Great platoons: 1950-1965
In our first installment, we picked up the trail of Great Platoons at its beginnings in the 1910s, and followed it through to mid-century. Now we rejoin these devastating duos (and occasionally trios and more!) in the 1950s.
We encounter a far greater frequency of Great Platoons in the 1950s and ’60s than we’d seen in earlier decades, a clear indicator of how much more prevalent platooning became. Through this period, not every team had a platoon in place, but most did, and platooning at multiple positions was not uncommon.
As a reminder, here are the criteria for inclusion:
– The platoon must have been entirely or significantly structured upon the left-right-batting basis.
– Both platoon partners must have hit well, not just one.
– We’re concerning ourselves only with offensive production, not defense or baserunning.
Something to remember as we proceed is this: Most pitchers are righthanded, usually by around two-thirds to one-third. So the signature aspect of the most strict left-right platoon partnership is that the lefthanded batter will get around twice as many plate appearances as the righthanded batter, give or take for particular circumstances.
1950 Pittsburgh Pirates: First base
Johnny Hopp was a fleet-footed line-drive-hitting first baseman-outfielder who was deployed as a platoon player for most of his career. He did some of his best hitting late in that career, never better than here at the age of 33, splendidly paired by Pirates manager Billy Meyer with utility man Jack Phillips.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Johnny Hopp L 106 318 51 108 24 5 8 47 43 17 .340 .420 .522 143 Jack Phillips R 69 208 25 61 7 6 5 34 20 17 .293 .355 .457 109 Total 526 76 169 31 11 13 81 63 34 .321 .397 .496 132
1951 Pittsburgh Pirates: Catcher
The veteran Clyde McCullough accumulated most ot fhe playing time over the full season, but once Joe Garagiola was acquired via trade in mid-June, it’s apparent that Meyer alternated them in a straightforward left-right platoon. Each delivered very fine offense for a catcher.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Joe Garagiola L 72 212 24 54 8 2 9 35 32 20 .255 .358 .439 110 Clyde McCullough R 92 259 26 77 9 2 8 39 27 31 .297 .366 .440 113 Total 471 50 131 17 4 17 74 59 51 .278 .362 .439 112
1952 Philadelphia Athletics: Right field
Few hitters in history displayed the strike zone mastery of Czech native Elmer Valo, but for whatever reason—whether he had unusual difficulty with left-handed pitching he was just not very durable—throughout his long career Valo was rarely deployed as a full-time regular. Here A’s manager Jimmy Dykes matched him with the power-hitting Allie Clark, who in contrast to Valo was an extreme free-swinger.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Elmer Valo L 129 388 69 109 26 4 5 47 101 16 .281 .432 .407 129 Allie Clark R 71 186 23 51 12 0 7 29 10 19 .274 .315 .452 106 Total 574 92 160 38 4 12 76 111 35 .279 .406 .422 123
1952–53–54 Philadelphia Phillies: Catcher
Neither Smoky Burgess nor Stan Lopata was much noted for defensive prowess, but they were two of the best-hitting catchers of their era. Deployed by three Phillies’managers (first Eddie Sawyer, then Steve O’Neill, then Terry Moore) in a straightforward left-right platoon, they delivered extraordinarily potent offense. Their 1954 production was among the best any team has ever received from its catching corps.
