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Top 10 facts about 1987 National League champion Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents, Pitchers on January 20, 2012| 3 Comments »

(Updated June 9, 2024)

One of the most remarkable teams in St. Louis history was the 1987 Cardinals.

Managed by Whitey Herzog, the 1987 Cardinals overcame adversity and several back-to-the-wall predicaments to finish 95-67 (three games ahead of the favored Mets in the National League East). The Cardinals then won the pennant by beating the Giants in the League Championship Series and got to Game 7 of the World Series before losing to the champion Twins.

In his book “Mookie,” Mets center fielder Mookie Wilson said, “I loved the Cardinals’ style of play. They were so aggressive, always running on the bases until there was no place else to go … It was an exciting brand of baseball. I always believed that I could have fit in well with that club because I liked running when there were no rules or boundaries.”

The Cardinals started the season with an injury to their top starting pitcher, John Tudor, who suffered a broken kneecap in the dugout when Mets catcher Barry Lyons crashed into him while chasing a pop fly Boxscore, and ended the season without their top slugger, first baseman Jack Clark, who was limited to one postseason at-bat after tearing a tendon in his ankle in a game at Montreal Sept. 9. Boxscore

Two nights after the injury to Clark, the Cardinals were at Shea Stadium to open a three-game series against the second-place Mets, who had moved to within 1.5 games of St. Louis in the NL East standings.

In the ninth, the Mets led 4-1 and were within a strike of getting within a half-game of St. Louis, but Willie McGee delivered a two-out, two-strike RBI-single and Terry Pendleton followed with a two-run home run off Roger McDowell, tying the score. The Cardinals scored twice in the 10th to win, 6-4, stunning the Mets and building their lead to 2.5 games. Boxscore

After clinching the division title Oct. 1 with an 8-2 victory over the Expos at St. Louis, Herzog told the Associated Press, “We could’ve folded when we lost Jack, but we didn’t. The Mets talk about adversity, but we really had it.” Boxscore

In the best-of-seven NL Championship Series, the Giants won three of the first five (on the strength of four Jeffrey Leonard home runs) before the Cardinals won Game 6, 1-0, behind Tudor and two relievers Boxscore and Game 7, 6-0, on a Danny Cox masterpiece. Boxscore

The Cardinals won three of the first five in the World Series against the Twins and held leads in Game 6 (5-2 in the fifth inning) and in Game 7 (2-1 after four) before losing both at Minnesota.

“I look back on that as the biggest miracle year _ the 1987 team,” Herzog said to Cardinals Magazine. “No one even gave us a chance … That was the first year of the juiced-up baseball _ and I didn’t have much juice on that team.”

In honor of this resilient team, here are 10 top facts about the 1987 Cardinals:

1. Shortstop Ozzie Smith led the team in hitting, with a .303 batting average _ the only time he hit .300 or better in a season during his 19-year major-league career.

2. Clark had 57 fewer hits than McGee (120 to 177), but finished with one more RBI (106 to 105).

3. Clark drew 136 walks in 131 games. Mark McGwire (with 162 in 155 games in 1998) is the only Cardinal with more walks in a season.

4. Left fielder Vince Coleman was first in the NL in steals (109), second in runs (121) and second in singles (153).

5. With 35, Clark was the only Cardinal to hit more than 12 home runs.

6. Cardinals hitters were remarkably consistent. They batted .264 at home and .263 on the road.

7. Four Cardinals pitchers posted double-digit win totals, but none won more than 11: Cox (11-9), Greg Mathews (11-11), Bob Forsch (11-7) and Tudor (10-2).

8. Pendleton produced 96 RBI, the most in his seven years with the Cardinals and 22 more than his next-best total for St. Louis.

9. McGee had 37 doubles, 11 triples, 11 home runs and 105 RBI, but also grounded into a league-leading 24 double plays.

10. Catcher Tony Pena, who hit .214 in the regular season, hit .381 (8-for-21) in the NL Championship Series and .409 (9-for-22) in the World Series.

Previously: Sweep of Dodgers gives Cardinals a link to 1987

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An interview with former Cardinals pitcher Al Jackson

Posted in Games, Pitchers on January 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Al Jackson, acquired in the trade that sent Ken Boyer to the Mets, had a positive impact on the Cardinals. In his two seasons with them, Jackson, a left-handed pitcher, helped the Cardinals to a World Series title, ranked among the National League’s elite in earned run average, pitched a one-hitter and posted an overall record of 22-19 with a 2.97 ERA.

