1952 Offseason News
Spring Training took on a somber tone this year as Washington manager and likely future Hall of Famer Carl "Dutch" Kahle died. Kahle, who was always seen puffing on one of his favorite unfiltered Chesterfields, collapsed in the team's clubhouse after a day of practice. He was rushed to a local Florida hospital and pronounced dead on the scene. The cause of his death was ruled a heart attack.
Senators practice was cancelled for three days and all teams observed a moment of silence when the opening day of spring training games commenced. The team named 3rd base coach Woodrow Woodworth as the new manager. Woodworth, whose son Wilford now plays with the Yankees, was Kahle's teammate in Washington from 1934-1946. When Carl took over the reigns of the team in 1949, Woodworth accompanied him and had been the 3rd base coach ever since.
Three teams made managerial changes in the offseason. St. Louis was surprised to hear that manager Doug Noe decided to resign after a 1951 season in which the favored Cardinals finished 86-68 and 3 games behind New York. In four seasons with the team, Noe had an impeccable 357-259 record (.580). His Cardinals finished 2nd three times and won the 1950 World Series. Rumor has it that Noe was uncomfortable in his current role, but he left open the possibility of returning to the team in a new capacity.
After playing from August 16th through the end of last season with no official manager, Detroit named Kid Fite as their new full-time manager. The Phillies made a change and promoted Ted Stuart to their managerial position. The Phillies players later presented GM J.T. Campbell with a trophy for freeing them from Whit Sard's tyranny. The stunt was actually the work of Campbell and team traveling secretary Bill Durney.
In The News
Oct 15: Minor league executive Leslie O'Connor testified before the Celler committee that major league control over the farm system is harmful to players and the minor leagues. He added that the majors-minors council plans a pact to speed a West Coast bid for higher status.
Oct 16: In a letter written to major league officials, Indians pitcher
George Kauffman offered a pay plan that would reduce the ill effects of the reserve system he supports. He would have the salaries of players on consistent tail-enders be determined by a rating system by the owners. If the club does not match the "average" salary, then that player should be traded to some other club that can afford his services. Kauffman added that he "doesn't care where I play, as long as I get a ‘fair' salary."
Oct 23: Baseball officials contend that the farm system saved baseball during the Depression. They ask Congress for legislation that will protect it from monopoly suits.
Nov 2: The National Labor Relations Board filed unfair labor practices charges against the Indians on a claim the club fired a ticket seller at the union's request. This is the first case against baseball under the Taft-Hartley Act.
Nov 6: Dodgers President Walter O'Malley denied the farm system constitutes a monopoly. He cited the Dodgers' deficit in 1950.
Nov 7: Representative Emanuel Celler's committee issued financial data from 1945-49 that differed with Walter O'Malley's numbers. According to Celler, the Dodgers made a profit of 2.364 million dollars from 1945-49; the Dodgers' "loss" of $129,318 in 1950 included a $167,000 loss due to the promotion of the Brooklyn Dodgers professional football team. In his continuing investigation into antitrust violations, Celler said that evidence in his committee suggests altering the reserve clause in that it does limit players.
Nov 10: In Tokyo, 50,000 fans are on hand as Ruben "Ripper" Schroeder's American all-star team battled a Central League all-star team. Jimmy Ditty hit a 400 ft. homerun in the 8th inning to tie the game at 1–1, then Browns second baseman
Jonny Perly laced an RBI-triple in the 9th and later scored to give the Americans a 3–2 victory. The Americans have won 12 games and tied one. Three days later, the Americans lost 3–1. That was only the 2nd time since 1922 that an American professional team had lost to Japan, and the first time to professional players. Schroeder had been made annual visits to Japan in the 1930s as a baseball ambassador of good will. He became an idol of fans there, and he took the attack on Pearl Harbor as a personal attack.
Nov 18: Former Browns second baseman
Otis Armel became the first player to oppose the ML draft. Currently the 2B of the San Antonio Missions, Armel wants to stay in his home state of Texas, instead of going to whatever team might draft him for the ML. The minor leagues view his refusal in a positive manner, allowing them to ask higher prices for players than what the ML usually offers.
Jan 1: Former major leaguer Buddy Greenberg, 38, died under mysterious circumstances in northern Mexico when he was shot by a policeman. The police say he was trying to sell his car, but Greenberg had $2,000 on him. He was attempting a comeback in the Mexican winter league.
Jan 4: Former A's and Reds pitcher Terry Lucewicz was acquitted of manslaughter charges stemming from a bar room fight on July 30, 1950 when he struck a 27-year-old truck driver. Grissom last pitched in the majors for the 1947 A's, going 5-7. He pitched in Detroit's minor league system last season.
Jan 9: As the Korean War drags on, the Army recalls Dan Troge, the recently retired Cubs first baseman and former Army pilot during WWII, to active duty.
Jan 17: Detroit owner Walter O. "Spike" Briggs died at the age of 74. His son will succeed him in the presidency.
