Washington DC Baseball

[GeoPoto]

(I don't have any Cookies. I don't think I made any baseball games at Griffith Stadium, but I do think I saw the Redskins play there once, presumably in 1960. I would have been 7 years old. It was the Santa Claus (final) game, I think.)

Player #172: Joseph V. "Joe" Krakauskas. Pitcher with the Washington Senators in 1937-1940. 26 wins and 4 saves in 7 MLB seasons. His most productive season was 1936 with Washington as he posted a 11-17 record with a 4.60 ERA in 217.1 innings pitched. He finished his career with the Cleveland Indians in 1941-1942 and 1946. He is best remembered for giving up the final hit in Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak in 1941.

Baseball in Wartime provides an overview of Krakauskas' time in Washington: Blessed with blazing speed but control problems, 1937 saw him with the Syracuse Chiefs in the International League, and he joined the Washington Senators in September – one of the few Canadians in the major leagues. In his debut against the Philadelphia Athletics on September 9, 1937, Krakauskas gave up one hit in a seven-inning relief performance. On September 28, the young Canadian threw a 7-hitter against Yankees, winning 2-1. Krakauskas finished 1937 with four wins and one loss in five appearances for the Senators.

In 1938, he was 7-5 as both a starter and reliever. In 1939, his 11-17 record in 39 appearances gave him the second most wins on a Washington team that finished sixth in the American League.

When Canada entered World War II in September 1939, Krakauskas made an application for American citizenship. "Ever since I have been in organized baseball," he explained, "I have intended to become an American citizen. I may be drafted by Canada, but I do not plan to enlist."

In 1940, Krakauskas dropped to 1-6 in mainly a relief role with an inflated ERA of 6.44. On Christmas Eve 1940, Krakauskas was traded to the Indians for Ben Chapman. He split the season between Syracuse in the International League and the Indians.