1949 Offseason News
Several teams made managerial changes in the offseason. First, the Yankees declared Ervin Skjerly as their full-time manager. He took over the job on September 1st of last season after returning to the Yanks in a trade with the Phillies. Swervin' Ervin retired as a player this winter, but he will remain with the club in a different capacity. "I really like the direction this team is taking," said Skjerly in a recent interview during Spring Training in Florida. "I will put all my efforts into returning this franchise to its rightful spot at the top of the AL." Skjerly, a potential Hall of Famer, is the winningest player in baseball history. He played in 10 World Series, eight of them with New York.
Four other AL teams changed managers. Washington third baseman and catcher Carl Kahle, who retired after last season, was retained by the team as their new skipper. The White Sox hired Phillies hitting coach Shane Kolber, the Indians brought in their former catcher Cookie DeWitt, and the A's signed former big league catcher Adam Phelphs to head their team.
In the NL, the Giants promoted hitting coach George Ward to manager after long-time skipper Michael McAinsh stepped down. McAinsh left as the 11th winningest manager in history. Ward managed the Braves in his final seasons as a player. Phillies manager Bop Vacha also retired. He is in elite company among former Phillies managers. Bill Shettsline won 1306 games and 3 pennants from 1901-17, the beloved Dark Horse Allen won 1146 games and 6 pennants from 1925-37 and Vacha won 772 games and 3 pennants from 1939-48. Taking over in Philly will be Vacha's bench coach and a former catcher, Whit Sard. The final change came in Pittsburgh where Hall of Fame second baseman Jerry "Slap" Hertzog will test his skills as a manager of arguably the most hapless franchise in baseball history. The Pirates have gone longer than any other team since winning their last pennant, which came in 1912.
In The News
Feb 2: Brothers Bill DeWitt and Charlie DeWitt gain control of the Browns by acquiring 57 percent of the stock from Dick Muckerman for $1 million.
Mar 1: The Browns, owners of Sportsman's Park, move to evict the Cardinals in order to gain a rental increase.
Hall of Fame
This is the biggest class ever inducted into the HOF. The five players elected by the BBWAA tied that record, and one player added by the VC set a new overall mark.
Otto "Kaiser" Kahle, SP
Cap: Braves
Inducted: BBWAA 87.5%
Teams: Cleveland A.L. 1924-1930, Boston N.L. 1930-1941, St. Louis N.L. 1941-1943
Plaque: The Kaiser became a dominant pitcher at a young age with the Indians, but he made his mark on baseball after being traded to the Braves. There he won one World Series in 1931. Altogether, he posted 11 20+ win seasons, but surprisingly was never named POTY. He retired with a 363-236 record (3rd Most Wins All-Time), 3.43 ERA, 1388 walks, 2392 K's (5th All-Time), 397 CG (20th All-Time), 45 SHO (20th All-Time) and 1.18 WHIP.
"Fat Gus" Kahle, 3B
Cap: Yankees
Inducted: BBWAA 87.5%
Teams: New York A.L. 1921-1942
Plaque: Kahle was a major part of the great Yankees dynasty. With them, he won 5 World Series and two Gold Gloves. In 1927, he won his only batting title and he had a 34-game hitting streak which still stands as an American League record. He retired as the all-time hits leader among third basemen with 3424 (3rd All-Time). He also had a .323 average, 477 doubles (21st All-Time), 194 homeruns, 1501 RBI (15th All-Time), 1556 runs scored (17th All-Time) and 974 walks.
Punchy Cote, SP
Cap: Cubs
Inducted: BBWAA 81.3%
Teams: Boston N.L. 1926-1927, Philadelphia A.L. 1927-1934, Chicago N.L. 1934-1942
Plaque: Cote was part of two incredible teams, winning 2 AL pennants with the A's and 3 consecutive NL pennants with the Cubs. After being unable to win a WS with the A's, he lost his first two WS with the Cubs before finally winning one in 1938. He formed some impressive pitching duos, with Ahrend Nagel in Philadelphia and with David Wickersham in Chicago. After leaving for WWII after the 1942 season, he retired with a 316-177 record (12th Most Wins All-Time), 3.09 ERA, 1400 BB, 2168 K (10th All-Time), 346 CG, 49 SHO (14th All-Time) and 1.13 WHIP. He was the 1927 ROY and won two POY's with the Cubs.
John Schmeider, LF
Cap: Braves
Inducted: BBWAA 81.3%
Teams: Boston N.L. 1922-1941
Plaque: Schmieder was a major ingredient in Boston's offense for most of his 20 seasons. He helped lead the team to its most competitive era throughout the 1930's. He was a solid run producer, but his biggest strength was his ability to draw walks, twice leading the NL in that category. He won one Gold Glove and one World Series. He retired with a .306 average, 2972 hits (19th All-Time), 462 doubles (25th All-Time), 239 homeruns (12th All-Time), 1660 RBI (5th All-Time), 1615 runs scored (12th All-Time) and 1564 walks (3rd All-Time).
Salvatore Rossi, 1B
Cap: Athletics
Inducted: BBWAA 75.0%
Teams: Philadelphia A.L. 1921-1943
Plaque: Rossi won 4 Gold Gloves and retired as the all-time hits leader among first basemen. He won 4 AL pennants and served 9 years as the team's manager (4 of those years while still a player). He retired with a .300 average, 3320 hits (8th All Time), 469 doubles (24th All-Time), 197 homeruns, 1757 RBI (3rd All-Time), 1684 runs (6th All-Time) and 1694 BB (1st All-Time).
Johnny Cakes Sutton, SP
Cap: Highlanders (Yankees)
Inducted: VC
Teams: Baltimore A.L. 1901-1902, New York A.L. 1903-1910
Plaque: Sutton was one of the top pitchers of his time. After 10 seasons, he finished with a record of 193-121 with a 2.38 ERA, 946 strikeouts, 300 complete games and 47 shutouts. He finished in the top 3 in ERA seven of his first eight seasons, leading the AL twice. He left the game with the 3rd highest career win total, 3rd best career ERA, 24th most K's, 9th most complete games and 3rd most shutouts. He won the World Series with the Highlanders in 1908.
*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.