We have a lot in common. I also used to be a Cardinal.
Joe Medwick, to Pope Pius XII
Joe "Ducky" Medwick is remembered in the annals of baseball for many reasons: the power hitter of the legendary Gashouse Gang 1930s St. Louis Cardinals; his infamous beaning at the hands of Bob Bowman; his curious removal during the 1934 World Series; and, of course, his 1937 season, one of the finest ever by a single hitter.
Beginnings
Joseph Michael Medwick was born November 24, 1911 in Carteret, New Jersey. A high school multi-sport standout, he was offered a football scholarship to the hallowed Notre Dame, but instead signed a minor league contract with St. Louis. He began playing for the Cardinals in September of 1932, batting .349 in the final 20 games of the season and earning a permanent place in left field.
Playing Hardball
Nicknamed "Ducky" for his unusual waddle, Medwick batted .300 consistently over the next 10 seasons. He was also a prodigious doubles hitter, hitting 40 or more 7 times (a feat only equaled by Wade Boggs) and setting the Major League record with 64 in a single season. In 1934, he and the Cardinals made it to the World Series, where they faced the dominant Detroit Tigers. However, the Cardinals tied the series at 3 games apiece, and the teams headed into the decisive Game Seven, held in Detroit. However, it proved anticlimactic as the Cardinals jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Medwick came up to bat and slapped a hit into the gap. He raced around the bases, and as he came into third, he slid hard, all but spiking Marv Owen. When the inning was over and Medwick went to take his place in the field, the enraged crowd began throwing food, coins, and trash at him. The scene was so out of control that Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis ordered Medwick to leave the game, for his own safety.
Medwick continued to dominate, getting 224 hits in 1935 and 223 more in 1936, when he led the league in RBIs and doubles. But these were only mild foreshadowings of Ducky's 1937 season to come.
A Shining Moment
Medwick's excellence during the 1937 season is a feat that has not been repeated since in the National League. Besides leading the league in games, at bats, hits, runs, doubles, home runs, runs batted in, and slugging average, he was named National League MVP in a unanimous vote, the first person to receive such an honor in the league.
Mean Streak
However, despite this prestige, Medwick was known in most circles as a selfish and surly player: he once knocked out teammate Tex Carlton for walking in front of his photo sessions. One teammate of his said, "When he dies, half the National League will go to his wake just to make sure that son of a bitch is dead." Yet Medwick's off the field demeanor apparently had little effect on his playing abilities.
The Big Deal
A 10-time All-Star, Medwick put up impressive numbers in both 1938 and 1939. In 1940, he was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers for a few minor leaguers and $125,000 - an astronomical sum at the time. The investment paid off - in 1941, he led the Dodgers to their first pennant in twenty years. Yet he himself seems to have paid the most for the deal.
Coming Home To Roost
On June 18, 1940, 6 days after his trade, Medwick faced his old teammates, the St. Louis Cardinals, in a doubleheader. During the 1st inning of the second game, Bob Bowman beaned Medwick. Bowman was ejected and had to be escorted from the stadium by police; Medwick was hospitalized for 2 days with a concussion.
Dodgers general manager Larry MacPhail demanded unsuccessfully that Bob Bowman be banned from baseball; it is rumored Bowman and Medwick had a falling out the night before the game at Medwick's hotel. After the beaning, Medwick never returned to full form; despite a few flashes of his original hitting prowess, he was never good for more than a dedicated bench hitter and utility outfielder. He returned to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1947 and retired in 1948 after an injury-logged season.
After Baseball
After his retirement, Medwick traveled around with USO, meeting and encouraging members of the Armed Forces. In 1966, he became a minor league hitting coach with the Cardinals. Medwick was inducted by the Veterans Committee to the Major League Baseball Hall Of Fame in 1968.
Joe "Ducky" Medwick passed away March 21, 1975 in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Lifetime Statistics
YEAR TEAM G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB K BA
1932 STL NL 26 106 13 37 12 1 2 12 3 0 2 10 .349
1933 STL NL 148 595 92 182 40 10 18 98 5 0 26 56 .306
1934 STL NL 149 620 110 198 40 18 18 106 3 0 21 83 .319
1935 STL NL 154 634 132 224 46 13 23 126 4 0 30 59 .353
1936 STL NL 155 636 115 223 64 13 18 138 3 0 34 33 .351
1937 STL NL 156 633 111 237 56 10 31 154 4 0 41 50 .374
1938 STL NL 146 590 100 190 47 8 21 122 0 0 42 41 .322
1939 STL NL 150 606 98 201 48 8 14 117 6 0 45 44 .332
1940 STL NL 37 158 21 48 12 0 3 20 0 0 6 8 .304
BRO NL 106 423 62 127 18 12 14 66 2 0 26 28 .300
TOT NL 143 581 83 175 30 12 17 86 2 0 32 36 .301
1941 BRO NL 133 538 100 171 33 10 18 88 2 0 38 35 .318
1942 BRO NL 142 553 69 166 37 4 4 96 2 0 32 25 .300
1943 BRO NL 48 173 13 47 10 0 0 25 1 0 10 8 .272
NYG NL 78 324 41 91 20 3 5 45 0 0 9 14 .281
TOT NL 126 497 54 138 30 3 5 70 1 0 19 22 .278
1944 NYG NL 128 490 64 165 24 3 7 85 2 0 38 24 .337
1945 NYG NL 26 92 14 28 4 0 3 11 2 0 2 2 .304
BSN NL 66 218 17 62 13 0 0 26 3 0 12 12 .284
TOT NL 92 310 31 90 17 0 3 37 5 0 14 14 .290
1946 BRO NL 41 77 7 24 4 0 2 18 0 0 6 5 .312
1947 STL NL 75 150 19 46 12 0 4 28 0 0 16 12 .307
1948 STL NL 20 19 0 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 2 .211
CAREER 1984 7635 1198 2471 540 113 205 1383 42 0 437 551 .324
* Bold denotes led league.
Sources
- TheBaseballPage.com - http://www.thebaseballpage.com/past/pp/medwickjoe/default.htm
- Baseball-Reference.com - http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/medwickjo01.shtml
- BaseballLibrary.com - http://www.pubdim.net/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/M/Medwick_Joe.stm
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