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Cardinals home opener linked Jerry Reuss, Willie Mays

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on March 26, 2014| 4 Comments »

(Updated April 5, 2022)

St. Louis native Jerry Reuss was 21 when he started a Cardinals home opener.

Reuss faced the Giants on April 10, 1971, in the Cardinals’ first home game of the season, but he got derailed that Saturday afternoon by a baseball legend nearly twice his age.

Willie Mays, less than a month shy of his 40th birthday, hit a two-run home run off Reuss, sparking the Giants to a 6-4 victory. It was Mays’ fourth home run in as many games and boosted his career total to 632, 82 behind the all-time leader at that time, Babe Ruth.

Reuss, a left-hander, had debuted with the Cardinals in September 1969. He made 20 starts for St. Louis in 1970, producing a 7-8 record, two shutouts, five complete games and a 4.10 ERA.

After the 1971 Cardinals opened at Chicago by splitting a pair of games against the Cubs _ Bob Gibson and Steve Carlton were the St. Louis starters _ they played their home opener on the day before Easter in front of 26,841 at Busch Memorial Stadium. Reuss was paired against Frank Reberger, 26, a right-hander who had started his big-league career as a reliever.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, it was the first time Reuss had started an opener of any kind, home or away, since he was in high school.

The first time through the Giants batting order went well for Reuss. He struck out Mays looking to end the first. He struck out Willie McCovey to begin the second.

In the third, the game was scoreless when Chris Speier walked with two outs, bringing up Mays. Reuss got ahead on the count, 0-and-2. His third pitch was a fastball. Mays turned on it and sent the ball soaring into the left field bleachers.

“I’m just happy to play,” Mays said to Pat Frizzell of the Oakland Tribune. “Not many guys my age can go out there every day. I hit the pitch hard.”

Reuss told the Post-Dispatch, “He’s hit home runs off better pitchers than I am.”

Cardinals catcher Ted Simmons said Mays struck out on an inside fastball in the first inning. When Mays batted in the third, “Reuss put the fastball on the inside corner of the plate, but it came in chin high,” Simmons said to the Post-Dispatch.

In the fourth, Ken Henderson singled and Dick Dietz belted a two-run home run, increasing the San Francisco lead to 4-0.

“It was a real fastball,” Dietz said of the pitch he hammered off Reuss. “He supplied the power.”

After the next batter, Al Gallagher, singled, manager Red Schoendienst lifted Reuss for right-hander Chuck Taylor.

Reuss’ line: 3 innings, 5 hits, 4 runs, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts. Boxscore

The Giants went on to win the National League West championship that season. The Cardinals finished as runner-up to the Pirates in the East. Reuss made 35 starts for the 1971 Cardinals. He was 14-14 with seven complete games, two shutouts and a 4.78 ERA. He issued a team-high 109 walks in 211 innings.

In April 1972, two months after the Cardinals traded Carlton to the Phillies, Reuss was dealt to the Astros for pitchers Scipio Spinks and Lance Clemons.

Cardinals general manager Bing Devine said team owner Gussie Busch ordered the trade.

In the book “The Spirit of St. Louis,” Devine told author Peter Golenbock, “This was a deal I had to make because Mr. Busch said, ‘Jerry Reuss is growing facial hair,’ and he didn’t like facial hair on ballplayers, or executives either.”

Reuss told me in a 2014 interview, “When you look back about how that was the thinking in baseball in the early 1970s and then just two or three years later baseball began to change with the times. Guys were coming in with long hair and beards. And you just wonder: What was the stink all about?”

Also, Reuss had been offered a $3,000 raise to $20,000, but hadn’t signed. He asked for $25,000, The Sporting News reported.

“Reuss didn’t appear to be happy with us, couldn’t come to terms and we were still far apart,” Devine told The Sporting News.

Said Reuss: “I think Mr. Busch is putting his principle ahead of the whole ballclub.”

In a 22-year major-league career, primarily with the Dodgers and Pirates, Reuss compiled a record of 220-191. He was 14-18 versus the Cardinals.

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Battle of wills: Bob Gibson, Gene Mauch play hardball

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on March 5, 2014| 4 Comments »

(Updated May 4, 2020)

In 17 years with the Cardinals, Bob Gibson hit 102 batters with pitches. In 1,489 plate appearances, Gibson was hit by a pitch just eight times.

