STAN MUSIAL

Baseball's "Stan the Man"

They don't keep statistics on what kind of human being you are, but if they did Stan Musial would rank near the top. In 1946 he was offered $50,000 to jump to the new Mexican League. Though he was making only $13,000 he never considered the offer, because he would be breaking his word to the St. Louis fans. Although he was a baseball superstar his whole career, he never asked for special treatment. He always acted like just another member of the team, and expected to be treated like a regular player, never like a star. And if you ever needed a favor, he was happy to help.

But he was a superstar. Stanislaus Musial was the son of immigrants. His father, Lukasz, worked in the local zinc mine and wanted his son to have an education and better himself. Determined to be a baseball player, Stan was a 19 year old playing for the Donora Zincs when he was first signed by the St. Louis organization, and he would never play for another organization. He started out as a pitcher in the Minor Leagues, but his good hitting caused him to play in the outfield between starts. When he hurt his shoulder and couldn't throw his fastball any more, he was going to quit baseball. That's when his manager, Dickie Kerr, stepped in and convinced Musial that he could be a good hitter at the Major League level. And was he right! In 2 years he was called up to the St. Louis Cardinals to finish the 1941 season. Even in that first year, Chicago's manager Jimmy Wilson watched Musial play a double header against him and said, "Nobody, but nobody, can be that good."

He had a strange batting style which provoked a lot of good-natured kidding, but it worked for him. In 1942, his first full season in the Majors, he had a .315 average. In 1943 he batted .357 and was named the National League Most Valuable Player. In all of Musial's first three years with the Cardinals, they won the pennant. But in 1945 they lost it. That was the year Musial was in the U.S. Navy, at the end of World War II. In 1946 he returned, and they again won the pennant, with Musial batting .365.

1947 was an off year. He hit only .312, a great year for most players, but he had been suffering with appendicitis nearly the entire season. He waited until the season was over to have the operation. He made up for it the next season when he led the league in all of the major offensive departments (most runs, hits, RBI's, batting average) except home runs. He missed the home run title by only one. Actually he hit that extra one, but the game had been rained out and the home run canceled.

Born in Donora, PA, on November 21, 1920, Musial traveled a long way by the time of his retirement in 1963. Musial's statistics include a total of 3,630 hits, 7 batting titles, 3 World Championships, and 3 MVP Awards. He held 29 National League records and 17 Major League records when he retired. He is one of only six players to combine over 400 home runs and 3,000 hits. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969.