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Trade caused Enos Slaughter, Stan Musial to burst into tears

Posted in Games, Hitters, Trades on April 11, 2014| Leave a Comment »

(Updated April 11, 2020)

Uncertain whether outfielder Enos Slaughter could adjust to being a role player, the Cardinals decided to trade him.

Caught off-guard, Slaughter and teammate Stan Musial broke into tears.

On April 11, 1954, the Cardinals sent Slaughter to the Yankees for three prospects: outfielders Bill Virdon and Emil Tellinger and pitcher Mel Wright.

The trade occurred two weeks before Slaughter turned 38. He was the Cardinals team captain, a 10-time all-star who held the team record for games played (1,820) and RBI (1,148). Slaughter joined the Cardinals in 1938 and helped them to a World Series championship in 1942. After three years in the service, he returned to the Cardinals in 1946 and led them to another World Series title, scoring the winning run with his mad dash from first to home in Game 7.

In 13 seasons with the Cardinals, Slaughter batted .305 with 2,064 hits and an on-base percentage of .384. Known for his all-out hustle, he twice led the National League in triples (17 in 1942 and 13 in 1949). In 1942, he was the league leader in hits (188) and total bases (292). He also led the league in RBI (130) in 1946 and doubles (52) in 1939.

Slaughter showed no signs of slowing. In 143 games for the 1953 Cardinals, he produced 143 hits, 34 doubles, 89 RBI, a .291 batting average and .395 on-base percentage as the right fielder.

Youth movement

Slaughter went to spring training camp in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 1954 expecting to be a regular again in an outfield with Musial and Rip Repulski. He was surprised when, late in spring training, Cardinals manager Eddie Stanky told The Sporting News, “I’ll be satisfied if we can get 75 to 90 games out of the captain.”

Slaughter groused about the possibility of becoming a role player. Whether that was the normal grumbling of a proud veteran who didn’t want to concede playing time, or a tone of dark dissent that threatened to divide the team isn’t certain.

The Cardinals weren’t taking any chances. They wanted rookie Wally Moon to be the starting center fielder, moving Musial from left to right and Repulski from center to left.

Moon “is the best young prospect I’ve seen here in three years outside of Repulski,” Stanky told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Informed of the trade by general manager Dick Meyer and Stanky after an exhibition game, Slaughter sobbed.

Slaughter called the trade “the greatest shock I ever had in my life.”

“You give everything you’ve got for an organization and then you get stepped on,” Slaughter said to the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.

Crying game

In his book “Stan Musial: The Man’s Own Story,” Musial said, “In the clubhouse, when the rest of us got the word, we were stunned. Dressing even more slowly than usual, I was the last one out. At the lot where I parked my car … I found Slaughter, still wiping his eyes. We looked at each other _ and both burst into tears.”

In justifying the trade, Stanky said, “A player like Slaughter just can’t stand sitting on a bench.”

“We are building this club with young talent,” Stanky said, “I’m sold on the way Wally Moon performed for us. If we kept Slaughter, it would mean Moon would go back to the minors.”

Said Slaughter: “I’ll be around when a lot of these guys are gone. I’m not finished. I’ll prove it to them.”

According to newspaper reports, the trade was the most unpopular with Cardinals fans since the club dealt Rogers Hornsby to the Giants after winning the 1926 World Series championship.

St. Louis writers reflected the mood of their readers. Among the tributes to Slaughter:

_ Bob Broeg in The Sporting News: “There never was a more determined competitor or hustler than the last of the old Gashouse Gang _ a hard runner, brilliant outfielder, clutch hitter.”

_ Bob Burnes in the Globe-Democrat: “Slaughter was more than a ballplayer, as any Cardinals fan could tell you. He was an institution _ not only among the fans but among the players as well.”

_ J. Roy Stockton in the Post-Dispatch: “Enos was the best competitor the club had. He still was a standout for batting skill and hustle.”

Desperate move?

The Yankees, who had an outfield of Gene Woodling in left, Mickey Mantle in center and Hank Bauer in right, were delighted with the deal for Slaughter. “We gave up practically nothing for him, so why not take him?” Yankees co-owner Del Webb said.

Other baseball executives saw Slaughter as a fading talent. The Sporting News polled the seven National League general managers besides Meyer and each said he wasn’t interested in pursuing a deal with the Cardinals for Slaughter.

Buzzy Bavasi of the Dodgers, who were planning to put rookie Sandy Amoros into an outfield with Duke Snider and Carl Furillo, said, “Personally, I wouldn’t take Slaughter over Amoros, would you?”