Three of those times, Gibson was hit by Phillies pitchers playing for manager Gene Mauch. Two of those incidents involved Dennis Bennett. The last one led to Gibson being ejected and Bennett calling the Cardinals ace a “chicken” and a “coward.”

Mauch and Gibson were intense competitors. In a June 1962 game, Gibson was hit by a pitch from Bennett, a Phillies rookie. Three months later, the Phillies’ Art Mahaffey plunked Gibson with a pitch. Mauch, in his third season as Phillies manager, was trying to instill toughness in a team that lost 107 of 154 games in 1961. Gibson, in his second full season in the Cardinals’ rotation in 1962, was establishing himself as a consistent winner.

By 1964, both the Cardinals and Phillies were contenders. On May 4, 1964, the Phillies went into St. Louis tied with the Giants for first place in the National League. The Cardinals were 2.5 games behind.

Bennett was matched against Gibson in the series opener. In the second inning, Curt Flood led off with a home run. “After Flood hit the homer, I made up my mind somebody was going down,” Bennett told the Philadelphia Daily News.

Bennett delivered a knockdown pitch to the next batter, Julian Javier.

“They were digging in on me and I had to protect myself,” Bennett said to The Sporting News. “… I missed Javier by just a couple of inches or they might have had to carry him out.”

Dispensing medicine

First up for the Phillies in the third was Bennett. Gibson’s first pitch to him was high and tight. Bennett didn’t move but glared at Gibson, according to United Press International. Gibson’s second delivery, another high fastball, backed Bennett away from the plate. Bennett moved toward the mound before he was intercepted by plate umpire Doug Harvey, who issued a warning to Gibson.

Bennett told the Philadelphia Daily News, “When Gibson threw those pitches five feet over my head, I yelled out at him, ‘If you can’t come any closer than that, come in and get me.’ If he was going to put me down, he should have put me down.”

“Sure, I dusted him off,” Gibson told the Associated Press, “but he threw right at Javier’s head. Bennett doesn’t have that bad control. I just wanted to let Bennett know I had to protect our batters.”

Gibson also told United Press International that Mauch “is always telling his pitchers to throw at the hitters. They deserve to get some of their own medicine once in a while.”

In the bottom half of the third, Ken Boyer hit a two-run triple off Bennett. Jack Baldschun relieved and yielded a RBI-single to Flood, increasing the Cardinals’ lead to 5-1.

An inning later, Gibson batted with one out and the bases empty. Baldschun’s first pitch nearly clipped Gibson’s ankle.

In his book “Stranger to the Game,” Gibson said Mauch “knew that I was at the boiling point. He had been agitating me all night from the bench, trying his best to get me angrier and angrier.”

Flipping out

Aiming higher, Baldschun hit Gibson in the thigh with the next pitch. Gibson flipped the bat underhanded toward the pitcher. Baldschun caught it with his glove hand. Harvey immediately ejected Gibson.

Said Harvey: “He had a lethal weapon out there. I’m happy to say Gibson did not throw the bat violently, but he did throw it to the mound.”

“I wasn’t trying to hit him with the bat, but I was mad, hurt and just plain disgusted with the whole business,” Gibson said. “I tossed the bat just the way hitters do when they’re disgusted after striking out.”

In his book, Gibson said, “Without thinking, I flung my bat in Baldschun’s direction … Naturally, I was ejected, which is exactly what Mauch was counting on.”

Said Mauch to the Philadelphia Daily News: “He lost his composure.”

Bennett told United Press International, “Gibson’s nothing but a chicken … If he wants to fight, he ought to put up his fists instead of throwing the bat … That’s a coward’s way out if I ever saw one.”

Said Baldschun of his pitch to Gibson: “I figure he had one brush coming.”

Mauch told The Sporting News, “I’ve been popping off all over the country about how great a competitor Gibson is, but he didn’t show me much this time.”

The Cardinals responded quickly and effectively.

On the first pitch Baldschun threw after Gibson was ejected, Carl Warwick homered, scoring Jerry Buchek, who ran for Gibson, and extending the St. Louis lead to 7-1.

Last laugh

The Cardinals cruised to a 9-2 victory. Roger Craig got the win, pitching five innings in relief of Gibson. The ejection was costly to Gibson _ and not for the $100 he was fined. He finished the regular season with 19 wins. If he hadn’t flipped the bat, he would have remained in the game and qualified for the win with another inning pitched. Adding that win would have given him his first 20-win season. Boxscore

“Six pitchers reached for their gloves in the dugout when Gibson was thrown out with that lead,” Cardinals pitcher Curt Simmons said.

