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Steve Braun had sharp stroke, good eye with Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters on March 2, 2021| 10 Comments »

A disciple of a master instructor, Steve Braun used plate discipline and situational hitting skill to become a valuable role player for the Cardinals.

On March 3, 1981, the Cardinals signed Braun, a free agent, to a minor-league pact. A left-handed batter, Braun, 32, hoped to earn a spot with the Cardinals as a backup outfielder and pinch-hitter.

Whitey Herzog, who had the dual role of Cardinals manager and general manager, was an important ally. Herzog managed Braun with the Royals in 1978 and 1979.

It was with the 1978 Royals that Braun became influenced by hitting coach Charlie Lau. Applying Lau’s theories, Braun developed into a pinch-hitter who got on base at an impressively high rate.

Frame of mind

Braun got to the big leagues with the Twins in 1971. A left fielder and third baseman, he hit .280 or better in five of his six seasons (1971-76) with the Twins.

In 1975, teammate Rod Carew introduced Braun to Harvey Maisel, a hypnotist, or, as Braun preferred to call him, a mind trainer. Braun credited Maisel with helping him in his approach to hitting.

“The idea is to get yourself relaxed, to think relaxing thoughts so that you give yourself positive suggestions,” Braun told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Braun hit .302 that year, the only time he reached the .300 mark in the majors.

Disenchanted with Twins management, Braun asked to be made available in the November 1976 American League expansion draft. He was selected by the Mariners and batted third in the order as their Opening Day left fielder when they debuted in 1977. Boxscore

Braun said he was surprised when the Mariners traded him to the Royals on June 1, 1978.

In the zone

Charlie Lau, who drew praise from the likes of George Brett and Lou Piniella for his hitting instruction, went to work on Braun, who was batting .230 when the Royals acquired him. With Lau’s help, Braun learned strike zone discipline and how to adapt his approach to what was needed in each at-bat.

“I learned more about hitting in that one season with Lau than I had in all my years of baseball before that,” Braun told the Post-Dispatch.

“He’s the one who really got me thinking about what I should be doing as a hitter.”

Braun became a premier pinch-hitter. He had an on-base percentage of .429 as a pinch-hitter for the 1978 Royals, who were division champions under Herzog.

“I came to the ballpark every night expecting and knowing I’ll get the hit when we need it,” Braun told The Sporting News. “I’ve never had confidence like that. I just know I can get on base and do something to help this club. I’ve changed my hitting style. I’m going with the pitch instead of pulling everything.”

Lau departed the Royals for the Yankees in 1979, but Braun’s success continued under Herzog. Braun had an on-base percentage of .394 as a pinch-hitter for the 1979 Royals.

After the season, Herzog was fired and replaced by Jim Frey. Braun was released in June 1980 and signed with the Blue Jays. As a pinch-hitter for the Blue Jays, he had an on-base percentage of .429 and delivered three game-winning hits.

Right attitude

Granted free agency, Braun contacted Herzog. The Cardinals had no room on their 40-man winter roster, but Herzog offered Braun a chance to compete for a job at spring training. Herzog told the Post-Dispatch he viewed Braun as “a little insurance” in case a roster player got injured or slumped.

Herzog, in his first spring training with the Cardinals, was looking for players who knew how to reach base and advance runners. Braun, who did that better than most, earned a spot on the Opening Day roster as a pinch-hitter.

He made his Cardinals debut in the season opener and delivered a pinch-hit double against the Phillies’ Dick Ruthven. Boxscore

“My goal is to help in at least 10 victories by getting on base leading off an inning, or by moving a runner along, or by driving in a run or more,” Braun said. “Herzog likes to have me lead off an inning because I also get a lot of walks.”

Getting it done

In his five seasons with St. Louis, Braun had 60 pinch-hits, according to the Cardinals’ media guide. The only player with more career pinch-hits as a Cardinal is Gerald Perry (70).

Braun produced these on-base percentages as a Cardinals pinch-hitter: .412 in 1981, .383 in 1982, .433 in 1983, .389 in 1984 and .382 in 1985.

In the 1982 World Series, Braun had two important plate appearances.

In Game 2, with the score tied at 4-4, Braun batted as a pinch-hitter with the bases loaded in the eighth inning and drew a four-pitch walk, driving in the winning run. Boxscore and video at 2:52 mark.

In Game 7, Braun’s RBI-single in the eighth inning extended the Cardinals’ lead over the Brewers to 6-3 and gave Bruce Sutter a comfortable cushion to close out the decisive ninth. Boxscore and video at 2;20 mark.

“He’s got a good knowledge of the strike zone,” Herzog told The Sporting News. “I know he’s going to put the ball in play or go to a 3-and-2 count when he’s leading off an inning.”