Jan 18: The Chicago White Sox accepted Vice President Charlie A. Comiskey Jr.'s resignation. Comiskey's request for more money was refused.
Feb 1: The Giants reported a $24,000 shortfall in 1951 revenue, sparking a New York district attorney probe. There was a possible error in the World Series and post-season play-off revenues.
Mar 5: Norman Bel Geddes, after designing a 5,000 seat complex for the Dodgers in Vero Beach, Florida, stated that Walter O'Malley had asked for a stadium design for Brooklyn. It is to have a retractable dome, garage, automatic hotdog vending machines and artificial turf that can be painted in different colors.
Hall of Fame
Three players were elected to the HOF by the BBWAA in 1952 and two more players were elected by the VC:
Oscar Vancini, LF
Cap: Dodgers
Inducted: BBWAA 96.2%
Teams: Brooklyn N.L. 1929-1946
Plaque: In 1929, Vancini set a NL record with 19 rookie homeruns and was named ROTY. In his sophomore season, he won his first BOTY Award. Three years after his debut, he had his first 30+ homerun season. Another two years later, Vancini started a streak of 8 straight seasons of 30 or more homeruns. In 1936, he joined Willard Schwarz as the only other player to hit 40 in a season, and the next season he reached the 50 homerun mark, setting a new record with 59. He then hit 53 in 1938 and 59 again in 1939, an unprescedented display of power. He became the first (and only) player to reach 400 or 500 homeruns. He led the NL in homeruns for 8 straight seasons, led the league in slugging 6 times, in OPS 5 times and in RBI 8 times. He won an amazing 8 BOTY Awards, including 4 consecutive ones from 1936-39. He won two World Series with the Dodgers and one Gold Glove. Vancini retired with a .309 average, 2959 hits (25th All-Time), 425 doubles, 557 homeruns (1st All-Time), 1906 RBI (1st All-Time), 1636 runs (13th All-Time), 1262 walks (21st All-Time) and a .925 OPS.
David Wickersham, SP
Cap: Cubs
Inducted: BBWAA 96.2%
Teams: Chicago N.L. 1925-1946
Plaque: Wickersham was a hard thrower who set a still-standing major league record with 263 strikeouts in a season in 1934. He also holds the Cubs record with 14 K's in a game. In 1929, he became the 3rd pitcher in Cubs history to toss a no-hitter. He won three straight pennants with the Cubs and one World Series in 1938. He is one of only 3 pitchers in history with 3000 K's. He retired with a 376-265 record (4th Most Wins All-Time), 3.43 ERA, 2002 BB, 3098 K (2nd All-Time), 480 CG (4th All-Time), 38 SHO and 1.17 WHIP.
Steven "Babylon" Bussell, 3B
Cap: Browns
Inducted: BBWAA 84.6%
Teams: St. Louis A.L. 1926-1946
Plaque: Bussell was an on-base machine for the Browns, leading the AL in walks 7 times and finishing in the top 5 an incredible 15 times. He led the AL in OPS twice and finished in the top 10 13 times. He won two Gold Gloves and finished his career with a .305 average, 3098 hits (15th All-Time), 655 doubles (4th All-Time), 161 homeruns, 1428 RBI (22nd All-Time), 1766 runs (4th All-Time) and 1962 walks (1st All-Time), along the way becoming the first player to ever reach 1700 walks and the only one to reach 1800 or 1900.
Tee Carver, RF
Cap: Indians
Inducted: VC
Teams: Cleveland A.L. 1902-1923
Plaque: Carver was one of the most productive offensive members of a Cleveland franchise that dominated much of the AL from 1907-1921. He was the 1914 BOY and won the World Series with Cleveland in 1915 and 1916. He won two Gold Gloves and retired as the all-time leader in RBI. Over his career, he had a .314 average (21st All-Time), 2908 hits (4th All-Time), 529 doubles (2nd All-Time), 61 home runs (23rd All-Time), 1399 RBI (Most All-Time), 1319 runs scored (7th All-Time) and 1158 walks (2nd All-Time).
Jassen Nelson, SP
Cap: Yankees
Inducted: VC
Teams: Detroit A.L. 1901-1906, New York A.L. 1906-1917
Plaque: Nelson was one of the finest pitchers of his generation. He was a 6-time 20-game winner, recording a career high 27 wins in 1904 at age 26. He won 3 World Series (1908, 1911, 1912) with the Highlanders (Yankees), and he was the series MVP in 1908. He won the 1909 POY and 7 Gold Gloves. He threw a perfect game against the Red Sox in 1916, just the second perfect game in baseball history, putting the finishing touch on a masterful career. He retired with a 274-196 record (tied for the 2nd Most Wins All-Time), 2.66 ERA (12th Best All-Time), 2016 K's (3rd Most All-Time), 412 complete games (4th Most All-Time) and 51 shutouts (8th Most All-Time).
*Note that all rankings (i.e. 2nd All-Time) were at the time of the players retirement. What happened after they retired does not reflect on their plaque.