom Nieto hit an RBI single in the fourth, but Horner struck again on another Cox fastball. This time he hit a two-run homer approximately 450 feet off a screen protecting the left-center field scoreboard,[5] reducing the Cardinals’ lead to 4-3.

“I hit them pretty good, didn’t I?” Horner said. “Those were two fastballs. I hit them hard, and that’s what I’m supposed to do.”[6]

After Cox allowed a single to Terry Harper and walked Glenn Hubbard, Herzog turned to Horton to record the final two outs of the sixth inning. When Horton struck out Albert Hall and got Washington to ground out with the bases loaded, he had inherited 14 baserunners that season without allowing a single one to score.

Horton followed with a scoreless seventh inning before the Cardinals added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the frame. Ozzie Smith and McGee began the two-out rally with singles before Jack Clark was intentionally walked. With Andy Van Slyke coming to the plate next, Braves manager Eddie Haas inserted left-handed pitcher Terry Forster.

Herzog countered with Tom Herr, who was out of the starting lineup with a mild hamstring injury. In his first pinch-hit appearance of the season, Herr came through with a two-run single that gave the Cardinals a 6-3 lead.

“I was very nervous up there,” Herr said. “I’m usually in the flow of the game. You don’t have much time to get ready as a pinch-hitter.”[7]

Haas said he knew that Herzog would use a pinch-hitter, but preferred to face anyone on the Cardinals’ bench instead of Clark.[8]

From there, the game was in Horton’s hands. After retiring the side in order in the eighth, Horton worked around a two-out single by Gerald Perry to earn the save. With the scoreless appearance, Horton’s ERA fell to 0.45. As St. Louis Post-Dispatch sportswriter Rick Hummel helpfully noted, Horton’s ERA was now lower than his career batting average of .058.

“If my ERA is under my batting average, I’ll be happy for the rest of my life,” Horton said. “I don’t think I’ll be a .200 or .300 hitter.”[9]

Horton, who had started 18 games in 1984, said he enjoyed pitching in relief.

“It’s kind of a new challenge,” he said. “It’s taken some adjustments, but everybody in the bullpen has helped me as far as when to get up and when not to throw. All it can do is increase my value as a pitcher if I can start and relieve.”[10]

Horton went on to post a 2.91 ERA in 89 2/3 innings, helping the Cardinals win the National League pennant.

Coleman was even more impressive, stealing a league-high 110 bases and scoring 107 runs on his way to Rookie of the Year honors. His injury when Busch Stadium’s automated tarp ran over his legs prior to Game 3 of the NLCS was a blow to the Cardinals’ offense. Though St. Louis defeated Los Angeles in the NLCS, the Royals beat the Cardinals in a seven-game World Series.

Coleman was inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2018.

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[3] Gerry Fraley, “Speed of Cardinals beats power of Braves’ Horner, Atlanta Constitution-Journal, May 22, 1985.

[4] Joe Mueller, “Familiar heroes spark Cards,” Belleville News-Democrat, May 22, 1985.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Horton Slams Door On Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 22, 1985.

The post May 21, 1985: Vince Coleman hits his first career home run first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

The trade was Dal Maxvill’s first as the Cardinals’ general manager. Hired on Feb. 25 to replace Joe McDonald, Maxvill inherited a standoff between Smith and the Cardinals heading into the final year of Smith’s contract. The same day that the Oquendo trade appeared in papers, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Smith and the Cardinals were as much as $800,000 per year apart in their negotiations. The Cardinals were believed to be offering $1.7 million per year over four years while Smith was asking for at least $2.5 million annually.[1]

“That’s part of it,” manager Whitey Herzog said in explaining the trade. “Not that I hope we don’t sign Ozzie.”[2]

The Cardinals originally intended for Angel Salazar to serve as Smith’s backup. The Cardinals drafted the 23-year-old from the Expos in January as compensation for losing Bruce Sutter to free agency. Salazar had played 80 games for the Expos in 1984 but hit just .155 with 12 RBIs in 184 plate appearances for the Cardinals.

“He’s got a better opportunity with the Mets than he had with us,” Herzog said. “He might end up being the Mets’ shortstop this year.”[3]

Salazar had been the Cardinals’ leading hitter in spring training, batting .421 at the time of the trade.[4]

“Salazar’s not a bad ballplayer,” Herzog said, “but I thought (Oquendo) was the second-best shortstop in the National League when we saw him.”[5]

After Salazar spent one minor-league season for the Mets in 1985, New York traded him to Kansas City, where he played two seasons before playing with the Cubs in 1988. He finished his five-year major-league career with a .212 batting average in 383 games.

