Pie Traynor (1948)


Date of Birth: 11/11/1898
Date of Death: 3/16/1972
Birthplace: Framingham, Massachusetts

Pie Traynor began as a shortstop in the Virginia League in 1920. His contract was purchased by the Pittsburgh Pirates in September, 1920.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Traynor was called up to the majors at the end of the 1920 season and he played in seventeen games with the Pirates. The following season, he played in just seven games with them.

In 1922, his first full season in the major leagues, Traynor batted .282 with 161 hits, 17 doubles, 12 triples, 81 RBIs, and 17 stolen bases in 142 games.

Traynor led the National League in triples in 1923. That season, he had career highs in hits (208), triples (19), home runs (12), and stolen bases (28). He batted .338 in 153 games. Defensively, he proved to be an excellent fielder, leading NL third basemen in assists with 306 and in putouts with 189.

Traynor batted .294 in 142 games in 1924. He had 160 hits, 26 doubles, 13 triples, 24 stolen bases, and 82 RBIs. The next year, he had a career high 39 doubles in 150 games. He finished the 1925 season with 189 hits, 14 triples, 106 RBIs, and a .320 batting average. He again led NL third basemen in assists with 303 and in putouts with 226.

Traynor continued to lead NL third basemen in putouts in 1926 (182) and in 1927 (212). He played well offensively also both of those seasons, batting .317 in 1926 and .342 in 1927. He had 182 hits, 25 doubles 17 triples, and 92 RBIs in 152 games in 1926. The next year, he had 196 hits, 32 doubles, and 106 RBIs in 149 games.

In 1928, Traynor had a career high 124 RBIs in 144 games. He batted .337 with 192 hits and 38 doubles. The following season, his batting average went up to .356. He had 192 hits, 27 doubles, and 108 RBIs in 1929.

Traynor had a career high batting average of .366 in 1930. He had 182 hits, 22 doubles, and 119 RBIs in 130 games. The following year, he played in a career high 155 games. He finished the 1931 season with 183 hits, 37 doubles, 15 triples, 103 RBIs, and a .298 batting average. Defensively, he led all NL third basemen in putouts with 172.

Traynor had another good season in 1932, when he batted .329 with 169 hits and 27 doubles in 135 games. He followed that in 1933 with a .304 batting average in a league leading 154 games. He had 190 hits, 27 doubles, and 82 RBIs that year. He again led NL third basemen in assists (300) and in putouts (176).

Traynor played in just 119 games in 1934. He batted .309 with 137 hits, 22 doubles, and 61 RBIs. He once more led NL third basemen in putouts with 116.

Traynor was player-manager for the Pirates from 1934 through the 1937 season. He played in just 57 games in 1935, no games in 1936, and only five games in 1937, his last season as a major league player.

Career Statistics

Statistics for Traynor in 17 seasons (1920-1937) in the major leagues include:

  • 12 seasons with over 150 hits, with a high of 208 in 1923
  • 4 seasons with over 30 doubles, with a high of 39 in 1925
  • 11 seasons with 10 or more triples, with a high of 19 in 1923
  • 7 seasons with over 100 RBIs, with a high of 124 in 1928
  • 10 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .366 in 1930

Career batting statistics for Traynor include:

  • 1,941 games played
  • 2,416 hits
  • 371 doubles
  • 164 triples
  • 1,273 RBIs
  • .320 batting average
  • .362 on-base percentage
  • .797 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Traynor as a third baseman include:

  • 1,863 games played
  • 3,521 assists
  • 303 double plays
  • 2,289 putouts
  • 324 errors
  • .947 fielding percentage

Post Playing Career

After retiring as a major league player, Traynor continued as manager of the Pirates in 1938 and 1939. His record as a manager was 457 wins to 406 losses. Later he served as a scout for the Pirates.

In 1944, Traynor started a second career as a radio sports announcer. He was successful in this venture, also, and he remained in radio until he retired in 1965.

Traynor was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1948 on the eighth ballot with 76.9% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Pie Traynor
ESPN - Pie Traynor
Baseball Reference - Pie Traynor

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