Horton pointed to Herzog’s ability to make every player feel important, boosting their confidence and helping them understand their role on the club.

“You just felt like you were important,” Horton said, reflecting on Herzog’s inclusive management style that made every player feel vital to the team’s success, regardless of their role.

Ken Dayley shared insights into Herzog’s strategic use of the bullpen, a testament to his innovative approach to game management. Herzog communicated daily with his players, ensuring they knew their roles clearly, which helped them perform confidently under pressure.

“He would be the one to tell you that he always said good players make great managers,” Dayley said.

Horton shared a humorous account of how he learned that he made the Cardinals’ roster as a rookie. As spring training wound down, Herzog told coach Hal Lanier, who had managed Horton in the minors, that his final start would determine his fate: if he pitched well, he was on the club. If he didn’t, he was headed back to the minors to open the season.

Horton pitched well, but so did the player he was competing against for the final roster spot. At the urging of outfielder Andy Van Slyke, Horton entered Herzog’s office to ask his manager directly if he had made the team.

“I said, OK, I guess that’s how it works,” Horton said. “So I walk into his office and he comes around the corner fresh out of the shower, wearing nothing. And I said, ‘Hey, Whitey, I just want to know if I made the team.’ He said, ‘Yep.’ I said, ‘OK,’ and I ran right out. So that’s my moment that I’ve been waiting for my whole life. It’s a different kind of experience than I would have imagined, but still important to me.”

Herzog’s sharp mind for the game was legendary. He was known for his detailed player charts and was ahead of the game when it came to charting pitches, playing match-ups, and putting his players in a position to succeed.

“The algorithm was in the head of Whitey Herzog,” Horton said, noting that Herzog was effectively doing what modern analytics try to achieve but with a personal touch and an acute understanding of the game’s nuances.

“Back then, USA Today was the paper that we looked at,” Dayley said. “When teams were going to come in, you started looking at players and seeing how they were swinging the bat and if they were going good at the time, you had to pitch them a little more carefully. But you could also go to Whitey’s charts and say, ‘What happened with this guy or that guy?’ Coming out of the bullpen, you kind of know the three or four guys that you’re going to come in and face and you could see if you’d faced them before where they’d hit the ball.”

Dayley recalled in spring training in 1986, when Major League Baseball decreased the active roster size from 25 to 24 players, Herzog approached both him and Todd Worrell and told them to be sure to take fly balls in the outfield.

“He said, ‘Because they took my extra guy off the bench and sometime this year, I’m going to bring one of you in and then put you in right field while the other one pitches and then take him out and put you back on the mound,’” Dayley recalled. “Sure enough, it happened against the Dodgers. I remember Tommy (Lasorda) was sort of flipping a wig. He didn’t want to give Todd the warm-up pitches the second time back in and he delayed the game probably 20 or 25 minutes. But Whitey was thinking of that in spring training because the way he played and used his bench, he knew that that was going to affect his game.”

Horton and Dayley recalled that Herzog had just three simple rules for his players: be on time, play hard, and, “if you get thrown in jail, call me first.”

“You know, I thought that was interesting,” Horton said. “I wasn’t planning on needing that (last) one, but it was just good to know.”

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The post Whitey Herzog stories from Ricky Horton and Ken Dayley 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.

“I don’t like Horner,” the Cardinals manager said. “Of his lifetime homers, about 70% were hit in Atlanta. He never could hit in St. Louis. He can’t hit and he can’t field, and he wants $1.4 million for three years.”[1]

“I just don’t think (Horner is) the answer,” Herzog continued. “I don’t know what he’d hit in our ballpark. He’s a fly ball hitter. He never did hit much on the road. You play him 81 games in our ballpark and then in other ballparks and he’s got nothing left. He never plays when he’s hurt. I just don’t know.”[2]

In nine seasons with the Braves, Horner had hit 215 home runs. Of those, 142 (66%) came at the launching pad at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. He had homered once every 12.6 at-bats in Atlanta compared to just once every 24.6 at-bats on the road.[3]

The 1978 National League Rookie of the Year winner as a 20-year-old, Horner went directly to the big leagues out of Arizona State University and hit 23 home runs in 89 games. In 1980, he hit a career-high 35 homers, and in 1982, he appeared in the All-Star Game on his way to 32 homers and 97 RBIs.