Oquendo had made his major-league debut as a 19-year-old in 1983, batting .213/.260/.244 in 353 plate appearances. He opened 1984 as the Mets’ starting shortstop but yielded playing time to Ron Gardenhire and Rafael Santana after batting .222/.284/.249 in 81 games.

“I’m sure you know we didn’t get him for his bat,” Herzog said, but “I haven’t seen him play badly. Salazar’s not a bad ballplayer, but everybody in our organization thought Oquendo was better, and he’s 21, two years younger than Salazar.”[6]

“I read in the paper that they might trade Ozzie Smith,” Oquendo said. “I hope this means I get a chance. I think I can hit. I know I’m a better hitter than the last couple of years. When they put so much pressure on you it makes it hard on you.”[7]

Oquendo was out of options and the Cardinals planned to assign him immediately to the minors, allowing them to bring him up one time without placing him on waivers.[8] Herzog said the Cardinals might experiment with Oquendo as a switch-hitter, something the Mets tried but abandoned.[9]

“I don’t think this deal would have been made if he wasn’t out of options,” Herzog said.[10]

Davis, the other player the Cardinals acquired in the deal, was a 26^th-round pick out of California State University, Sacramento, in the 1984 draft. Playing for Little Falls in the New York-Penn League, he saved 22 games with a 2.54 ERA as a 21-year-old in 1985.

Davis played one season in the Cardinals’ minor-league system, posting a 3.98 ERA and 10 saves in 83 2/3 innings in 1985, before concluding his baseball career.

Four days after acquiring Oquendo, the Cardinals made another trade for a shortstop, sending left-handed pitcher Dave Rucker to the Phillies for shortstop Ivan DeJesus and veteran pitcher Bill Campbell.

“DeJesus is capable of playing every day right now,” Maxvill said. “He provides us a great backup to Ozzie and protection in case the negotiations do not prove fruitful. The fact that we picked up two shortstops in four days means something, but in Oquendo’s case, it’s downstream somewhere.”[11]

DeJesus’s arrival and Smith’s signing of a new four-year, $8.7 million contract less than two weeks later relegated Oquendo to the minors for the entire 1985 season. Though he hit just .211/.264/.245 for Triple-A Louisville, Oquendo returned to switch-hitting and hit .360 in the final month of the season.

“We had to make him pinch-hit,” Herzog said. “It was his only chance. He wasn’t going to make it in the big leagues as a .200 right-handed hitter. Switch-hitting would enable him to take advantage of his speed and give him another dimension. And he was young enough to still do it.”[12]

Oquendo continued to hit well in spring training and opened the 1986 season in the majors.

“He’s always had that good glove, and with Ozzie having shoulder problems, we wanted Oquendo around just in case,” Herzog said. “I always felt that with the Mets, he was second only to Ozzie as a fielding shortstop.”[13]

Though the Cardinals slumped in 1986, Oquendo enjoyed an offensive breakout, hitting .297/.359/.341 in 158 plate appearances. In addition to playing at both second base and shortstop, Oquendo became a valuable pinch-hitter off the bench.

“Who thought you’d ever see him sent up to pinch-hit in the biggies?” Herzog asked.

Oquendo appeared in 116 games in 1987, batting .286 with a .409 on-base percentage. After primarily playing the middle infield throughout his career, Oquendo made 46 appearances in the outfield, prompting Herzog to begin calling him the “secret weapon.” In addition to playing first base, second base, third base, shortstop, and left, center, and right fields, Oquendo even pitched an inning for the Cardinals. Over the course of his career, he played all nine positions.

In Game 7 of the NLCS, with the Cardinals leading 1-0 in the second, Oquendo hit the third home run of his career, a three-run shot off Atlee Hammaker that helped Cardinals win 6-0 and advance to the World Series.

With the trade of Tom Herr to the Twins early in the 1988 season, Oquendo became a regular in the Cardinals’ infield, particularly at second base, through the 1991 season. In the first game of the 1992 season, Oquendo suffered a hamstring injury that limited him to just 13 more games that season. He played a reserve role the remainder of his career.

After failing to make the club out of spring training in 1996, Oquendo retired, ending a 12-year major-league career that included 10 seasons in St. Louis. During his tenure with the Cardinals, he hit .264 with a .359 on-base percentage.

Despite his retirement, Oquendo didn’t stay out of baseball for long. In 1997, the Cardinals made him the manager of the New Jersey Cardinals in the New York-Penn League, beginning a coaching career that has spanned parts of four decades. He was inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2023.

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Ozzie, Cards At Odds On A New Contract,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get Oquendo From N.Y.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 3, 1985.