On the afternoon of Jan. 13, 2012, I interviewed Jackson, 76, at the New York Mets’ spring training facility in Port St. Lucie, Fla. He was gracious with his time and thoughtful with his answers.

That tape-recorded interview is presented here:

Q: In 1964, the Cardinals went into the final three-game series of the season against the Mets, looking to clinch the pennant. In Game 1, the Cardinals started Bob Gibson and you started for the Mets. You beat Gibson and the Cardinals, 1-0, on a five-hitter, delaying the Cardinals’ clinching until the final day of the season. What do you recall about that game? Boxscore

Al Jackson: I was supposed to pitch the night before that in Milwaukee. And Casey (manager Casey Stengel) came to me and said, “They think we’re going to lie down in St. Louis. Why don’t you pitch the Friday night in St. Louis instead of Thursday in Milwaukee.” I said, “No problem.”

Q: Did you leave the Cardinals and their fans a little shaken by your performance?

Al Jackson: We were about 59 games out of first place. But no baseball game is a pushover. When we came into St. Louis, there were banners all over the town saying, “We’re going to the championship.” With us being so far out and such a poor club, they thought it would be a little easier than it was.

Q: In October 1965, the Mets trade you and third baseman Charlie Smith to the Cardinals for Ken Boyer. Many Cardinals fans were upset Boyer was traded. What was your reaction to the deal?

Al Jackson: The Mets were a losing ballclub. The Cardinals were a better ballclub. I loved New York, but I had been with a losing ballclub for four years. So I thought going over there (to St. Louis) would be the greatest thing _ which it was, because it ended up that the next year we won the World Series.

Q: Last month, Ron Santo was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by a veterans committee. Boyer again was a candidate but wasn’t elected. Does Boyer deserve election to the Hall of Fame?

Al Jackson: No doubt about it. He should have been elected the first time around on that (writers) ballot.

Q: In 1966, your first season with the Cardinals, you won 13 and had an ERA of 2.51. Your ERA was sixth-best in the National League. The five ahead of you: Sandy Koufax, Mike Cuellar, Juan Marichal, Jim Bunning and Bob Gibson. Was it your best season in the big leagues?

Al Jackson: Yes. I was really consistent all year, even though I didn’t start the first month.

Q: Was your ability to throw the sinker a difference-maker that year?

Al Jackson: That was my main pitch. I wasn’t a strikeout pitcher. I was a groundball pitcher. It took me a long time to get there, for the simple reason that I didn’t know how. I was told when I got to the Mets (in 1962), “You have to get the ball down.” But they didn’t tell me how. Through trial and error, I found out.

Q: In May 1966, the Cardinals traded Ray Sadecki to the Giants, opening a spot in the rotation for you. In your first start for the Cardinals, May 13 at St. Louis, you pitched a six-hit shutout, beating the Braves, 8-0. You also had a two-run double and a sacrifice fly for a career-high 3 RBI. Which was more satisfying: pitching the shutout or getting the 3 RBI? Boxscore

Al Jackson: Red (manager Red Schoendienst) talked all the time about how I stayed in shape. So even though I didn’t have a chance to start a game during the first month of the season, I was ready.

I was taught all the time that I wasn’t just a pitcher. I was a ballplayer. If you’re a ballplayer, you’re going to do more than just one thing. I was a pretty decent hitter. I could run. And I took pride in it.

Gibson and I had a bet. Before the season, we bet which one of us would have the most home runs, best batting average and most stolen bases. In June, he led in home runs. I led in batting average. We were in Atlanta, and I got on base. Gibson and I were tied in stolen bases. And he’s hollering from the dugout, “He’ll steal. He’ll steal.” The first baseman (Joe Torre) was standing behind me, not holding me on. Gibson yells louder, “He’ll steal.” I stole the base and Gibson went off, “I told you he would steal.” Boxscore

Q: Tell us more about Gibson …

Al Jackson: Great competitor. In all the years we played against one another, he didn’t fraternize. Neither did I. When I was with the Mets, before games he would run down the right-field line and I would run down the left-field line and our paths would cross in the outfield, but we never did speak to one another. We didn’t speak to each other until I came to the Cardinals. That was the mindset guys had then.

Q: Steve Carlton was on that ’66 Cardinals club, too. What was he like as a 22-year-old rookie?

