Lasorda had made his big league debut with the Dodgers the previous season, appearing in four games and posting a 5.00 ERA in nine innings of relief work. With the Dodgers off to a 17-2 start to the season amid a six-game win streak, the unproven Lasorda was an unlikely candidate to take the mound for the league leaders. However, Don Newcombe, who was unhappy about his most recent start being skipped, had been suspended by manager Walter Alston for refusing to throw batting practice.

Lasorda certainly seemed nervous as he made his first big-league start. He opened the game by walking Moon, the defending National League Rookie of the Year. With rookie Bill Virdon at the plate, Lasorda uncorked a wild pitch that advanced Moon to second, then walked Virdon. Lasorda’s second wild pitch of the inning advanced Virdon and Moon to second and third, respectively, before Lasorda struck out Stan Musial for the first out of the inning.

With cleanup hitter Rip Repulski at the plate, however, Lasorda unleashed his third wild pitch of the inning. As Moon described the play in his autobiography:

“On a 1-1 pitch, the Brooklyn southpaw skipped one into the dirt. The ball bounced away from Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella. Always eager to tear home from third base, I made a mad dash toward the plate. Unfortunately for all parties concerned, Campanella pounced on the ball in cat-like fashion. In one fluid motion, Campy flipped the ball to Lasorda, who was alertly covering the plate. The ball, the Brooklyn pitcher, and I arrived in the same place at the same time. … I slid hard, and by the time the dust settled, I was out, and Lasorda was on the ground agonizing in pain. He had unintentionally blocked the plate, and I had accidentally spiked him just above the knee.”[1]

Despite the wound, Lasorda struck out Repulski, then got Red Schoendienst to hit an infield fly for the final out of the inning. It was only after Lasorda returned to the dugout that he realized just how deep Moon’s spikes had bitten into his leg. The three-inch wound had gone “down to the bone,” the New York Daily News reported, and required five stitches at Long Island College Hospital.[2]

Clem Labine took over in relief of Lasorda, and in the third inning, Repulski drove an RBI single into left field to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead. The Dodgers answered back in the third, however, as Labine hit a solo home run and Campanella and Sandy Amoros each added RBI singles.

Virdon, who was on his way to Rookie of the Year honors that season, hit a solo home run in the fifth inning that tied the game 3-3, but Duke Snider scored the winning run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Rube Walker. With the win, the Dodgers improved to 18-2 on the season, and though the season was only a few weeks old, they already held a 7 ½-game lead over the second-place Cubs.

Lasorda didn’t pitch for the Dodgers again for 19 days. On May 24, he allowed five earned runs in a two-inning relief appearance against the Pirates. On June 5, he retired both batters he faced in the 10^th inning of a 9-4 Cardinals win. One day later, he made his final appearance as a Dodgers pitcher, walking two and allowing one hit in 1/3 of an inning. When Lasorda was optioned to Triple-A Montreal, his spot on the roster was given to a promising 19-year-old rookie named Sandy Koufax.

The Dodgers sold Lasorda’s rights to the Kansas City Athletics for the 1956 season. Lasorda pitched in 18 games for the A’s that season, including five starts, posting a 6.15 ERA over 45 1/3 innings. That July, the A’s traded him to the Yankees for Wally Burnette, and Lasorda spent the remainder of his playing days in the minors, ending his big-league career with an 0-4 record.

After he was released in July 1960, Lasorda caught on as a scout for the Dodgers, ultimately becoming a manager in the Dodgers’ minor league system before joining Alston’s major league staff. When Alston retired in 1976, Lasorda was named his replacement, a post he held until 1996. As manager, Lasorda won 1,599 games and two World Series championships. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.

The Dodgers’ longtime skipper never held any ill will against Moon, who became a member of the Dodgers himself when the Cardinals traded him to L.A. in December 1958.

“Years later, whenever our paths crossed as members of the Los Angeles Dodgers family, Tommy Lasorda always made sure to let people know I was responsible for curtailing his promising career as a pitcher,” Moon recalled. “He’d grab me by the shoulders and, to whoever happened to be nearby, spell out my role in his misfortune. By the time he got to the end of the story, he would have me in a headlock. Then he would break out in uproarious laughter.”[3]

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[1] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Pages 117-118.