1952:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Smoky Burgess L 110 371 49 110 27 2 6 56 49 21 .296 .380 .429 125 Stan Lopata R 57 179 25 49 9 1 4 27 36 33 .274 .395 .402 123 Total 550 74 159 36 3 10 83 85 54 .289 .385 .420 124
1953:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Smoky Burgess L 102 312 31 91 17 5 4 36 37 17 .292 .370 .417 106 Stan Lopata R 81 234 34 56 12 3 8 31 28 39 .239 .321 .419 92 Total 546 65 147 29 8 12 67 65 56 .269 .351 .418 100
1954:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Smoky Burgess L 108 345 41 127 27 5 4 46 42 11 .368 .432 .510 146 Stan Lopata R 86 259 42 75 14 5 14 42 33 37 .290 .369 .544 135 Total 604 83 202 41 10 18 88 75 48 .334 .407 .525 141
1953 St. Louis Browns: Left field
Under manager Marty Marion, in their final season in St. Louis the Browns featured regular left-right platoons at three positions: catcher (Clint Courtney–Les Moss), first base (Dick Kryhoski–Roy Sievers) and left field (Dick Kokos–Don Lenhardt). The left field tandem was the most productive.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Dick Kokos L 107 299 41 72 12 0 13 38 56 53 .241 .361 .411 106 Don Lenhardt R 97 303 37 96 15 0 10 35 41 41 .317 .400 .465 131 Total 602 78 168 27 0 23 73 97 94 .279 .381 .439 120
1953 New York Yankees: Left field
Casey Stengel’s platoon arrangements with the Yankees were typically more elaborate than a simple left-right single-position setup, but this one was pretty much that, and was extraordinarily potent. The burly, sweet-swinging Gene Woodling wasn’t shy about chafing at his platoon status, but over his long career was almost always deployed that way, and was one of the best platoon hitters of all time. Bill Renna was a former college player (Santa Clara, my alma mater!) finally getting a chance in the majors at the age of 28, and making the most of it by mashing lefties.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Gene Woodling L 125 395 64 121 26 4 10 58 82 29 .306 .429 .468 145 Bill Renna R 61 121 19 38 6 3 2 13 13 31 .314 .385 .463 131 Total 516 83 159 32 7 12 71 95 60 .308 .420 .467 142
1954–55 New York Yankees: First base
Oddly, through nearly all of the first five years of Stengel’s tenure with the Yankees, his GM George Weiss didn’t provide him with a right-handed-hitting first baseman. Jack Phillips was sold to Pittsburgh in August of 1949, and until rookie Gus Triandos was promoted from the minors in August of 1953, though Stengel constantly juggled his first basemen, all (Dick Kryhoski, Tommy Henrich, Johnny Mize, Joe Collins, Johnny Hopp, Irv Noren and Don Bollweg) swung left-handed bats.
Clearly this atypical arrangement didn’t much inhibit Stengel, who ardently platooned on plenty of other criteria (offense-defense, ballpark, pitcher style, and apparently just flat-out hunch), nor could one argue with the five-straight-World-Series-title results. Still, it was strange, given that the Yankees, with the short right field porch in their home ballpark and their abundant left-handed power, surely drew more than their share of southpaw opposing pitchers.
Moreover, the choice of Triandos as the 1953 mid-season call-up was curious: He was primarily a catcher, not a first baseman, and he was playing at the Double-A level, while the Yankees’ organization included not one but two right-handed-hitting first basemen in Triple-A. Both had more experience than Triandos, and were both tearing it up in their second straight Triple-A seasons: Vic Power and Bill Skowron.
Finally, for 1954 Weiss traded Power, farmed out Triandos and promoted Skowron. With a first-rate right-handed-swinging first baseman on hand at last, Stengel’s first base platoon concoctions in both 1954 and ’55 were exceptionally rich. The line produced by the veteran Eddie Robinson in 1955 has always been one of my favorites: Did he perfect the short-porch uppercut that year, or what?
