The Oakland Oaks were a minor league baseball team in Oakland, California that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 through 1955, after which the club transferred to Vancouver, British Columbia . The team was named for the city and used the oak tree and the acorn as its symbols.
86-592: Oakland Oaks may refer to one of the following sport teams, listed chronologically: Oakland Oaks (PCL) , a minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1955 Oakland Oaks (ice hockey) , a professional ice hockey team that played in the Pacific Coast Hockey League from 1944 to 1949 Oakland Oaks (ABL) , a professional basketball team that played in
172-478: A changeup from Joe Bush for a hit that went between the outfielders deep to left center. Hobbled by his injury and even more as a sponge inside his shoe flew out as he rounded second base, Stengel slowly circled the bases, and evaded the tag from catcher Wally Schang for an inside-the-park home run, providing the winning margin. Thus, the first World Series home run in old Yankee Stadium's history did not go to Babe Ruth, "that honor, with great irony, would fall to
258-455: A .316 batting average, though hitting .351 when right-handers started against Brooklyn and only .250 when left-handers started. After holding out for better pay, Stengel signed with the Dodgers for 1913. He won the starting center fielder job. The Dodgers had a new ballpark, Ebbets Field , and Stengel became the first person to hit a home run there, first an inside-the-park home run against
344-584: A .348 average and also led in stolen bases with 47. In 1950, he led the PCL in runs with 168 and hits with 264, helping the Oaks to the 1950 PCL championship. Stengel's success with the Oaks did not go unnoticed, and he became manager of the Yankees in 1949. Stengel was replaced by Chuck Dressen , who led the Oaks to a second-place finish in 1949 and the PCL pennant in 1950. Again, the Oaks' manager's success resulted in
430-600: A bad patch in the years to follow, his wife Edna would urge him to get his degree. They brought me up to the Brooklyn Dodgers, which at that time was in Brooklyn. — Casey Stengel In later years, Casey Stengel told stories of his coming to Brooklyn to play for the Dodgers; most focused on his naïveté and were, at least, exaggerated. Wheat was from the Kansas City area and watched over Stengel, getting
516-440: A ball player, as it is a game of skill. — Casey Stengel, testifying before a Senate subcommittee, 1958. The Armistice renewed the conflict between Stengel and Dreyfuss, and the outfielder held out again to begin the 1919 season. Both wanted to see Stengel traded, but no deal was immediately made. By then, Stengel's position as regular right fielder had been taken by Billy Southworth , and he had difficulty breaking back into
602-468: A century. After almost three seasons in the minor leagues , Stengel reached the major leagues late in 1912, as an outfielder , for the Brooklyn Dodgers . His six seasons there saw some success, among them playing for Brooklyn's 1916 National League championship team, but he also developed a reputation as a clown. After repeated clashes over pay with the Dodgers owner, Charlie Ebbets , Stengel
688-568: A dentist. — Casey Stengel Uncertain of whether he would be successful as a baseball player, Stengel attended Western Dental College in the 1910–1911 offseason. He would later tell stories of his woes as a left-handed would-be dentist using right-handed equipment. The Blues sold Stengel to the Aurora Blues of the Class C Wisconsin–Illinois League . He led the league with a .352 batting average. Brooklyn Dodgers scout Larry Sutton took
774-469: A double-header on May 28, 1916. He was introduced to the team as an American Indian, but once the team discovered that his ancestry was both Native American and African, he was fired. The Oaks were owned by PCL founding father J. Cal Ewing from 1903 until the 1920s. Ewing also owned the San Francisco Seals , which allowed the clubs to share their ballparks at various times with no problem, but
860-467: A former Dodger, took a deep bow at the plate, and doffed his cap, whereupon the bird flew away to great laughter from the crowd. The trade to the Phillies ended Stengel's major league season for 1919, as he refused to report unless he got a raise, and when one was not forthcoming, returned to Kansas City to raise a barnstorming team. In the offseason, he came to terms with William Baker , the owner of
946-472: A game-winning home run (the last of his professional career) in 1927 for the Mud Hens. Since minor league clubs suffer large turnovers in their rosters, the team's success did not carry over to 1928, when it finished sixth, and then eighth in the eight-team league in 1929. The team recovered for third in 1930, but by then both Stengel and the team (in which he had invested) were having financial problems due to