Cardinals manager Johnny Keane was upset with Mauch. “Why throw at anybody?” Keane said to the Philadelphia Daily News. “He wouldn’t want to be up there with Gibson throwing at him. Gibson could kill somebody. They’d be sorry to see a man lying dead at home plate.”

Gibson and the Cardinals got their revenge against Mauch and the Phillies. In first place on Sept. 20, 1964, and leading the Cardinals and Reds by 6.5 games with 12 to play, the Phillies went into a 10-game losing streak. St. Louis clinched the pennant by beating the Mets on the last day of the season, with Gibson getting the win in relief. Gibson went on to win Games 5 and 7 of the 1964 World Series against the Yankees and was named winner of the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.

Mauch managed for 26 seasons in the big leagues, never winning a pennant.

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What you should know about Frank Robinson, Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents on February 28, 2014| Leave a Comment »

(Updated Jan. 5, 2021)

During spring training in 2014, Orioles manager Buck Showalter told a Baltimore prospect to write a report on the career of Frank Robinson after the minor-league player admitted he was clueless about the Hall of Fame slugger who became baseball’s first black manager.

That got me thinking: How many fans know about Robinson’s achievements versus the Cardinals?

In tribute to Frank Robinson, here’s my written report on the feats you should know he achieved while playing against the Cardinals:

Turning anger into runs

Robinson produced 586 home runs, 1,812 RBI and 2,943 hits in a 21-year major-league playing career from 1956-76. He spent 11 seasons _ 10 with the Reds; one with the Dodgers _ in the National League. In 203 games against the Cardinals, Robinson had 220 hits, including 46 home runs and 41 doubles, and drove in 127 runs. His career batting average versus St. Louis was .290.

Against the Cardinals, Robinson made his major-league debut, had his greatest single-game home run performance, delivered several game-winning shots and won a couple of dramatic duels with Bob Gibson.

In the book “Sixty Feet, Six Inches,” Gibson said, “Frank Robinson might have been the best I ever saw at turning his anger into runs. He challenged you physically as soon as he stepped into the batter’s box, with half his body hanging over the plate.

“His fearlessness played a tremendous part in making him the hitter he was. He practically dared you to clip him or knock him down and, when you did, he’d use it as intensity. He seemed to gain strength from it. If you couldn’t drive him off the plate _ and you couldn’t _ then you couldn’t take away his outside corner.

“As a rule, I’m reluctant to express admiration for hitters, but I make an exception for Frank Robinson.”

In the book “Pure Baseball,” first baseman Keith Hernandez said Robinson would wear out a pitching staff if they threw at him. According to Hernandez, Cardinals manager Red Schoendienst “called a meeting and told his pitchers he’d fine them $100 for hitting Frank Robinson. Leave him alone. We want to win these games.”

Vinegar Bend Mizell

In his first big-league game, April 17, 1956, at Cincinnati, Robinson, batting seventh and playing left field, was 2-for-3 with a walk versus Cardinals starter Vinegar Bend Mizell. In his first at-bat in his debut game, Robinson doubled. “Second pitch,” Robinson said to the Washington Post, “line drive off the center field fence. Missed being a home run by a couple of feet.” Boxscore

Three years later, Robinson hit three home runs in a major-league game for the only time. It happened against the Cardinals on Aug. 22, 1959, at Cincinnati. All three homers were hit with two outs.

The first of the three came against Mizell. It was a three-run shot in the fifth inning that broke a 1-1 tie. It was one of eight homers Robinson hit against Mizell in his career. Robinson followed that with a two-run homer off Dean Stone in the sixth and a solo blast against Bob Duliba in the eighth. Boxscore

Larry Jackson

Robinson hit 10 home runs in his career against Larry Jackson. Seven occurred while Jackson was with the Cardinals. The most damaging was struck on Sept. 2, 1957, at Cincinnati.