1954:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Joe Collins L 130 343 67 93 20 2 12 46 51 37 .271 .365 .446 125 Bill Skowron R 87 215 37 73 12 9 7 41 19 18 .340 .392 .577 167 Total 558 104 166 32 11 19 87 70 55 .297 .376 .496 144
1955:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Joe Collins L 77 203 29 47 7 1 9 33 32 23 .234 .339 .414 104 Bill Skowron R 108 288 46 92 17 3 12 61 21 32 .319 .369 .524 141 Eddie Robinson L 88 173 25 36 1 0 16 42 36 26 .208 .358 .491 129 Total 664 100 175 25 4 37 136 89 81 .264 .365 .482 128
1954 Pittsburgh Pirates: Catcher
On an otherwise forgettable cellar-dwelling Pittsburgh ball club, Fred Haney platooned the journeyman Toby Atwell and the rookie Jack Shepard and produced nice results. A 101 OPS+ is much better than average from the catching spot.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Toby Atwell L 96 287 36 83 8 4 3 26 43 21 .289 .384 .376 101 Jack Shepard R 82 227 24 69 8 2 3 22 26 33 .304 .370 .396 101 Total 514 60 152 16 6 6 48 69 54 .296 .378 .385 101
1954 New York Giants: Left field
Obviously this wasn’t a straightforward left-right platoon: The gimpy-legged veteran Monte Irvin was largely the regular, and Dusty Rhodes was largely his backup (as well as being, famously, a frequent pinch-hitter). But it seems clear that Giants manager Leo Durocher coincided Irvin’s days off with facing the toughest right-handed opposing starters.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Monte Irvin R 135 432 62 113 13 3 19 64 70 23 .262 .363 .438 108 Dusty Rhodes L 82 164 31 56 7 3 15 50 18 25 .341 .410 .695 182 Total 596 93 169 20 6 34 114 88 48 .284 .377 .508 136
1955 Kansas City Athletics: Left field
Similar to the Giants’ Irvin-Rhodes partnership, this wasn’t a pure left-right arrangement, but exhibited some of that flavor. And, similar to the Irvin-Rhodes situation, this Gus Zernial-Elmer Valo tandem under manager Lou Boudreau delivered excellent production, while displaying an extraordinary contrast of hitting styles.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Gus Zernial R 120 413 62 105 9 3 30 84 30 90 .254 .304 .508 115 Elmer Valo L 112 283 50 103 17 4 3 37 52 18 .364 .460 .484 154 Total 696 112 208 26 7 33 121 82 108 .299 .387 .499 135
1956 Washington Senators: Catcher
He didn’t have a good ball club overall, but the production that manager Chuck Dressen received from his three catchers—Clint Courtney, Lou Berberet (another Santa Clara Bronco!), and Ed Fitzgerald, juggled largely though not exclusively on a left-right basis—was outstanding.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Clint Courtney L 101 283 31 85 20 3 5 44 20 10 .300 .362 .445 113 Lou Berberet L 95 207 25 54 6 3 4 27 46 33 .261 .402 .377 108 Ed FitzGerald R 64 148 15 45 8 0 2 12 20 16 .304 .387 .399 108 Total 638 71 184 34 6 11 83 86 59 .288 .396 .412 110
1956 Brooklyn Dodgers: Left field-second base
Here Dodger manager Walt Alston came up with a clever solution to deal with two issues simultaneously. In left field, he had Sandy Amoros, a good left-handed hitter but a guy who could use a platoon partner. At second base, he had an excellent switch-hitting incumbent in Jim Gilliam, but also an impressive rookie right-handed-hitting infielder in Charlie Neal, who deserved some playing time.
So, against left-handers, Alston started Neal at second base, and shifted the versatile Gilliam to left field in place of Amoros. Neal’s OPS+ of 92 was good for a middle infielder.
Alston had executed the same maneuver in 1955, only with Don Zimmer in Neal’s promising young infielder role. Zimmer did fine, but Alston got better offensive production from Amoros and Gilliam in ’56.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Sandy Amoros L 114 292 53 76 11 8 16 58 59 51 .260 .385 .517 133 Charlie Neal R 62 136 22 39 5 1 2 14 14 19 .287 .353 .382 92 Total 428 75 115 16 9 18 72 73 70 .269 .376 .474 124
1956 Boston Red Sox: Left field-first base
Manager Pinky Higgins did some interesting things with this Boston roster. Obviously, Ted Williams wasn’t your garden-variety platoon player, but he was 37 and in need of periodic rest, and it made sense to give him his days off against left-handers as much as possible. The same was true of Mickey Vernon at first base, a longtime everyday star but now 38 years old.