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#17327724074201032-409: A higher-level club wanted to draft him, Fuchs half-heartedly suggested releasing himself as a player, which would automatically terminate his Braves contract. Stengel took up Fuchs on his suggestion, releasing himself as a player, then firing himself as manager and resigning as president, clearing the way for him to move to the Mud Hens. Fuchs was outraged, and went to Judge Landis, who advised him to let
1118-704: A little playful, especially if he's a Stengel". The Yankees won the next three games to take the Series; Stengel batted .417 in the six games, completing his World Series career as a player with a .393 batting average. It's lucky I didn't hit three home runs in three games, or McGraw would have traded me to the Three-I League . — Casey Stengel on being traded by the Giants to the Boston Braves On November 13, 1923, twenty-nine days after
1204-515: A major leaguer. Prior to 1914 spring training, Stengel coached baseball at the University of Mississippi . Though the position was unpaid, he was designated an assistant professor for the time he was there, something that may have been the source of Stengel's nickname, "The Ol' Perfessor". The Dodgers were an improving team in Stengel's first years with them, and he was greatly influenced by
1290-416: A means of exerting some control over the younger players. During that summer, Stengel fell in love with Edna Lawson, a Californian who was running part of her father's building contracting business; they were married the following year. Near the end of the season, he sustained a mild foot injury, causing McGraw to rest him for a week, but he played the final two games of the regular season to finish at .339 as
1376-647: A pinch hitter and started only once, in right field against the Pirates on May 14, a game in which he got his only MLB hit of 1925, the final one of his major league career, a single. His average sank to .077. Braves owner Emil Fuchs purchased the Worcester Panthers of the Eastern League , and hired Stengel as player-manager and team president. Appel noted that in joining the Panthers, Stengel
1462-421: A promotion to the major leagues, with Dressen hired to manage the Dodgers in 1951. Former New York Giants star Mel Ott was hired as his replacement. Ott led the Oaks to an 80–88 record in 1951 (seventh place) and a 104–76 mark in 1952 (second place). Augie Galan replaced Ott as the Oaks' skipper in 1953, and the team stumbled to a 77–103 record and seventh place in the PCL. After three seasons in charge of
1548-482: A trip from Chicago to nearby Aurora, noticed Stengel, and the Dodgers purchased his contract on September 1, 1911. Brooklyn outfielder Zach Wheat later claimed credit for tipping off Sutton that Stengel was worth signing. Stengel finished the season with Aurora and returned to dental school for the offseason. The Dodgers assigned Stengel to the Montgomery Rebels of the Class A Southern Association for
1634-409: A triple over Stengel's head but gave up two doubles to him, and Stengel chased down a long Ruth fly ball to right in the Dodgers' loss. Both Brooklyn and Stengel started the season slowly, but both recovered with a hot streak that left the Dodgers only 4 games under .500, their best record since 1903, and Stengel finished with a .316 batting average, fifth best in the league. His on-base percentage led
1720-648: A year, and Stengel enlisted in the Navy. His wartime service was playing for and managing the Brooklyn Navy Yard 's baseball team, driving in the only run to beat Army, 1–0, before 5,000 spectators at the Polo Grounds . He also occasionally helped paint a ship—he later stated he had guarded the Gowanus Canal , and not a single submarine got into it. I had many years that I was not so successful as
1806-621: The 1923 World Series to defeat the Yankees. His major league playing career ended with the Boston Braves in 1925, but he then began a career as a manager. The first twenty years of Stengel's second career brought mostly poor finishes, especially during his MLB managerial stints with the Dodgers (1934–1936) and Braves (1938–1943). He thereafter enjoyed some success on the minor league level, and Yankee general manager George Weiss hired him as manager in October 1948. Stengel's Yankees won
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#17327724074201892-586: The 1936 World Series between the Yankees and Giants. Stengel was paid for one year left on his contract, and he was not involved in baseball during the 1937 season. Stengel had invested in oil properties, as advised by one of his players, Randy Moore , a Texan; the investment helped make the Stengels well-to-do, and they put the profits in California real estate. Stengel considered going in the oil business full-time, but Braves president Bob Quinn offered him