Regarding his approach to situational hitting, Braun told the Post-Dispatch, “You have to recognize the situation you’re in. What can I do? What do I have to do? Sometimes you need a baserunner. Sometimes you need a pulled ball. Sometimes you need an extra-base hit and sometimes you need a home run.”

One noteworthy home run Braun hit for the Cardinals came in a game on July 21, 1985. His two-run homer in the 10th inning against Dodgers reliever Tom Niedenfuer gave the Cardinals a 4-2 victory and foreshadowed more heartache for the pitcher. Boxscore

Three months later, in the National League Championship Series, Ozzie Smith hit a game-winning home run for the Cardinals against Niedenfuer in Game 5 and Jack Clark followed with a pennant-clinching home run against him in Game 6.

Pupil turned teacher

Despite his success, Braun was a non-roster player at three consecutive Cardinals spring trainings (1981-83) and made the team each time. He finally was rewarded with roster spots at spring trainings in 1984 and 1985.

Braun finished his playing career with 115 pinch-hits in the majors, according to retrosheet.org.

He was a Cardinals minor-league hitting instructor from 1986-89 and the hitting coach for the big-league club in 1990. After Herzog quit as manager in 1990, Braun became a minor-league hitting instructor with the Red Sox and Yankees.

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Juan Pizarro pitched with pizzazz against Cardinals

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on February 27, 2021| 10 Comments »

St. Louis was a special place for Juan Pizarro. He got his first and 100th wins in the majors there against the Cardinals.

A left-hander, Pizarro pitched 18 seasons in the big leagues. He was 20 when he got his first win in the majors for the Braves in a start versus the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. He also got his first big-league hit, a home run, in that game.

The Cardinals thought so highly of Pizarro that they tried to trade for him that season.

Ten years later, Pizarro, 30, got his 100th win in the big leagues for the Pirates in a start versus the Cardinals at Busch Memorial Stadium.

Prime prospect

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Pizarro was signed by Braves scout Luis Olmo, the former outfielder.

In 1956, his first season in the minors, Pizarro, 19, was 23-6 with a 1.77 ERA for Jacksonville, a Class A club in the South Atlantic League. With future Cardinals pitching coach Mike Roarke doing most of the catching, Pizarro struck out 318 batters in 274 innings.

Rollie Hemsley, a former catcher who managed Charlotte in the South Atlantic League, told Sports Illustrated that Pizarro is “the nearest thing to Bob Feller I’ve ever seen.”

Bill Terry, the Hall of Fame first baseman who was president of the South Atlantic League, said, “He could be just as great as Warren Spahn.”

Big leap

While playing winter baseball in Puerto Rico, Pizarro said teammate Ruben Gomez, a Giants pitcher, taught him to throw the screwball. Pizarro added the pitch to an arsenal that included a fastball and curve. He reported to spring training with the Braves in 1957, trying to make the leap from Class A ball to the majors.

The Miami News declared Pizarro the most exciting rookie in spring training: “His every pitch is being watched with high expectancy.”

Pizarro posted a 3.31 ERA in five spring training games and made the Braves’ Opening Day roster. “He has proved to me he can pitch major-league ball,” Braves manager Fred Haney told The Sporting News.

After Pizarro’s final exhibition game, Haney said, “He’ll be another Warren Spahn some day.”

First win

The Braves opened the 1957 season on April 16, but Pizarro sat for three weeks before making his big-league debut in a start against the Pirates at Pittsburgh on May 4. He limited the Pirates to a run in seven innings, but Pittsburgh won, 1-0, on Vern Law’s two-hit shutout. Boxscore

Six days later, on May 10, Pizarro made his second big-league appearance with a start versus the Cardinals at St. Louis.

The start of the Friday night game was delayed 31 minutes because of rain and neither team took batting practice.

In the second inning, with the Braves ahead, 3-0, Pizarro swung at the first pitch he saw from Cardinals starter Sam Jones and hit the ball onto the roof of the pavilion behind right field for a home run.

Ken Boyer tagged Pizarro for a solo home run in the second. With the Braves up, 6-1, in the fourth, the Cardinals’ Wally Moon walloped a three-run home run in the fourth. The Moon shot carried out of the ballpark and across Grand Avenue before crashing into a window pane.

“He had to rely on his fastball and he had a tendency to relax when we had a pretty good lead, especially in the fourth,” Braves catcher Del Crandall told the Associated Press. “After that, he became more determined and began firing again.”

Though Pizarro wobbled, he never lost the lead and he continued to contribute with his bat. After Pizarro led off the sixth with a single, Eddie Mathews won a matchup of future Hall of Famers when he hit a two-run home run against reliever Hoyt Wilhelm. The ball cleared the roof and landed on Grand Avenue.

In the ninth, the Cardinals, trailing 10-5, loaded the bases with two outs, but Pizarro struck out Del Ennis and sealed his first win.