Right-handed power-hitting Dick Gernert was a good partner for both. While Gernert certainly couldn’t play both left field and first base at the same time, it’s clear that he played one or the other against just about all lefties. Here we see Gernert’s overall stats pro-rated by his appearances in left field and at first base.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Ted Williams L 136 400 71 138 28 2 24 82 102 39 .345 .479 .605 172 Dick Gernert R 50 176 30 51 6 0 9 39 32 33 .291 .399 .484 122 Total 576 101 189 34 2 33 121 134 72 .328 .458 .568 161
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Mickey Vernon L 119 403 67 125 28 4 15 84 57 40 .310 .403 .511 130 Dick Gernert R 37 130 23 38 5 0 7 29 24 24 .291 .399 .484 122 Total 533 90 163 33 4 22 113 81 64 .305 .402 .504 128
1956 Boston Red Sox: Second base
Higgins platooned at second base as well that year. Ted Lepcio’s line here is pro-rated to the 60 games he played at second, alternating with the veteran Billy Goodman. An OPS+ of 94 from the second base position was, then as now, quite productive.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Billy Goodman L 105 399 61 117 22 8 2 38 40 22 .293 .356 .404 92 Ted Lepcio R 60 205 25 53 7 0 11 37 22 56 .261 .335 .454 98 Total 604 86 170 29 8 13 75 62 78 .282 .349 .421 94
1958 Cleveland Indians: First base
The ’58 Indians were a rather chaotic team, as GM Frantic Frankie Lane executed constant trades with little apparent plan. But amid the chronic roster shuffling, two strong platoons emerged. Vic Power was acquired in mid-June, and used in a multi-position supersub role; here we see how he hit when spelling the veteran Vernon at first base against left-handers.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Mickey Vernon L 119 355 49 104 22 3 8 55 44 56 .293 .372 .439 125 Vic Power R 41 169 28 54 11 3 5 23 6 5 .317 .336 .504 130 Total 524 77 158 33 6 13 78 50 61 .301 .362 .460 127
1958 Cleveland Indians: Catcher
Russ Nixon and Dick Brown were the same age and arrived in the majors at the same time, and they fit nicely together as the platoon duo that took over Cleveland’s catching responsibilities from longtime regular Jim Hegan.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Russ Nixon L 113 376 42 113 17 4 9 46 13 38 .301 .322 .439 110 Dick Brown R 68 173 20 41 5 0 7 20 14 27 .237 .304 .387 91 Total 549 62 154 22 4 16 66 27 65 .281 .316 .423 105
1958 Detroit Tigers: Left field
Zernial was always a rather one-dimensional talent, but that one dimension was highly impressive: When he made contact, it was frightfully loud. In the twilight of his career, the Tigers paired Zernial with Charlie Maxwell in left field and received handsome production.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Charlie Maxwell L 131 397 56 108 14 4 13 65 64 54 .272 .369 .426 113 Gus Zernial R 66 124 8 40 7 1 5 23 6 25 .323 .351 .516 130 Total 521 64 148 21 5 18 88 70 79 .284 .365 .447 117
1958 San Francisco Giants: Left field
The rookie Leon Wagner wasn’t in the majors for the full season, but when on board he was largely left-right platooned with the veteran slugger Hank Sauer. While this constituted first-rate power generation from the left field slot, the born-to-DH Daddy Wags and the 41-year-old Honker quite likely also contributed the ghastliest defense of any platoon in history.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Leon Wagner L 74 221 31 70 9 0 13 35 18 34 .317 .371 .534 139 Hank Sauer R 88 236 27 59 8 0 12 46 35 37 .250 .354 .436 110 Total 457 58 129 17 0 25 81 53 71 .282 .362 .484 125
1959–60 Pittsburgh Pirates: First base
Speaking of ghastly defense … the colorful Rocky Nelson was never known as anything more than an average defensive first baseman, but that capability was plenty to qualify him as the defensive caddy for Dr. Strangeglove. Dick Stuart was mostly the regular, but Nelson hit so well in his supporting role that manager Danny Murtaugh was motivated to give Rocky the starts against the tougher right-handers.