In response to the Yankees, Frank Lane, general manager of the American League White Sox, scoffed, “You can’t pack Old Man Time on your back and still be a great ballplayer … It was a desperate move by them.”

Actually, it was a good move for the Cardinals and Yankees.

Moon hit a home run in his first at-bat for the Cardinals on Opening Day and went on to win the 1954 National League Rookie of the Year Award, generating 193 hits, 106 runs, 18 steals, a .304 batting average and a .371 on-base percentage.

The next year, Virdon came up to the Cardinals and won the 1955 National League Rookie of the Year Award.

Slaughter adjusted well to being a role player with the Yankees. He hit .355 with 12 walks as a pinch-hitter for the 1954 Yankees. He played in the major leagues until 1959, appeared in three World Series (1956, 1957 and 1958) for the Yankees and was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

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How Scott Cooper made memorable Cardinals debut

Posted in Games, Hitters on April 4, 2014| Leave a Comment »

(Updated April 26, 2020)

Scott Cooper enjoyed a storybook start to his Cardinals career.

Cooper, a St. Louis native and lifelong resident, got a walkoff RBI in his Cardinals debut.

On April 26, 1995, two weeks after he was dealt to St. Louis by the Red Sox, Cooper lifted the Cardinals to a 7-6 Opening Day victory over the Phillies at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. The season began later than usual because of the players’ strike that carried over from the 1994 season.

Playing third base and batting fourth, Cooper was 3-for-5 with four RBI.

In his first plate appearance for the Cardinals, Cooper struck out against Curt Schilling. “My first at-bat I was more nervous than any at-bat in my life,” Cooper said to the Springfield (Ill.) State Journal-Register. “I have played in front of 50 million fans in the All-Star Game, but in that first at-bat I had problems getting down to the basics.”

In the ninth inning, with the Phillies ahead, 6-5, the Cardinals loaded the bases with none out against Norm Charlton, who was making his first regular-season appearance since undergoing ligament transplant surgery in his left elbow in 1993. Bernard Gilkey sparked the rally with a single. Ozzie Smith and Ray Lankford each followed with a four-pitch walk.

Cooper, acquired along with reliever Cory Bailey in a April 9, 1995, trade for pitcher Rheal Cormier and outfielder Mark Whiten, stepped to the plate with the chance to be a hometown hero. He had supplied 40 tickets to the game for friends and family, including his mother, father, sister and two brothers.

The first two pitches Charlton delivered to Cooper nearly hit him. He fouled off a pitch, then grounded the next past diving first baseman Dave Hollins for a single into right field, scoring Gilkey and Smith. Boxscore and Video

Cardinals fans chanted “Coop” in tribute.

“I’ve probably dreamed up 50,000 different scenarios for how this game would go,” Cooper said to the Associated Press, “but I probably couldn’t have written it any better.”

Said Cardinals manager Joe Torre: “He knows he’s up there to knock in runs. He was up there swinging. That’s very aggressive and I like that.”

Charlton told the Philadelphia Daily News, “We played a great game and I screwed it up.”

After a fast start to his Cardinals career _ he was batting .325 on May 17 _ Cooper tailed off. A .284 hitter in five years with the Red Sox, Cooper batted .230 in 118 games for the Cardinals. He had almost as many strikeouts (85) as hits (86).

Granted free agency after the season, Cooper played in Japan in 1996. He returned to the big leagues with the 1997 Royals in his final season as a player.

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How Ken Oberkfell became infield starter for Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters on March 24, 2014| Leave a Comment »

(Updated June 9, 2024)

Ken Oberkfell got called up to the Cardinals in the second half of 1978, didn’t hit, began pressing and never did achieve his potential in his brief trial that year. The next season, Oberkfell, relaxed but aggressive, became the Cardinals’ starting second baseman and enjoyed a successful rookie year.

Oberkfell, a left-handed batter, hit .120 for the season after being promoted to the Cardinals in July 1978.

He was one of the Cardinals’ top hitters in 1979 spring training games, hitting better than .300. Still, Oberkfell didn’t have the starting second base job when the 1979 season opened. That belonged to veteran Mike Tyson.

Oberkfell impressed manager Ken Boyer by going 4-for-4 (three singles and a triple) in an April 22, 1979, game against the Reds. Boxscore

“I had one four-hit day in the minors, but it wasn’t nearly as big a thrill as this,” Oberkfell said to The Sporting News.

