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...and I've heard of a lot of old players.
Cool.
Forgotten Greats (1932)
Consider this an experiment - lessee if youse guys like this sort of post
I'm conducting a little experiment.
A few days back, I mentioned that, when I was in college, I had a personal project idea - go through the best teams in baseball and look for their best player that I hadn't heard of before (no hall of famers, no players famous for other reasons) and look him up. I would peruse his statistical profile, his photographs, written histories, and media commentary, and give that forgotten star some love, just for the sake of showing appreciation for the rich history of the sport.
I now wonder whether this crew might find such a project, reprised and updated, to be interesting.
So I'm gonna run a little experiment - a one-player pilot post - to see if the group finds such commentary useful and interesting. I may attempt to do a little Dr. D style analysis when it is possible. :)
Here's how the selection process will work. Each time I do one of these posts (if there is interest), I'll randomly select a year/league, find the best team in that league, find the best position player and pitcher who might be forgotten on that team, and look them up. One player per post, so, if y'all find this interesting, a second post would cover the pitcher for this first team, after the position player is taken here.
With that, I rolled six D20s to select a year and flipped a coin for the league. The ranges are 1897 to 2016 just to get 120 choices on the list, and AL/NL only...we'll ignore the Federal League for now.
This first post, I got the 1932 NL - whose best club was the Chicago Cubs (they got swept by the Yankees in four because, at that time, the NL was very thin compared to the AL)
Perusing their WAR leaderboard for position players, I get Billy Herman (HOF 2B known for his stellar defense, he is 19th all time in dWAR for a 2B, and solid hitting).
But, player number two is a man I've never seen on any of my ranked lists in all of the years I've been analyzing statistical history - Riggs Stephenson, LF
Having taken a look at his context-adjusted, Weibull-fitted career numbers, a comparable player would have hit approximately .285/.375/.415 in the modern game, which makes him somewhat comparable to Shin-soo Choo. A major star when he was healthy, though a subpar fielder and a bit prone to low line drives, rather than raw power.
You can easily see why when you look at him swinging a bat.
Look at how low he gets in his followthrough in the mugshot I included. This guy was five foot nothing, a hundred and nothing (a slightly less beefy Choo there again), but maximized his offensive value by getting very low in the box, a la Rickey Henderson, to shrink his strikezone, and by sticking his nose out over the plate to get a reeaaaaaally good look at the ball. One of his many nicknames was "eagle eye" specifically because he had a great batting eye and looked like an eagle honing in on a target. One thing that's unclear to me is whether he would have handled the very high velocity of today's game very well. With his body that scrunched over and his swing plane very low in the zone, he would have been vulnerable to high heat, if a pitcher could hit his tiny strikezone.
He definitely never had Choo's power (180 pounds dripping wet vs. 210 pounds of steroidally enhanced iron muscle will do that), but the hitting approach and height aren't the only similarities. Both Choo and Stephenson had noodle arms. Like...it was a serious problem. The Cubs wisely hid him in left field and accepted that they weren't going to be preventing guys from scoring from second on hits to Riggs. Both Riggs and Choo had many injury problems - in fact similar types of injuries. Lots of leg issues, connective tissue pulls...short, stalky guys often suffer from those sorts of issues. Stephenson was a -5 to -10 run defensive left fielder in his prime. He was bad enough that his first manager, Tris Speaker (one of the best defensive players of all time) got so annoyed with it that he fired Riggs. Poor guy got Hargroved. :\ Just like Choo. He also had modest speed even as a youngster (though he was reasonable smart on the bases) and was downright sluggish by 1932...just like Choo).
Personality-wise, Stephenson was viewed throughout the game as a gentleman's gentleman, a real professional, and extremely humble. He grew up in the town of "what town"...that is to say...the middle of nowhere, Alabama, and spent his childhood chasing his father around on his pony-express-style mail delivery routes through the countryside, so his expectations were pretty low and simple and his exposure to Chicago was never particularly comfortable to him, but you'd never have known it. He was too polite to complain.
In 1932, Stephenson was having his last "big" season, after enjoying seven years of job security with the Cubs. His eighth came on a pennant winner with him playing a central role lengthening the lineup (he tended to hit fifth at the end of his career). In the world series that year, he went eight for eighteen...all but one hit a single. The Cubs did a reasonable job offensively against the Yankees, but their pitching completely imploded - not that that is surprising given who they were facing. Yowza.