1959:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Dick Stuart R 118 397 64 118 15 2 27 78 42 86 .297 .362 .549 140 Rocky Nelson L 98 175 31 51 11 0 6 32 23 19 .291 .379 .457 123 Total 572 95 169 26 2 33 110 65 105 .295 .367 .521 135
1960:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Dick Stuart R 122 438 48 114 17 5 23 83 39 107 .260 .317 .479 114 Rocky Nelson L 93 200 34 60 11 1 7 35 24 15 .300 .382 .470 132 Total 638 82 174 28 6 30 118 63 122 .273 .340 .476 120
1960 Pittsburgh Pirates: Catcher
Murtaugh deployed left-right platoons in both center field (Bill Virdon–Gino Cimoli) and catcher on his championship 1960 Pirate squad, and the backstop tandem of Smoky Burgess and Hal Smith delivered a lot of offense.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Smoky Burgess L 110 337 33 99 15 2 7 39 35 13 .294 .356 .412 110 Hal Smith R 77 258 37 76 18 2 11 45 22 48 .295 .351 .508 131 Total 595 70 175 33 4 18 84 57 61 .294 .354 .454 120
1960 St. Louis Cardinals: Left field
Following his magnificent superstar peak, Stan Musial contributed a long twilight phase as a highly productive role player. While the veteran obviously wasn’t strictly a left-right platoon player, it made sense for the Cardinals to give him the frequent rest he needed when facing a southpaw, and in 1960 Stan the Man accumulated just 85 at-bats against lefties. Pairing him that year with one of the best right-handed-hitting platoon players of the era, Bob Nieman, the Cards got very solid offensive production from left field.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Stan Musial L 116 331 49 91 17 1 17 63 41 34 .275 .354 .486 120 Bob Nieman R 81 188 19 54 13 5 4 31 24 31 .287 .372 .473 122 Total 519 68 145 30 6 21 94 65 65 .279 .361 .482 121
1960–61–62 Cincinnati Reds: Left field
This arrangement was somewhat similar to the Giants’ Irvin-Rhodes pairing of the 1950s: It wasn’t a straightforward left-right arrangement, as Wally Post got some starts against right-handers when Jerry Lynch, whose reputation rivaled only that of Burgess as deadly effective pinch-hitter, was held back by Fred Hutchinson for just the right late-inning opportunity. Few tandems in history have been more robust.
1960:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wally Post R 77 249 36 70 14 0 17 38 28 51 .281 .350 .542 139 Jerry Lynch L 102 159 23 46 8 2 6 27 16 25 .289 .356 .478 125 Total 408 59 116 22 2 23 65 44 76 .284 .352 .517 134
1961:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wally Post R 99 282 44 83 16 3 20 57 22 61 .294 .346 .585 141 Jerry Lynch L 96 181 33 57 13 2 13 50 27 25 .315 .407 .624 168 Total 463 77 140 29 5 33 107 49 86 .302 .373 .600 153
1962:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wally Post R 109 285 43 75 10 3 17 62 32 67 .263 .341 .498 120 Jerry Lynch L 114 288 41 81 15 4 12 57 24 38 .281 .335 .486 115 Total 573 84 156 25 7 29 119 56 105 .272 .338 .492 118
1961 New York Yankees: Catcher
Another one that wasn’t a pure left-right deal, but the combination of Elston Howard and Johnny Blanchard, as deployed behind the plate by rookie manager Ralph Houk in that storied Yankee season, was just so famously and amazingly successful that we can’t leave it out. The lines here are the numbers each compiled while in the lineup at catcher.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Elston Howard R 111 395 57 139 15 4 17 68 27 55 .352 .395 .539 153 Johnny Blanchard L 48 170 23 46 6 1 11 27 19 22 .271 .346 .512 132 Total 565 80 185 21 5 28 95 46 77 .327 .381 .531 147
1961 Los Angeles Dodgers: Outfield
The amazing case of the six-man outfield. With four lefties and two righties, Walt Alston had to start at least one left-handed-hitter in his outfield even against southpaws, but much of his juggling was on a left-right basis.
For quantity of sheer quality, for complementary balance of skills, and for veteran-youngster diversity, there never has been another outfield quite like this logjam of Wally Moon, Willie Davis, Frank Howard, Duke Snider, Tommy Davis and Ron Fairly. The lines for Tommy Davis and Fairly here are just what they hit when playing the outfield; Davis also spent quite a bit of time at third base, and Fairly at first base.
Amazingly, at the outset of that season the Dodgers’ roster included yet a seventh good outfielder, Don Demeter, who conveniently enough was a right-handed hitter. But the surplus of talent was just too much, and in early May of ’61 the Dodgers traded Demeter for pitching help.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wally Moon L 134 463 79 152 25 3 17 88 89 79 .328 .434 .505 140 Willie Davis L 128 339 56 86 19 6 12 45 27 46 .254 .316 .451 94 Frank Howard R 92 267 36 79 10 2 15 45 21 50 .296 .347 .517 118 Duke Snider L 85 233 35 69 8 3 16 56 29 43 .296 .375 .562 136 Tommy Davis R 86 245 32 73 4 2 9 33 18 21 .298 .330 .441 96 Ron Fairly L 71 164 28 52 9 2 7 30 27 14 .317 .420 .524 141 Total/3 570 89 170 25 6 25 99 70 84 .299 .381 .497 123
1960–61 San Francisco Giants: First base
While the Giants’ decision to platoon their prodigious young slugger Willie McCovey through these seasons was quite foolish, it can’t be denied that the platoons the team derived with McCovey were bodacious. The lines we see here are those produced by McCovey and Orlando Cepeda while in the lineup at first base.