[2] “7 ½-Up Flock Flips Cards, 4-3,” New York Daily News, May 6, 1955.

[3] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 118.

The post How Wally Moon sent Tommy Lasorda to the hospital first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

Slaughter was just two weeks away from his 38^th birthday, and the Cardinals were two days away from opening their season against the Cubs when they finalized the deal that sent Slaughter to New York for Bill Virdon, Mel Wright, and outfield prospect Emil Tellinger.

Commonly referred to as “Country” but also known affectionately as “the Old Warhorse,” Slaughter had been the franchise’s last tie to the spirit of the Gashouse Gang, though he didn’t make his big-league debut until 1938. Since then, however, Slaughter had personified the rough and tumble style of the Redbirds while emerging as one of the league’s best – and toughest – players.

Slaughter enjoyed arguably the best season of his career as a 26-year-old in 1942, when he led the league with 188 hits. With a .318 batting average, 31 doubles, 13 homers, and 98 RBIs, Slaughter led all of baseball with 17 triples and topped the Senior Circuit with 292 total bases. He finished second to teammate Mort Cooper in that year’s NL MVP voting, and in the World Series he went 5-for-19 with a double, home run, and two RBIs.

After the Cardinals won the World Series, Slaughter enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, where he became a sergeant and served as a physical education instructor. When he returned to the Cardinals in 1946, he hadn’t missed a beat. Now 30 years old, he hit .300 with 18 homers and a league-high 130 RBIs.

Once again, the Cardinals reached the World Series – this time after tying the Dodgers for the pennant and winning a three-game series to qualify for the World Series. Slaughter went 8-for-25 with a double, triple, home run, and two RBIs in the World Series and his “mad dash” home to win Game 7 earned a permanent place in baseball history.

Though Slaughter and the Cardinals were unable to win another NL pennant together, the now-veteran star continued to impress, batting .321 and finishing seventh in the MVP vote in 1948, then hitting .336 and finishing third in the balloting in 1949.

In 1952, he hit .300 and drove in 101 runs to finish sixth in the MVP race, and in his final season with the Cardinals, at age 37, he continued to defy Father Time, batting .291 and driving in 89 runs. In fact, on the same day the trade was announced, a story appeared in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat in which Tom Henrich, former outfielder and now a telecaster in New York, said, “They say baseball is a young man’s game, but look at that Slaughter. He was pitching for Little Rock when I was playing for New Orleans and they called him a veteran then. No, sir, it’s not a young man’s game altogether.”[1]

Coming off an 83-71-3 season in which they finished third in the National League, however, the Cardinals were inclined to disagree. With rookie Wally Moon ready to make his big-league debut, manager Eddie Stanky preferred to go with an outfield of Rip Repulski, Moon, and Stan Musial, and he knew that the proud Slaughter would chafe at playing a reserve role.

“A player like Slaughter just can’t stand sitting on a bench and, while I’m not trying to put myself on a pedestal by comparing myself with him, I couldn’t stand it either,” Stanky said.[2]

Indeed, Bob Broeg of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the Cardinals’ captain had already noticed his decreased playing time during spring training, and while he had not said anything directly to Stanky, he “had made no secret of his displeasure within earshot of reporters.”[3]

“I signed a contract to play,” Slaughter said.[4]

Slaughter was informed of the trade during the Cardinals’ spring training game against the Orioles. General manager Dick Meyer asked Slaughter to put on his street clothes and then come to his office on Dodier Street. When Slaughter arrived, Meyer broke the news.

“The Old Warhorse, seated with hands on his knees, nervously folding and unfolding a handkerchief, still was sobbing when reporters, who had been handed mimeographed copies of (team president August A.) Busch’s announcement and newcomer Wright’s record a few minutes after the game ended, walked into Meyer’s office,” the Post-Dispatch reported.[5]

“It’s the greatest shock I ever had in my life,” Slaughter said several times, occasionally dropping his voice to a whisper. “To think that I spent nearly all my life with this organization, and then they trade me after I’ve given them everything I got.”[6]

Though Slaughter was clearly still stunned by the news, he soon regained his competitive fire.