Pizarro gave up nine hits and issued four walks, but the Cardinals stranded eight.

Unimpressed, Cardinals manager Fred Hutchinson told the Associated Press, “He’d better be better than that. If that’s all he can do, then I’ve got news for him. He won’t stay up here … He was only throwing, not pitching.”

Cardinals backup catcher Walker Cooper, who at 42 was 22 years older than Pizarro, batted against him in the ninth as a pinch-hitter and singled. “I could hit that guy with baling wire at midnight with the lights out,” Cooper boasted.

Among the Cardinals held hitless by Pizarro were Al Dark and Stan Musial. Pizarro ended Dark’s 15-game hit streak. Musial, who entered the game with a batting mark of .403 for the season, was 0-for-4 with a walk.

Pizarro was “awfully quick,” Musial said. “There’s no reason why he shouldn’t be a winner up here.” Boxscore

No deal

Later that month, the Braves and Cardinals had trade talks focused on outfielder Del Ennis. The Associated Press reported the Braves offered three players for Ennis. They gave the Cardinals their choice of a starting pitcher, either Ray Crone or Gene Conley, plus reliever Dave Jolly and outfielder Chuck Tanner.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals asked for Crone and outfielder Wes Covington, and the Braves countered with Conley and Tanner.

“Before I let a guy like Ennis go, I’d want a lot of pitcher in return,” Cardinals general manager Frank Lane told the Associated Press.

Lane said he was interested in Pizarro and another pitcher, Bob Trowbridge. The Braves wouldn’t give up Pizarro, and the talks ended.

On July 3, the Braves sent Pizarro to the minors to get more work. He went 4-0 and was back with the Braves on July 26.

Pizzaro lost twice to the Cardinals in 1957. The second of those defeats occurred on Aug. 18 when Musial beat him with a two-run home run in the 10th inning at Milwaukee. Pizarro never lost to the Cardinals again. Boxscore

Better with age

In his book “Stranger to the Game,” Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson, who played winter ball with Pizarro in Puerto Rico, called him “an immensely talented” teammate.

On April 30, 1967, Pizarro, in his first season with the Pirates, started for them against the Cardinals and pitched a four-hit shutout at St. Louis for his 100th win in the majors.

Cardinals manager Red Schoendienst, who was Pizarro’s teammate with the Braves from 1957-60, told the Associated Press, “He used to be much faster but very wild then. He has much better control now. The big difference was in the old days if you stayed close to him you could beat him. Now he can protect a one- or two-run lead.” Boxscore

Pizarro was 3-0 with two saves and a 1.07 ERA versus the 1967 Cardinals, who won the National League pennant and became World Series champions. He earned saves in both games of a doubleheader against them on Labor Day, Sept. 4.

In 1971, Pizarro, 34, had one more gem versus the Cardinals. He pitched a six-hit shutout for the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Boxscore

“He makes pitching an art,” Cubs manager Leo Durocher said.

Pizarro finished with a career mark against the Cardinals of 7-2. Overall, he was 131-105.

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Once a Dodger, Wayne Terwilliger got tough on Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents, Uncategorized on February 21, 2021| 4 Comments »

In 1951, the Dodgers dominated the Cardinals in a way few have. It wasn’t just future Hall of Famers Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Pee Wee Reese and Duke Snider who did the damage. Players such as Wayne Terwilliger joined in, too.

A second baseman who played nine years in the majors, Terwilliger built a second career as a coach and manager.

Though he was valued more for his fielding than his hitting, Terwilliger helped the Dodgers extend a streak of success against the Cardinals during his short stay with them in 1951.

War and baseball

A Michigan native, Terwilliger joined the Marines in 1943 and saw combat in Saipan and Iwo Jima. After the war, he enrolled at Western Michigan University and played varsity baseball and basketball. He signed with the Cubs in 1948 after impressing them in a tryout.

Called up to the Cubs from the minors in August 1949, Terwilliger, 24, caught the attention of manager Frankie Frisch, the former standout second baseman for the Giants and Cardinals. Terwilliger was the Opening Day second baseman for Frisch with the Cubs in 1950 and 1951.

On June 15, 1951, Terwilliger was part of a blockbuster trade between the Cubs and Dodgers. The Cubs sent Terwilliger, outfielder Andy Pafko, pitcher Johnny Schmitz and catcher Rube Walker to the Dodgers for catcher Bruce Edwards, pitcher Joe Hatten, outfielder Gene Hermanski and infielder Eddie Miksis.

The key player for the Dodgers was Pafko, a power hitter with a strong arm. With Pafko in left, Duke Snider in center and Carl Furillo in right, the Dodgers had what the Cardinals’ Stan Musial called “the best-throwing outfield I ever saw.”

Terwilliger was acquired to be a backup to Jackie Robinson at second. It was a role that gave him little chance to play.