1978-669: The American League owners gave Kansas City Athletics president Charles O. Finley permission to move the Athletics to Oakland for the 1968 season. The Oaks were independent of farm systems for most of their existence; they were affiliated with the following major league teams: The Oakland Athletics have worn Oaks uniforms on occasion in a "1950s throwback night" promotion. Notes Sources Casey Stengel Charles Dillon " Casey " Stengel ( / ˈ s t ɛ ŋ ɡ əl / ; July 30, 1890 – September 29, 1975)
2064-558: The New York Yankees in an exhibition game to open the stadium, and then in the regular season. During the 1913 season, Stengel acquired the nickname "Casey"; there are varying stories of how this came to be, though his home town of Kansas City likely played a prominent role—sportswriter Fred Lieb stated that the ballplayer had "Charles Stengel—K.C." stenciled on his bags. Although he missed 25 games with injuries, he hit .272 with seven official home runs in his first full season as
2150-464: The Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa, and had moved to Kansas City soon after their 1886 wedding so Louis could take an insurance job. "Charlie" was the youngest of three children, and the second son. Charlie Stengel played sandlot baseball as a child, and also played baseball, football and basketball at Kansas City's Central High School . His basketball team won the city championship, while
2236-428: The "B" squad as player and coach in spring training, making the team as a reserve, and then inserted as center fielder when righties pitched. Similar also were Stengel's hot batting streaks, helping the Giants as they contended for their third straight pennant. Stengel was ejected several times for brawling or arguing with the umpire, and the league suspended him for ten games in one incident. McGraw continued to use him as
2322-526: The 1912 season, the Oaks opened their new stadium, named Oakland Ball Park (or simply Oaks Park ) though it was located in the neighboring city of Emeryville at San Pablo and Park Avenues. In their first season at Oaks Park the Acorns finished last, and were mired in the second division for more than a decade. In 1916, a struggling Oaks team made history by (inadvertently) breaking the professional baseball color line , as Jimmy Claxton pitched in both ends of
2408-525: The 1912 season. Playing for manager Kid Elberfeld , Stengel batted .290 and led the league in outfield assists . He also developed a reputation as an eccentric player. Scout Mike Kahoe referred to Stengel as a "dandy ballplayer, but it's all from the neck down". After reporting to Brooklyn in September and getting a taste of the big leagues, he spent a third offseason at dental school in 1912–1913. He did not graduate, though whenever his baseball career hit
2494-565: The 1924 season, the most since his days with the Dodgers, and hit .280 with a team-leading 13 stolen bases , but the Braves finished last. After the season, Stengel joined a baseball tour of Europe organized by McGraw and Charles Comiskey , with Edna Stengel accompanying the team. Casey Stengel met King George V and the Duke of York , later to become King George VI; Edna sipped tea with Queen Mary , an experience that strained her nerves. That winter,
2580-619: The American Basketball League during the 1962–1963 season Oakland Oaks (ABA) , a professional basketball team that played in the American Basketball Association during the 1967–1968 and 1968–1969 seasons See also Oakland, Oklahoma Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Oakland Oaks . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
2666-630: The Boston managerial job in late 1937, and he accepted. Stengel was both manager and an investor in the Braves. In his six years there, 1938 to 1943, his team never finished in the top half of the league standings, and the Boston club finished seventh four straight years between 1939 and 1942, saved from last place by the fact that the Phillies were even worse. The entry of the United States in World War II meant that many top players went into
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2752-645: The Cardinals won their two games against the Cincinnati Reds , and won the pennant. Richard Bak, in his biography of Stengel, noted that the victories over the Terry-led Giants represented personal vindication for the Dodger manager. The Dodgers finished fifth in 1935 and seventh in 1936. Dodger management felt Stengel had not done enough with the talent he had been given, and he was fired during