Though he was productive when on the field, Horner was plagued by injuries. He suffered a season-ending right wrist fracture that cost him the final 43 games of the 1983 season, and in 1984, he played just 32 games before he broke his left wrist, once again ending his season.

Following the 1986 season, Horner and agent Bucky Woy asked for $2 million per season. They turned down a three-year, $4.5 million offer from the Braves and, after that offer was pulled off the table, declined a three-year, $3.9 million deal on the final day that free agents could re-sign with their teams without missing a month of the season.[4]

When no one else offered him a contract, Horner signed a $2 million deal with the Yakult Swallows of the Japanese League, where he hit 31 homers in 93 games (17 years later, Horner received more than $7 million from the players’ collusion lawsuit against the owners[5]).

Despite his success in Japan, Horner wanted to return home. After Clark signed with the Yankees on January 6, 1988, Cardinals general manager Dal Maxvill reached out to Woy, who told him that Horner was interested. However, Woy suggested that the Cardinals’ offer should match the $1.75 million they offered Clark.[6]

“Horner’s a better first baseman than Clark,” Woy said. “With the rabbits they’ve got there in St. Louis, he could drive in 130, 140, 150 runs. He’s a better contact hitter than Clark. I’m not knocking Clark, but Horner has a pure stroke.”[7]

Woy then told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “If Whitey likes him, I think we can cut a deal.”[8]

That was when Herzog listed his concerns with a potential Horner signing.

“I expressed to Bucky Woy that our interest is not high, to say the least,” Maxvill said. “Whitey doesn’t have a great deal of interest in him. He mentioned a lot of points, but he was most concerned with the money.”[9]

Instead, the Cardinals made a brief pivot to Twins third baseman Gary Gaetti, but he told the Cardinals that he wasn’t interested in moving to first base.[10]

Meanwhile, Horner, who was born in Junction City, Kansas, wasn’t ready to give up. He called Maxvill and Herzog to express his interest in playing for the Cardinals.

“I didn’t want to let this thing die,” Horner said. “I didn’t want to let it slip under my fingers.”[11]

Horner’s perseverance – along with his willingness to come down from his initial asking price and the Cardinals’ lack of viable alternatives – ultimately proved the difference.

“A week ago, I wasn’t so sure we would be able to put it together, but that changed when Bob called me and informed me of his desire to play for the Cardinals,” Maxvill said.[12]

On January 14, 1988, eight days after Clark signed with the Yankees, Horner became the first player the Cardinals had signed from another team since Darrell Porter more than seven years earlier. Horner had come down considerably from his initial demands, accepting a one-year, $950,000 contract with $150,000 bonuses to be paid for reaching 125, 130, and 140 games played. He would earn an additional $140,000 for being named to the all-star team or earning regular-season or playoff MVP honors.[13]

“A long time ago, my dad had a chance to try out with a Cardinals farm team, but it was set aside when he had to go back to the farm,” Horner said. “He’s always had a dream of me playing for the Cardinals. When the family hears about this, they’re going to go crazy.”[14]

Horner had chosen the Cardinals over a $900,000 offer from the Braves and $650,000 with incentives from the Rangers.[15]

“I didn’t think Dal and Whitey liked him that much,” Braves general manager Bobby Cox said. “I’m very shocked. I don’t understand it, but good for Bob. If that’s what he wants to do, fine. We’ll go on.”[16]

“Sayonara,” said Braves president Stan Kasten. “That’s fine for Bob. I’m glad he finally found a place where he can be happy.”[17]

Horner’s former teammate, Dale Murphy, was less caustic than Kasten in wishing Horner good luck in St. Louis.

“It’ll be a little different, but it’s good that a player of Bob’s talent will be back in the National League,” Dale Murphy said. “I was hoping Bob would come back with us, but he’s going to a good organization and a good city. I’m sure he’s excited.”[18]

Horner also turned down a three-year, $10 million contract from the Yakult Swallows.

“I’ve been in this business 23 years and I never thought I’d turn down $10 million,” Woy said. “Horner really wanted to get back.”[19]

“It’s been a dream of mine to play for the Cardinals,” Horner said. “This is an absolute perfect fit for me. It just makes all the sense in the world for me right now. I turned down a lot of money from Japan, but I’m glad for this opportunity.”[20]

Herzog said he planned to bat Horner cleanup, with either Tom Herr or Terry Pendleton ahead of him in the lineup.

