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Bobby Tolan intrigued Cardinals with speed, hitting

Posted in Games, Hitters, Prospects on June 4, 2014| 4 Comments »

As a teen-ager, Bobby Tolan was a premier prospect for the Cardinals and was given a chance to displace Mike Shannon as the right fielder.

Tolan was 19 when he debuted in right field for the Cardinals on Sept. 3, 1965. Batting leadoff, Tolan was 1-for-4 against the Mets. He singled to center in his first at-bat, but was picked off by pitcher Dick Selma and tagged out in a rundown. Boxscore

Sprinter speed

A left-handed batter, Tolan, 17, was signed by the Pirates in 1963 as an amateur free agent out of Fremont High School in Los Angeles. His cousin, Eddie Tolan, had been called the world’s fastest human after winning gold medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints for the United States in the 1932 Olympic Games at Los Angeles.

After a season in the Pirates’ system, Tolan was left off the big-league roster and selected by the Cardinals in the December 1963 minor-league draft.

Converted from first baseman to outfielder by the Cardinals, Tolan made an immediate impact, hitting .297 with 34 stolen bases for Class AA Tulsa and being named to the Texas League all-star team.

In 1965, Tolan continued to impress. He hit .290 with 45 stolen bases for Class AAA Jacksonville.

A 1965 profile of Tolan in The Sporting News was headlined, “Teen-ager Tolan A Blur On Bases, Whiz With Stick.”

After Jacksonville beat the Dodgers in an exhibition game that year, Dodgers shortstop Maury Wills said, “He could challenge my base-stealing record.”

Said Dodgers catcher John Roseboro: “The kid looks too good to be true.”

Grover Resinger, who managed Tolan in consecutive seasons at Tulsa and Jacksonville, filed glowing reports to the Cardinals.

Another Billy Williams

“He’s improving all the time,” Resinger said. “… He’s going to be one of the better hitters in the game. He’s a line-drive hitter, with good power to all fields. Bobby is a Billy Williams type of hitter. He’s going to get stronger and I think he has a good chance to become a 25- to 30-homer hitter.”

Late in the 1965 season, Bob Howsam, Cardinals general manager, decided to give Tolan a chance to be St. Louis’ everyday right fielder for the final month of the season.

Shannon, who had become the Cardinals’ regular right fielder in the second half of 1964, struggled in 1965. He hit .221 and had almost as many strikeouts (46) as hits (54). The Cardinals’ backup right fielders _ Tito Francona (.259) and Phil Gagliano (.240) _ weren’t long-term solutions.

Howsam also was thinking ahead to 1966 when the Cardinals would move into their spacious new home, Busch Stadium II. He envisioned Tolan joining Lou Brock and Curt Flood in an outfield of speedsters who could chase down fly balls in the big stadium. Howsam also liked the thought of Tolan running the bases.

“His base-stealing ability is unlimited,” Resinger said of Tolan. “I think he’ll eventualy steal 50 bases in the big leagues. He’s not as fast as Brock, but he is above average.”

Too much, too soon

Tolan made 17 September starts in right field for the 1965 Cardinals, but he was overmatched at the plate. He hit .188 (13 hits in 17 games).

That performance prompted Howsam to alter his plans. After the 1965 season, the Cardinals acquired outfielder Alex Johnson from the Phillies. The Cardinals opened the 1966 season with Johnson in left, Flood in center and Brock shifting from left to right.

Johnson started poorly, though, and by mid-May was sent to the minors. The Cardinals moved Brock back to left and reinserted Shannon in right.

Tolan hit .172 in 43 games for the 1966 Cardinals. He was a backup to Roger Maris in right for the 1967-68 Cardinals clubs that won consecutive National League pennants and a World Series title.

After the 1968 season, the Cardinals traded Tolan to the Reds for right fielder Vada Pinson. Tolan was reunited with Howsam, who had become the Reds’ general manager.

Given a starting outfield spot, Tolan thrived with Cincinnati. He fulfilled Resinger’s prediction, producing a league-high 57 steals for the 1970 Reds. In four seasons with Cincinnati, Tolan hit .282 with 140 steals and helped the Reds win pennants in 1970 and 1972.

In a 13-year major league career with the Cardinals, Reds, Padres, Phillies and Pirates, Tolan hit .265 with 193 steals.

Previously: Here’s how Mike Shannon became a Cardinals catcher

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No backing down: Tony La Russa vs. Lloyd McClendon

Posted in Games, Managers, Opponents on May 28, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Managers Tony La Russa of the Cardinals and Lloyd McClendon of the Pirates engaged in a nose-to-nose public showdown, creating hard feelings that lasted deep into the following season.