“I thought I could help them to a pennant this time, and if some other guys hustled as much as I did, they’d make it,” he said. “But you can tell ‘em in New York I’ll give ‘em 100 percent just as I did the Cardinal organization.”[7]

Stanky announced to the assembled media that second baseman Red Schoendienst would replace Slaughter as the Cardinals’ new captain,[8] and Meyer told reporters that whenever Slaughter decided to call it a career, he would be welcomed back to the organization.

“I don’t think he’s ready to quit now, but I’ll say this – the door here would be wide open,” Meyer said.[9]

In a prepared statement, Busch wrote that the move gave the Cardinals a chance to give Moon an opportunity for playing time while strengthening the team’s prospect pool.

“We have just traded one of the greatest players in the history of the Cardinals,” Busch said. “Personally, this has been one of the toughest decisions I have ever had to participate in. Enos Slaughter has been ‘Mr. Baseball’ for almost 20 years. Fans in every part of the country have been thrilled by his aggressiveness and determination. The term ‘hustle’ was practically coined for him. Slaughter is a champion all the way, and it is fitting that he joins the world champion New York Yankees.”[10]

“This is the toughest part of my job as manager, but a championship ball player is going to a championship ball club,” Stanky said. “We feel we have good young outfielders, and if we have Enos around, we won’t play those young players.”[11]

Meanwhile, the Yankees were delighted to add Slaughter as a bench bat to a team that already had Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Hank Bauer, Joe Collins, and Andy Carey.

“We gave up nothing that could help us this year in return for someone who is sure to help us a lot,” Yankees co-owner Del Webb said.[12]

“He’s an excellent man to have on the bench and should be very useful for pinch-hitting duties,” one Yankees official said. “Besides, he gives us protection in case Mantle’s knee doesn’t come around too quickly.”[13]

In St. Louis, the trade was met with anger and disgust.

“Cardinal fans probably are more indignant over the departure of Slaughter than they have been over any deal since Rogers Hornsby was traded to the Giants for Frankie Frisch and Jimmy Ring after the 1926 season,” J. Roy Stockton wrote in the Post-Dispatch.[14]

In the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, Robert L. Burnes explained that, “Enos Slaughter was more than a ballplayer, as any Cardinal fan could tell you. He was an institution – not only among the fans, but among the players as well. To be trite again, Enos was the ball players’ ball player. He played the game the way it should be played.”[15]

As the player tabbed to replace Slaughter, nobody felt the pressure more than Moon. As he stepped to the plate for his big-league at-bat, the hometown crowd at Sportsman’s Park booed the 24-year-old mercilessly.

“What should have been one of the best days of my life, April 13, 1954, was turning out to be one of the worst,” Moon wrote in 2010. “As I stepped to the plate for my first major league at-bat in the home half of the first inning of the first game of the new season, I was greeted with a torrent of verbal castigation and denunciation from seemingly every corner of the park.”[16]

Incredibly, Moon responded by hitting a solo home run over the right-field wall, becoming just the second Cardinal to hit a home run in his first major-league at-bat. It was the beginning of a Rookie of the Year-winning campaign for Moon, who hit .304 with 12 homers, 76 RBIs, and 18 stolen bases. Moon went on to play five seasons with the Cardinals before he was traded to the Dodgers, where he became famous for his “Moon shots” over the high screen just 251 feet down the left-field line at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Slaughter hit .248 with a home run and 19 RBIs for the Yankees in 1954 and was traded to the Athletics after just nine at-bats in 1955. At the time, the owners of the Yankees and A’s were friends, and the A’s essentially functioned as another farm team for the Yankees. Playing regularly once again, Slaughter hit .322 with five homers and 34 RBIs.

In 1956, the A’s traded him back to the Yankees, allowing him to win his third and fourth career World Series rings with the Bronx Bombers in both ’56 and ’58. In Game 3 of the 1956 World Series, Slaughter hit a key three-run homer to lift New York to a 5-3 win.

The Yankees released Slaughter in 1959, and he played the final games of his career with the Braves before retiring after 19 big-league seasons. In 1985, Slaughter was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, and in 1996, the Cardinals retired his number 9.