“Right after I talked to (the Post-Dispatch), I said to myself that I’ve only seen him play in two ballparks,” Herzog said. “I’ve always known him as a lot better player in Atlanta than he was in St. Louis, but when I found out he wanted to get back and play and show me that he’s a lot better hitter than I thought he was, I thought we’d make a hell of a deal. I’m kind of looking forward to having a guy who wants to play and a guy who wants to hit in St. Louis. And we had to do something.”[21]

“One of Whitey’s concerns was the length of the contract,” Maxvill said. “When that changed, our interest increased a considerable amount.”[22]

Nonetheless, even after the Cardinals signed Horner, Herzog continued to express concerns about how Horner’s offensive skills would translate in St. Louis.

“I know he can put a charge into a ball, but sometimes when you play in a certain ballpark, people pitch you different,” Herzog said. “At Atlanta, we tried to jam him inside. If we put a fastball out over the plate, he’d hit homers to left center and right center. In our park, when we got to 2-0 and 3-1 in the count, we’d pitch him away. He’s got a good home-run swing, but will he be able to hit the ball out of the park in right-center and left-center field?”[23]

Meanwhile, Horner looked at the 1988 season as an opportunity to prove Herzog and others around the league wrong.

“If I go out there and have the kind of year I’m capable of having, I can see getting a three- or four-year deal,” Horner said. “Sometimes you’ve got to bite the bullet and stand up for yourself. I want to prove to all those teams that didn’t offer me a contract last year that they made a big mistake.”[24]

Cardinals reliever Ken Dayley had played alongside Horner in Atlanta from 1982 until he was traded to St. Louis in 1984.

“He can play, there’s no doubt,” Dayley said. “When he gets hot, he can carry a ballclub. I know Danny Cox will be happy to see him on the ballclub.”[25]

In May 1985, Horner hit two homers off Cox in a single game, blasting one shot off the Anheuser-Busch eagle on the left-field scoreboard.

“That cost me a couple of grand, getting that thing fixed,” Cox said.[26]

Unfortunately, Horner’s two home runs at Busch Stadium that day proved to be just one shy of his total wearing the birds on the bat. Horner appeared in just 60 games for St. Louis in 1988, batting .257/.348/.354 with three homers and 33 RBIs before a shoulder injury ended his season. He was second on the team in RBIs at the time of the injury.

In August, the Cardinals traded John Tudor to the Dodgers for Pedro Guerrero. With Guerrero installed at first base, the Cardinals did not offer Horner a new contract. Horner was invited to Orioles camp for spring training in 1989, but his injured shoulder – a chronic condition he had been playing through almost his entire career –  forced him, at age 31, to retire before the season began.

“I felt in my heart it was over,” Horner said. “It’s this pressure, this weight you’re carrying around on your shoulders, and I had carried it around for so long. The shots and pills and x-rays and operations and six months of therapy … it was too much.”[27]

Horner finished his career with 218 home runs and 685 RBIs over 10 major-league seasons. He took more than 500 at-bats just once in those 10 seasons.

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Herzog: Thumbs Down On Bob Horner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1988.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Herzog: Thumbs Down On Bob Horner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1988.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[5] I.J. Rosenberg, “Whatever happened to: Bob Horner,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 19, 2016.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Herzog: Thumbs Down On Bob Horner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1988.

[7] Rick Hummel, “Herzog: Thumbs Down On Bob Horner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1988.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Herzog: Thumbs Down On Bob Horner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1988.

[9] Gerry Fraley, “Cards: Horner not worth asking price,” Atlanta Constitution, January 9, 1988.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Herzog: Thumbs Down On Bob Horner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 8, 1988.

[11] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[12] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[13] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[14] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[15] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[16] Gerry Fraley, “Horner back in majors with Cardinals,” Atlanta Constitution, January 15, 1988.

[17] Gerry Fraley, “Horner back in majors with Cardinals,” Atlanta Constitution, January 15, 1988.

[18] Gerry Fraley, “Braves adjusted to lineup without Horner,” Atlanta Constitution, January 15, 1988.

[19] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[20] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[21] Rick Hummel, “Herzog Changes Tune To Cautious Optimism,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[22] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[23] Rick Hummel, “Herzog Changes Tune To Cautious Optimism,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[24] Rick Hummel, “Cards Sign Horner For Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[25] Rick Hummel, “Herzog Changes Tune To Cautious Optimism,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[26] Rick Hummel, “Herzog Changes Tune To Cautious Optimism,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 15, 1988.

