Home | Search | FAQ
Displaying 1-2 of 2 messages in this thread. |
| Posted By | Discussion Topic: for clevelend fans | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BaLLooN NoT | posted on 08-10-2001 @ 9:20 PM |    | |||
| O&A Board Regular Registered: Oct. 00  | Boudreau stood out as a player and manager CLEVELAND -- Lou Boudreau was everything for the Cleveland Indians in 1948. He managed them, played shortstop and batted third. He was the AL MVP, homered twice to win a one-game playoff for the pennant, and most memorably, brought them their last World Series championship. Boudreau, a Hall of Fame shortstop who as Cleveland's player-manager led the Indians to the '48 title, died Friday in Olympia Fields, Ill. He was 84. Boudreau was brought into St. James Hospital and Health Centers in Olympia Fields on Friday afternoon in cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead there, said hospital spokeswoman Julie Miller. "He was the greatest shortstop I ever saw," said Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller. "He was afraid of nobody. He was a great manager, teammate and friend. Just a great man. There is not a more gracious man than Lou Boudreau. "There have not been many better all-around players than he was." Boudreau had been hospitalized recently for circulatory problems, forcing him to miss the Indians' 100-year anniversary celebration honoring their Top 100 players. Earlier this year he was selected an honorary captain by the Indians for this season. Feller said Boudreau won his player's respect by having confidence in them. "I remember in 1948," Feller said. "Lou said, 'We're going to sink or swim with Feller', I was having a rough season, and after he said that I won 10 of my last 12 games. He instilled a confidence in his players they never forgot." Boudreau, a slick-fielding shortstop for 13 seasons, was selected AL MVP in '48 after batting .355 with 18 homers and 106 RBIs. He capped the season by going 4-for-4 with two homers as the Indians won a one-game playoff over the Boston Red Sox to advance to the Series, where they beat the Boston Braves in six games. Boudreau, who was born on July 17, 1917, was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1970, the same year the native of Harvey, Ill., had his No. 5 jersey retired by the Indians. At Boudreau's induction, commissioner Bowie Kuhn marveled at the shortstop's uncanny instincts. "He was a human computer," Kuhn said. "He knew all the hitters' habits. He knew all the moves of the baserunners. He knew when the pitcher was going to pitch. He had the instincts for where the ball would be hit." Boudreau managed Cleveland from 1942-50, compiling a 728-649 record. He also managed the Red Sox (1952-54), Kansas City (1955-57) and the Chicago Cubs in 1960. He went 1,162-1,224 overall. Boudreau also was a popular radio broadcaster for the Cubs for nearly 30 years before retiring in 1988. Hall of Fame outfielder Billy Williams, who played for Boudreau in 1960 and now is a Cubs coach, fondly remembered his former manager. "He always called the players `Good Kid.' I guess he was a whiz-kid manager. Here in Chicago people know him as an announcer with the Cubs," Williams said. "When I think of Lou, I think of a guy who enjoyed baseball. He knew the game really well and he used to talk a lot about the game," he said. "I'd talk to his son and ask how he was going and he said: `He was watching the Cubs every day."' Cubs broadcaster Ron Santo made his major league debut for Boudreau in 1960 at third base for Chicago. "Lou knew how to get the best out of you. The one thing about Lou, you better give 100 percent because he wasn't afraid to get in your face," he said. "He was a player's manager. He could sit down with you and speak the language." A seven-time All-Star, Boudreau led the AL with a .327 average in 1944 and led the league in doubles three times. During his MVP season, Boudreau struck out just nine times in 560 at-bats. Boudreau could do no wrong in '48. Despite having Hall of Famer Bob Lemon available, Boudreau decided to start rookie left-hander Gene Bearden on one day's rest in the playoff game at Boston. Bearden pitched a five-hitter in Cleveland's 8-3 win. Boudreau was a captain of the baseball and basketball teams at Illinois before beginning his pro career in 1938 as a minor league third baseman. He made his big league debut in 1940 with the Indians, and in his first full season he was named to the AL All-Star team and batted .295 with 101 RBI. After the Indians finished second in 1940 under Oscar Vitt and fourth in 1941 under Roger Peckinpaugh, the 24-year-old Boudreau wrote a letter to owner Alva Bradley and applied for the manager's job. Boudreau was hired on Nov. 25, 1941, and at 24 became the youngest manager in baseball history. He was immediately dubbed the "Boy Manager" by the press. Boudreau managed the Indians through 1950 despite owner Bill Veeck's attempts to fire him earlier. Boudreau was fired on Nov. 10, 1950, and replaced by Al Lopez. Lemon credited Boudreau with transforming him from a light-hitting third baseman to a hard-throwing pitcher.  E-Mail Me OABaLLooNNoT METS will go ALL THE WAY THIS YEAR !!!!!!!!!!! (ok maybe not this year but i aint chainging this) Yankees & the Braves SUCK !!!!!!!!  Resident Strip Club PimpVery Proud Member of the OA.com Stalker Society | ||||
| McBourbon | posted on 08-13-2001 @ 2:03 PM | | |||
| Psychopath Registered: Jul. 01 | Thanks...we know. | ||||
Displaying 1-2 of 2 messages in this thread. |