Late drama

The Cardinals and Dodgers split the first four games they played against one another in 1951. After that, the Dodgers went on a roll, winning seven in a row versus the Cardinals entering their game on July 21, 1951, a Saturday afternoon, at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn.

The Dodgers led, 2-0, until Cardinals left fielder Hal Rice hit a two-run home run in the eighth against starter Don Newcombe, tying the score.

Facing Cardinals reliever Tom Poholsky, Jackie Robinson led off the bottom of the ninth by looping a single to shallow left-center for his fourth consecutive hit.

The Cardinals’ infielders moved in, anticipating a sacrifice attempt from the next batter, Gil Hodges. On the first pitch, Hodges feigned a bunt, drawing the infielders closer. On the next pitch, he swung away and lashed a single to left.

As Robinson neared second, he saw Hal Rice in left didn’t charge the ball. Robinson turned up the speed and raced to third. Rice’s hurried throw was off the mark. Robinson got in safely and Hodges continued to second.

Roy Campanella was walked intentionally, loading the bases.

Good move

With a left-handed batter, Don Thompson, due up next, Cardinals manager Marty Marion relieved Poholsky with a left-hander, Harry Brecheen. Dodgers manager Chuck Dressen countered with Terwilliger, who batted from the right side. It was his first plate appearance in a week.

The Cardinals infielders came way in and “seemed to be expecting” the suicide squeeze bunt from Terwilliger, the New York Daily News observed.

Brecheen threw two outside pitches, hoping to foil a squeeze play, but Terwilliger offered at neither. On the third pitch, Terwilliger swung and hit a single through the drawn-in infield, scoring Robinson with the winning run and increasing the Dodgers’ win streak versus the Cardinals to eight. Boxscore

“The Cardinals continued to be the softest touch seen in these parts since Diamond Jim Brady left Broadway,” Bob Broeg wrote in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Dazzling Dodgers

The Dodgers’ 1951 win streak against the Cardinals reached 14 before it ended on Aug. 23. For the season, the Dodgers won 18 of 22 games versus the Cardinals.

Spitball specialist Preacher Roe, a former Cardinal, was 7-0 for the Dodgers against the Cardinals in 1951. Carl Erskine was 4-0.

Most of the Dodgers’ regulars hit Cardinals pitching hard and often. The standouts, in alphabetical order, included:

_ Roy Campanella: .328, six home runs, 19 RBI in 19 games.

_ Carl Furillo: .326, 28 hits in 22 games.

_ Gil Hodges: .301, four home runs, 16 RBI in 22 games.

_ Andy Pafko: .516 on-base percentage, eight hits and eight walks in nine games.

_ Pee Wee Reese: .297, 27 hits in 22 games.

_ Jackie Robinson: .433 on-base percentage, 29 hits and 10 walks in 22 games.

_ Duke Snider: 23 hits, 12 walks, 16 runs scored and 13 RBI in 22 games.

The Giants, who edged the Dodgers for the National League pennant on Bobby Thomson’s home run in the ninth inning of the decisive playoff game, were 11-11 versus the Cardinals in 1951.

Long career

Terwilliger, a .172 hitter versus the Cardinals for his career, had a .538 on-base percentage (three hits, four walks) against them as a Dodger in 1951.

He spent the 1952 season in the minors and returned to the big leagues as the second baseman for the Senators in 1953 and 1954. Terwilliger’s final seasons in the majors were as a reserve for the Giants (1955-56) and Athletics (1959-60).

Terwilliger spent 18 years as a coach in the majors with the Senators (1969-71), Rangers (1972 and 1981-85) and Twins (1986-94). He coached for the Twins against the Cardinals in the 1987 World Series.

Terwilliger also was a manager for 17 years in the minors, mostly in the farm systems of the Senators and Rangers. In 2005, he was 80 when he managed an unaffiliated minor-league team, the Fort Worth Cats, to a Central League title.

In March 1993, when he was a Twins coach, Terwilliger, 67, told Knight-Ridder Newspapers his six rules for a long life:

_ Associate with young people.

_ Get up early.

_ Move with some bounce in your step.

_ A diet with plenty of distilled water, vegetables and chicken.

_ Find time each day to be by yourself.

_ Ignore the aches, pains and varicose veins.

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Umpire Emmett Ashford was victim of Julian Javier attack

Posted in Games, Hitters, Uncategorized on February 18, 2021| 7 Comments »

In a span of eight months, umpire Emmett Ashford experienced the indignation of being assaulted by a player and the satisfaction of breaking down a racial barrier.

During a winter league playoff game in the Dominican Republic in January 1965, Ashford was punched by Julian Javier, who went into a rage because of the way the umpire called him out on strikes. Javier was the second baseman for the Cardinals during the major league season.