La Russa and McClendon were suspended for their actions.

On June 3, 2004, the Cardinals and Pirates were playing the last of a four-game series at Pittsburgh. The Cardinals won the first three and were leading, 4-2, in the ninth inning of the finale.

Tensions had run high since the series’ second game when the Cardinals’ Scott Rolen was hit in the head by a pitch from Ryan Vogelsong. Cardinals starter Jeff Suppan retaliated by plunking Daryle Ward in the at-bat after Ward had slugged a home run.

In the finale (in which catcher Yadier Molina got the start in his major-league debut), the Cardinals’ Albert Pujols was struck in the leg by an Oliver Perez delivery in the sixth inning. Jason Kendall, the Pirates’ first batter in the bottom half of the inning, got nailed by a Woody Williams pitch.

Bring it on

With two outs and none on in the ninth, Cardinals batter Tony Womack barely avoided a high, tight pitch from Mike Gonzalez.

From the dugout, La Russa yelled at Gonzalez.

Kendall, the catcher, yelled back at La Russa.

La Russa barked at Kendall, telling him to keep the pitches down.

Angered, McClendon charged onto the field and headed directly toward the Cardinals dugout.

Umpires Brian Gorman and Dale Scott tried to restrain McClendon, who called out La Russa.

Accepting the challenge, La Russa entered the field.

As both benches emptied, La Russa and McClendon stood toe to toe and exchanged heated words along the first-base line.

“As angry as the two were,” wrote Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist Ron Cook, “it’s surprising no punches were thrown.”

Gorman ejected both managers.

Crime and punishment

“I did what I feel I had to do,” McClendon said to the Post-Gazette. “He (La Russa) crossed the line by yelling at my players. If I don’t do anything there, I lose respect. I lose my team.”

Said La Russa to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “I can’t read anybody’s mind, but the way (Gonzalez) was looking and prancing, I was very suspicious (of his intent). That just doesn’t belong. If you’re going to pitch inside, get the ball below the shoulder.”

When the game resumed, Jason Isringhausen closed out the Pirates in the ninth and the Cardinals completed the sweep. Boxscore

The next day, Bob Watson, vice president of on-field operations for Major League Baseball, suspended each manager for two games and imposed fines.

La Russa and McClendon agreed the matter should be settled on the field.

“I think it’s really bad business,” La Russa said to the Associated Press. “But I also think Major League Baseball is not really attacking the problem _ of pitches up and in _ in the best way that they should.”

Said McClendon: “I guess what you’re supposed to do now … is when the opposing manager berates your players you should just sit there and not say a thing and allow your team to lose respect for you and for them to know that you’re not going to fight for them and stand up for them.”

Plot thickens

The story didn’t end there.

Two months later, in August 2004, McClendon asked umpires to check the cap of Cardinals pitcher Julian Tavarez for a foreign substance. The umpires found something suspicious and ejected Tavarez, who was suspended for 10 games.

In an interview with the Post-Dispatch, La Russa accused McClendon of “gamesmanship.”

Tavarez said McClendon “was trying to get back at Tony more than doing anything to me.”

Said McClendon to MLB.com: “Why would I hate the Cardinals? I don’t hate Tony … I respect them.”

A year later, however, in August 2005, McClendon and Pirates hitting coach Gerald Perry, a former Cardinals player, got into an altercation with Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan during batting practice. Perry may have struck Duncan in the jaw, according to published reports. Afterward, in discussing the incident with the media, Duncan labeled McClendon “an idiot.”

One month after that, the Pirates fired McClendon.

Previously: Wrangle at Wrigley: Tony La Russa vs. Dusty Baker

Previously: 1980s macho match: Whitey Herzog vs. Roger Craig

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How Mike Shannon put a charge into 1964 Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters on May 26, 2014| Leave a Comment »

In the span of five months, Mike Shannon transformed from Cardinals reject to World Series standout.

Demoted to the minor leagues in May 1964 and shunted by Cardinals consultant Branch Rickey, Shannon recovered and sparked St. Louis to a Game 1 victory over the Yankees in the World Series.

“Show you can hit”

After short stints with the 1962 and 1963 Cardinals, Shannon, 24, began the 1964 season as a reserve outfielder with St. Louis. He got three at-bats and struck out each time.

In early May, general manager Bing Devine informed Shannon he was being sent to Class AAA Jacksonville. According to the Associated Press, Shannon and Devine had this exchange:

Shannon: “What do you want of me?”