[27] “Early Retirement,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 16, 1989.

The post Why the Cardinals signed Bob Horner despite Herzog’s initial concerns first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

On June 15, 1984, the Cardinals traded Oberkfell, the team’s leading hitter with a .309 batting average, for left-handed pitcher Ken Dayley and backup first baseman Mike Jorgensen.

The Cardinals had signed Oberkfell as an amateur free agent in 1975, and he joined the major league club for cups of coffee in 1977 and 1978. In 1979, he made his mark as the club’s starting second baseman, batting .301 with a .396 on-base percentage. He scored 53 runs and drove in 35.

Though he never provided much power (the most home runs he hit in a season with the Cardinals were the three he hit in 1980 and 1983), Oberkfell was a consistent on-base presence. In 1981, with the emergence of Tom Herr, Oberkfell moved to third base, where he led the National League in fielding percentage in 1982 and 1983.

In 1982, Oberkfell batted .289 with 55 runs scored and 34 RBIs en route to the National League East title. In Game 2 of the National League Championship Series against the Braves, Oberkfell made arguably the biggest play of his career, hitting an RBI single off Gene Garber in the bottom of the ninth to score Green and give the Cardinals a 4-3 win.

“I had always hit Garber pretty well, and I remember hitting a ball that just went foul,” Oberkfell said. “I turned back to (Braves catcher Bruce Benedict) and said, ‘You still going to pitch to me?’ … He said yeah and then I got the hit.”[1]

Oberkfell went 7-for-24 (.292) in the seven-game World Series bout with the Brewers, hitting a double, an RBI, and two stolen bases.

In eight seasons in St. Louis, he totaled a .292 batting average and .364 on-base percentage, though he always faced criticism for his lack of power, particularly after he moved to third base, a position where run producers were prevalent.

“You think about Mike Schmidt, Ron Cey, and Bob Horner, who drive in 80 or 100 runs a year,” Oberkfell said. “I’ve never been an 80- or 90-RBI guy, but I’m capable of driving in 60. I really think I’m capable of hitting some home runs in Atlanta. I’m not saying I’m going down there and setting the world on fire, but it would be good if I could.”[2]

The trade cleared out the logjam the Cardinals had on the infield, allowing David Green to play first base, Herr to play second, and Andy Van Slyke to play third without utilizing the platoon system Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog used with Oberkfell in the mix.  Now that Herr had proven he was recovering from a series of knee injuries, the Cardinals no longer needed to keep Oberkfell as a safeguard in case Herr couldn’t return to form.

“I’m sorry to see Obie go, but from our side, I think it solves problems,” Herr said. “Andy and Green will be in there every day, and they’re not going to worry about platooning. We’ll get more production out of them without Andy moving around so much and Greenie not playing against certain right-handers.”[3]

In 2002, Herzog said that the presence of Terry Pendleton at Triple-A Louisville also played a part in the trade. Pendleton hit .297 with four homers and 44 RBIs in Triple-A that season, and after he was called up to the majors in July, he batted .324 with 33 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.

“If it hadn’t been that we had Terry Pendleton in the minor leagues and playing really well, we would not have traded him (Oberkfell),” Herzog said. “He was a really good defensive third baseman and a really good guy on the ball club. I really enjoyed managing him.”[4]

Oberkfell was equally positive about his experience in St. Louis.

“I’ve got no regrets,” he said. “I was a Cardinal fan, I signed with the organization. I got to play for them, I got to play in the World Series. My biggest thrill was when Bruce Sutter struck out Gorman Thomas for the last out of the World Series. All my dreams came true.”[5]

For the Braves, Oberkfell’s arrival filled the hole left when Horner went down with a season-ending injury. Atlanta originally pursued the Yankees’ Roy Smalley, but balked at his six-year, $3.9 million contract. Oberkfell’s contract called for him to earn $500,000 in 1984 and $600,000 in 1985.[6]

“We know he (Oberkfell) doesn’t have a lot of power and won’t hit homers,” Braves general manager John Mullen said. “It’s always appealing to add somebody who has been on a World Series team and gone through that experience. That means a lot to a club.”[7]

Dayley had been the Braves’ first-round draft pick out of the University of Portland in 1980 and at one time was considered the team’s top pitching prospect. In 1982, he started 11 of his 20 appearances, going 5-6 with a 4.54 ERA in 71 1/3 innings. The following season, he again served as a swingman, starting 16 of his 24 appearances en route to a 5-8 record and 4.30 ERA.