[11] Rick Hummel, “Cards Get DeJesus For Rucker,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 7, 1985.

[12] Bernie Miklasz, “In A Pinch,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 8, 1986.

[13] Bernie Miklasz, “In A Pinch,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 8, 1986.

The post Jose Oquendo: How the Cardinals got their secret weapon first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

At 6 p.m. on January 7, 1985, the secretary-treasurer of the Baseball Writers Association of America called to inform Brock that he had just been elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Lang himself had just finished counting the votes that afternoon in New York.[1]

“It doesn’t rank among baseball accomplishments as much as a high honor (of) my lifetime,” Brock said. “Baseball accomplishments are based on how you perform on the field. This is a reward for everything you have done. This is high and above, head and shoulders above the crowd.”[2]

Brock received 79.7% of the vote, becoming just the 20^th player in history to be inducted on their first ballot.

Earlier that day, Brock had said that waiting for that phone call was “like a guy waiting for a baby in the waiting room. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’ve done what I’m supposed to do – five years ago.”[3]

He was joined in the Class of 1985 by knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm, who received 83.7% of the vote in recognition of a 21-year major-league career.

Former White Sox second baseman Nellie Fox, in his final year on the ballot, received 295 votes, falling two votes shy of the 75% threshold. Fox had to wait until 1997 to be elected by the Veterans Committee.

Cardinals third baseman Ken Boyer received 68 votes, well shy of election but enough to keep him on the ballot for the next 15 years.

Born in El Dorado, Arkansas, and raised in Collinston, Louisiana, Brock played at Southern University before beginning his career with the Cubs. The left-handed hitter played two full seasons in Chicago before he was traded to St. Louis on June 15, 1964, alongside Jack Spring and Jack Toth for Ernie Broglio, Doug Clemens, and Bobby Shantz.

In 327 games with the Cubs, Brock hit a relatively average .257/.306/.383 with 20 homers, 86 RBIs, and 50 stolen bases. Things changed immediately when he arrived in St. Louis. Through the remainder of the 1964 season, he hit .348 with 12 homers, 44 RBIs, and 33 stolen bases.

With Brock providing a spark at the top of the lineup, St. Louis went 65-39 the remainder of the season to win the National League pennant by one game over the Reds and Phillies. In the World Series, Brock hit .300 with a home run and five RBIs to help the Cardinals defeat the Yankees in seven games.

In 1967 and 1968, Brock again helped to lead the Cardinals to the National League pennant. In the two World Series, Brock compiled 25 hits and batted .439, including a record 13 hits in the 1968 Fall Classic. Brock later pointed to the 1967 season as his best, as he hit .299/.327/.472 with 21 homers and 76 RBIs. His 113 runs scored and 52 stolen bases both led the league.

“I was second only to Hank Aaron in total bases (with 225) and I was fourth or fifth in the league in home runs,” Brock said. “The Cards won going away from the rest of the league. It was undoubtedly my best performance.”[4]

Brock continued to go strong in the 1970s. In 1974, the 35-year-old broke Maury Wills’ single-season record with 118 stolen bases. Three years later, he passed Ty Cobb’s career stolen base record.

He described his aggressive baserunning style as “baserunning arrogance.”

“Baserunning arrogance is just a factor which forces one out of a comfort zone,” Brock said. “It’s almost as if somebody is standing there turning up or down your thermostat. It’s not based on fear but on knowledge.”[5]

After a down season in which he hit just .221 and appeared in just 92 games in 1978, Brock bounced back for his final season in 1979, as he batted .304 and collected the 3,000^th hit of his career in 1979. Brock retired with 3,023 hits, 1,610 runs, 900 RBIs, and 938 stolen bases.

“Three thousand hits fuse your career,” Brock said. “They take you out of the category of a baserunner.”[7]

Hall of Fame voters clearly agreed. On July 28, 1985, Brock was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He and Wilhelm were joined by another Cardinal, Enos Slaughter, and posthumous honoree Arky Vaughan.

Brock was up at 5 o’clock in his hotel room that morning putting the finishing touches on his speech.[8] In his remarks, Brock spoke of the ray of hope baseball provided for a black boy raised in the Jim Crow era of the south.

“The first time I heard about the Hall of Fame, Jackie Robinson had just broken the color barrier and I was a 9-year-old boy growing up in a southern town,” Brock said. “During those days, as black players began to enter the big leagues, there were those who condemned that act by announcing to the world that baseball is turning into a black nightmare. But the world of baseball soon forgave them because they knew that those persons were merely acting upon borrowed attitudes.”[9]

For Brock, baseball was beamed into his home through KMOX radio in St. Louis and WLAC radio in Nashville, Tennessee.