Devine: “We’d like to see you hit more. If you show us you can hit, we’ll bring you back.”

Shannon produced 80 hits in 70 games for a Jacksonville club managed by Harry Walker. Good to his word, Devine brought back Shannon to the Cardinals on July 7. Manager Johnny Keane gave him the chance to be the everyday right fielder.

In mid-August, with the Cardinals in fifth place and apparently out of contention, team owner Gussie Busch, acting on the advice of Rickey, fired Devine with six weeks left in the season.

Bob Broeg, longtime St. Louis sports journalist, uncovered an Aug. 10 memo written by Rickey that urged the Cardinals to dump Shannon.

“I would let Shannon go back to Jacksonville for the balance of the (1964) season.” Rickey wrote in the memo, which was published in The Sporting News. “I would even let Shannon go to the draft of Triple-A if major league waivers could be secured. I don’t believe we can win the pennant in 1965 with Shannon as a regular player on the Cardinals club, or (Carl) Warwick or (Charlie) James or (Bob) Uecker or (Jerry) Buchek.”

Shannon, however, remained with the 1964 Cardinals. Keane continued to play him and Shannon produced. He delivered nine home runs and 43 RBI after his promotion from Jacksonville, helping the Cardinals surge and win the National League pennant on the last day of the season.

Denting the scoreboard

In Game 1 of the World Series, Shannon started in right field and batted sixth, between left-handed batters Bill White and Tim McCarver. In his first World Series at-bat, Shannon singled off Whitey Ford and scored.

The Yankees led, 4-2, when Shannon batted with one on and one out in the sixth. A south wind was blowing about 15 mph toward left field. When Ford delivered a high slider, Shannon connected and sent a towering shot toward left. Helped by the wind, the ball cleared the wall and kept rising until it crashed between the letters “B” and “U” in the Budweiser sign atop the 75-foot-high scoreboard at Busch Stadium.

Witnesses estimated the home run traveled more than 450 feet and likely as far as 475 to 500 feet.

“That was about the longest ball I’ve ever seen hit out here,” Keane said.

Said Shannon: “That homer gave me the biggest thrill of my life.”

The two-run home run, described by the Associated Press as a “Ruthian wallop,” tied the score at 4-4 and, according to The Sporting News, “seemed to ignite a spark among the Redbirds.” Video

The Cardinals scored twice more in the inning, taking a 6-4 lead, and won, 9-5. Shannon was 2-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBI. Boxscore

“If I picked the turning point of the game _ the one that got us the chance we needed and inspired the players _ it would have to be Shannon’s home run,” Keane said.

In his book “Whitey and Mickey,” Ford revealed that during the Cardinals’ four-run sixth, “My left hand went numb. It just went dead. No blood was getting down from the shoulder. The artery was blocked.”

Hit or miss

Shannon started in right field in all seven games of the 1964 World Series. He led the Cardinals in runs scored (six) and in strikeouts (nine) and batted .214 with no walks. Spanning two games, Shannon struck out in five consecutive at-bats: twice against Pete Mikkelsen in Game 5 and three times against Jim Bouton in Game 6.

He became the fifth player in World Series history to strike out in five consecutive at-bats. The others: Josh Devore, 1911 Giants; George Mogridge, 1924 Senators; George Pipgras, 1932 Yankees; and Mickey Mantle, 1953 Yankees.

Shannon was the first Cardinals batter to strike out nine times in a World Series since Jim Bottomley did so in 1930. Since then, Vince Coleman struck out 10 times with the Cardinals in the 1987 World Series. Two other Cardinals _ Jack Clark in 1985 and Willie McGee in 1987 _ each struck out nine times in a World Series.

For overcoming his doubters and contributing significantly to the Cardinals’ championship, Shannon was awarded a full World Series winners share: $8,622.19.

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Tim McCarver challenged Bob Gibson for World Series MVP

Posted in Games, Hitters on May 23, 2014| 4 Comments »

In a 1964 World Series Cardinals lineup of future Hall of Famer Lou Brock and standouts Ken Boyer, Curt Flood, Dick Groat, Bill White, the hitter who performed with the most sustained excellence was their 22-year-old catcher, Tim McCarver.

Defeating the Yankees in seven games, the 1964 Cardinals received spectacular performances from pitcher Bob Gibson (two wins, 31 strikeouts in 27 innings), Boyer (two home runs, including a game-winning grand slam), Brock (nine hits, .300 batting average) and relievers Roger Craig and Ron Taylor (a combined 9.2 scoreless innings).