In the second game of a doubleheader with the Cardinals, the Reds batted in the 10th inning with the score 1-1. Jackson, the starter, walked the leadoff batter, Bob Thurman, and Robinson followed with a walkoff, two-run home run, lifting the Reds to a 3-1 victory. Boxscore

Two-homer games

On April 30, 1958, at Cincinnati, Robinson hit a fifth-inning solo home run off Lindy McDaniel, giving the Reds a 4-2 lead. After the Cardinals rallied with two runs in the ninth to tie the score at 4-4, Robinson led off the 10th against Morrie Martin, who had held the Reds scoreless for three innings, and hit a walkoff home run, giving the Reds a 5-4 victory. Boxscore

Robinson also had a pair of other two-homer games against the Cardinals:

_ He hit a solo home run in the second inning off Ernie Broglio and the winning shot in the 11th, also off Broglio, in a 4-3 Reds victory on Sept. 10, 1962, at St. Louis. Boxscore

_ He hit a pair of home runs off Tracy Stallard in a 6-3 Reds victory on April 24, 1965, at Cincinnati. Boxscore

Bob Gibson

In showdowns between Hall of Famers Gibson and Robinson, the Cardinals pitcher usually had the upper hand, but Robinson also enjoyed spectacular successes against Gibson.

Robinson hit .229 (19-for-83) versus Gibson and struck out 12 times. He also hit four home runs.

In his book ‘Stranger to the Game,” Gibson said, “I brought the ball in close to Frank Robinson … although I believe most pitchers tried him outside. The way he crowded the plate, they figured he was waiting to pounce on the inside pitch, but it seemed to me that he beat a hell of a lot of guys who pitched him away.”

In an interview with former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent for the book, “We Would Have Played For Nothing,” Robinson said, “Bob threw what we called a heavy ball. He had a hard slider. He was just mean enough, you know, he was up under your chin and that type of thing. So he was tougher to hit against than Sandy Koufax, but Koufax was tougher to get hits off of.”

Here is a look at the four home runs Robinson hit off Gibson:

_ Gibson blew leads in the ninth and 10th innings of a game at Cincinnati on Sept. 7, 1962.

The Cardinals led, 4-3, entering the bottom of the ninth before the Reds scored a run off Gibson to tie.

In the 10th, St. Louis regained the lead, 5-4, giving Gibson another chance to seal the win, but Robinson hit a solo home run against him in the bottom of the 10th.

The Reds won, 6-5, on a RBI-double by Vada Pinson off Curt Simmons in the 11th. Boxscore

_ Gibson was matched against fellow power pitcher Jim Maloney on May 4, 1963, at Cincinnati.

In the third inning of a scoreless game, Pete Rose walked, Pinson singled and Robinson followed with a three-run home run off Gibson. Maloney shut out the Cardinals on four hits and the Reds won, 6-0. Boxscore

_ In the opener of a doubleheader on Sept. 19, 1964, at Cincinnati, Gibson took a 5-4 lead into the ninth. With two outs and pinch-runner Tommy Harper on third, Gibson walked Pinson, bringing Robinson to the plate.

Robinson crushed a three-run, walkoff home run, lifting the Reds to a 7-5 triumph. Boxscore

_ In the first game of a doubleheader at Cincinnati on June 22, 1965, Robinson hit a solo home run off Gibson in the sixth inning, helping the Reds to a 5-4 victory. Boxscore

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Why Lonnie Smith was a nemesis of Nolan Ryan

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

(Updated March 30, 2026)

In a 27-year Hall of Fame pitching career in the majors, Nolan Ryan held opponents to a .204 batting average and a .307 on-base percentage. So what Lonnie Smith did against him is amazing.

A right-handed batter, Smith has the best career batting average and best career on-base percentage of any hitter with at least 30 plate appearances against Ryan.

Smith hit . 500 (12-for-24) with five walks versus Ryan. He also twice was hit by Ryan pitches. Smith’s on-base percentage against Ryan is .613.

Cardinals catalyst

In four seasons (1982-85) with the Cardinals, Smith hit .556 (10-for-18) against Ryan, who was with the Astros then. (Ryan spent more seasons with the Astros, nine, than he did with the Mets, Angels and Rangers.)

Smith had eight singles, a double, a home run, four walks and twice was hit by pitches in seven games with the Cardinals against Ryan. Smith is part of the reason Ryan posted a losing career record (10-13) versus the Cardinals.

The first and last games Smith played as a Cardinal versus Ryan may have been the most significant.

In his first regular-season game with the Cardinals, April 6, 1982, at Houston, Smith was hit by a Ryan pitch to lead off the game. He triggered a five-run inning against the Astros’ ace. Smith also had two singles before Ryan was lifted after three innings. The Cardinals opened with a 14-3 victory, foreshadowing a season that would yield their first World Series title in 15 years. Boxscore

“This is what you call getting your butt pounded,” Ryan told the Houston Post. “I guess that’s the worst game I ever pitched for the Astros.”