In 1984, he went 0-3 in four starts with a 5.30 ERA before he was sent down to the Braves’ Triple-A Richmond affiliate. There, he went 4-1 with a 4.04 ERA.

“It’s a great move for me,” Dayley said. “St. Louis is much more of a pitchers’ kind of park.

“The Braves were good people, but I guess they were pretty down on me. I thought I’d get 30 or 35 starts this year, but it’s great to be back in the leagues. At least I know I’m going to someone who wants me.”[8]

“I feel he’s ready,” Herzog said. “He’s paid his dues. I don’t know if he’s going to be good. The only thing I can say is that he’s got a chance to be a very good pitcher.”[9]

The 35-year-old Jorgensen, a 1973 Gold Glove Award winner, was in his 16^th major league season, including his 19-year-old campaign when he played eight games with the Mets. At the time of the trade, he was the Braves’ top left-handed bat off the bench, batting .269 with five RBIs in 26 at-bats.

“I didn’t think this would happen, but I should be used to it by now,” he said. “If I have to go somewhere, at least I’m going to a good team.”[10]

Jorgensen served as a reserve for the Cardinals in 1984 and 1985, batting .219 with a .345 on-base percentage in 254 total plate appearances. He retired following the 1985 season and entered the coaching ranks soon thereafter. When the Cardinals fired Joe Torre during the 1995 season, they named Jorgensen interim manager. He led the team to a 42-54 record the remainder of the season.

Dayley started 13 games for Triple-A Louisville and two games for the Cardinals in 1984. Those two starts for St. Louis were the last of his major-league career, as he found his niche as a relief pitcher.

In 1985, Dayley was a key member of the Cardinals’ bullpen as they recovered from the loss of Sutter in free agency, posting a 2.76 ERA and ranked second on the team behind Jeff Lahti with 11 saves.

Dayley appeared in five games in the NLCS vs. the Dodgers, pitching six scoreless innings and saving two games. He retired Pedro Guerrero to close out Game 6 and send the Cardinals to the World Series.

Dayley made four more appearances in the World Series against the Royals, winning Game 2 with a scoreless eighth inning. In total, he threw six scoreless World Series innings, allowing just one hit while striking out five.

During the Cardinals’ next pennant run in 1987, Dayley again played a vital role, posting a 2.66 ERA with nine wins in 53 appearances. In the NLCS against the Giants, he continued to be a shutdown postseason performer, saving two of the three games in which he appeared. In four shutout innings, he allowed one hit and struck out four.  In the World Series, he pitched 4 2/3 innings, earning the save in Game 4. He allowed just one earned run on a Game 6 home run by Kent Hrbek and struck out three.

Over 20 2/3 career postseason innings, Dayley posted a 0.44 ERA with 15 strikeouts.

In 1989, he posted a career-high 12 saves, but in 1990 his ERA climbed to 3.56. Following the season, Dayley signed with the Blue Jays, where he pitched the final two seasons of his major league career.

In seven seasons with the Cardinals, Dayley posted a 3.18 ERA over 374 innings, compiling 39 saves.

Oberkfell played five seasons in Atlanta, batting .271 with a .346 on-base percentage. In 590 games, he hit 15 homers, drove in 181 runs, and scored 214 runs. In the final years of his career, he bounced around the majors, playing for the Pirates, Giants, Astros, and Angels. He retired following the 1992 season, ending a 16-year big league career.

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[1] Rob Rains and Alvin A. Reid (2002), Whitey’s Boys: A Celebration of the ’82 Cards’ World Championship, Chicago; Triumph Books, Page 84.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Cards Trade Oberkfell To Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1984.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Cards Trade Oberkfell To Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1984.

[4] Rob Rains and Alvin A. Reid (2002), Whitey’s Boys: A Celebration of the ’82 Cards’ World Championship, Chicago; Triumph Books, Page 85.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Cards Trade Oberkfell To Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1984.

[6] Gerry Fraley, “Braves get Oberkfell,” The Atlanta Constitution, June 16, 1984.

[7] Gerry Fraley, “Braves get Oberkfell,” The Atlanta Constitution, June 16, 1984.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Cards Trade Oberkfell To Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1984.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Cards Trade Oberkfell To Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1984.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Cards Trade Oberkfell To Braves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1984.

The post Cards trade Ken Oberkfell for Dayley and Jorgensen: June 15, 1984 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.