Al Jackson: He had great stuff and he caught on fast, because he was kind of rushed to the big leagues.

Q: You began the 1967 season in the Cardinals’ rotation and in April pitched a one-hit shutout, beating the Astros, 4-0, in Houston. Bob Aspromonte broke up the no-hitter with a leadoff single in the eighth. Do you recall what happened? Boxscore

Al Jackson: Yes, I do _ big-time. It wasn’t so much the no-hitter. I just wanted to maintain the stuff that I had that night, the control that I had. I wasn’t throwing as good as I was earlier in the game but I also knew that when I got a little tired, I was a better pitcher because I could keep the ball down. Against Aspromonte, I got the groundball I wanted. The pitch may have been down the middle because it was hit in the hole between short and third. If I had thrown it a little further away, the ball may have gone to the shortstop. I wasn’t worried about losing the game. I just wanted to stay on top of mine.

I also had pitched a one-hitter with the Mets against Houston. Joe Amalfitano got the hit. Boxscore Later, I was asked to speak at a dinner in New York. I began by saying I disliked Italians. The room was full of Italians and they looked at me like I was crazy. Then I had to explain: the two guys who broke up my no-hitters are named Amalfitano and Aspromonte. It got a laugh.

Q: After two months of the ’67 season, the Cardinals moved you from the rotation to the bullpen. Why?

Al Jackson: I got into a bad funk. I wasn’t getting people out as a starter. Everyone else was pitching well. I had pitched a little out of the bullpen the year before. And they needed another left-hander in the bullpen. I didn’t know how it was going to work out, but it did.

Q: You were 9-4 that year for the National League champions …

Al Jackson: I thought I really helped that club. That was an enjoyment for me.

Q: Why didn’t you get an opportunity to pitch in the World Series against the Red Sox?

Al Jackson: I never did ask Red (Schoendienst) about it. I found out earlier that in the middle of the season I already was traded back to the Mets when the Cardinals got Jack Lamabe for a player to be named later. The Mets told the Cardinals they could keep me until the end of the season. That was the deal that they had.

Q: And, sure enough, when the World Series ended, you were sent to the Mets. What was your reaction?

Al Jackson: I always thought when a man has a job at home it’s the best job he could have. I lived in New York. I hated to leave the Cardinals, but I was going home.

Q: I’m going to mention four names and ask you to give your immediate reaction to each. Lou Brock …

Al Jackson: Lou turned out to be one heck of a player. I saw him earlier, with the Cubs, and he wasn’t that good. I know the talent was there, but it wasn’t until he got to the Cardinals that things started to happen for him. And then he mastered the thing.

Q: Orlando Cepeda …

Al Jackson: What a clutch player. When he got base hits, when he drove in runs, they were big. He was really the catalyst of our ballclub.

Q: Roger Maris …

Al Jackson: Roger was a pro. When he came to the Cardinals, he just made that lineup so good. He just fit right in. I think we were really missing that left-handed bat.

Q: Curt Flood …

Al Jackson: Great defensive player. He was a great hitter, too. Here was a man who got 200 hits every year. But asking about Flood reminds me of when I was still pitching for the Mets and we were playing the Cardinals in the Polo Grounds. I had a one-run lead in the ninth inning. There were two outs (and a runner on first base) and here comes Stan Musial to pinch-hit.

I always said, “My momma didn’t raise no fool.” Flood was due up after Musial. And as good a hitter as Flood was, I thought about how years back, (pitcher) Harvey Haddix had told me how dangerous this man Musial was in the clutch. And so I said to myself, “I got a one-run lead in the ninth inning. This man is not going to beat me.” I threw four pitches outside and he went on to first base. I got the next man, Flood, to ground out. Game over. Boxscore

Q: Musial was 4-for-5 in his career against you. He batted .800 against you. You were smart to put him on with the walk …

Al Jackson: I’m glad I had a place to put him. I was asked after the game, “Why would you walk him? He’s a left-handed hitter.”  I said, “Why? That’s Musial.” Just look at his record. He’s known for beating teams. And here I am in that small ballpark _ just 250 feet down both lines. I know he can hit for power down both lines. And I never thought about striking him out. That wasn’t on my mind at all.