Virdon went on to win the Rookie of the Year trophy in 1955, batting .281 with 17 homers and 68 RBIs. In 1956, the Cardinals traded Virdon to the Pirates for Bobby Del Greco and Dick Littlefield. Virdon went on to play in 1,583 games and bat .267 across a 12-year major-league career.

Wright pitched two big-league seasons for the Cardinals, going 2-2 with a 7.14 ERA across 46 23/ innings.

Tellinger spent just one season in the Cardinals’ system and never reached the majors.

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[1] Robert L. Burnes, “The Bench Warmer,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, April 11, 1954.

[2] Bob Broeg, “Trade of Slaughter Puts Rookie Moon and Cardinal Office on Spot,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[3] Bob Broeg, “Trade of Slaughter Puts Rookie Moon and Cardinal Office on Spot,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[4] Bob Broeg, “Trade of Slaughter Puts Rookie Moon and Cardinal Office on Spot,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[5] “Yanks Sought Enos in Raschi Deal; Cards Reopened Case,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[6] “Yanks Sought Enos in Raschi Deal; Cards Reopened Case,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[7] “Yanks Sought Enos in Raschi Deal; Cards Reopened Case,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[8] “Yanks Sought Enos in Raschi Deal; Cards Reopened Case,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[9] “Enos May Return To Cards Some Day,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[10] “Busch Says Slaughter Deal Will Give Rookies a Chance,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, April 12, 1954.

[11] “Yanks Sought Enos in Raschi Deal; Cards Reopened Case,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[12] Hy Turkin, “Yanks Get Enos Slaughter,” New York Daily News, April 12, 1954.

[13] “‘Good Deal for Us, We Gave Up Practically Nothing,’ Says Webb,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[14] J. Roy Stockton, “Extra Innings,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 12, 1954.

[15] Robert L. Burnes, “The Bench Warmer,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, April 13, 1954.

[16] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 1.

The post Enos Slaughter: Cardinals-Yankees 1954 Trade first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

Cunningham had been with the Cardinals’ International League affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings, on June 29 when manager Harry Walker informed the 22-year-old that he was being called up to the majors to take the roster spot of Cardinals first baseman Tom Alston. Earlier that year, Alston had made history as the first black player to make the Cardinals’ major-league club.

Rather than leaving immediately for Cincinnati, where the Cardinals were playing the Redlegs, Cunningham played Rochester’s scheduled doubleheader before heading to the majors.

“I was so happy and surprised I hardly could see up there at the plate,” said Cunningham, who went hitless in his seven at-bats.[1]

In preparation for Rochester’s upcoming road trip, Cunningham had sent out his laundry, which meant that he would have to join the Cardinals without his clothes. Even worse, the doubleheader ran long, causing him to miss his train. To make it to Cincinnati, Rochester’s publicity staffer drove him to the Buffalo airport, where he caught a flight and arrived in the Queen City in midafternoon. He signed his Cardinals contract after 7 p.m.[2]

Cunningham’s debut came against Redlegs right-hander Art Fowler, a 31-year-old rookie from South Carolina whose minor-league journey had taken him to the Bristol Twins, Danville Leafs, Jersey City Giants, Minneapolis Millers, Jacksonville Tars, Atlanta Crackers, and Milwaukee Brewers.

In the first inning, center fielder Wally Moon (who homered in his first major-league at-bat earlier in the season) led off the game with a double and scored on an RBI single by Ray Jablonski. Cincinnati answered in the bottom half of the inning when Gus Bell hit a solo home run off Cardinals starter Brooks Lawrence.

The game remained tied until Cunningham broke it open in the fifth. After Moon drew a walk and Red Schoendienst singled, Jablonski hit his second RBI single of the game to give the Cardinals the lead. Cunningham then pulled a three-run homer over the right-field wall to make the score 5-1 and chase Fowler from the ballgame.

Two innings later, after Moon and Schoendienst led off with singles, the Redlegs intentionally walked Jablonski to load the bases and face Cunningham with one out. Cunningham rose to the challenge, punching a two-run single up the middle. Repulski followed with a three-run homer, quickly giving the Cardinals a 10-1 lead.

Repulski hit another home run in the ninth inning to give him four RBIs on the day and make the final score 11-3. The two homers gave Repulski 14 on the season.