1960:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Willie McCovey L 67 227 33 55 15 2 12 41 42 44 .242 .358 .485 135 Orlando Cepeda R 63 231 33 71 13 1 7 27 22 40 .307 .381 .463 137 Total 458 66 126 28 3 19 68 64 84 .275 .370 .474 136
1961:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Willie McCovey L 83 307 56 85 12 3 16 47 35 54 .277 .356 .492 127 Orlando Cepeda R 78 279 60 97 10 2 26 74 22 46 .348 .405 .677 186 Total 586 116 182 22 5 42 121 57 100 .311 .381 .580 160
1962 San Francisco Giants: Left field
In 1962, the Giants moved McCovey to the outfield, and partnered him with the veteran Harvey Kuenn in a manner very reminiscent of the Irvin-Rhodes arrangement. This is what Kuenn and McCovey hit while playing the outfield.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Harvey Kuenn R 106 374 61 117 19 3 7 57 33 25 .313 .366 .436 117 Willie McCovey L 55 172 34 53 6 1 15 42 25 26 .308 .394 .616 170 Total 546 95 170 25 4 22 99 58 51 .311 .376 .493 139
1962 Los Angeles Angels: First base
The career of huge, strong Steve Bilko was among the more interesting in baseball history, though it was also among the more disappointing. Bilko wasn’t just a star, he was a superstar all through the minor leagues, most prominently at the Triple-A level. But in repeated opportunities in the majors, Bilko just couldn’t get his stroke going.
Finally, with the expansion Angels in 1961-62, he found big league success. Deployed by manager Bill Rigney as a platoon first baseman, Bilko hit very well.
His 1962 platoon partner, Lee Thomas, played the outfield against left-handers. Thomas’ line here is what he compiled at first base.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Lee Thomas L 83 300 50 94 12 1 17 61 28 38 .313 .378 .530 145 Steve Bilko R 64 164 26 47 9 1 8 38 25 35 .287 .374 .500 137 Total 464 76 141 21 2 25 99 53 73 .304 .377 .519 142
1962 Philadelphia Phillies: Center field
Through his long managerial career, Gene Mauch would be among the game’s most dedicated platooners. In his 1960-68 stint with the Phillies, Mauch pursued the practice in a complex Stengelian multi-position manner, and in the outfield that yielded some highly impressive results. Don Demeter also played a lot of third base and first base, but the lines here are what he compiled while playing in center field, largely against left-handed pitching.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Tony Gonzalez L 118 437 76 132 16 4 20 63 40 82 .302 .371 .494 134 Don Demeter R 42 133 23 41 6 1 8 31 12 18 .308 .358 .549 143 Total 570 99 173 22 5 28 94 52 100 .304 .368 .507 136
1963–64–65 Philadelphia Phillies: Left field
In 1963 Tony Gonzalez played every day, but slid over to left field against southpaws in place of the heavy-hitting but defensively challenged Wes Covington, while Demeter played center.