2838-613: The Dodgers in Brooklyn, Chuck Dressen returned as Oaks manager in 1954. The Acorns finished third with an 85–82 record under Dressen, but won the postseason series to capture their last PCL pennant. In spite of this, attendance at the now-dilapidated Oaks Park had dropped dramatically. Dressen returned to managing at the major-league level in 1955, taking over in the Washington Senators ' dugout, making way for San Francisco Seals legend Lefty O'Doul in Oakland. Under O'Doul,
2924-549: The Dodgers were one of the better teams in the league. Robinson managed to squeeze one more year of productivity out of some older veterans such as Chief Meyers , who said of Stengel, "It was Casey who kept us on our toes. He was the life of the party and just kept all us old-timers pepped up all season." Stengel, mostly playing right field, hit .279 with eight home runs, one less than the team leader in that category, Wheat. Stengel's home run off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander , who won 33 games that year, in
3010-546: The Federal League was defunct, and the reserve clause prevented players from jumping to other major league clubs. The owner sent Stengel a contract for $ 4,600, and when that was rejected, cut it by another $ 400. A holdout ensued, together with a war of words waged in the press. With little leverage, Stengel became willing to sign for the original contract, and did on March 27, 1917, but missed most of spring training. Stengel's batting average dropped from .279 to .257 as
3096-512: The Giants and Yankees each won their leagues. Until 1923, the Yankees had been tenants of the Giants at the Polo Grounds, but had opened Yankee Stadium that year, and this was the site for Game 1 of the 1923 World Series on October 10. Casey Stengel's at bat in the ninth inning with the score tied 4–4 was "the stuff of legend", as Appel put it in his history of the Yankees. Before the largest crowd he had ever played before, Stengel lined
3182-508: The Giants. When Stengel was not included with the starters when the manager split the squad, some sportswriters assumed he would not be with the team when the regular season began. Stengel, at McGraw's request, acted as a coach to the young players on the "B" squad, and worked hard, getting key hits in spring training games, and making the Giants as a reserve outfielder. McGraw and Stengel sometimes stayed up all night, discussing baseball strategy. With two Giant outfielders injured by June, Stengel
3268-477: The National League pennant . Although he was on the 25-player postseason roster, Stengel did not appear in the 1921 World Series against the Yankees, as McGraw used only 13 players (4 of them pitchers) in beating the Yankees, five games to three. The only contribution Stengel made to the box score was being ejected from Game 5 for arguing. McGraw brought several outfielders into spring training with
3354-473: The Oaks finished seventh (77–95) in 1955, and their attendance was the worst of the eight-team league. Owner Laws felt he had no other choice but to move the team. When officials of Vancouver, British Columbia made him an offer, Laws moved the Oaks to Vancouver, where they were renamed the Vancouver Mounties . Oaks Park was demolished in 1957, replaced by a Pepsi-Cola bottling plant. Presently,
3440-503: The Oaks were charter members of the Pacific Coast League which was founded in 1903. In their first year of competition, 1903, the team finished last, and finished either last or next to last place four more times before winning its first PCL pennant in 1912. The Oaks (or "Acorns" as they were also called) played their home games at Freeman's Park at 59th Street and San Pablo Avenue and at Recreation Park in San Francisco. After
3526-514: The Phillies, and hit .292 in 1920 with nine home runs. However, racked by injuries and no longer young for a ballplayer, he did not play much in the early part of the 1921 season. On June 30, 1921, the Phillies traded Stengel, Red Causey and Johnny Rawlings to the New York Giants for Lee King , Goldie Rapp and Lance Richbourg . The Giants were one of the dominant teams in the National League, and Stengel, who had feared being sent to
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3612-463: The Stengels moved into a house built by Edna's father in Glendale, California , where they would live the rest of their lives. The marriage produced no children. Never let a losing pitcher drive the bus—especially a left-hander. A guy who has just blown a tough one shouldn't be allowed behind the wheel. — Casey Stengel Stengel started 1925 on the active roster of the Braves, but was used as