“They were the cross-fertilization of culture in the days before the dominance of television, carrying the big-city words back to the sticks,” he said. “It is also important to remember that during the ‘50s, Jim Crow was king in the south and the blacks had very little opportunity to be in touch with their own experience.

“One summer night while searching the dial on our old Philco radio, I came across a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals. This game was being broadcasted by two broadcasters – one Harry Caray and Jack Buck. I was so overwhelmed by this game that I thought I had tuned into another world – a world of genuine expression of feelings in which life had no façade and that hurt and loneliness were not the natural price for being alive. Such a world was in total contrast to my surroundings.”[10]

That glimpse of a better world inspired Brock to attend Southern University, he said.

“I found it extremely difficult to explain why the pursuit of excellence and the desire to excel were very special to me,” Brock explained. “During the heydays of my career, I discovered that there are three factors which cause one to sustain any kind of success. The first one is the ability to put it all together. Many times you hear that expression but nobody ever tells you what exactly it means. Many players can run, many can hit, many can throw, but when they put it all together, the media refers to them as superstars.

“Determination was the other factor to remain at the top. One must believe that he could be the very best.

“The third factor that became very important to sustaining success was something called the support of the people. Many times I have said there is nothing like the roar of the crowd to start a rally or to give that player that extra edge, and today I would like to acknowledge some of those who were always in my corner, rooting for me as I tried to get that extra edge.”[11]

After thanking his family, Brock recognized his former high school baseball coach, Roosevelt Johnson.

“I never played under a coach until I was a junior, and in came a guy who had just finished college, a couple of years older than we were, and was about to tell us what to do,” Brock recalled. “He made a statement that I never forgot, and he said, ‘No one can make you feel inferior without getting your permission.’”

Next, Brock thanked his college coach, Emory Hines, and Buck O’Neill, the Cubs scout and former Kansas City Monarchs star who first signed him. From the Cardinals, he thanked August A. Busch, Jr., Fred Kuhlmann, and Jim Tooney.

“He had what you were looking for,” O’Neil said. “He had that great desire to succeed. This was his way to get out of the ghetto. You can scout all the God-given tools, but what does he have here?” O’Neil tapped the left side of his chest and said, “You don’t know until you put him under the fire.”[12]

Afterwards, Brock was asked how long it took him to write his 15-minute Hall of Fame speech.

“About 25 years,” he replied with a grin.[13]

[1] Rick Hummel, “Basepaths Were Brock’s Laboratory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 9, 1985.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Basepaths Were Brock’s Laboratory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 9, 1985.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Lou Brock Joins Hall Of Fame,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1985.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Basepaths Were Brock’s Laboratory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 9, 1985.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Basepaths Were Brock’s Laboratory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 9, 1985.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Basepaths Were Brock’s Laboratory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 9, 1985.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Basepaths Were Brock’s Laboratory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 9, 1985.

[8] Joe Donnelly, “Brock’s Dream Hits New Level,” Newsday, July 29, 1985.

[9] “Lou Brock delivers Hall of Fame induction speech,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_k_nHvRmxo.

[10] “Lou Brock delivers Hall of Fame induction speech,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_k_nHvRmxo.

[11] “Lou Brock delivers Hall of Fame induction speech,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_k_nHvRmxo.

[12] Joe Donnelly, “Brock’s Dream Hits New Level,” Newsday, July 29, 1985.

[13] Joe Donnelly, “Brock’s Dream Hits New Level,” Newsday, July 29, 1985.

The post January 7, 1985: Lou Brock is elected to the Hall of Fame first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

He had no idea that day would come just 8 ½ months later.

“You talk about a man with a future,” Herzog said following a March spring training game in which Coleman had two hits, including a two-run triple. “If the circumstances were right, we could take him and put him out there and he’d probably be Rookie of the Year.”^[1]

Two years earlier, Coleman had set a new professional baseball stolen base record with 145 thefts in the South Atlantic League. In 1984, he stole 101 bases at Triple-A Louisville, inspiring director of player personnel Lee Thomas^[2] and then-general manager Joe McDonald^[3] to compare him to Lou Brock.

Despite Herzog’s prediction, Coleman didn’t make the Cardinals’ opening-day roster. With Lonnie Smith, Willie McGee, and Tito Landrum in the starting lineup, the Cardinals deemed it best for Coleman to continue to develop in Triple-A.

Just a few days into the season, however, Landrum suffered a pulled abdominal muscle. Then McGee was pulled from the lineup with a strained left thigh muscle. Cardinals general manager Dal Maxvill called Coleman up to St. Louis, then called him into his office.

