|
|
|
|
#1
|
||||
|
||||
|
Player #74P: Edgar C. "Sam" Rice Part 1. Outfielder for the Washington Senators in 1915-1933. 2,987 hits and 34 home runs in 20 MLB seasons. 1924 World Series champion. 1920 AL stolen base leader. He was inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame in 1963. Led the Senators to three AL pennants (1924,1925, and 1933). Best known for controversial "over the fence" catch in the 1925 World Series. He had many excellent seasons, but one of his best was 1930 as he posted a .407 OBP with 121 runs scored in 669 plate appearances. He had 63 stolen bases in 1920. He last played in 1934 with the Cleveland Indians. His early life was marred by tragedy when his wife, two daughters, parents, and two sisters were all killed by a tornado in Indiana.
Carroll takes us to the end of the 1933 season and, sadly, the end of Rice's time with the Nationals: After the Giants were finally set down (after gaining a one-run lead in the top of the eleventh inning of Game 4 in the 1933 World Series, a Series they led two-games-to-one), the bottom of the eleventh began. It was an inning that would haunt (Washington player-manager, Joe) Cronin all offseason and perhaps for the rest of what would turn out to be a brief managerial stay in Washington. Cornered into a desperate situation, (Fred) Schulte got Washington hopes going, singling to left field to begin the inning. (Joe) Kuhel, who had started the fourth-inning rally with a bunt that Hubbell mishandled, laid one down again. And he was safe again, a bunt single that put two men on base with nobody out. (Ossie) Bluege, up next, made the first out of the inning on a sacrifice bunt. It was Cronin's first strategic call of the frame. It wouldn't be his last. The Senators now had runners on second and third with just one out. A base hit would likely win the game and knot the series at two games apiece. But now it was time for Terry to counter Cronin's move, and he intentionally walked (Luke) Sewell to load the bases. He made one more key move -- though he was in trouble in the eleventh, Terry, after consulting with his ace, decided to stick with Hubbell. Now it was decision time for Cronin. The pitcher's spot was up, and the young manager scanned his dugout for a man who could come up clutch with the season potentially on the line. Dave Harris had already entered the game earlier, taking over for Manush in left field. His choices came down to Rice and catcher Cliff Bolton. . . . (To be finished tomorrow.) https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700648062 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700648065 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700648068 |
|
#2
|
||||
|
||||
|
Player #74P: Edgar C. "Sam" Rice Part 2. Outfielder for the Washington Senators in 1915-1933. 2,987 hits and 34 home runs in 20 MLB seasons. 1924 World Series champion. 1920 AL stolen base leader. He was inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame in 1963. Led the Senators to three AL pennants (1924,1925, and 1933). Best known for controversial "over the fence" catch in the 1925 World Series. He had many excellent seasons, but one of his best was 1930 as he posted a .407 OBP with 121 runs scored in 669 plate appearances. He had 63 stolen bases in 1920. He last played in 1934 with the Cleveland Indians. His early life was marred by tragedy when his wife, two daughters, parents, and two sisters were all killed by a tornado in Indiana.