3698-595: The World Series ended, Stengel was traded to the perennial second-division-dwelling Boston Braves with Dave Bancroft and Bill Cunningham for Joe Oeschger and Billy Southworth . Stengel had enjoyed his time in New York and was initially unhappy at the trade, especially since he had become close to McGraw. He soon cooled down, and later praised McGraw as "the greatest manager I ever played for". Despite nagging pains in his legs, Stengel played in 134 games during
3784-478: The World Series five consecutive times (1949–1953), the only time that has been achieved. Although the team won ten pennants in his twelve seasons, and won seven World Series, his final two years brought less success, with a third-place finish in 1959, and a loss in the 1960 World Series . By then aged 70, he was dismissed by the Yankees shortly after the defeat. Stengel had become well known for his humorous and sometimes disjointed way of speech during his time with
3870-413: The Yankees, and these skills of showmanship served the expansion Mets well when they hired him in late 1961. He promoted the team tirelessly, as well as managing it to a 40–120 win–loss record, the most losses of any 20th century MLB team. The team finished last all four years he managed it, but was boosted by considerable support from fans. Stengel retired in 1965, and became a fixture at baseball events for
3956-660: The aging reserve outfielder Casey Stengel". After the Yankees won Game 2 at the Polo Grounds, the Series returned to Yankee Stadium for Game 3. Stengel won it, 1–0, on a home run into the right field bleachers . As the Yankee fans booed Stengel, he thumbed his nose at the crowd and blew a kiss toward the Yankee players, outraging the team's principal owner, Jacob Ruppert , who demanded that Baseball Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis fine or suspend Stengel. Judge Landis declined, saying "a man who wins two games with home runs may feel
4042-493: The ball had been hit by a batter, and ran to retrieve it and throw it to the infield, to be met by general laughter. Stengel got the last laughs on the Giants as well. The Giants, six games ahead of the Cardinals on Labor Day, squandered that lead, and with two games remaining in the season, were tied with St. Louis. The final two games were against Brooklyn at the Polo Grounds, games played in front of raucous crowds, who well remembered Terry's comments. Brooklyn won both games, while
4128-403: The ballplayer had gonorrhea . Stengel may have been involved in a well-known incident during spring training when Robinson agreed to catch a baseball dropped from an airplane piloted by Ruth Law —except that it proved not to be a baseball, but a small grapefruit, much to the manager's shock, as he assumed the liquid on him was blood. Law stated that she dropped the grapefruit as she had forgotten
4214-495: The baseball team won the state championship. As a teenager, Stengel played on a number of semipro baseball teams. He played on the traveling team called the Kansas City Red Sox during the summers of 1908 and 1909, going as far west as Wyoming and earning a dollar a day. He was offered a contract by the minor league Kansas City Blues for $ 135 a month, more money than his father was making. Since young Stengel
4300-429: The baseball, but Stengel retold the story, imitating Robinson, many times in his later years, with himself as grapefruit dropper, and is often given the credit for the stunt. Stengel's batting average dipped as low as the .150s for part of the season; though he eventually recovered to .237, this was still the worst full season percentage of his major league career. Soon after the 1916 season started, it became clear that
4386-523: The defending league champion Dodgers finished seventh in the eight-team league, but he led the team in games, hits, doubles, triples, home runs and runs batted in. After the season, Ebbets sent Stengel a contract for $ 4,100, and the outfielder eventually signed for that amount, but on January 9, 1918, Ebbets traded him along with George Cutshaw to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Burleigh Grimes , Al Mamaux and Chuck Ward . The Pirates had been
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#17327724074204472-420: The dugout after three were out, to go to the Dodgers' bullpen, in foul territory down the right field line, if they were not likely to bat in the upcoming inning. Stengel did so to visit old friends, and discovered that pitcher Leon Cadore had captured a sparrow. Stengel took it, and quietly placed it under his cap when called to bat in the sixth inning. He received mixed boos and cheers from the Brooklyn crowd as
4558-412: The first base coaching box. Among the players was catcher Al Lopez ; the two became close friends and would be managing rivals in the 1950s American League . The first thing I want to say is that the Dodgers are still in the National League. Tell that to Bill Terry. — Casey Stengel, on being hired as Dodger manager, February 24, 1934 During the winter following the 1933 season, the manager of