McCarver was every bit as good; perhaps the best of all. He hit a game-winning home run, stole home, led the Cardinals in hits (11) and walks (five) and fielded flawlessly (no errors in 63 innings) while helping a pitching staff navigate a Yankees lineup led by Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris.

Hot hitter

In hitting .478 with five RBI in the 1964 World Series, McCarver compiled a .552 on-base percentage.

The Cardinals have appeared in nine World Series since then and no St. Louis regular has had a higher on-base percentage than McCarver’s. (Among those who came close: Dane Iorg at .529 in 1982, Lance Berkman at .516 in 2011 and Brock, also at .516, in 1968.)

McCarver had the highest batting average by a Cardinal who played in every game of a World Series since Pepper Martin hit .500 in 1931, The Sporting News noted.

Gibson deservedly won the 1964 World Series Most Valuable Player Award, though a case could be made for McCarver, who was runner-up in the voting.

In Game 1, McCarver had a double and a triple against Whitey Ford, who was making his last World Series start in a Hall of Fame career. After his double in the sixth inning, McCarver scored the go-ahead run on a Carl Warwick single, breaking a 4-4 tie and sparking the Cardinals to a 9-5 victory at St. Louis. Boxscore

Swinging away

After the Cardinals and Yankees split the first four games, the score in Game 5 on Oct. 12, 1964, at Yankee Stadium was tied 2-2 after nine innings.

In the 10th, with White on third and Groat on first and one out, McCarver batted against reliever Pete Mikkelsen.

Cardinals manager Johnny Keane told The Sporting News he almost instructed McCarver to bunt.

“I considered a squeeze for Tim, but I was afraid of a pitchout,” Keane said.

With the count at 3-and-2, Mikkelsen threw a fastball and McCarver pulled it over the right-field fence for a three-run home run, lifting the Cardinals to a 5-2 victory. Boxscore and Video

“I was just trying to meet the ball, to get the guy (White) in from third base,” McCarver said. “I hit it good _ it was a waist-high fastball _ but at first I didn’t think it would be a homer. I didn’t think it would carry.

“I was dazed when I saw the ball go out. By the time I got to third, I was laughing out loud. I’m always laughing, even when I’m sad. The way I feel now, I’ll never be sad again.”

McCarver had singled in the two at-bats before hitting the home run. He also singled in his first two at-bats in Game 6, giving him five hits in a row. That was one short of the World Series record of six consecutive hits by Goose Goslin of the 1924 Senators.

Daredevil on base

In the fourth inning of Game 7, McCarver was on third and Mike Shannon on first with one out and the Cardinals ahead, 1-0. With Dal Maxvill at the plate and Mel Stottlemyre pitching, Shannon broke for second on a steal attempt.

Catcher Elston Howard threw to second, trying to nail Shannon, who eluded the tag of Bobby Richardson. McCarver dashed for home, beating Richardson’s return peg to Howard. McCarver had a steal of home. It would be his lone stolen base in 21 World Series games. Video

The Cardinals went on to a 7-5 victory and their first World Series title in 18 years. Boxscore

The next day, McCarver turned 23, celebrating his birthday as a World Series sensation.

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How Joaquin Andujar made like Babe Ruth for Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Pitchers on May 16, 2014| 9 Comments »

(Updated May 15, 2020)

Three factors combined to make the last home run of Joaquin Andujar’s career both special and unconventional: It was a grand slam, he called the shot and the Cardinals pitcher, a right-hander, hit it left-handed.

On May 15, 1984, Andujar pitched a complete game and slugged the fifth and final home run of his big-league career in the Cardinals’ 9-1 victory over the Braves at St. Louis.

In the eighth inning, the Cardinals led, 5-1, and had Andy Van Slyke on third and Ozzie Smith on second with two outs and catcher Tom Nieto at bat. The Braves opted to walk Nieto intentionally, loading the bases.

As reliever Jeff Dedmon delivered the mandatory four pitches outside the strike zone to Nieto, Andujar, waiting at the on-deck circle, pointed to the right-field wall.

“I told (teammates) George (Hendrick) and Tito (Landrum) that I was going to hit a home run,” Andujar told The Sporting News.

Smith, watching from second base, confirmed to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he saw Andujar call his shot. “He pointed while he was in the on-deck circle and said he was going to do it,” Smith said. “Can you believe that?”

Said Andujar to the Atlanta Constitution: “Everyone knows that I’m strong.”

Special formula

Leaving the on-deck circle, Andujar strode toward the plate and settled into the left side of the batter’s box.