. . . Cronin settled on Bolton. Almost immediately, Giants coach Charley Dressen hopped out of the dugout, consulting with shortstop Blondy Ryan. Dressen had remembered Bolton from the days when they both were in the Southern League, and instructed his shortstop to shade toward second base -- Bolton was a dead-pull hitter. The positioning was perfect. Bolton hit a sharp grounder directly to where Ryan was standing, and the shortstop scooped up the ball and started a game-ending double play. The Giants lead was three games to one, and they would go for the clinch the next day. If Cronin's selection of the seldom-used Bolton over Rice in Game Four wasn't enough to symbolize the end of Rice's long tenure with the Washington organization, the next day would see to it. Though fighting for their postseason life, the Senators battled to a 3-3 tie through nine innings, and the game again went into extra innings. In the tenth, Mel Ott lifted a fly ball to deep center field, and (Fred) Schulte got his glove on the ball. But as he crashed into the fence, the ball squirted out of his glove and the ball landed in the first row of seats for what would turn out to be a game-winning and World Series-clinching home run. In the 1925 World Series, Rice had tumbled into the bleachers to rob Pittsburgh's Earl Smith of a sure home run. Eight years later, one of the men who had squeezed him out of the Senators outfield had not only been unable to duplicate the feat, he had actually knocked the ball into the stands. With Rice watching from what had become his customary spot on the Washington bench, his teammates went down quietly in the bottom of the inning. (Sam Rice by Jeff Carroll.) https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700735792 Last edited by GeoPoto; 11-23-2023 at 04:37 AM. |
|
#3
|
||||
|
||||
|
Player #148: Jack E. Russell. Pitcher for the Washington Senators in 1933-1936. 85 wins and 39 saves in 15 MLB seasons. 1934 All-Star. He debuted with the Boston Red Sox in 1926. His best season was 1933 for Washington as posted a 12-6 record with 13 saves and a 2.69 ERA in 124 innings pitched. He ended his career with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1940.
Deveaux details the acquisition of Russell: President Alva Bradley of the Cleveland Indians was the next to be brought in by Cronin to talk turkey with Griffith at the late 1932 New York meetings. The Senators were playing on Cleveland's desperate need for a first baseman. Secure in his belief that Joe Kuhel would be around for a long time (which would prove to be correct), Washington would part with promising Harley Boss from its Chattanooga farm club and an undisclosed amount of cash for Jack Russell, the third pitcher Cronin had requested for his team. Russell at this time had an atrocious 46-98 record in the big leagues, but the 27-year-old had spent most of his career in the National League with the sad-sack Boston Braves. Griffith even managed to wrangle an outfielder, Bruce Connatser, from Bradley as part of this exchange. This would prove of no consequence as, Connatser, a part-timer with the Indians the two previous years, never again appeared in a single major-league game. (The Washington Senators by Tom Deveaux.) https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700824882 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700824886 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700824889 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700824893 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700824902 |
|
#4
|
||||
|
||||
|
Player #149A: Fred W. "Fritz" Schulte. Center fielder for the Washington Senators in 1933-1935. 1,241 hits and 47 home runs in 11 MLB seasons. He had a career OBP of .362. He debuted with the St. Louis Browns in 1927. His best year was 1932 for St. Louis as he posted a .373 OBP with 106 runs scored in 639 plate appearances. He also posted a .366 OBP with 98 runs scored in 622 plate appearances in 1933 as Washington won the AL pennant. He finished his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1936-1937.
Deveaux explains how Schulte came to Washington: To make it a three-for-three transaction (as Washington traded Sam West, Carl Reynolds and Lloyd Brown to St. Louis for Lefty Stewart and Goose Goslin), the Senators settled on righthanded outfielder Fred Schulte, who'd enjoyed what was for him a typical .294 season in '32. The loss of centerfielder Sam West had to be seen as leaving the biggest void on the Washington side, and he would indeed hit an even .300 and nearly double his home run output for St. Louis in 1933. But the Browns would finish last. The mild-mannered Schulte, truly a fine fielder, kept right on hitting and would drive in nearly twice as many runs for the Senators as West would for the Browns while batting .295. (The Washington Senators by Tom Deveaux.) https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700907353 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700907356 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700907360 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700907363 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700907366 |
|
#5
|
||||
|
||||
|
Player #150: James L. "Luke" Sewell. Catcher for the Washington Senators in 1933-1934. 1,393 hits and 20 home runs in 20 MLB seasons. 1937 All-Star. He debuted with the Cleveland Indians in 1921. His best season at the plate came in 1933 for Washington as he posted a .335 OBP with 65 runs scored and 61 RBI's in 537 plate appearances. He finished his playing career while managing the St. Louis Browns in 1942. He managed St. Louis in 1941-1946. He also managed the Cincinnati Reds 1949-1952.
