George Hendrick revived his career with the Cardinals and gave them the consistent run producer they were lacking in the outfield.
On May 26, 1978, the Cardinals acquired Hendrick from the Padres for pitcher Eric Rasmussen.
Platooned in right field by the Padres, Hendrick made it known he wanted to be traded to a team that would play him regularly. The Cardinals were happy to oblige.
Looking for lumber
The Cardinals opened the 1978 season with a starting outfield of Lou Brock in left, Tony Scott in center and Jerry Morales in right. None hit for power or average that season. Their totals: Brock (.221 batting average, no home runs), Scott (.228, one home run) and Morales (.239, four home runs).
The Cardinals needed another big bat to join catcher Ted Simmons and first baseman Keith Hernandez in the heart of the order.
Hendrick became available when he followed a strong 1977 season with a slow start in 1978 and fell out of favor with Padres manager Roger Craig.
The Padres opened the 1978 season with a starting outfield of Oscar Gamble in left, Hendrick in center and Dave Winfield in right. After batting .311 with 23 home runs and 81 RBI as the center fielder for the 1977 Padres, Hendrick hit .230 in April 1978.
Meanwhile, Craig determined catcher Gene Tenace and first baseman Gene Richards were playing out of position. In May, Craig moved Tenace to first base and Richards to left field, shifted Winfield from right to center and put Hendrick and Gamble into a platoon in right.
Hendrick and Gamble were unhappy with the arrangement and Gamble suggested he or Hendrick should be traded. When Padres general manager Bob Fontaine asked Hendrick whether he’d accept a trade, Hendrick said yes, The Sporting News reported.
Good deal
The Cardinals, Giants and Mets showed the most interest in Hendrick, Fontaine told the Associated Press. The Giants offered pitcher Jim Barr, but wanted to renegotiate the remainder of the three-year, $500,000 contract Hendrick signed in 1977, Padres owner Ray Kroc said to the Dayton Daily News.
After the Cardinals met with Hendrick’s agent, Ed Keating, an agreement was reached and the trade was made.
“He’s pleased to be coming here or he wouldn’t have approved of the deal,” Cardinals general manager Bing Devine said of Hendrick. “It was a good trade. There was no gun to our head. We wouldn’t have made it if there had been.”
Hendrick, 28, batted .243 with eight RBI in 36 games for the 1978 Padres. Rasmussen, 26, was 2-5 with a 4.18 ERA for the 1978 Cardinals after posting an 11-17 record the year before.
Cardinals manager Ken Boyer said Hendrick would be the center fielder and would bat third in the order, with Simmons fourth and Hernandez fifth.
“If Hendrick decides to give 100 percent, the deal could be Bing Devine’s best since he gave up Ernie Broglio for Lou Brock 14 years ago,” columnist Dick Young wrote in The Sporting News.
Joe Amalfitano, who was a coach with the 1977 Padres when Hendrick had his stellar season, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “He’s a disciplined hitter. He’s a good base runner. He knows where he is at all times. He knows how to play this game. He never alibis. He never caused us any trouble.”
Special delivery
The Cardinals had lost 15 of their last 16 games and had a 15-31 record when Hendrick made his debut with them on May 29 in a doubleheader against the Mets in New York.
In a rare interview, Hendrick told Rick Hummel of the Post-Dispatch, “When I played against the Cardinals last year, my observation was that if they had somebody in the lineup who could protect Ted Simmons and hit 20 home runs and drive in 80 or 90 runs, I thought they could contend. I’m not saying I’m that guy, but I’m going to try to be.”
Hendrick delivered for the 1978 Cardinals, batting .288 with 27 doubles, 17 home runs and 67 RBI in 102 games.
In seven seasons with St. Louis, Hendrick hit .294 and twice had more than 100 RBI in a season (109 in 1980 and 104 in 1982). He batted .321 in the 1982 World Series and drove in the go-ahead run in the sixth inning of the decisive Game 7 against the Brewers.
Rasmussen, joining a rotation that included Gaylord Perry and Randy Jones, was 12-10 with a 4.06 ERA for the 1978 Padres. He was 5-0 in July and 0-5 in September.
Rasmussen was reacquired by the Cardinals in December 1981 and pitched for them briefly in 1982 and 1983 before finishing his major-league career with the 1983 Royals.
George is one of my favorite Cardinals. Sad he was traded, but for John Tudor, another favorite Cardinal.
I’m glad George Hendrick remains appreciated by so many Cardinals fans.
Silent George was always a class act and a very important part of that ’82 team. Without him, there probably would not have been WS title.
Well said.
Wow. George said all that? I don’t remember him saying anything after he got here, but I always liked him, especially in ’82.
Thanks for reading and for commenting.
I am a native of San Diego, and I remember this trade….a BAD TRADE for the Padres. George Hendrick could hit! I loved it when the Padres had Dave Winfield and George in the lineup. A great one-two PUNCH. Oscar Gamble was a BUST as a Padre. Manager Roger Craig blew it! Regardless, I am glad George thrived in St. Louis and helped the Red Birds get to a World Series.
Thanks for reading and for commenting. Dave Winfield and George Hendrick would be terrific additions to any lineup in any era.