Previously: An interview with Bill White

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Six switch-hitters equal zero runs for Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters on December 31, 2011| Leave a Comment »

(Updated March 22, 2026)

On July 8, 1988, at San Francisco, the Cardinals featured a batting order with six switch-hitters: first baseman Jose Oquendo, second baseman Luis Alicea, shortstop Ozzie Smith, third baseman Terry Pendleton, left fielder Vince Coleman and center fielder Willie McGee. Catcher Tony Pena, right fielder Tom Brunansky and pitcher Joe Magrane batted right-handed.

Stacking the batting order with switch-hitters didn’t work for manager Whitey Herzog that night, though. Giants right-hander Mike LaCoss pitched a four-hitter in San Francisco’s 1-0 victory. Boxscore

For LaCoss, it was his only shutout of the season and the last of his big-league career. Three of the Cardinals’ hits were singles by switch-hitters Alicea, McGee and Oquendo.

LaCoss “was getting his curveball in on the first pitch,” catcher Bob Melvin told the San Francisco Examiner. “When you are able to throw a strike on the first pitch with a breaking ball, that means you’ve got a lot of room to work from there with your other pitches.”

Mixing in fastballs, split-fingered pitches and changeups, LaCoss never topped 92 mph on the radar gun.

“I don’t think he threw a fastball right over the middle of the plate all night,” Melvin told the Peninsula Times Tribune. “He was hitting the corners with it and keeping the breaking ball down.”

With a cold wind blowing through Candlestick Park and a fog rolling in, it was a “perfect LaCoss night,” the Examiner noted.

“Clubs don’t like to come in and play under these conditions,” LaCoss said to the newspaper. “The wind blows in the hitters’ faces and their eyes start to water. If it’s windy and cool, I feel like I have an advantage. When you know what you’re doing and have some luck, you can make the ball move more.”

St. Louis’ switching-hitting infield that night was reminiscent of the 1965 Dodgers, who also started four switch-hitting infielders _ first baseman Wes Parker, second baseman Jim Lefebvre, shortstop Maury Wills and third baseman Jim Gilliam _ in the World Series against the Twins. Boxscore

In 1993, the Mets opened the season with six switch-hitters in their lineup: catcher Todd Hundley, first baseman Eddie Murray, shortstop Tony Fernandez, third baseman Howard Johnson, left fielder Vince Coleman and right fielder Bobby Bonilla. Boxscore

 

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Cardinals were victims of historic homers by Gil Hodges

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents on December 26, 2011| 3 Comments »

Gil Hodges hit two of the most important home runs of his career against the Cardinals.

Hodges, a first baseman, played 18 seasons in the big leagues with the Dodgers and Mets.

He was one of the greatest right-handed home run sluggers in the National League in the 1950s, and an outstanding defensive first baseman.

Hodges had more career RBI (190) against the Cardinals than he did against any other team. His 57 career home runs against the Cardinals rank only behind the 58 he hit against the Cubs.

In 1962, as a member of the expansion Mets, Hodges hit a pair of historic home runs against St. Louis.

On April 11, 1962, Hodges hit the first regular-season home run in Mets history. The solo shot leading off the fourth inning against Cardinals starter Larry Jackson was Hodges’ 362nd of his career and moved him ahead of Joe DiMaggio for 11th place on big-league baseball’s all-time list. The Cardinals won, 11-4, at St. Louis in the Mets’ first regular-season game. Boxscore

Almost three months later, July 6, 1962, Hodges hit the 370th and last home run of his big-league career. The solo blast off Ray Sadecki with one out in the second moved Hodges into 10th place on big-league baseball’s all-time list, ahead of Ralph Kiner, and solidified Hodges’ hold on the record (since broken) for most National League home runs by a right-handed batter. The Mets, who had lost nine of their previous 11, beat the Cardinals, 10-3, at New York. Boxscore

With the Dodgers, Hodges three times produced five RBI in a game against the Cardinals. The most important of those was the first.

On Sept. 22, 1949, the Cardinals clung to a 1.5-game lead over the second-place Dodgers heading into the finale of a three-game series with Brooklyn at St. Louis. Hodges delivered three singles, a walk and five RBI, carrying the Dodgers to a 19-6 victory and cutting the Cardinals’ lead to a half-game. Boxscore

Hodges had two-run singles off Ted Wilks in the fourth and fifth innings, and drew a bases-loaded walk against Ken Johnson in the sixth.

Brooklyn took over first place on Sept. 29 and went on to win the pennant, finishing a game ahead of the Cardinals, who had 96 wins.