1963:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wes Covington L 119 353 46 107 24 1 17 64 26 56 .303 .354 .521 150 Don Demeter R 82 247 31 69 14 2 9 39 15 39 .279 .327 .462 126 Total 600 77 176 38 3 26 103 41 95 .293 .343 .497 141
1964:
In 1964 and ’65, Mauch used Covington and the heavy-hitting youngster Alex Johnson as a more-or-less straightforward left-right platoon.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wes Covington L 129 339 37 95 18 0 13 58 38 50 .280 .355 .448 126 Alex Johnson R 43 109 18 33 7 1 4 18 6 26 .303 .345 .495 135 Total 448 55 128 25 1 17 76 44 76 .286 .353 .460 128
1965:
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Wes Covington L 101 235 27 58 10 1 15 45 26 47 .247 .322 .489 127 Alex Johnson R 97 262 27 77 9 3 8 28 15 60 .294 .337 .443 120 Total 497 54 135 19 4 23 73 41 107 .272 .330 .465 123
1963 Cleveland Indians: First base
Neither the young Fred Whitfield nor the veteran Joe Adcock was much good at anything except hitting for power, but hitting for power is a pretty useful talent. Indians manager Birdie Tebbetts fit the two sluggers into a productive platoon.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Fred Whitfield L 109 346 44 87 17 3 21 54 24 61 .251 .302 .500 122 Joe Adcock R 97 283 28 71 7 1 13 49 30 53 .251 .320 .420 107 Total 629 72 158 24 4 34 103 54 114 .251 .311 .464 116
1965 Cleveland Indians: First base
Here Whitfield had almost, but not quite, hit his way into a fully regular role. This time Tebbetts started the versatile, multi-talented Chuck Hinton against most of the lefties. Hinton, one of the best supersubs of all time, also played extensively in the outfield and at second base in ’65.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Fred Whitfield L 132 468 49 137 23 1 26 90 16 42 .293 .316 .513 131 Chuck Hinton R 39 131 20 34 5 2 6 18 16 13 .260 .338 .466 126 Total 599 69 171 28 3 32 108 32 55 .285 .321 .503 130
1965 Cincinnati Reds: Catcher
The ’65 Reds were a historically great-hitting unit, with a team OPS+ of 122. Manager Dick Sisler used left-right platoons at two positions. His first base combination of veteran Gordy Coleman and rookie Tony Perez was quite good, and his catcher pairing of Johnny Edwards and Don Pavletich was tremendous.
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Johnny Edwards L 114 371 47 99 22 2 17 51 50 45 .267 .353 .474 125 Don Pavletich R 68 191 25 61 11 1 8 32 23 27 .319 .394 .513 147 Total 562 72 160 33 3 25 83 73 72 .285 .368 .488 133
1965 Cincinnati Reds: First base
Player B G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS+ Gordy Coleman L 108 325 39 98 19 0 14 57 24 38 .302 .348 .489 127 Tony Perez R 104 281 40 73 14 4 12 47 21 67 .260 .315 .466 111 Total 606 79 171 33 4 26 104 45 105 .282 .334 .479 120
Next time
We complete the 1960s, and roll on into the ’70s, and we see more platooning than ever before.
24-karat diamond-writing gem bonus
The article I recently presented—”wrote” would be inaccurate—highlighting some nuggets of the greatest baseball writing of all time resulted in warmly positive e-mail response from you, my beloved readers. So how about a little something today from that most marvelous of baseball writers, on the ever-fascinating subject of Leo Durocher:
Combative, quick-witted and knowledgeable, he was truly the practically peerless leader on the field, a superior gambler with a nice balance of calculation and recklessness. Like any good gambler—horse player, card expert or pool shark—he has the gift of absolute concentration. Half an hour after a long double-header he can recite every detail of the eighteen innings, play by play. An hour or so later, he has forgotten it all.
As a director of tactical operations, then, he was as good a manager can be. As a leader of men—that’s something else again.
He is ambitious, brassily assertive and impatient. Though he can be gracious when he chooses, instinctive regard for others is not ingrained in him. Some players responded to his goading, played better for him than they would for another man. Others found him impossible to live with, and these weren’t necessarily congenital sulkers.
Durocher did play favorites, he did indulge personal dislikes, he was swayed by enthusiasm and prejudice, he could be outrageously unreasonable. Some of the Giants will rejoice in his departure and perhaps flourish under more temperate leadership. Some will miss him.
In his first couple of seasons as manager in New York, the personnel of the Giants changed rapidly. Leo wanted, he said, “my kind of ball club.” What that appeared to mean was that he wanted the team staffed with men just like himself. Chances are there aren’t nine major league ball players just like Durocher, let alone twenty-five. This is not an unmixed evil.
However, he did get enough of “his kind” to win two pennants and a World Series. That’s got to be a major item in any accounting of his stewardship.
– Red Smith, Sept. 26, 1955
References & Resources
Red Smith, “All Guys Finish at Last,” Red Smith on Baseball, Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2000, pp. 193-194.