Moon finished with three hits and three runs scored, and Schoendienst, Jablonski, Cunningham, and Repulski each scored twice.

Lawrence, making just the second start of his career, worked around nine hits and five walks for the complete-game win. He went on to enjoy a 15-6 rookie campaign for the Cardinals even as he led the league with eight hit batsmen.

Cardinals manager Eddie Stanky was pleased with both rookies, though he cautioned reporters not to read too much into Cunningham’s debut, especially with the Braves expected to start Warren Spahn the following day.

“Don’t go overboard,” Stanky said. “I thought enough of this boy to want him, yes, but I told him that while I’d be happy if he hit .300, I’d be satisfied with .270. Let’s wait at least until he faces a good lefthander – Warren Spahn.”[3]

In the Cardinals’ 9-2 win over the Braves, Cunningham hit two homers – both off of Spahn. His second-inning home run was a solo shot, and in the third inning, he hit a three-run homer to give him nine RBIs in his first two games.

“I’ve seen it before – one man gives a ball club a shot in the arm, that is – and I believe the kid has done it,” Stanky said. “Gerry Staley, who hadn’t been pitching, comes in with a great relief job, and Stan Musial, who hadn’t been hitting, rips the cover off the ball.

“Cunningham is so strong he even squeezes the hell out of your hand when you shake it as he rounds third base on his way home.”

For the season, Cunningham went on to bat .284/.375/.445 with 11 homers and 50 RBIs. Despite his successful rookie campaign, the Cardinals encouraged him to change his batting stance in 1955.[4] The adjustment didn’t work, as he struggled in spring training, then suffered an injury after he was hit in the head by a pitch. Instead of returning Cunningham to first base, the Cardinals moved Musial to first and sent Cunningham back to Rochester, where he spent all of 1955 and most of 1956.

It wasn’t until 1957 that Cunningham returned to the majors and enjoyed the best seasons of his career. That year, he hit .318 with a .439 on-base percentage. In 1958, he hit .312 with a .449 on-base percentage and a career-high 12 homers.

At a time when the majors played two All-Star Games per season, Cunningham made both of his career All-Star appearances in 1959. That year marked the high point of his career as he hit .345 with a .453 on-base percentage to lead all of baseball.

Though Cunningham never again hit over .300, he did hit .280 and .286, respectively, in the final two years of his Cardinals career. After the 1961 season, the Cardinals traded Cunningham to the White Sox for Minnie Minosa. In seven seasons in St. Louis, Cunningham hit .304 with a .413 on-base percentage.

Cunningham “kept us loose,” teammate Bill White said. “He was always there with the positive word and attitude. He did not have as much ability as a lot of guys, but he made up for it by hustling.”[5]

Cunningham played the final five years of his career with the White Sox and Senators. He finished his 12-year major-league career with 980 hits, a .291 career batting average, and a .403 on-base percentage.

After his career ended, Cunningham served as a minor-league coach for the Cardinals before joining the front office and becoming the team’s director of sales. He was also a coach on the Cardinals’ 1982 World Series championship team.

Cunningham passed away in March 2021.

“Joe was a great ambassador for us for many years and a pillar in the community,” team president Bill DeWitt III said in a statement after Cunningham’s passing. “He was also a warm, positive person with a great wit. He will be sorely missed.”[6]

Give the gift of Cardinals history! The Trades That Made The St. Louis Cardinals is available now on Amazon.

[1] “Rookie in Such a Hurry to Join Redbirds He Left Clothes Behind,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 1, 1954.

[2] “Rookie in Such a Hurry to Join Redbirds He Left Clothes Behind,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 1, 1954.

[3] “Haddix’s Injury Not Serious,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 2, 1954.

[4] “Joe Cunningham Vows to Return,” Herald-News, July 5, 1955.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Popular player, coach for Cards dies at 89,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 26, 2021.

[6] Rick Hummel, “Popular player, coach for Cards dies at 89,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 26, 2021.

