RetroSimba

Norm Sherry, who helped Sandy Koufax and Gary Carter fulfill their Hall of Fame potential, came close to being acquired by the Cardinals.

A catcher who earned a reputation for leadership while playing for the Dodgers and Mets, Sherry became a coach and manager.

In 1963, the Cardinals were about to complete a multi-player deal with the Mets involving Sherry but it fell through.

Oh, brother

Sherry signed with the Dodgers in 1950 when he was 18. He spent seven years in the minors and two in the Army before he got to the big leagues for two games with the Dodgers in 1959 when he was 27.

His younger brother, Larry Sherry, made his debut in the majors with the Dodgers in 1958 and became their relief ace in 1959 when they won the pennant. In the 1959 World Series against the White Sox, Larry was 2-0 with two saves and an 0.71 ERA.

In 1960, Norm stuck with the Dodgers as a backup to John Roseboro.

On May 7, Norm caught Larry for the first time in a big-league game. In the 11th inning, Larry got the win when Norm hit a walkoff home run against the Phillies’ Ruben Gomez. It was Norm’s first home run in the majors. Boxscore

“My biggest thrill,” Norm told the Los Angeles Times.

According to The Sporting News, Larry and Norm were the 10th brother battery in the big leagues since 1900. Others included two Cardinals combinations: pitcher Mike and catcher Jack O’Neill in 1902-03 and pitcher Mort and catcher Walker Cooper in 1940-45.

Big blow

A right-handed batter, Norm excelled at pulling pitches into and over the left-field screen at the Los Angeles Coliseum. He hit .302 with seven home runs at home for the 1960 Dodgers and .219 with one home run on the road.

On May 31, 1960, in a game against the Cardinals at Los Angeles, the score was tied at 3-3 when the Dodgers put runners on second and third with none out. Cardinals starter Ron Kline gave an intentional walk to Charlie Neal, loading the bases for Norm.

Norm swung at Kline’s first pitch, a high slider, and drove it over the screen for a grand slam, his first as a professional. “I felt good the minute I got hold of it,” Norm told the Los Angeles Times.

The Dodgers won, 8-3, and Larry got the save. Boxscore

In six games against the 1960 Cardinals, Norm hit .348 with three home runs.

Good tip

Norm developed a reputation as a good defensive catcher who worked well with pitchers.

In the book “We Played the Game,” Dodgers pitcher Stan Williams said, “Norm Sherry and I thought alike, so I liked having him as my catcher. It helped having a catcher who would go along with you if you didn’t want to throw a pitch. All I had to do was stare at him and he’d know what I wanted to throw instead.”

At spring training in 1961, Sandy Koufax was entering his seventh season with the Dodgers. His talent was obvious, but his performances were inconsistent. His record through six seasons was 36-41, including 8-13 in 1960.

During a spring training game, Norm urged Koufax to ease up on his fastball in order to get better command of the pitch.

In the book “Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy,” Norm told author Jane Leavy, “What I actually said was, ‘Take something off the ball and let them hit it. Nobody’s going to swing the way you’re throwing now.’ He wound up like, ‘Here, hit it,’ and struck out the side.

“I said, ‘Sandy, I got to tell you something, you just now threw harder trying not to than you did when you were trying to.’ “

Koufax threw seven hitless innings.

“It took me six years to get it through my thick skull, but I’m not taking such a big windup,” Koufax told The Sporting News in April 1961. “I’m throwing easier and I have more confidence now.”

Koufax won 18 in 1961 and embarked on a stretch of dominant seasons that led to election to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Costly collision

For Norm Sherry, the 1961 season took a painful turn on April 20 in a game against the Cardinals. In the third inning, Sherry was bowled over by the baserunner, pitcher Curt Simmons, as he awaited a throw from the outfield. Simmons’ knee struck Sherry on the left side and “he went down in a heap,” the Los Angeles Times reported.

Sherry spent a week in a hospital for treatment of kidney lacerations and internal bleeding. Boxscore

When he returned to the lineup a month later, Sherry hit a home run versus Warren Spahn. Boxscore

Trade talk

The Dodgers shipped Sherry to the Mets after the 1962 season.

In June 1963, the Cardinals, in contention, were looking to acquire a starting pitcher and targeted the Mets’ Roger Craig.

According to Bob Broeg of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals and Mets “were believed near a 5-for-3 deal.” The Mets offered Craig, Sherry and reliever Ken MacKenzie for catcher Gene Oliver, outfielder Duke Carmel, and pitchers Bob Sadowski, Harry Fanok and Ron Taylor. Because of his defensive skills, Sherry appealed to the Cardinals as a backup for 21-year-old catcher Tim McCarver.

The Cardinals didn’t want to part with Taylor, but the Mets were insistent. “I felt the Mets would ask too much for me,” Craig told broadcaster Harry Caray, “and I’m afraid they did.”

When the two sides couldn’t agree, the Cardinals changed plans, dealing Oliver and Sadowski to the Braves for Lew Burdette on June 15, 1963. After the season, the Cardinals got Craig for outfielder George Altman and pitcher Bill Wakefield.

Craig and Taylor helped the 1964 Cardinals become World Series champions.

Sherry hit .136 overall, including .056 versus the Cardinals, in 1963, his last season as a big-league player.

Teaching skills

Sherry went on to manage for 12 years in the farms systems of the Dodgers, Angels and Giants.

In the big leagues, he managed the Angels for parts of the 1976 and 1977 seasons, and coached for 16 years with the Angels, Expos, Padres and Giants.

Expos manager Dick Williams hired Sherry to tutor catcher Gary Carter, beginning in 1978 at spring training. “He will spend a lot of time getting Carter’s catching mechanics going in the right direction,” Williams told the Montreal Gazette. 

Carter accepted Sherry’s suggestions and said, “Norm is showing me how to turn my glove instead of backhanding a ball, and how to get in front of the ball better. He’s also working with me on how to be quicker and more accurate with my throws.”

The improvements helped Carter become a Hall of Fame catcher.

“Carter’s big success is mainly because of Norm Sherry,” Williams told the Gazette in August 1979. “That’s why he’s so far advanced this quickly. Sherry has done an outstanding job with him.”