In his book “Stan Musial: The Man’s Own Story,” Musial expressed his admiration for Hodges as a fielder as well as a slugger.

“Gil Hodges was a remarkable first baseman,” Musial said. “If Hodges had been left-handed, he might have been remembered as the most efficient first baseman ever … The quick-handed, good-natured big guy revolutionized bunt defense. Fact is, the Dodgers as a team popularized the pressure-charging defense that makes sacrificing difficult …

“For his blacksmith build, Gil was quick and had lightning-like hands … A gentle big guy who could really hit the long ball.”

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Ozzie Smith cheered Barry Larkin’s best personal feat

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents, Records on December 21, 2011| 2 Comments »

(Updated Sept. 25, 2016)

Barry Larkin played shortstop with distinction for the Reds from 1986-2004, but for most of the first half of his career he was overshadowed by the Cardinals’ Ozzie Smith.

In a classy twist, Smith witnessed and cheered Larkin’s greatest individual feat on a baseball field.

Smith won the Gold Glove Award among National League shortstops in each of Larkin’s first seven seasons in the major leagues, including 1990, when Larkin helped lead Cincinnati to its most recent World Series championship.

Larkin didn’t win the first of his three Gold Glove awards until 1994, the year Smith turned 40. Smith, who won the Gold Glove Award 13 times, was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002.

In 2012, it was Larkin’s turn.

Larkin, 1995 winner of the NL MVP Award, had 2,340 hits and a .295 career batting average.

Larkin had several memorable performances against the Cardinals, including a pinch-hit grand slam off reliever Steve Kline in St. Louis’ 11-10 victory over the Reds on July 28, 2004, at Cincinnati. Boxscore

Larkin’s greatest moment against the Cardinals occurred in the first game of a Sunday afternoon doubleheader on Sept. 22, 1996, at Cincinnati.

In the fifth inning, with St. Louis ahead 3-1, Larkin launched a home run, his 30th of the season, over the left-field wall against starter Donovan Osborne. With that solo shot, Larkin became the first shortstop in major-league history to achieve 30 homers and 30 stolen bases in a season.

As he rounded first base, Larkin thrust both fists in the air in jubilation. Smith, positioned at shortstop for the Cardinals, hollered his congratulations as Larkin trotted past him.

Asked afterward to assess Larkin’s feat, Smith told the Associated Press, “It gives him his own spot in history. It’s a great accomplishment.”

Larkin became the 17th player in big-league history to achieve 30 homers and 30 steals in a season. Fifteen were outfielders and the other, Howard Johnson of the Mets, was a third baseman.

Larkin finished the 1996 season with 33 homers and 36 steals. He would achieve the steals standard again (with 30 in 1999, his fifth season of 30 or more steals), but he never came close to matching 30 homers.

Previously: Ken Boyer belongs in Hall of Fame

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How Mike Shannon became a Cardinals catcher

Posted in Games, Hitters on December 19, 2011| 2 Comments »

(Updated Aug. 8, 2019)

A short, successful stint as a Cardinals catcher revived the big-league career of Mike Shannon.

Shannon opened the 1965 season as the Cardinals’ right fielder, but went hitless in his first 14 at-bats and had one hit in his first 23 at-bats.

Lunging for pitches out of the strike zone, Shannon was batting .095 on June 1 when manager Red Schoendienst moved him to the bench and tried other players in right.

On Aug. 6, 1965, the Cardinals were playing the Giants at St. Louis when Hal Lanier slid into home plate and spiked the left thumb of Tim McCarver as the Cardinals’ catcher attempted to apply a tag. McCarver was replaced by Bob Uecker, the Cardinals’ only other catcher. Boxscore

Two days later, Aug. 8, 1965, Uecker was struck by a foul tip off the bat of the Giants’ Dick Schofield in the first inning. The ball split Uecker’s right thumb, forcing him to leave the game.

McCarver was unable to play, so Schoendienst brought in Shannon to catch. According to The Sporting News, Shannon hadn’t caught in a game since he was a youth in sandlot baseball.

It didn’t take long before Shannon was tested. The Giants had runners on second and third with one out in the first when Willie McCovey lifted a pop-up in foul territory. Shannon made the catch.