“Look Vince,” he said. “You’ve had a nice spring, but I want you to realize, right now, that you’re only going to be with us for about a week and then you’ll be sent to Louisville.”

“Yes, Mr. Maxvill, I understand,” Coleman replied politely, “but I want you to know that I’m going to be here the whole year.”

Maxvill smiled and praised Coleman’s confidence before pointing out once again that once McGee returned from injury, Coleman would be back in the minors.

“Yes, Mr. Maxvill, I understand,” Coleman said again, “but I want you to know I’m going to be here the whole year.”^[4]

In his major-league debut on April 18, Coleman singled, walked, and stole the first two bases of his career. He was off to the races.

In 151 games, Coleman batted .267 and stole a rookie record 110 bases. His 107 runs scored were the most by a National League rookie since Richie Allen scored 125 in 1964.^[5]

“Things just seemed to click when we brought Vince Coleman up,” said Tom Herr, who drove in a career-high 110 runs that season. “Before, we were kind of experimenting. With a natural leadoff hitter like Vince, and a guy like Willie McGee hitting behind him, it was like a smorgasbord for me all year long.”^[6]

With Coleman in the leadoff spot, the Cardinals won 101 games to claim the National League East crown. In the National League Championship Series, Coleman went 2-for-5 in Game 2, then added two more hits, two runs scored, and a stolen base in Game 3.

Prior to Game 4, however, Coleman’s postseason came to an abrupt halt when Busch Stadium’s automated tarp ran over his legs. Though the Cardinals initially were optimistic, a series of tests taken the day after St. Louis won Game 2 of the World Series showed a “bone flake” that had been torn from the rest of the bone. Coleman’s season was over.[7]

Without their star leadoff hitter, the Cardinals lost the Series in seven games.

“He was the catalyst of this team,” Herzog said. “Nobody saw the real St. Louis Cardinals in this series. We didn’t get into our game plan at all.”^[8]

 “It would have been different just because I would have been playing,” Coleman said. “Our team had become accustomed to me leading off all season. Then Willie had to lead off, and he wasn’t used to it. Then Ozzie (Smith) did it, and he wasn’t used to it. I can’t say whether we would have won or not if I had played, but I think we’ll bounce back next year. We’ll have the same personnel.”^[9]

On November 27, the Baseball Writers Association of America made Coleman the first unanimous rookie of the year since the Giants’ Willie McCovey in 1959. Coleman was the fourth unanimous rookie of the year in National League history, following the Reds’ Frank Robinson in 1956 and the Giants’ Orlando Cepeda in 1958.

Coleman also was the fourth Cardinal to win rookie of the year honors, joining Wally Moon (1954), Bill Virdon (1955), and Bake McBride (1974).

“This will be something that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life,” Coleman said. “At the end of my career, I’ll be able to look back at my rookie year and remember that I began the season at Louisville and worked hard to get to St. Louis and then won Rookie of the Year. That can only happen once for you, so I’ll cherish it forever.”^[10]

Reds pitcher Tom Browning received all 24 second-place votes, while Dodgers shortstop Mariano Duncan placed third.

“Vince is deserving,” Herzog said. “He’s one of the great all-time rookies, with his 110 stolen bases and the way he played in the outfield and the impact he had on our club.”[11]

Coleman said he was due to run again just a few days after winning the award.

“My leg is in great shape. I’m ready to race,” he said.[12]

Over six seasons, Coleman stole 549 bases for the Cardinals. Across his 13-year major league career, Coleman stole 752 bases. He retired with a .264 career batting average and .324 on-base percentage. In 2018, he was inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame.

“You don’t know how happy I am to be inducted to the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame,” Coleman said. “It’s a great organization. It’s a great city, and once you have worn a Cardinal uniform, you feel like royalty. I never knew what it was like to be loved by a city until I played here in St. Louis.”[13]

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Kepshire Optimistic On Cards’ Pitchers,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 13, 1985: E4.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Redbirds High On Coleman,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 4, 1984.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Birds Complete Hendrick-Tudor Deal With Bucs,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 13, 1984.

[4] Doug Feldmann, Fleeter Than Birds: The 1985 St. Louis Cardinals and Small Ball’s Last Hurrah, Jefferson, N.C.; McFarland & Company, Inc., 44-45.

[5] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[6] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Coleman Sidelined For Series,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 22, 1985.

[8] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[9] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[10] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[11] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[12] John Sonderegger, “ConVincing,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 28, 1985.

[13] Jennifer Langosch, “Trio inducted into Cardinals Hall of Fame,” https://www.mlb.com/news/cardinals-induct-three-into-hall-of-fame-c290895094, August 18, 2018.

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