Houston manager Bill Virdon said to the Houston Chronicle, “Nolan didn’t have control of his curveball. He didn’t have command of his fastball either.”

Smith stunner

Two years later, Aug. 31, 1984, in his final appearance as a Cardinal against Ryan, Smith, batting fifth instead of his customary leadoff spot, hit a grand slam in the first inning, launching the Cardinals to a 7-5 victory over the Astros at St. Louis. Boxscore

“I got behind on the count to Lonnie Smith and had to throw a strike,” Ryan told the Houston Chronicle, “and I just threw him a fastball down the middle.”

The grand slam was Smith’s first home run in two months (since June 28 off Mark Thurmond of the Padres) and his first with a runner on base in two years (since Aug. 14, 1982, off John Candelaria of the Pirates).

It also was the second of three grand slams Smith would hit in his major-league career. (Smith’s first grand slam was against Rick Rhoden of the 1982 Pirates and his last was off Roger Mason of the 1992 Pirates.)

Ryan hadn’t given up a grand slam in seven years (to Pat Kelly of the 1977 Orioles) until Smith delivered his stunning shot.

“You’ve got to give them credit,” Astros manager Bob Lillis said to the Associated Press. “They hit with men on base and that’s what it takes.”

Previously: Steve Carlton vs. Nolan Ryan: fateful 1971 finale of aces

Previously: How Lonnie Smith came clean with the Cardinals

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Bronson Arroyo: Colorful character in Cards-Reds rivalry

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on February 10, 2014| 3 Comments »

(Updated May 12, 2018)

Since 2000, when he broke into the big leagues with the Pirates, until 2017, when he finished his pitching career with the Reds, Bronson Arroyo was a frequent foe of the Cardinals.

Arroyo, who flipped breaking pitches like Frisbees in an ocean breeze, has a regular-season career record of 8-18 with a 4.94 ERA in 42 appearances against the Cardinals. Most of those appearances occurred while he pitched for the Reds.

A look at some of Arroyo’s best and worst performances against the Cardinals:

Good for Arroyo

_ May 1, 2006: Arroyo pitched a complete-game four-hitter in a 6-1 Reds victory at Cincinnati. Juan Encarnacion’s home run prevented a shutout.

“He doesn’t have overpowering stuff, but he’s smart,” Cardinals outfielder John Rodriguez said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “He knows where his pitches are going.”

Said Cardinals manager Tony La Russa: “He got a lot of outs in a lot of different parts of the (strike) zone. That’s good pitching.” Boxscore

_ June 12, 2008: Arroyo pitched six shutout innings and hit a home run against Joel Pineiro in a 6-2 Reds victory at Cincinnati. Arroyo departed after experiencing cramps in his right forearm.

“He didn’t leave pitches over the middle,” Cardinals outfielder Skip Schumaker said. “He was effective pitching to the small part of the plate.” Boxscore

_ May 16, 2010: Arroyo tossed a complete-game seven-hitter and knocked in two runs in a 7-2 Reds victory at Cincinnati. Cardinals outfielder Colby Rasmus described Arroyo’s assortment of pitches as “doo-doo” and “slop.”

Said Arroyo: “I could care less what adjective you put next to my pitch selection. The name of the game is to put a zero on the board as many times as I can.” Boxscore

Good for Cardinals

_ Aug. 10, 2006: Arroyo braided his hair into cornrows in an effort to change his luck, but the Cardinals weren’t impressed. Arroyo yielded home runs to Jim Edmonds, Chris Duncan and Scott Spiezio in the Cardinals’ 6-1 victory at Cincinnati.

“I’m at the end of my rope with superstitions,” Arroyo told the Dayton Daily News. “Either I’m going to bring a live chicken in here, or just go out and pitch.” Boxscore

_ June 6, 2007: In the seventh inning, with the Reds ahead, 4-3, Ryan Ludwick tied the score with a pinch-hit home run off Arroyo. With two outs, Albert Pujols followed with a two-run home run, lifting the Cardinals to a 6-4 triumph at St. Louis.