We let Deveaux explain Sewell's introduction to Washington: The (December 1932) trade with the Indians may have been incomplete, for at the end of the first week of January, another deal was struck. The Senators sent their most reliable catcher, Roy Spencer, to Cleveland, for Luke Sewell, an experienced veteran receiver. Sewell, a year younger than Spencer and at least his equal as a hitter, had turned 32 two days before the trade was made. He had hit .253 in 300 at-bats for the Browns in '32, and was a good defensive catcher, as demonstrated by the fact that he'd led American League backstops in assists three years straight years, 1926-28. He had already spent 12 years in the American League, all with the Indians, and was the younger brother of future Hall of Famer Joe Sewell. (The same Joe Sewell who had begun his career under a microscope as the replacement for star shortstop Ray Chapman of the Indians, the victim of the majors' only on-field player fatality, in 1920.) (The Washington Senators by Tom Deveaux.) https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700993622 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700993652 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700993656 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700993661 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1700993664 |
|
#6
|
||||
|
||||
|
Player #151: Walter C. "Lefty" Stewart. Pitcher with the Washington Senators in 1933-1935. 101 wins and 8 saves in 10 MLB seasons. He debuted with the Detroit Tigers in 1921. His best season was 1930 with the St. Louis Browns as he posted a 20-12 record with a 3.45 ERA in 271 innings pitched. He ended his career with the Cleveland Indians in 1935.
Deveaux gives us the trade that brought Stewart (among others) to Washington: The trade for Whitehill (which sent Firpo Marberry to the Tigers) appeared relatively insignificant, however, compared to the other deal swung by the Senators on the same day, December 14, 1932. Since the firing of Walter Johnson, Goose Goslin, who didn't get along with Johnson, had put the word out to Clark Griffith that he would love to come back to the capital. As Griffith negotiated with the Browns for Walter "Lefty" Stewart in exchange for Sammy West, he kept Goslin's plea in mind. He offered Carl Reynolds if the Browns would include Goose, who'd hit .299 with 17 homers and 104 ribbies in the last campaign. The Browns didn't think that was quite equitable, and asked Griffith about Lloyd Brown, the lefty who'd won 15 in '32. (Brown would never again win more than nine games in a season and would be gone from St. Louis after just eight games at the start of the '33 campaign.) Deveaux goes on about Lefty: Stewart born in 1900 in central Tennessee, nearly died in 1927 when his appendix burst while he was out hunting. Told he'd never play baseball again, lefty persisted and eventually proved the experts wrong. Nevertheless, he was only 24-26 over three years with the Browns, who had been enjoying relatively good years over that same period. Then, in 1930, Stewart came into his own, sounding the death knell for the Washington Senators in the process. Lefty beat the second-place Nats five times that year on his way to a breakthrough 20-12 season during which the Browns made a swift return to mediocrity. While he remained the Brownie's ace in '31 and '32, he recorded a composite 28-36 over those two seasons. (The Washington Senators by Tom Deveaux.) https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1701081884 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1701081891 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1701081894 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1701081897 https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1701081900 |
|
#7
|
||||
|
||||
|
The below entry evidently got attached to the wrong thread. I am tipping the Net54 world back into semi-equilibrium with the attached post from earlier today.
Brian Quote:
|
![]() |
|
|
Similar Threads
|
||||
| Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
| WTB: Washington-related baseball memorabilia | Runscott | Baseball Memorabilia B/S/T | 4 | 05-23-2014 05:18 PM |
| WTB: Specific Claudell Washington, U.L. Washington, Garth Iorg and Johnny Grubb Cards | EGreenwood | 1950 to 1959 Baseball cards- B/S/T | 0 | 12-07-2012 10:27 PM |
| 1920's washington senators baseball cap | bryson22 | Baseball Memorabilia B/S/T | 1 | 12-30-2010 09:21 PM |
| The Oregon-Washington Baseball League??? | slidekellyslide | Net54baseball Sports (Primarily) Vintage Memorabilia Forum incl. Game Used | 7 | 06-12-2009 07:55 PM |
| Baseball cabinet - Washington Senators? | Archive | Net54baseball Sports (Primarily) Vintage Memorabilia Forum incl. Game Used | 1 | 06-18-2008 02:33 PM |