4644-480: The former manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers and Boston Braves of the National League , to manage the Oaks. He responded with second and fourth-place finishes, before the club won its most celebrated pennant in 1948. It was in Oakland that Stengel developed his talent for platooning , which later served him as manager of the New York Yankees . The 1948 Oaks were nicknamed the "Nine Old Men" in that many of
4730-479: The hiring of Stengel as too logical a thing to happen in Brooklyn, but on February 24, 1934, Stengel faced the press for the first time as the manager of a major league team. McGraw, Stengel's mentor, was too ill to issue a statement on seeing him become a major league manager; he died the following day. Stengel, hired only days before spring training, had a limited opportunity to shape his new ballclub. The Dodgers quickly settled into sixth place, where they would end
4816-437: The leaders of Organized Baseball eventually made Ewing choose one or the other, and he divested his interests in the Oakland club. In 1927, the Oaks won their first pennant at Oaks Park, finishing 120–75 (.615), 14 + 1 ⁄ 2 games over the runner-up Seals. In 1943, a controlling interest in the Oaks was purchased by C. L. "Brick" Laws, who operated the team for its remaining seasons. In 1946, Laws hired Casey Stengel ,
4902-478: The league at .404, though this was not yet an official statistic. With the Federal League still active, Stengel was rewarded with a two-year contract at $ 6,000 per year. Stengel reported to spring training ill and thin; he was unable to work out for much of the time the Dodgers spent in Florida. Although the team stated that he had typhoid fever , still common in 1915, Lieb wrote after Stengel's death in 1975 that
4988-653: The league folded in July. He found a place with the Shelbyville Grays , who moved mid-season and became the Maysville Rivermen , of the Class D Blue Grass League , batting .221. He returned to the Blues for the final week of the season, with his combined batting average for 1910 at .237. I want to thank my parents for letting me play baseball, and I'm thankful I had baseball knuckles and couldn't become
5074-493: The lineup for Game 3, got a hit in Brooklyn's only victory of the series. He was benched again in Game 4 against left-hander Dutch Leonard , though he was inserted as a pinch runner , and got another hit in the Game 5 loss, finishing 4 for 11, .364, the best Dodger batting average of the Series. Despite the successful season, Ebbets was determined to cut his players' salaries, including Stengel, whom he considered overpaid. By then,
5160-505: The lineup. Stengel played better than he had before he enlisted, and by the time Dreyfuss traded him to the Philadelphia Phillies for Possum Whitted on August 9, he was batting .293 with four home runs. But before being traded, Stengel pulled one of his most famous stunts, on May 25 at Ebbets Field, as a member of the visiting Pirates. It was not unusual at Ebbets Field for right fielders of either team, rather than go to
5246-563: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oakland_Oaks&oldid=988906539 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Oakland Oaks (PCL) Along with the Los Angeles Angels , Portland Beavers , Sacramento Solons , San Francisco Seals , and Seattle Indians ,
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#17327724074205332-419: The major leagues: Appel suggested that Stengel's reputation as a clown inhibited owners from hiring him although he was known as knowledgeable and able to manage the press. Sportswriter Dan Daniel described Stengel's hiring as "the return of an ancient Flatbush landmark", which might satisfy old Dodger fans upset at Robinson's dismissal at the end of 1931. Brooklyn finished third and then sixth with Stengel in
5418-411: The manager who joined the team in 1914, Wilbert Robinson . Stengel also avoided a holdout in 1914; Dodgers owner Charlie Ebbets was anxious to put his players under contract lest they jump to the new Federal League , and nearly doubled Stengel's salary to $ 4,000 per year. During spring training, the Dodgers faced the minor league Baltimore Orioles and their rookie, Babe Ruth , who pitched. Ruth hit
5504-476: The matter go. People talk about all the money I've made. But they never talk about all the money I've lost. — Casey Stengel Stengel's six years in Toledo would be as long as he would spend anywhere as manager, except his time with the Yankees of the 1950s. McGraw sent talented players down to Toledo, and the Mud Hens threatened for the pennant in Stengel's first year before falling back to third. In 1927,