In May 1979, Boyer began platooning Oberkfell with Tyson, a right-handed batter. Fighting to remain a starter, Tyson tried switch-hitting in June, but Boyer allowed Tyson to hit left-handed only when the Cardinals were ahead, or when the score was tied, in games Tyson started as a right-handed batter. Oberkfell got the starts versus right-handed pitching. “I don’t think (Tyson) is as good a hitter left-handed as Oberkfell yet,” Boyer said.

Oberkfell “has fielded almost flawlessly,” wrote Rick Hummel in The Sporting News. When Tyson stretched ligaments in his left knee, Oberkfell was the fulltime starter for the last third of the season.

“I’ve always had the attitude that I’d be the Cardinals second baseman some day,” Oberkfell told Hummel. “It’s a great feeling playing for the Cardinals … The key to me this year (1979) is being more aggressive and more relaxed.”

Oberkfell led National League second basemen in fielding percentage (.985) in 1979. He made eight errors in 875.1 innings at second base and turned 65 double plays. Hummel cited Oberkfell for “standing in strongly on the double play.”

Oberkfell also batted .301 in 135 games in 1979. His .396 on-base percentage was the best of his 16 years in the majors. He hit .305 against right-handers and .287 versus left-handers.

Tyson was traded to the Cubs for reliever Donnie Moore after the 1979 season and Oberkfell remained the Cardinals’ everyday second baseman in 1980.

In 1981, the Cardinals made Tommy Herr the starter at second base and moved Oberkfell to third base, where he replaced Ken Reitz, who was traded to the Cubs in the deal that brought closer Bruce Sutter to St. Louis.

“Oberkfell could play third base,” manager Whitey Herzog told Cardinals Magazine. “He never made a bad throw to first in his life. If he could get to something, he could get it over to first perfect.”

Oberkfell led National League third basemen in fielding percentage in 1982 (.972) and 1983 (.960). He and Herr and Sutter were key players in the Cardinals’ 1982 World Series championship season.

Previously: From Les Bell to David Freese: Cardinals 3rd base champions

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Spring fling: How Tony Womack sparked 2004 Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Trades on March 17, 2014| Leave a Comment »

A minor move for a one-time heartbreaker paid off in a major way for the 2004 Cardinals.

Desperate for a second baseman late in spring training, the Cardinals acquired Tony Womack from the Red Sox for reliever Matt Duff on March 21, 2004.

The Cardinals weren’t sure Womack was even healthy enough to play.

He turned out to be the catalyst for a club that won the National League pennant.

Womack, 34, had undergone ligament replacement surgery on his right elbow in October 2003.

The Cardinals, unwilling to enter the 2004 season with either Marlon Anderson or Bo Hart as their everyday second baseman, took a chance on Womack, even though they were told he still was a month away from being able to field and throw.

After Womack reported to the Cardinals’ spring training camp in Jupiter, Fla., pulling into the players’ parking lot in a purple Lamborghini, he declared, “I’m ready to go now. I’ve been ready for a while,” the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

The Cardinals immediately put him into minor-league games on the back fields of the training complex and, sure enough, Womack proved fit. His elbow had healed far ahead of schedule.

An impressed and grateful Cardinals management team, seeking a replacement for departed free-agent second baseman Fernando Vina, quickly made plans to get him into the starting lineup and atop the batting order in big-league games.

Forgive us our trespasses

Three years earlier, Womack was a Cardinals nemesis. Playing shortstop for the Diamondbacks, Womack delivered the game-winning hit that eliminated the Cardinals in the fifth and deciding game of the National League Division Series.

On Oct. 14, 2001, at Phoenix, Womack came to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 5 against reliever Steve Kline with the score tied at 1-1, two outs and a runner at second. Womack’s single to left drove in pinch-runner Danny Bautista, giving the Diamondbacks a 2-1 victory and enabling them to advance on the path toward their first World Series championship. Boxscore

Reminded of that hit after he joined the Cardinals, Womack told Joe Strauss of the Post-Dispatch, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to break their hearts, but better their heart than mine.”

In response, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, chuckling, told Rick Hummel of the Post-Dispatch, “I’ve forgiven (Womack). I haven’t forgiven Kline. I’ve got to make sure Kline doesn’t throw batting practice to Womack.”

Said Kline of Womack: “I like the guy. Now he doesn’t have to get a hit off me.”

Spark plug

After Womack singled twice and stole two bases against Tigers catcher Ivan Rodriguez in his first Cardinals spring training game, La Russa gushed, “He looked like what I thought he’d be, a guy with a lot of energy who can be very disruptive. Impressive.”