The year got a lot better for Ashford after that. An umpire in the minors for 15 seasons, Ashford was informed in September 1965 that his contract was being purchased by the American League for the 1966 season. Ashford became the first African-American umpire in the major leagues.

Skill and style

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Ashford went to Jefferson High School. He became the school’s first black student body president and also was the first black editor of a Los Angeles high school newspaper, according to the Los Angeles Times. He was a member of the school’s baseball and track teams, too.

After attending Chapman College, Ashford got a job as a postal clerk. He served in the Navy during World War II. Afterward, he resumed his job at the post office and began umpiring semipro games on weekends in Los Angeles.

In 1951, Ashford, 36, pursued umpiring fulltime. He worked games in the Southwest International League, becoming the first black umpire in the minors. He advanced to the Arizona-Texas League (1952), Western International League (1953) and Pacific Coast League (1954-65).

Displaying a “flamboyant style and distinctive motion for calling balls and strikes,” Ashford had “both skill and crowd appeal,” The Sporting News noted.

When calling a pitch a strike, Ashford “lets fly with an ebullient ‘Stee-rike-ah’ that carries into the bleachers,” the New York Times reported.

In describing Ashford’s strike call, Jim Murray of the Los Angeles Times wrote, “His feet leave the ground at right angles in a semi-entrechat, his right arm shoots out, and in a voice that brings bull moose crashing out of the woods for miles around, he shouts, ‘Yes! Yes!’ or sometimes ‘Ste-ee-rike.’ “

Murray concluded, “They accuse him of being a showboat. In a game that too often resembles a slow boat, you’d think that would be desirable.”

Tropical heat

During winters, Ashford often refereed college basketball games in the United States or umpired baseball games in the Caribbean.

In January 1965, he was behind the plate for Game 1 of the Dominican Republic championship series between Leones del Escogido and Aguilas Cibaenas before a capacity crowd in Santo Domingo.

Julian Javier, a National League all-star in 1963 and the second baseman for the World Series champion Cardinals in 1964, played for Aguilas Cibaenas. Born and raised in the Dominican Republic, “Javier is a national hero,” wrote Jim Murray.

In the third inning, Javier was batting against Larry Miller, who played in the majors for the Dodgers. After throwing a strike on his first pitch to Javier, Miller delivered a slider on the outside corner at the knee.

“Javier couldn’t hit it with a butter paddle,” Murray wrote. “So he did the next best thing: he let it go by and hoped the umpire would mistake it for a ball.”

Ashford called it strike two.

Javier whirled around to face Ashford and argued the call.

In a 1977 interview with author Larry Gerlach, Ashford recalled Javier saying, “Why are you calling that pitch on me? You know I don’t like that pitch.”

Ashford said the discussion deteriorated into a “nonsensical argument.”

“I knew I had a powder keg on my hands,” Ashford said.

“As Javier’s invective rose in decibel and malevolence,” Murray wrote, “Ashford curtly instructed him to get back in the box.”

Ashford warned Javier if he didn’t immediately resume the at-bat he would, as the rules allowed him to do, order Miller to throw a pitch and would call it strike three.

Ashford said Javier leaned on his bat, crossed his legs and replied, “I dare you.”

Ashford motioned for Miller to throw. According to Murray, Javier was 10 feet away from the plate and had his back turned when Miller delivered his pitch.

“Strike three,” barked Ashford.

Losing control

Ashford lifted his mask to remonstrate. According to The Sporting News, Javier stepped around the catcher and punched Ashford twice in the face.

Javier “landed a left to the cheekbone and a right to the jaw,” Murray wrote. “It was a picture book one-two, but Ashford didn’t go down.”

Ashford reeled back, his mouth bleeding, and then counterattacked, using his iron mask to strike Javier before other players intervened and separated them.

A hush fell over the ballpark, Ashford said. He said he asked for a towel and ice, pressed it to his mouth between innings and continued working the game.

Ashford told author Larry Gerlach that when he returned to his hotel room after the game, “Javier called, crying.”

Ashford told Sid Ziff of the Los Angeles Times that Javier was in a bad mood when the game started because he had received a contract proposal from the Cardinals for the 1965 season and it was for less than he made in 1964.

For attacking Ashford, the Latin American Baseball Federation initially gave Javier an indefinite suspension, but soon the punishment was reduced to a three-day suspension and $50 fine.

“Politics took over,” Ashford told Gerlach.

A lighter sentence was imposed on Javier “because he is a popular figure at home,” The Sporting News reported.

Outraged, Ashford resigned, saying the punishment wasn’t severe enough “for the serious action committed by Javier.”

A short time later, according to The Sporting News, Ashford was persuaded to change his mind and work the remainder of the playoff series “after Javier apologized.”

When Javier was eligible to return to the lineup in the playoffs, it was a home game for Aguilas Cibaenas before a big crowd in Santiago de los Caballeros.