His first four major-league home runs had been hit right-handed. Andujar hit three homers _ off Bill Lee of the Expos, Steve Rogers of the Expos and Rick Wise of the Padres _ with the Astros. The fourth was hit for the Cardinals, again off the Expos’ Rogers, on April 27, 1984, at Montreal.

A career .127 hitter in his 13 major-league seasons, Andujar used a personal formula to determine whether he would bat right-handed or left-handed. He usually opted for the left side when facing a right-hander (such as Dedmon) with runners in scoring position, according to St. Louis reporter Rick Hummel.

Watching from the dugout, Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog never knew what side of the batter’s box Andujar would choose. “What the hell do I know?” Herzog said to The Sporting News. “I’m only the manager.”

Sultan of Swat

With the bases loaded, “I knew they’d have to pitch to me,” Andujar told the Associated Press.

Andujar dug in and waited for a pitch in the strike zone.

Dedmon delivered.

“It was right down the middle,” said Braves manager Joe Torre.

Andujar uncoiled what the Atlanta Constitution described as “his left-handed going deep swing” and hit the ball to where he had pointed _ over the right-field wall _ for his lone grand slam and his only home run struck left-handed. Boxscore and Audio

“Every day, I hit five or six home runs in batting practice,” Andujar told The Sporting News. “I know I’m not a good hitter. I know I’m a lousy hitter. But … if I make contact, it’s gone.”

Previously: Cardinals pitchers enjoy grand slam streak

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Dodgers rake Tom Poholsky for 14 singles, lose to Cardinals

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on May 14, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Tom Poholsky had a remarkable performance against the Dodgers on Aug. 3, 1956, at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. The Cardinals pitcher gave up 14 hits, all singles, and managed to avoid getting a loss.

The latter was no small feat. Ebbets Field was a house of horrors for Poholsky. His career record against the Dodgers at Brooklyn: 0-11 with a 5.72 ERA. Ten of those losses were as a Cardinal, one as a Cub.

Poholsky, who pitched five years for the Cardinals and one for the Cubs, was 4-17 overall against the Dodgers. As a Cardinal, he was 4-15 versus the Dodgers.

In 1956, Poholsky, 26, a right-hander, was one of the Cardinals’ top starters. He ranked second on the staff in starts (29) and innings pitched (203).

6-run cushion

On Aug. 3, he appeared headed for a win at Brooklyn. The Cardinals led, 8-2, after five innings, but the Dodgers kept piling up singles against Poholsky. Jackie Robinson had three. Carl Furillo, Jim Gilliam, Gil Hodges and Duke Snider had two apiece. Sandy Amoros, Roy Campanella and Randy Jackson had one each.

Poholsky also unleashed two wild pitches, but he protected the lead, in part, because the Dodgers hit into three double plays against him.

When Poholsky was relieved by Larry Jackson, with one on and one out in the seventh, the Cardinals led, 8-4.

Jackson gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, Hodges, narrowing the margin to 8-6, and the Dodgers scored twice more in the eighth, tying the score at 8-8.

Poholsky’s line: 6.1 innings, 14 singles, 5 runs, 3 walks, 4 strikeouts, 2 wild pitches.

History repeats

The Cardinals prevailed because their third pitcher of the game, left-hander Jackie Collum, held the Dodgers scoreless for 4.1 innings in relief of Jackson. Collum yielded one hit, a single by Campanella.

In the 12th, facing Clem Labine, the Cardinals scored three runs, two on a single by their 41-year-old catcher, Walker Cooper, and won, 11-8. The Dodgers had 19 hits, 18 singles and the Hodges homer. Boxscore

Fifty-eight years later, May 9, 2014, the Mariners’ Brandon Maurer became the first pitcher since Poholsky to yield 14 hits in a game, with all being singles, ESPN.com reported. Unlike Poholsky, Maurer was the losing pitcher. The Royals beat the Mariners, 6-1, at Seattle.

Maurer’s line: 7.1 innings, 14 singles, 6 runs, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts. Boxscore

The Royals had 16 hits (including two off Tom Wilhelmsen), all singles.

Poholsky was 1-5 against the Dodgers in 1956. He pitched a complete-game three-hitter in a 4-1 Cardinals triumph over the Dodgers at St. Louis on May 5. Snider homered, Gilliam tripled and Amoros had the lone single.

Overall for the 1956 Cardinals, Poholsky was 9-14 with a 3.59 ERA. He was traded to the Cubs in December 1956 and was 1-7 (including two losses to the Cardinals) in his lone season with Chicago.

Previously: Duke Snider, Stan Musial put on big show

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