In the fourth, Shannon provided “the defensive thrill of the game,” the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. Willie Mays was on first with one out when Jim Ray Hart lined a double to center. Curt Flood retrieved the ball and fired it to shortstop Dick Groat, whose relay throw to Shannon was in time to tag out Mays. Hart broke for third base on the play and Shannon alertly threw to third baseman Ken Boyer, who tagged out Hart.

Shannon fielded flawlessly (no errors, one assist, six putouts) in the game and broke his batting slump, with a double, triple, walk, RBI and run scored. The Giants, who won 6-4, didn’t attempt a steal against Shannon. “They respected Shannon’s arm,” said coach Joe Schultz.

The Cardinals used five pitchers, including knuckleballers Barney Schultz and Bob Purkey and a left-handed sinkerballer, Hal Woodeshick. Boxscore

“I wouldn’t be afraid to go with Shannon after what he showed me handling Barney Schultz’s knuckleball and Hal Woodeshick’s sinker,” Schoendienst said.

Shannon said he was helped by having caught during batting practice that season. “I didn’t go into the job exactly cold,” Shannon said.

Schoendienst noted, “You could see Shannon’s signs from the scoreboard in the first inning, but coach Joe Becker showed Mike how to hide his signs after that.”

The Post-Dispatch reported Shannon “did superbly” and the San Francisco Examiner noted he “played a tremendous game.”

“Shannon showed he could do an excellent job as a catcher and that makes him even more valuable,” Schoendienst said.

After the game, the Cardinals called up Dave Ricketts from the minor leagues to be the everyday catcher while McCarver and Uecker mended.

Starting catcher

On Aug. 12, 1965, at Milwaukee, Ricketts got a day off and Shannon got his first start at catcher. He caught 12 innings, committing no errors and making six putouts, and the Braves attempted no steals against him.

“Shannon did a great job behind the plate,” said Braves manager Bobby Bragan, a former catcher. “I don’t think he boxed more than one ball all day long.”

In the seventh, Shannon hit a solo home run against Wade Blasingame. In the 13th, Shannon’s two-out single off knuckleballer Phil Niekro scored Boyer from second in the Cardinals’ 5-4 victory. Boxscore

“Shannon showed he could hit a knuckleball as well as he could catch one,” the Post-Dispatch reported.

Ricketts came in to catch the bottom half of the 13th; Shannon moved to right.

“Mike Shannon hits better wearing a catcher’s mitt,” the Associated Press reported. “Shannon, who played himself out of a starting job in the outfield because of a .193 batting average before he turned catcher, now has four hits in eight trips to the plate as a receiver.”

Said Shannon: “I’m an outfielder, but if Red Schoendienst wants me to become a catcher, I’ll become a catcher.”

Shannon made one more start at catcher, Aug. 14, at St. Louis in the Reds’ 4-2 victory. Shannon made no errors, had nine putouts and kept the Reds from attempting a steal. Boxscore

When McCarver returned to the lineup, Shannon returned to the outfield, though he appeared in one more 1965 game at catcher, replacing McCarver for the final three innings of the Cardinals’ 19-8 victory at Houston Sept. 30. Boxscore

Versatile player

After the season, Shannon reported to the Florida Instructional League to develop his catching skills. In November, The Sporting News reported, “The talented outfielder, ready to do almost anything to get untracked after his miserable 1965 showing, is concentrating on catching and boning up on the strike zone.”

“Shannon has been working on the fundamentals of catching, especially throwing,” Cardinals general manager Bob Howsam said. “He’s done a great job, too. We’re figuring him as an outfielder yet, but this gives him a chance to do many things.”

The Cardinals opened the 1966 season by shifting Lou Brock from left field to right and starting Alex Johnson in left, with Shannon on the bench. Johnson was hitting .186 on May 17 when he was sent to the minor leagues. Brock was moved back to left field and Shannon took over in right. He played well all season, hitting .288 with 16 home runs.

Shannon made one appearance as a catcher in 1966. On June 5, in the Braves’ 14-4 victory at Atlanta, Shannon replaced McCarver in the eighth and caught a flawless inning. It was his last game as a catcher. Boxscore

Shannon’s career statistics as a catcher: five games, 33.2 innings, 24 putouts, one assist, no errors, no stolen bases against and a 1.000 fielding percentage.

After the 1966 season, the Cardinals acquired Roger Maris from the Yankees to play right field and asked Shannon to learn another position: third base. He became the starting third baseman for the Cardinals’ pennant-winning clubs in 1967 and 1968.

Previously: Cardinals came close to dealing Shannon

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