The post Joe Cunningham drives in five in his debut: June 30, 1954 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

Just two and a half months earlier, the Cardinals traded Eddie Erautt and Dick Sisler, agreed to option two more players to the Padres, and paid $100,000 to the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League for the 6-foot-5, 27-year-old Alston. In 1953, just his second season of professional baseball, the 27-year-old from Greensboro, North Carolina, hit .297 with 23 home runs and 101 RBIs for San Diego.

The $100,000 price represented one of the highest sums ever paid for the rights to a black player,[1] and the Cardinals spared no expense in announcing the deal. Cardinals president August A. Busch, executive vice president John L. Wilson, and members of the board of directors Albert von Gontard and Anthony A. Buford all were on hand for the announcement in Los Angeles.[2]

“I’m really delighted – I still can’t believe it’s true,” Alston said. “I have been hoping that it would happen, hoping and waiting, and now it’s a wonderful feeling to know the dream has come true.”[3]

“We took the viewpoint from the very beginning that we wanted the finest players we could get, that there would be no barriers in terms of race, religion, or anything of that sort,” Busch said. “Alston now has as good a chance as anyone else to make the team as a regular. He’s up against some pretty stiff competition, but we hope he’ll make it.”[4]

Alston made the Cardinals’ opening-day lineup, batting sixth and playing first base. It proved to be a rough day from the outset, however. Cubs leadoff hitter Bob Talbot led off the game with a foul ball that Alston misplayed. An inning later, in his first career at-bat, Alton flied out to Cubs first baseman Dee Fondy on his way to an 0-for-4 day.

Four days later, in the second game of his career, Alston hit a solo home run off Jim Brosnan. He followed that blast the next day with a pinch-hit, three-run homer off Jim Davis in the seventh inning of a 6-4 win.

By May 12, Alston was batting .329, but as National League pitchers began to recognize the holes in his swing, Alston’s average and power numbers evaporated. In late June, he was optioned to Triple-A Rochester for the remainder of the season.

Though Alston appeared in three more major-league seasons, he totaled just 25 games the remainder of his career.

“He just didn’t have the experience he needed to play at the major-league level,” Red Schoendienst said. “He was a good guy and he worked hard and tried to learn everything possible, but the ability just wasn’t there.”[5]

Pitcher Brooks Lawrence, who became the second black player in Cardinals history later that summer, roomed with Alston and said that the first baseman struggled with the pressure of living up to the $100,000 purchase price.

“I would wake up some nights and hear him praying,” Lawrence said. “He’d be saying, ‘I can hit. I know I can hit.’ And he’d go out the next day and wouldn’t hit anything.”[6]

Alston later reported that he began hearing voices during his first season in St. Louis, and he battled mental health issues the rest of his life.[7] In 1957, his final season with the major-league team, Alston suffered from weakness and lost 15 pounds. The team sent him to a doctor, who had Alston placed in a hospital with what was termed a “nervous condition.”[8]

Alston did not return to baseball after the 1957 season, and in September 1958 he used kerosene to burn down the New Goshen Methodist Church in Greensboro, North Carolina. He was arrested and found mentally incompetent to stand trial; the psychiatrist who examined him testified that Alston was schizophrenic.[9]

Alston spent the next eight years in a state mental institution. When he was released in 1967, he set fire to his apartment and was recommitted. He was released again in 1969 and continued to receive mental health care until his passing in 1993.

Moon, another rookie making his major league debut for the Cardinals in April 1954, enjoyed a far happier career. From small-town Bay, Arkansas, Moon played college baseball at Texas A&M before signing with the Cardinals. Despite an $18,000 offer from the Tigers and another offer from the Yankees, Moon chose to sign with the St. Louis as a 20-year-old after his father reviewed the Cardinals’ minor-league rosters and saw a dearth of left-handed-hitting outfielders.[10]

In 1953, Moon hit .308 with 12 homers and 61 RBIs for Triple-A Rochester. As he prepared for training camp the following spring, he and his wife agreed that if he didn’t make the major-league roster, he would use his degree from Texas A&M to become a teacher and coach. It looked as though that might be Moon’s destiny until Eddie Stanky called him into his office on April 11 and told him that the Cardinals had just traded Enos Slaughter.

