Joe Kuhel
Player #135D: Joseph A. "Joe" Kuhel. First baseman for the Washington Senators in 1930-1937 and 1944-1946. 2,212 hits and 131 home runs in 18 MLB seasons. He had 107 RBIs in Washington's pennant-winning 1933 season, but his best season was probably 1936 as he posted an OBP of .392 with 118 RBIs and 107 runs scored in 660 plate appearances. He managed the Washington Senators in 1948-49.
We will follow Kuhel's SABR biography as we encounter him in 1935 and the next two years: As is the case with many clubs, it’s hard enough to win a pennant, but to duplicate the feat becomes even more arduous. The following season (1934), Kuhel was having a fine year when his season ended abruptly due to a splintered fibula and fractured bone in his ankle. In the first game of a double-dip on June 23 against Detroit, Kuhel slid into second base in the eighth inning and his left leg crumpled underneath his body. The club was already dealing with injuries to Sewell, Schulte, Stewart, and Cecil Travis when the blow to Kuhel struck. Washington finished the season in seventh place, 34 games off the pace.
Over the next three seasons, Kuhel performed admirably at first base, leading the league in double plays in 1935 (150) and 1937 (141). His defensive skill was considered to be in the top echelon of either league, with a fielding percentage of .993 in 1936 and 1937. He paced the Senators’ offense in home runs (16), RBIs (118), doubles (42) and hits (189) in 1936. He tied a major league record with three triples in a game on May 13, 1937, against Chicago at Comiskey Park.
But the Nats were a predominantly left-hand-hitting club. In order to buck this trend, Kuhel was sent to the Chicago White Sox on March 18, 1938, for Zeke Bonura. A right-handed power hitter, Bonura had hit .345 for the Sox the year before and was a threat to go yard. But he was an annual holdout during spring training and the Sox front office had had enough of him. The knock against Bonura was that he did not possess the defensive abilities of Kuhel, and was termed as “clumsy” around the bag. But Chicago manager Jimmy Dykes had coveted Kuhel for some time and was eager to make the switch.
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