Anyway, I think stuff like this is endlessly fascinating, but it's not for everyone. What do we think...is this the kind of thing that the denizens would enjoy on a recurring basis?
Comments
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I think players like this were an important part of the fabric of the game. Guys like Kyle Seager will very soon be forgotten when their careers end, and I think that stinks. Good ballplayers just should be remembered, even if it's just for a day.
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I had heard of Stephenson, though it was his name more than anything specific about his career or bio that lodged in my mind. Maybe also because he was from Alabama. A lot of good-to-great players, black and white, have come from that state.
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I may not have a ton to add to the conversation. The Choo comparison is excellent; helps me with the context. The guys who deserve to be remembered... I can get behind that, for sure.
I'll read any of these you write and try to generate a semi-on-point comment at the least. In this case, I will say... the last time I planted and twisted like that, I think I permanently injured my knee (no joke). What the heck do you mean he got 'fired' - era-approrpiate terminology for cut from the team? I don't get it. Just not the phrasing I'd hae expected, but mybe I'm overly sensitive.
Sounds like the kind of guy I'd like to go have a beer with, somewhat reminicent of my brother-in-law. Not sure he'd be up for my style of brew, though. I'm an imperial stout kind of guy... funny that those would be the ones which finally broke the 'ew, gross' mentality for me. But I digress...
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By fired, I mean released. His contract was sold to a AA club and then he was given away in a minor league depth trade to the cubs" AA club. They immediately bought his contract and called him up the next season
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I, for one, am thoroughly interested. Like Corran I'm not terribly sure I'll have much to add, but learning the lore of the game is always fascinating. It's beautiful to know that I could have been born a century earlier, and still enjoyed the game in much the same way I do now, watching the same narratives and player-types. Something that's really lacking in, say, football. The continuity of baseball is largely why it's such classic Americana.
As for the POTD, I guess my only question is how Riggs' Cubs made it to the World Series at all. He's a nice second-tier star, Seager style, but he only OPSed 120 that year, with what must have been poor speed and Ibanez-level defense. That's your second best position player? Jeez, I'll take Cano, Cruz, Seags, Segura, Haniger, and maybe Gamel over that. One of your all-time great 37-37 teams, I guess.
Looks like the pitchers carried them, I guess. 93 offense, 111 pitching. My question stands: how does that profile lead you to +34 games over .500 and a WS loss? Looks like a thoroughly average team to me.
Also, hello Rogers Hornsby! Boy did he have an off year, at age 36 (and presumably injured, since he only played 18 games). Sandwiched in between years of .996 and .926 OPSs, he has a dismal 81 while slugging .310 in 1932. Weird year to make the Series, given that their true superstar was AWOL.
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They were a little pythag-lucky, but that is to be expected with their template. They had a consistent offense, inconsistent but well above average pitching, and a lot of synergistic depth. The offense was basically 6 good solid slightly above average hitters and two bad hitters who could really glove it. The pitching was topped by Lon Warneke (who will be the subject of the pitching post, just as a spoiler) having his best season, and a cast of solid innings eaters. Basically...they were just...a little better than everyone else...but consistently a little better than everyone else. :)
To be fair, the team did have a few HOFers...Herman is, roughly, Whitaker class - 19th best fielder of all time at 2B, average hitter, Gabby Hartnett is about the 9th or 10th best catcher of all time, Kiki Cuyler having a solid season...also the beginnings of two other long careers - Stan Hack and Billy Jurges. Some guys who knew how to play.
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Keep them up. A few "forgotten stars" (e.g., Slats Marion) who didn't play on dominant teams or New York teams would be interesting, too, particularly in the context of Edgar's HOF chances, and the treatment of Whitaker and Trammell.
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Although I personally would be that much more interested if you rolled d20's for the period 1951-1989 or so. SSI has a very healthy demographic of Denizens who watched 1970's baseball, and to us your mention of Garry Maddox the other day brought a smile.
Maddox may have been a bit puzzling to the next-gen, but nostalgic for the 50+ seniors. Disco haircut, Pillar-type defense, the ultimate Disco-era ballplayer. "Two-thirds of the earth is covered by water; the other third is covered by Gary Maddox." The kind of minor star that provided a great backdrop for the wars between the Big Red Machine and the Little Blue Bicycle.