“You’re taking his place on the team,” Stanky said.[11]

Two days later, Moon was playing center field and batting second in the Cardinals’ lineup, batting directly ahead of Schoendienst and Stan Musial. In the bottom of the first, Moon stepped to the plate against left-hander Paul Minner. The 17,000 Busch Stadium fans, still angry about the Slaughter trade, took out their anger on the 24-year-old Moon.

“What should have been one of the best days of my life, April 13, 1954, was turning out to be one of the worst,” Moon wrote in 2010. “As I stepped to the plate for my first major-league at-bat in the home half of the first inning of the first game of the new season, I was greeted with a torrent of verbal castigation and denunciation from seemingly every corner of the park.”[12]

Before the game, Musial told Moon to pay no attention to the sudden attention.

“There’s only one person with whom your performance has to measure up,” Musial said, “and that person is you.”[13]

That was easier said than done. After Minner greeted Moon with two consecutive balls, a fan shouted, “Take the bat off your shoulder!”[14]

Moon planned to, especially given his hunch that Minner, behind in the count, would throw him a fastball. Minner did, and Moon launched a solo home run over the right-field wall. With the blast, Moon became the second Cardinal to hit a home run in his first career at-bat, joining Eddie Morgan, who accomplished the feat against Lon Warneke in 1936.[15]

Though the Cardinals lost the game 13-4, Moon added a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning to finish with two RBIs in the game. It was just the beginning of a season in which Moon hit .304 with 12 homers, 76 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. At season’s end, he was named the National League Rookie of the Year.

“From that afternoon forward, St. Louis fans held me in much higher esteem, a condition, I’m pleased to report, which remains to this day,” Moon wrote.[16]

Moon played five seasons in St. Louis, compiling a .291 batting average, 78 home runs, and 331 RBIs. In 1957, he hit a career-high 24 homers and was named to his first career All-Star Game. Following the 1958 season, he and Phil Paine were traded to the Dodgers for Gino Cimoli.

Moon played the final seven seasons of his career with the Dodgers, where his home runs over the short right-field wall were known as “Moon shots.” In his first season in Los Angeles, he hit .302 with 19 homers, 74 RBIs, and a league-high 11 triples. He placed fourth in the National League MVP voting behind Ernie Banks, Eddie Mathews, and Hank Aaron.

After the 1965 season, he retired with a .289 batting average, 142 home runs, and 661 RBIs over his 12-year career.

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[1] Martin J. Haley, “Cards Pay Over $100,000 for Negro Coast Star,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, January 27, 1954.

[2] Martin J. Haley, “Cards Pay Over $100,000 for Negro Coast Star,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, January 27, 1954.

[3] Edward A. Harris, “Cards Give $100,000 and 4 Players for Negro First Sacker,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 27, 1954.

[4] Edward A. Harris, “Cards Give $100,000 and 4 Players for Negro First Sacker,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 27, 1954.

[5] Peter Golenbock (2011), The Spirit of St. Louis: A History of the St. Louis Cardinals and Browns, New York: HarperCollins E-books, Page 407.

[6] Peter Golenbock (2011), The Spirit of St. Louis: A History of the St. Louis Cardinals and Browns, New York: HarperCollins E-books, Page 413.

[7] Warren Corbett, “Tom Alston,” Society for American Baseball Research, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/tom-alston/.

[8] “Tom Alston Drops 15 Pounds, Sent to Hospital for Checkup,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 21, 1957.

[9] Warren Corbett, “Tom Alston,” Society for American Baseball Research, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/tom-alston/.

[10] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Pages 49-50.

[11] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 4.

[12] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 1.

[13] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 7.

[14] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 8.

[15] Bob Broeg, “Unruly Chicago Guests Break Up Cards’ Housewarming Party,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 14, 1954.

[16] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, Rhesa Moon Enterprises, Page 11.

The post Tom Alston, Wally Moon make history in their debuts: April 13, 1954 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

Moon entered the game batting .331 with five home runs and two stolen bases. He had taken the outfield job previously held by future Hall of Famer Enos Slaughter, who, not coincidentally, was traded to the Yankees the same day Moon found out that he had made the Cardinals roster out of spring training.