As Javier came to bat for the first time in the game, he “comes straight to me and sticks out his hand,” Ashford told Gerlach.

“Well, what could I do? I couldn’t be a lesser man. So I shook hands with him and the house went crazy.”

Sticking it out

After the Dominican Republic playoffs ended, Ashford returned to the United States to work his 12th season in the Pacific Coast League. Three years earlier, he’d been named umpire-in-chief for the league. He was wondering what more he needed to do to prove he belonged in the big leagues.

“I was completely discouraged,” Ashford told the Los Angeles Times. “I had always clung to the hope I could make the big leagues, but as the years went by they picked up a lot of our umpires, but not me.”

Ashford was preparing to attend real estate school after the 1965 baseball season, he told columnist Melvin Durslag of The Sporting News. He canceled that plan on Sept. 15, 1965, when American League president Joe Cronin said Ashford had been hired for the 1966 season and would become the first black umpire in the majors. Video

Ashford, 51, worked spring training home games of the Angels and Indians in Arizona in 1966. His first regular-season assignment in the majors was the American League opener between the Indians and Senators at Washington, D.C., on April 11, 1966. Boxscore

After five seasons in the majors, Ashford retired in December 1970, two months after he worked the World Series and one month after he turned 56.

Two years later, in September 1972, Art Williams became the first black umpire in the National League.

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Why Rafael Santana fit a need for Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Trades on February 15, 2021| 4 Comments »

(Updated March 5, 2022)

An injury to Tommy Herr opened a path to the big leagues with the Cardinals for Rafael Santana.

On Feb. 16, 1981, the Cardinals purchased the contract of Santana, a minor-league infielder, from the Yankees on a conditional basis. The Cardinals wanted to take a look at Santana in training camp before deciding whether to keep him or send him back to the Yankees.

After choosing to retain Santana and assigning him to their farm system, the Cardinals agreed to give the Yankees a player to be named as compensation.

Santana remained in the minors the next two seasons and wasn’t prominent in the Cardinals’ plans when spring training began in 1983, but that changed when Herr, their second baseman, got sidelined because of a knee injury.

Santana made the 1983 Cardinals’ Opening Day roster as a backup infielder. A year later, he replaced Jose Oquendo as Mets shortstop. He still was the starter at that position in 1986 when the Mets became World Series champions.

Minor prospect

Born and raised in the Dominican Republic, Santana was 18 when he signed with the Yankees in 1976. He spent four seasons (1977-80) in their farm system, with Class AA being the highest level he reached.

When the Cardinals acquired Santana in 1981, they sent him to their Class AA club at Arkansas. He played shortstop and batted .233 for the season.

For a while that year, it seemed the Cardinals had gotten the worst of the deal.

Go figure

On June 7, 1981, four months after they got Santana, the Cardinals sent pitcher George Frazier, who was with their Springfield, Ill., farm team, to the Yankees as the player to be named, completing the transaction.

According to columnist Dick Young in The Sporting News, the Cardinals and Cubs had agreed to a swap of Frazier for pitcher Doug Capilla in spring 1981, but when Cubs manager Joey Amalfitano objected, the trade was called off. Then the Cardinals sent Frazier to the Yankees.

The move got little attention. A right-hander, Frazier was 3-11 with three saves in parts of three seasons (1978-80) with the Cardinals.

“I had three trials and I really had not done a magnificent job,” Frazier told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I was getting to a stagnant situation.”

The Yankees sent him to their farm team in Columbus, Ohio. “I thought I was going from one graveyard to another,” Frazier said.

After Yankees minor-league coach Sammy Ellis changed Frazier’s delivery and taught him to throw a forkball, he thrived. In 27 appearances for Columbus, Frazier was 4-1 with nine saves.

In August 1981, when closer Goose Gossage developed shoulder soreness, the Yankees called up Frazier and he gave the bullpen a boost. In 16 relief appearances for the Yankees, Frazier had three saves and a 1.63 ERA. He also won Game 2 of the American League Championship Series against the Athletics.

The storybook run from Cardinals reject to Yankees standout skidded to a halt in the 1981 World Series. Frazier was the losing pitcher in Games 3, 4 and 6 versus the Dodgers. Unfazed, he told the New York Times, “If I was still with the Cardinals, I’d be home fishing or mending fences. I’d rather be where I am.”

Getting a chance

With Class AAA Louisville in 1982, Santana primarily played third base and also made starts at shortstop and second. A right-handed batter, he impressed the Cardinals by learning to hit to the opposite field. His .286 batting mark was the best he produced since becoming a professional.

When Santana went to spring training in 1983, “it was unlikely” he would make the Cardinals’ Opening Day roster, the Post-Dispatch reported. The defending World Series champions were set at the three positions Santana played. Starters were Herr at second, Ozzie Smith at short and Ken Oberkfell at third. Mike Ramsey was the backup at second and short. Jamie Quirk could fill in at third.