In fact Maddox would be a very nice UPside scenario for --- > Guillermo Heredia :- )
....
As you happen on 1960's, 1970's, 1980's minor stars, the guys here will be able to add flavor text. ... It's your column, of course; the 1900-2000 range is fun too. If you ran one weekly (or whatever) the site would be much better for it!
+3
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Keep it up, Matt! Like Doc I feel it would be most fun for teams in the post WW2 era so there would be a chance someone had actually witnessed the player you pick. But earlier eras are still fun.
I have only one comment about Stephenson. Actually two. First, is that picture of his swing doctored? Second, if it isn't, HOW DID HE KEEP HIS TORSO CONNECTED TO HIS HIPS?!!! His twist looks physically impossible!
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My body hurts just looking at him.
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It does look rather extreme from the freeze frame obj follow through, doesn't it?
Every photo of a player from this era that is sold as an action shot is framed/staged to a certain extent, but there are a bunch of photos just like this one...I'm inclined to believe he really did swing like that. And no, I have no idea how you hit like Choo, while that contorted. :)
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I enjoyed the writing, the story and the numbers. Whenever you feel like doing any others I'd enjoy reading them.
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There are pros and cons to looking at any given period in history...one thing I like about looking at periods further back is that, without having actually lived through his career, I'm forced to study it...read what people said about him, look at photos of him in action, statistically analyze him, adjusting for the league in which he played, etc. But, of course, I also love having conversations weigh people who know more than I do about a guy and would love to see the more experienced folks here get nostalgic and excited to remember these guys too.
I may try to strike a balance. :)
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James says he is familiar with all 20,000 players in ML history :- )
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I'm not yet willing to project a truckload of GG's for our guy, but as a .280-.290 hitter with enough pop to keep you honest, you bet.
I remember Maddox as a free-swinging type who didn't walk much. IIRC. Heredia may BB more than him.
By the way, Heredia's play to dead center last night, on a ball directly over his head, was impressive for how easy he made it look.
Want to hear something weird? Valencia is hitting .295 over the last 28 days, and he may be the weakest link in our lineup (minus our glovey CF'ers)
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When I was talking about the 1977 Phillies, I brought up Maddox and noted that he was very similar in abilities to Heredia. There are about 26 teams in the league for whom Heredia would be the every day center fielder...but not here.
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Re: 1977 Phillies, it's fascinating to pull up their B-Ref page and look at the depth of their roster.
Top 10 players with 300+ Plate Appearances in reverse order by OPS+
Larry Bowa (72), among the best defensive shortstops of his era, some thought the best.
Ted Sizemore (85), glove first at 2B, VERY reliable and made all the plays.
Garry Maddox (101), one of the top CFers in MLB, stole bases.
Bob Boone (104), one of the top defensive C's in MLB
(Notice anything? EVERY ONE of their players near or below 100 was a strong-up-the-middle glove wizard)
Jay Johnstone (116) Platoon corner OFer, VERY solid bat
Richie Hebner (126) Another doggone good bat who moved from 3B to 1B when a certain PTBNL came into town.
Bake McBride (149) Fleet OFer, could play CF, slashed .339/.392/.564, could steal bases
Mike Schmidt (151) Hall of Famer, redefined 3B defensively, and the power of his bat was HOF too.
Greg Luzinski (156) A lumbering rhino in LF, but a bludgeon for a stick.
So, GG-caliber up the middle, a gold glover at 3B, two serious power bats that both had OBP's in the .390's, three base-stealers, three quality second-level bats.
And we're not done.
The next FOUR players in PA's, the benchies, were:
Jerry Martin (102) the RH platoon OF'er, very solid all-around player who could hit and play defense.
Tim McCarver (145) the iconic catcher who in his prime was among the best defensively at hit position, managed to slash .320/.410/.527 in about 200 PA's.
Davey Johnson (149), the younguns among us MIGHT have heard of him as a manager, but before that he was a premier power-hitting 2B-man, moved to 1B as a veteran, slashed almost identically to McCarver but from the right side.
Tom Hutton (115) glove first 1B-man when he came up with the Dodgers, learned how to hit well in Philadelphia
I mean, LOOK AT THAT DEPTH in the lineup, check out the variety of glove wizards and add a few speedsters, notice the prominent veterans on the bench. No wonder they won 101 games.
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This is great Matt. Keep em' coming.