“All the runs they scored were on mistakes,” Arroyo said. “With Pujols, I tried to freeze him with a heater in, but it wandered over the middle of the plate.” Boxscore

_ Sept. 26, 2008: Arroyo gave up a career-high 13 hits in seven innings but escaped with a no-decision in the Cardinals’ 7-6 victory at St. Louis. Arroyo reached 200 innings pitched for the fourth consecutive season. Boxscore

_ July 5, 2009: The Cardinals pounded Arroyo for 11 hits and eight runs in five innings and won, 10-1, at Cincinnati. Said Reds manager Dusty Baker: “Bronson got kicked around pretty good. He was a sacrificial lamb because my bullpen was in bad shape.” Boxscore

Previously: Cardinals, Reds stage star-studded brawl in 1967

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The day Ralph Kiner hit 3 home runs versus Cardinals

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents on February 7, 2014| 1 Comment »

(Updated Nov. 21, 2024)

Ralph Kiner, the Hall of Fame left fielder who hit 369 home runs in a 10-year major league career, slugged three home runs in a game for the Pirates against the Cardinals.

Throughout his career, Kiner was a Cardinals nemesis, hitting .309 with 50 home runs and 142 RBI against them.

A .279 career hitter with the Pirates, Cubs and Indians, Kiner’s batting mark against the Cardinals was his highest versus any National League team.

Kiner blooms at Greenberg Gardens

In 1947, Kiner, 24, was in his second big-league season with Pittsburgh. The Pirates had acquired Hank Greenberg, 36, the longtime Tigers slugger, to play first base and mentor Kiner.

(In the book “Voices from Cooperstown,” Kiner told author Anthony J. Connor that as a boy he rooted for Greenberg and the 1934 Tigers. “I can still rattle off the whole lineup,” Kiner said. “The funny thing is I never saw them play. I was in southern California then and there was no TV. It just goes to show what an 11-year-old boy can do with a newspaper box score and a good imagination.”)

To capitalize on the right-handed power of Kiner and Greenberg, the Pirates extended the bullpen fence about 30 feet in front of the left field wall at Forbes Field, shortening the distance for a home run from about 360 feet to about 330 feet, and dubbed the area Greenberg Gardens.

Though the 1947 Pirates were an awful team _ they would finish in last place at 62-92 _ they topped one million in home attendance for the first time in franchise history because of the slugging of Kiner (51 home runs) and Greenberg (25).

On Aug. 16, 1947, Kiner had three home runs, five RBI, four runs scored and two walks in the Pirates’ 12-7 victory over the Cardinals at Forbes Field.

The Pirates and Cardinals combined to hit 10 home runs in the game. The Pirates accounted for seven _ three by Kiner and two each by Greenberg and Billy Cox. Whitey Kurowski hit two homers for the Cardinals and Terry Moore hit one. All 10 home runs were hit by right-handed batters.

Kiner’s first home run came with the bases empty in the third off starter Ken Burkhart and landed against the light tower in the bullpen. He hit a three-run shot over the scoreboard in left off Ted Wilks in the fourth before capping his day with another solo homer off Johnny Grodzicki in the eighth. The third home run was the longest and “seemed headed for Carnegie Museum in nearby Shenley Park,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Boxscore

Thanks, Hank

Kiner struggled early in the 1947 season and Pirates manager Billy Herman wanted to send him to the minors but Greenberg convinced the front office to keep Kiner on the club, according to the book “Voices From Cooperstown.”

According to author Anthony J. Connor, when Kiner reached a low point, going hitless in five at-bats against the Cubs, Greenberg said to Kiner, “Stay with it. The fundamentals are there and it is going to work.”

Kiner credited Greenberg with making him into a consistent power hitter. “Right from the start of spring training down in Florida, Hank was at my side constantly,” Kiner told The Sporting News. “He got me to move up a little closer at the plate to protect the outside (corner) and to spread my feet a bit, too.

“Hank gave me confidence and he taught me how to relax. Last year, I was usually tense at the plate. When a pitcher had two strikes on me, I was always afraid I’d be called out on strikes and I’d go after that bad one … I bet I’ve hit most of my home runs this year with two strikes on me.”

Said Greenberg: “Ralph had what it takes all the time. I merely gave him a bit of advice here and there when he asked me … Kiner and Ted Williams are probably the best wrist hitters in the game today.”

In his book “Stan Musial: The Man’s Own Story,” the seven-time batting champion of the Cardinals said Kiner “was the most consistent home run hitter in the National League. Hank Greenberg helped him and so did Greenberg Gardens at Pittsburgh, but Ralph worked at his game and improved himself as a hitter. He had a good eye and good power, plus a type of swing that sent the ball high with good backspin so that it kept sailing.”

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