When Herr injured his left knee and needed arthroscopic surgery in March, Ramsey took over at second and the Cardinals sought a backup. The candidates were a pair of rookies: Santana and Kelly Paris.

Santana, 25, emerged as the favorite. One reason: he was out of options. If the Cardinals sent Santana to the minors, he would have to clear waivers before they could recall him. Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog also rated Santana “a better infielder defensively” than Paris, the Post-Dispatch reported.

“What he’s really done is grow up a lot,” Herzog said of Santana. “He’s more mature than he was when we got him.”

The Cardinals opened the 1983 season with Ramsey at second, Herr on the disabled list and Santana as the backup middle infielder.

Coming through

On April 29, 1983, Herr was reinstated to the roster but the Cardinals kept Santana. That night, Santana got his first big-league hit, a single against the Giants’ Jim Barr. Boxscore

Two weeks later, the Cardinals played the Giants again. In the top of the ninth, with the Cardinals trailing by a run, Santana made his fourth plate appearance in the majors, batting with the bases loaded and two outs.

“I wasn’t nervous,” Santana told the Post-Dispatch. “I’m never nervous in this game.”

Santana blooped a two-run single against Gary Lavelle, putting the Cardinals ahead. “I didn’t hit it good,” Santana said. “It was off the end of the bat, but there was nobody there to catch it.”

The Giants rallied for two runs versus Bruce Sutter in the bottom half of the inning and won. Boxscore

On June 16, Ramsey went on the disabled because of a back ailment. When he returned in July, Santana was shipped to Louisville.

Santana played in 30 games for the 1983 Cardinals, made one start at second base and hit .214. At Louisville, he mostly played third and batted .281.

Big Apple adventures

As a veteran of six seasons in the minors, Santana was eligible to become a free agent. Unable to keep him, the Cardinals released him on Jan. 17, 1984.

“He’s not flashy, but he’s always consistent, always makes the plays,” Cardinals director of player development Lee Thomas told the New York Daily News. “That son of a gun made a good hitter out of himself. He wasn’t as good a hitter when we got him as he was when we let him go.”

The Dodgers, Mets and Tigers made Santana offers. “I picked the Mets because I thought I had a better chance with this organization as a utility player,” Santana told the Daily News. “When I signed, I didn’t dream I could become the regular shortstop.”

Jose Oquendo was the Mets’ shortstop, but he fell into disfavor with manager Davey Johnson. “Oquendo can be a great shortstop, but right now he doesn’t know how to play shortstop,” Johnson said to the Daily News. “He has a great arm, but doesn’t know how to use it. Rafael Santana knows how to play shortstop.”

Santana replaced Oquendo as the Mets’ shortstop in July 1984. Nine months later, Oquendo was traded to the Cardinals.

In 1986, Santana’s fielding was a factor in the Mets’ success. He fielded flawlessly in the National League Championship Series versus the Astros and made one error in 58 innings against the Red Sox in the World Series.

After the 1987 season, Santana was traded to the Yankees and he was their shortstop in 1988. After sitting out the 1989 season following elbow surgery, Santana closed his playing career in a brief stint with the Indians.

Santana played in the infield with first baseman Keith Hernandez for three franchises: Cardinals (1983), Mets (1984-87) and Indians (1990).

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For starters, Grant Jackson was familiar foe to Cardinals

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on February 12, 2021| 4 Comments »

Grant Jackson made his mark in the majors as a reliever, but his work as a starter, including gems against the Cardinals, made him an all-star.

A left-hander, Jackson pitched 18 seasons in the majors.

For his career, Jackson was 62-33 as a reliever and had 79 saves. In Game 7 of the 1979 World Series, he pitched 2.2 innings of scoreless relief versus the Orioles and was the winning pitcher for the champion Pirates. Boxscore

When he first got to the majors with the Phillies, Jackson wanted to be a starter. In 1969, while in the Phillies’ rotation, he beat the Cardinals twice, impressing their manager, Red Schoendienst. When it came time to pick pitchers for the National League all-star team, its manager, Schoendienst, chose Jackson as one of the nine.

Getting initiated

Jackson was about to turn 23 when he got to the big leagues with the Phillies in September 1965. It was a rough introduction.

In his debut, a relief stint against the Reds, Jackson gave up a three-run home run to Frank Robinson. Boxscore

In his next appearance, a relief stint against the Cardinals, Jackson gave up a three-run home run to Lou Brock. Boxscore

Two appearances, two home runs allowed, both to future Hall of Famers. Welcome to the big leagues, Mr. Jackson.

Speed it up

After spending most of the 1966 season in the minors, Jackson stuck with the Phillies and pitched effectively in relief. In 1968, Jackson had a 1.97 ERA in 27 relief appearances.

