RetroSimba

In September 1938, the relationship between Cardinals manager Frankie Frisch and executive Branch Rickey had become irreparable.

Cardinals owner Sam Breadon liked and respected Frisch, but he determined he couldn’t afford to lose Rickey.

On Sept. 11, 1938, Breadon reluctantly fired Frisch.

Frisch had been a Hall of Fame-caliber second baseman for the Cardinals and was Breadon’s favorite player. In 1933, Frisch became the Cardinals’ player-manager, replacing Gabby Street, and led them to a World Series championship the following year. The Cardinals contended in 1935 and 1936, finishing second in the National League both years.

Aggressive and feisty, Frisch managed the Cardinals’ rough-and-tumble Gashouse Gang clubs that featured colorful characters such as Dizzy Dean, Pepper Martin, Joe Medwick, Rip Collins and Leo Durocher.

Frisch was Breadon’s guy more than he was Rickey’s and he and Rickey clashed. Rickey, for instance, wanted Frisch to move center fielder Terry Moore to third base.

At a Chamber of Commerce luncheon at St. Louis in April 1938, Rickey put the heat on Frisch, telling the audience, “Except for pitching, this is the greatest ballclub the Cardinals ever had.”

Instead, the Cardinals were in sixth place in September 1938 and speculation grew Frisch wouldn’t be brought back in 1939.

Don Gutteridge, third baseman for the 1938 Cardinals, told author Peter Golenbock for the book “The Spirit of St. Louis” that “during the latter part of the season all of us were thinking Frankie might get fired …My guess is that Frisch wanted to play certain players and Rickey wanted him to play somebody else.”

Showdown with Breadon

After Labor Day, Frisch went to Breadon, seeking to learn whether he had the owner’s support. “I have the greatest admiration for the old man (Breadon),” Frisch told The Sporting News. “He’s been swell to me right along and we never had a cross word, but I had heard reports a new manager was to be brought in for 1939 and on Sept. 9 I decided to find out where I stood.

“I told the old man that if he was planning a change I would like to be free now so that I could get lined up with some other club. Breadon said he would give me his answer Sunday (Sept. 11). You know the rest.”

According to multiple published reports, Breadon told Frisch he would have to accept a pay cut if he wanted to return in 1939. When Frisch and Breadon were unable to agree on salary terms, Breadon told Frisch before the Pirates-Cardinals game at Sportsman’s Park on Sept. 11 that the manager would be replaced.

In a Page 1 article headlined “Sam Breadon Fires Frisch to Keep Peace With Rickey,” The Sporting News reported that Clarence “Pants” Rowland, a representative of Cubs owner P.K. Wrigley, had met three times with Rickey. Rowland, acting on instructions from Wrigley, offered Rickey either the job of president or general manager of the Cubs, The Sporting News surmised.

Breadon figured it was easier to replace a manager than it was to find a substitute for Rickey, but he didn’t like making the move.

As Frisch prepared to leave the ballpark after his termination, Breadon “put his arms around Frankie, bade him goodbye and there was mist in his eyes when he turned quickly and hustled out of the room,” The Sporting News reported.

“A good manager”

“I do not blame (Frisch) for the position of the club this year,” Breadon told The Sporting News. “He has not done anything we can find fault with and he has been a good manager.”

(In six seasons as Cardinals manager, Frisch had a record of 458-354, a .564 winning percentage.)

Rickey remained in the background and didn’t talk with reporters about Frisch’s departure. Frisch declined to discuss his strained relationship with Rickey.

“I leave St. Louis with the best of feeling toward the club officials, players and fans,” Frisch said. “… You know how it is _ a manager’s welcome often wears out with the front office.”

Wrote Jack Cuddy of The Pittsburgh Press: “When (Frisch) received his walking papers from president Sam Breadon and marched into the dressing room during Sunday’s game at St. Louis, the Gashouse Gang died a sudden death. His dismissal meant the final triumph of Branch Rickey in a long-standing feud. Rickey … always has been opposed to the hell-for-leather philosophies of the Gas House Gang on or off the field.”

Mike Gonzalez, the Cardinals’ Cuban-born coach, took over as manager for the rest of the 1938 season. Rickey selected Ray Blades, manager of the Cardinals’ Rochester farm club, to manage St. Louis in 1939.

Frisch was part of the Braves’ radio broadcast team in 1939 and became manager of the Pirates in 1940.

Previously: Why Cardinals dealt Dizzy Dean to Cubs 75 years ago