Two weeks after he was acquired, Womack was the 2004 Cardinals’ Opening Day second baseman. Batting leadoff against the Brewers at St. Louis, Womack was 1-for-3 with two walks and a run scored. Boxscore

He had a strong April (.351 batting average with seven steals and a .415 on-base percentage) and, except for a slump in May, was consistently productive all season.

Womack hit especially well against some of St. Louis’ Central Division foes: . 382 (26-for-68) vs. the Reds; .373 (25-for-67) vs. the Cubs; .357 (25-for-70) vs. the Pirates; and .333 (15-for-45) vs. the Brewers.

In 145 regular-season games for the 2004 Cardinals, Womack had 170 hits, scored 91 runs and had 26 stolen bases. He batted .307 and had an on-base percentage of .349. Both figures were far better than his career marks in those categories. (In 13 major-league seasons, Womack had a .273 batting average and .317 on-base percentage.) He fielded adequately, with 15 errors in 1,113 innings at second base for St. Louis.

In the 2004 World Series, Womack batted .182, 2-for-11, in the four games against the Red Sox, but fielded flawlessly. He then became a free agent and signed with the Yankees. He eventually bounced to the Reds and the Cubs. Two years after leaving the Cardinals, his playing career was finished.

In 2005, the Cardinals replaced Womack with another free agent, Mark Grudzielanek.

Previously: Tino Martinez, Mike Matheny and the Cardinals’ Easter brawl

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John Mozeliak outfoxed Billy Beane on Brett Wallace deal

Posted in Hitters, Prospects, Trades on March 14, 2014| 4 Comments »

(Updated July 14, 2019)

In dealing Brett Wallace, the Cardinals acquired one of the cornerstones of their batting order, left fielder Matt Holliday, and cleared the way for David Freese to become their third baseman.

Holliday and Freese became key players for Cardinals teams that won a World Series championship and two National League pennants.

Heavy hitter

Wallace, a left-handed batter, was chosen by the Cardinals with the 13th pick in the first round of the June 2008 amateur draft. At Arizona State University, he twice led the Pacific-10 Conference in batting average, home runs and RBI.

Though the Cardinals hoped Wallace could handle third base, scout Chuck Fick said, “His position is hitting.”

“It’s too difficult to walk away from a guy who has this kind of chance to hit … He’s a dangerous hitter,” Fick said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Said Jeff Luhnow, the Cardinals’ vice-president of player development: “He knows, as do we, his value is what he does at the plate.”

Wallace was listed at 6 feet 1 and between 230 and 245 pounds. The Cardinals’ other 2008 first-round pick, awarded for the loss of free-agent reliever Troy Percival, was pitcher Lance Lynn.

Derrick Goold of the Post-Dispatch wrote, “Lynn, like Wallace, has a bulky frame and the Cardinals acknowledge both players will have to watch their weight to reach the potential that got them drafted.”

After receiving an estimated bonus of $1.8 million from the Cardinals, Wallace reported to the minor leagues in July 2008. In 54 games combined for Class A Quad Cities and Class AA Springfield, Wallace had 68 hits and a .337 batting average.

Big deal

Wallace was playing third base and batting .293 (65 hits in 62 games) for Class AAA Memphis in 2009 when he was traded on July 24 to the Athletics with two other prospects, pitcher Clayton Mortensen and outfielder Shane Peterson, for Holliday.

Wallace was the “keystone of the deal,” said Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak, who added that his counterpart, Billy Beane of the Athletics, insisted on Wallace being involved in any trade talks.

“He’s a guy we’ve always sort of longed for,” Beane told the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Cardinals were bullish on Wallace’s offense _ Mozeliak said Wallace “is not the type of hitter you’re going to replace easily” _ but didn’t see him fitting a position. With Albert Pujols at first base, the Cardinals saw third base as the best option for Wallace.

“There was debate within the Cardinals’ front office whether he could be an everyday third baseman in the majors,” the Post-Dispatch reported. “Uncertainty about that made him available in the right trade.”

Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz endorsed the trade: “Wallace represents tomorrow, but you don’t worry about tomorrow when Albert Pujols is batting third in your lineup today. Make the most of it.”

Steal for St. Louis

Freese, who was at Springfield, replaced Wallace as Memphis’ third baseman. He became the Cardinals’ starter the next year and was a World Series hero in 2011.

Holliday immediately boosted the 2009 Cardinals’ production. He batted .353 (83 hits in 63 games) with 55 RBI, helping the Cardinals win the Central Division title.