5590-407: The minor leagues, quietly placed a long-distance call once informed to ensure he was not the victim of a practical joke. I learned more from McGraw than anybody. — Casey Stengel When Stengel reported to the Giants on July 1, 1921, they were managed, as they had been for almost 20 years, by John McGraw . Stengel biographer Robert W. Creamer said of McGraw, "his Giants were the most feared,
5676-410: The most respected, the most admired team in baseball". Stengel biographer Marty Appel noted, "McGraw and Stengel. Teacher and student. Casey was about to learn a lot about managing". Stengel had time to learn, playing in only 18 games for the Giants in 1921, mostly as a pinch hitter , and watched from his place on the bench as McGraw led the Giants from a 7 1 ⁄ 2 game deficit on August 24 to
5762-487: The only National League team to do worse than the Dodgers in 1917, finishing last. Stengel met with the Pirates owner Barney Dreyfuss to seek a salary increase, but found Dreyfuss reluctant to deal until Stengel proved himself as a Pirate. On June 3, 1918, Stengel was ejected for arguing with the umpire, and was fined by the league office for taking off his shirt on the field. The U.S. had been fighting in World War I for
5848-598: The rest of his life. Although Stengel is sometimes described as one of the great managers in major league history, others have contrasted his success during the Yankee years with his lack of success at other times, and concluded he was a good manager only when given good players. Stengel is remembered as one of the great characters in baseball history. Charles Dillon Stengel was born on July 30, 1890, in Kansas City, Missouri . His ancestry included German and Irish; his parents—Louis Stengel and Jennie (Jordan) Stengel—were from
5934-467: The season. Stengel, in later years, enjoyed discussing one 1934 game in Philadelphia's Baker Bowl : with Dodger pitcher Boom-Boom Beck ineffective, Stengel went out to the mound to take out the angry pitcher, who, instead of giving Stengel the baseball, threw it into right field, where it hit the metal wall with a loud noise. The right fielder, Hack Wilson , lost in thought, heard the boom, assumed
6020-525: The second game of a doubleheader on September 30, provided the margin of victory as the Dodgers went into first place to stay, qualifying for their first World Series, against the Boston Red Sox . Despite getting two hits in a Game 1 loss at Boston, Stengel was benched for Game 2 because the Red Sox were pitching a left-hander, Babe Ruth, and Stengel hit better against right-handers. Stengel, back in
6106-399: The service, but for the Braves, the changeover made little difference in the standings. Among the young players to join the Braves was pitcher Warren Spahn , who was sent down to the minor leagues by the manager for having "no heart". Spahn, who would go on to a Hall of Fame career, much of it with the Braves, would play again for Stengel on the woeful New York Mets in 1965, and joke that he
6192-516: The site is the headquarters of Pixar Animation Studios . The only thing left in the area to suggest that baseball was ever played at Park and San Pablo Avenues is a cardroom and restaurant across the street, appropriately named the Oaks Club. There is also a plaque commemorating Stengel and the Oaks on 59th. On October 18, 1967, twelve years after the Oaks played their last game in Emeryville,
6278-404: The star players were older veterans, including Ernie Lombardi , Billy Raimondi , Cookie Lavagetto , Nick Etten and Catfish Metkovich . There were younger players on the team as well, including rookie second baseman Billy Martin . Rooming with Martin and playing shortstop was Artie Wilson , the first black player on the Oaks since Jimmy Claxton was fired. Wilson won the PCL batting title with
6364-516: The start of the Great Depression . The team finished last again in 1931, and, after Landis was convinced no money had been skimmed off to benefit Stengel and other insiders, the team went into receivership, and Stengel was fired. Stengel had approached the new manager of the Dodgers, Max Carey , an old teammate from his time with the Pirates, seeking a job, and was hired as first base coach . Stengel thus ended an exile of seven years from
6450-611: The team to Providence, Rhode Island for the 1926 season, with Stengel to remain in his roles. McGraw, with whom Stengel had remained close, wanted him to take over as manager of the Giants' top affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens of the American Association , at an increase in salary. Stengel was still under contract to the Braves, and Mud Hens president Joseph O'Brien was unwilling to send them money or players in order to get him. When Stengel asked Fuchs what to do if