Though Cardinals fans, angered by the Slaughter trade, booed him when he stepped to the plate for his first at-bat, the rookie from Bay, Arkansas, didn’t waste any time winning them over, homering in his debut plate appearance. By late May, Moon had cemented his position at the top of the St. Louis lineup.

On May 25, the second day of a four-game series at Busch Stadium, Moon and his teammates faced Johnny Klippstein, a fifth-year right-hander who would go on to pitch 18 seasons in the majors. Klippstein walked Moon to open the game, and Moon took the opportunity to steal his first base of the day. Red Schoendienst brought Moon home with a run-scoring double, and Stan Musial followed with an RBI triple to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead.

In the second inning, Moon didn’t get the chance to steal a base, but he did drive in a run with a single to center field. Two innings later, he reached on an error by Cubs second baseman Gene Baker and stole second base for the second time that day.

Down 3-0, the Cubs struck back in the fifth. St. Louis left-hander Harvey Haddix retired the first 12 batters he faced before Hank Sauer doubled to left field. Randy Jackson followed with an RBI double, and rookie shortstop Ernie Banks singled to cut the Cardinals’ lead to 3-2.

The Cubs required two pitchers to get through the bottom of the fifth. Jim Brosnan, in the game in relief of Klippstein, walked Ray Jablonski and Tom Alston before throwing a wild pitch. Both runners scored on a double by Rip Repulski, and Haddix helped his own cause with an RBI triple for his second hit of the day.

Moon singled to score Haddix, prompting the Cubs to replace Brosnan with Jim Willis. Moon greeted Willis by stealing second and third, then scoring on a wild pitch. Alex Grammas was hit by a pitch, then scored on Musial’s two-out double off the right-field screen[1] to give the Cardinals a 9-2 lead.

In the seventh, Moon had a chance to tie the single-game stolen base record, but grounded out in his final at-bat of the game. New York Giants infielder Dan McGann set the mark when he stole five bases in a game in 1904.

“I’ll take another crack at it one of these days,” Moon said.[2]

Cardinals manager Eddie Stanky had been informed by Cardinals public relations manager Jim Toomey about the record and was prepared to give Moon the steal sign had he reached base.

“I would have given Moon every chance to get that fifth steal,” Stanky said. “He’s a nervy youngster, and when he says he’ll have another go at it, I’m sure he will.”[3]

Chicago’s Bill Serna hit an RBI single in the seventh and former Cardinal Walker Cooper, the catcher whom Moon seemed intent on making miserable, added an RBI single in the ninth to make the final score 9-4.

Haddix improved to 6-3 on the season, allowing four earned runs on nine hits and a walk. He struck out nine.

“He pitched well, but he worked too much,” said Stanky, noting Haddix’s 5-foot-9, 170-pound stature. “He used 140 pitches; that’s too much wasted effort for a fellow of his physique. He’s rugged, but not gib enough to stand that kind of wear and tear.”[4]

Moon may have missed his chance at tying the stolen base record, but he continued to make history during his rookie campaign. Despite a bleeding ulcer that was diagnosed in September,[5] he finished the year with a .304 batting average, 12 homers, 76 RBIs, and 12 stolen bases to win the Rookie of the Year Award ahead of Banks and Milwaukee’s Henry Aaron.

Moon went on to play 12 seasons in St. Louis before he was traded to the Dodgers following the 1958 season. There, Vin Scully began referring to Moon’s home runs in the short left-field corner as “Moon Shots,” and he became a fan favorite. Over his 12-year career, he totaled 142 homers and 661 RBIs while participating in three All-Star Games.

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[1] Edward Prell, “Wild Hurling Helps Cards Triumph,” Chicago Tribune, May 26, 1954.

[2] Dent McSkimming, “Moon’s Four Stolen Bases Within One Of 50-Year-Old Record,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 26, 1954.

[3] Dent McSkimming, “Moon’s Four Stolen Bases Within One Of 50-Year-Old Record,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 26, 1954.

[4] Dent McSkimming, “Moon’s Four Stolen Bases Within One Of 50-Year-Old Record,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 26, 1954.

[5] Wally Moon with Tim Gregg (2010), Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life, San Antonio, Texas: Moon Publishing, Page 99.

The post Wally Moon steals four bases, nearly ties the NL record: May 25, 1954 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.