Wallace never played in a big-league game for the Athletics. He was traded to the Blue Jays and was stuck in their minor-league system until he joined the Astros, where he eventually was reunited with Luhnow, who became their general manager in December 2011.

In six major-league seasons with the Astros (2010-13) and Padres (2015-16), primarily as a first baseman, Wallace batted .238 and had more strikeouts (432) than hits (305).

Previously: Fernando Salas: Cool Hand Luke of 2011 Cardinals

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Pitching or hitting, Rick Ankiel was marvel and mystery

Posted in Games, Hitters, Pitchers on March 7, 2014| 2 Comments »

(Updated Jan. 9, 2019)

When Rick Ankiel confirmed on March 5, 2014, he had retired as a player at 34, it was his second retirement announcement.

Nine years earlier, in March 2005, Ankiel, 25, announced at the Cardinals’ spring training site in Jupiter, Fla., he was retiring as a pitcher and would seek to transform himself into an outfielder.

At the time, the idea seemed to be preposterous _ almost as preposterous as if someone would have suggested in 2000 that the rookie phenom of the Cardinals suddenly would lose his ability to throw strikes during the postseason, igniting his downfall as a pitcher.

After all, the last players to make their big-league debuts as pitchers before earning significant play in the majors as position players were Bobby Darwin (1962-77) and Willie Smith (1963-71), according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Ankiel persevered, hit 32 home runs in the minor leagues in 2007, got promoted to the Cardinals in August that year and belted a three-run homer in his first game back in the big leagues as a position player. Boxscore

Feel-good story

In his first 23 games after being promoted to the 2007 Cardinals, Ankiel hit .358 with nine home runs and 29 RBI.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called Ankiel “the sport’s feel-good story of 2007.”

Within 24 hours, following an all-too-familiar-pattern, Ankiel went from being marvel to mystery.

On Thursday afternoon, Sept. 6, 2007, Ankiel capped his comeback with a remarkable performance against the Pirates at St. Louis. Batting second in the order, Ankiel was 3-for-4 with two home runs, a career-high seven RBI, four runs scored and a walk in a 16-4 Cardinals victory.

“Even his foul balls down the left-field line are deep,” Pirates pitcher Matt Morris, Ankiel’s friend and former Cardinals teammate, said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “There’s nothing lazy about his swing.”

Ankiel grounded into a double play in the first inning, though the Post-Gazette reported Ankiel hit the ball so hard he “would have had another hit but for a spectacular stop by second baseman Freddy Sanchez.”

In the second, Ankiel launched a three-run home run off Bryan Bullington, making his first big-league start. After drawing a walk and scoring in the fourth, Ankiel smoked a two-run homer off John Grabow in the fifth. He received curtain calls from the appreciative fans after both home runs.

Ankiel added a two-run double in the sixth against Dave Davidson, making his big-league debut. With St. Louis ahead 16-3, manager Tony La Russa removed Ankiel. Boxscore

In the seven-game homestand, Ankiel batted .440 with five home runs and 19 RBI.

“He’s been relentless every at-bat,” La Russa said.

Said Cardinals shortstop Brendan Ryan: “He’s been putting up Nintendo numbers.”

Right or wrong

Imagine the emotional swing the following morning, Friday, Sept. 7, 2007, when the New York Daily News reported Ankiel in 2004 had received eight shipments of human growth hormone from an Orlando-based pharmacy through a Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., clinic.

Ankiel was attempting to recover from an arm injury in 2004. Major League Baseball didn’t ban the use of human growth hormone by players until 2005. Said Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty: “There was no violation of Major League Baseball rules. There was no violation of any laws.”

The report, though, led some to question whether performance-enhancing drugs were aiding Ankiel in his storybook success with the 2007 Cardinals. “I’m a little surprised at the unfairness of some people who are rushing to conclusions before getting all the information,” La Russa said. “I don’t think he did anything wrong.”

In his 2017 book “The Phenom, Ankiel admitted he used human growth hormone from January 2004 to December 2004 to help him recover from elbow surgery.

“I took human growth hormone because it was, by Major League Baseball standards, legal,” Ankiel said in his book. “I told no one. In 2005, when Major League Baseball banned human growth hormone, I stopped using.

“I felt I’d done nothing illegal … The fact that I was not in trouble legally or, ultimately, with the league seemed lost on everyone.”

In his first at-bat after news of the human growth hormone shipments, Ankiel singled. He went hitless in his next 19 at-bats. He hit just two home runs in his final 24 games of 2007, then returned in 2008 to hit 25.

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