The Phillies left him unprotected in the expansion draft for 1969, but he wasn’t selected. “Jackson was disappointed by that,” The Sporting News reported. “He made no secret of his desire to get away from the Phillies. He wanted a chance to pitch regularly as a starter.”

Jackson got his chance to start in 1969 as a replacement for Chris Short, who developed back trouble. Jackson found his stride when he picked up his pace between pitches. “Before, he was too deliberate,” pitching coach Al Widmar told The Sporting News. “He was trying to make every pitch a masterpiece.”

In command

On April 25, 1969, Jackson was matched against Bob Gibson in a start against the Cardinals at Philadelphia. Jackson pitched a complete game, held the Cardinals to one unearned run and got the win. The game was completed in one hour, 48 minutes. Boxscore

Jackson limited the two-time defending league champions to seven singles and a walk. Dal Maxvill, who went hitless, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “I don’t think he should beat us quite that easily.”

Ahead 1-0, the Phillies broke open the game with four runs in the sixth against Gibson. Jackson started the uprising with a bunt single.

After he took the first pitch from Gibson, Jackson looked to third-base coach George Myatt and “he gave me the sign for a drag bunt,” Jackson told the Philadelphia Daily News.

Jackson, the Phillies’ fastest runner, bunted the ball to the right side and legged out a single “despite Gibson’s catlike pickup and throw,” the Philadelphia Daily News reported.

Stunned but impressed, Phillies manager Bob Skinner remarked, “He says Myatt gave him the sign? We don’t have any play like that for our pitchers.”

Nine days later, on May 4, 1969, Jackson started versus the Cardinals again at St. Louis. Matched against Dave Giusti, Jackson pitched his first shutout in the majors. Boxscore

Costly mistake

The next time Jackson faced the Cardinals was July 10, 1969, at Philadelphia. The game turned in the fourth inning. Ahead 2-1, the Cardinals had runners on second and third, two outs, and Julian Javier at the plate.

Javier pounded left-handers. He hit .319 against them in 1969. With first base open and light-hitting Steve Huntz on deck, Skinner went to the mound and told Jackson to pitch around Javier instead of issuing an intentional walk.

Javier worked the count to 1-and-1 before he pulled a pitch hard on the ground along the third-base line and into left field for a two-run double.

“That was my mistake,” Skinner, a former teammate of Javier with the 1964-66 Cardinals, told the Post-Dispatch. “I knew how well he hit left-handers.” Boxscore

Ups and downs

Five days later, on July 15, 1969, Schoendienst named Jackson to the all-star team. The other left-handers selected to the staff were the Cardinals’ Steve Carlton and the Mets’ Jerry Koosman.

That night, Jackson started against the Cardinals and took the loss. In the fifth, after he got thrown out by Curt Flood while running from first to third, Jackson was routed, giving up four runs in the bottom half of the inning. Boxscore

In September, Jackson lost to the Cardinals for the third consecutive time, dropping his record for the season to 12-15. Boxscore

Grand finale

On Oct. 2, 1969, the Cardinals closed out their season with a game against the Phillies at St. Louis. The matchup was Gibson, seeking his 20th win, versus Jackson. It was quite a duel.

As the game entered the 12th with the score tied at 2-2, both starters still were pitching.

In the bottom half of the inning, Mike Shannon drew a leadoff walk. After failing twice to advance Shannon to second with a sacrifice bunt, Vic Davalillo tapped a grounder to the right of the mound. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Jackson could have had a forceout at second but played it safe and threw to first, retiring Davalillo.

After Jerry DaVanon was walked intentionally, Gibson hit the first pitch from Jackson to Rick Joseph at third. Joseph stepped on the bag for a forceout of Shannon and had an “easy chance” to get Gibson at first to complete a double play, but his throw pulled Richie Allen off the base, the Philadelphia Daily News reported.

With DaVanon at second and Gibson at first, Lou Brock batted and coaxed a walk on a 3-and-2 pitch.

The next batter, Curt Flood, fouled off the first pitch, then watched four in a row go out of the strike zone. The walk, which drove in DaVanon from third with the game-winning run, was the last plate appearance for Flood as a Cardinal. Five days later, he was traded to the Phillies. Boxscore

The win gave Gibson 20 in a season for the fourth time. The only other Cardinals pitcher to do that was Dizzy Dean.

Jackson finished the season at 14-18 with a 3.34 ERA. He had four shutouts and 13 complete games.

Jackson went on to make 692 appearances, 83 as a starter, with the Phillies (1965-70), Orioles (1971-76), Yankees (1976), Pirates (1977-81 and 1982), Expos (1981) and Royals (1982).

He was 7-11 with six saves and a 3.85 ERA in 66 appearances, including 11 starts, versus the Cardinals. Jackson pitched more innings (149.2) against the Cardinals than he did versus any other opponent.

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