6536-600: The team won its first pennant and defeated the Buffalo Bisons , five games to one, in the Little World Series . Stengel missed part of the 1927 campaign, as he was suspended by the league for inciting the fans to attack the umpire after a close play during the first game of the Labor Day doubleheader. Stengel continued as an occasional player as late as 1931 in addition to his managerial role, hitting
6622-408: The world champion Giants, Bill Terry was interviewed by the press about the other teams in the National League. When asked about the Dodgers, Terry responded, "Brooklyn? Gee, I haven't heard a peep out of there. Is Brooklyn still in the league?" This angered Brooklyn's management, and they expected Carey to make a full-throated response. When he remained silent, he was fired. One sportswriter regarded
6708-403: The young player a locker next to his and working with him on outfield technique. Stengel made his MLB debut at Brooklyn's Washington Park on September 17, 1912, as the starting center fielder , and went 4–4 with a walk, two stolen bases and two tie-breaking runs batted in , leading seventh-place Brooklyn to a 7–3 win over the Pirates. Stengel continued to play well, finishing the season with
6794-464: Was "starting out on a managing career that would eventually take him to Cooperstown ". With fans enjoying Stengel's on-field antics and his World Series heroics still recent, he was the Eastern League's biggest attendance draw. Between run-ins with the umpires, Stengel hit .302 in 100 games as the Panthers finished third. The Panthers were not a box office success, and Fuchs planned to move
6880-521: Was an American Major League Baseball right fielder and manager , best known as the manager of the championship New York Yankees of the 1950s and later, the expansion New York Mets . Nicknamed " the Ol' Perfessor ", he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966 . Stengel was born in Kansas City, Missouri , in 1890. In 1910, he began a professional baseball career that would span over half
6966-481: Was minded to reject their advice, at least think it over for a month or so first. Stengel failed to make the ball club, which was part of the American Association , considered one of the top minor leagues . Kansas City optioned Stengel to the Kankakee Kays of the Class D Northern Association , a lower-level minor league, to gain experience as an outfielder. He had a .251 batting average with Kankakee when
7052-457: Was obviously limping when he was advanced to second base on another single, and McGraw sent in a pinch runner. He did not use Stengel again in the Series, which the Giants won, four games to zero, with one tie. After the Series, Stengel and other major leaguers went on a barnstorming tour of Japan and the Far East. The year 1923 started much the same as the year before, with Stengel detailed to
7138-551: Was put in center field, and hit .368 in 84 games, as McGraw platooned him against right-handers. If Stengel had enough plate appearances to qualify for the league batting championship, he would have finished second to Rogers Hornsby of the St. Louis Cardinals , who hit .401. The Giants played the Yankees again in the 1922 World Series ; Stengel went 1–4 in Game 1, nursing an injured right leg muscle, which he aggravated running out an infield single in his first at bat in Game 2. Stengel
7224-407: Was the only person to play for Stengel both before and after he was a genius. A few days before the opening of the 1943 season, Stengel was hit by a vehicle while crossing Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, and he severely fractured a leg. He missed the first two months of the season, receiving many well-wishers, and reading get-well cards jokingly misaddressed to the hospital's psychiatric ward. For
7310-471: Was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1918; however, he enlisted in the Navy that summer, for the remainder of World War I. After returning to baseball, he continued his pay disputes, resulting in trades to the Philadelphia Phillies (in 1919) and to the New York Giants (in 1921). There, he learned much about baseball from the manager, John McGraw , and had some of the glorious moments in his career, such as hitting an inside-the-park home run in Game 1 of
7396-418: Was underage, his father had to agree, which he did. Louis Stengel recalled, "So I put down my paper and signed. You could never change that boy's mind anyway". Before reporting to spring training for the Blues in early 1910 at Excelsior Springs, Missouri , Stengel was approached by his neighbor, Kid Nichols , a former star pitcher, who advised him to listen to his manager and to the older players, and if he
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