RetroSimba

(Updated Nov. 20, 2024)

Stan Musial, the greatest Cardinals player, rates the Cleveland Indians’ Bob Feller as the greatest pitcher of his time.

In his book “Stan Musial: The Man’s Own Story,” Musial said of Feller, “I hit against Feller only in exhibition games, but I’d say he probably was the greatest pitcher of our era. He had blinding speed, later developed a great curveball and finally a good slider. Feller took baseball most seriously and was one of the first players I knew who punished himself physically with exercises, recognizing the need for prime conditioning.”

As a youth in Iowa, Feller’s favorite player was another Cardinal, Rogers Hornsby.

In the book “Voices From Cooperstown,” Feller told author Anthony J. Connor, “My first glove was a Rogers Hornsby glove, the old three-fingered glove. Used it for years. Every two years, I’d buy a new one … Hornsby was my first idol … I even took up second base as my first position because that was where he played.”

(In the only regular-season matchup against Feller, on April 24, 1937, Hornsby, then with the Browns, drew a bases-loaded walk, struck out and reached on an error by the third baseman. Hornsby was 41 and Feller was 18. Boxscore)

Feller began his Hall of Fame career with the Indians in 1936 when he was 17. “I signed for one dollar and an autographed baseball,” Feller recalled to Anthony J. Connor. “I’m glad I didn’t receive a big bonus. I believe you should get paid after you do your job, not before. I was very confident that I’d make good.”

Feller pitched until 1941, served in World War II, resumed his playing career in 1945 and retired after the 1956 season with 266 wins. He led the American League in strikeouts seven times.

Musial began his Hall of Fame career with the Cardinals in 1941, played through 1944, served in the Navy in 1945, resumed his playing career in 1946 and retired after the 1963 season.

Fact vs. myth

Before big-league baseball integrated in 1947, barnstorming clubs of major leaguers would play stars from the Negro League during the off-season in the 1930s and 1940s.

On Sunday Oct. 5, 1941, an all-star team named for Cardinals coach Mike Gonzalez and led by Feller played an exhibition against the Kansas City Monarchs, champions of the Negro National League, at Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis.

Musial, who had made his major-league debut a few weeks before, on Sept. 17, 1941, against the visiting Boston Braves, is said to have played in that exhibition. According to the book “Musial, From Stash to Stan the Man” by James Giglio, Musial hit a home run off Satchel Paige in the exhibition. Giglio cites as his source the book “Don’t Look Back: Satchel Paige in the Shadows of Baseball.”

However, an account of the exhibition in the Oct. 9, 1941, edition of The Sporting News makes no mention of a home run by Musial. Game reports in the three St. Louis newspapers _ Globe-Democrat, Post-Dispatch and Star-Times _ don’t mention Musial either. In the book “Satch, Dizzy & Rapid Robert,” author Timothy M. Gay states, “Despite persistent claims to the contrary in books and articles over the years, Cardinals rookie Stan Musial did not play that afternoon.”

(I couldn’t find any evidence that Musial played in the game. The Globe-Democrat published a box score and Musial isn’t listed).

According to the Globe-Democrat, three Cardinals played for the all-stars: Johnny Hopp, Frank “Creepy” Crespi and Walker Cooper.

Johnny Lucadello and Johnny Wyrostek each drove in two runs for the all-stars in a 4-1 win over the Monarchs, the Globe-Democrat reported.

Feller and Paige were the starting pitchers. Feller struck out three, walked three and yielded a run on two hits in five innings. Paige, described by the Star-Times as “the Negro Dizzy Dean,” struck out four, walked two and yielded four runs on five hits in four innings.

“The magnet of a duel between Bob Feller, Cleveland fireball mound ace, vs. Satchel Paige, king of all Negro pitchers, attracted a paid crowd of 10,124 to Sportman’s Park,” The Sporting News reported. According to the “Satch, Dizzy & Rapid Robert” book, “several thousand African-American fans sat in the segregated right-field bleachers.”

Musial joins tour

Musial did play for the Bob Feller All-Stars when Feller organized a barnstorming tour in 1946. Feller and Paige were the main pitching attractions.

It was quite a boost to the tour when Feller got Musial to agree to play. Musial was the National League batting champion in 1946.

The book “Satch, Dizzy & Rapid Robert” confirms Musial joined Feller’s barnstorming squad after the 1946 World Series. Eight future Hall of Famers played on the tour. Besides Feller, Musial and Paige, the others were Bob Lemon, Phil Rizzuto, Hilton Smith, Monte Irvin and Willard Brown.

On Oct. 16, 1946, the day after the Cardinals won Game 7 of the 1946 World Series at St. Louis, Musial joined the Feller All-Stars in Los Angeles and played in the game that night. He went hitless, including 0-for-2 versus Paige, and drew a walk, according to the “Satch, Dizzy & Rapid Robert” book.

Musial stayed with the tour as it barnstormed up and down the West Coast and finished in Hawaii.