Goose Goslin (1968)


Date of Birth: 10/16/1900
Date of Death: 5/15/1971
Birthplace: Salem, New Jersey

Goose Goslin started playing semi-pro baseball in 1916, when he was just 16 years old. Four years later, he was playing in the minor leagues as a pitcher in the South Atlantic League. The Washington Senators/Twins purchased his contract in September, 1921.

Washington Senators (Minnesota Twins)

Goslin first played with the Senators in 14 games in 1921. The following season, he batted .324 in 101 games. He finished the 1922 season with 116 hits, 19 doubles, and 53 RBIs.

Goslin led the AL in triples in 1923. He had 180 hits, 29 doubles, 18 triples, 99 RBIs, and a .300 batting average in 150 games. The following season he played in a career high 154 games and he led the AL in RBIs with 129. He finished the 1924 season with 199 hits, 30 doubles, 17 triples, and a .344 batting average. He walked 68 times and struck out 29 times. He also played well defensively, leading all AL left fielders in putouts with 365.

Goslin had a strong 1925 season, again leading the AL in triples. He had career highs in hits (201), triples (20), and stolen bases (27). He also had 34 doubles, 18 home runs, 113 RBIs, and a .334 batting average in 150 games. He again led AL left fielders in putouts with 336.

In 1926, Goslin had a career high 201 hits, He finished the season with 26 doubles, 15 triples, 17 home runs, 108 RBIs, and a .354 batting average in 147 games. He walked 63 times and struck out 38 times. The following season, he batted .334 in 148 games. He finished the 1927 season with 194 hits, 37 doubles, 15 triples, 21 stolen bases, and 120 RBIs.

Goslin won the American League batting title in 1928. He batted a career high .379 with 173 hits, 36 doubles, 10 triples, 17 home runs, 102 RBIs, and 16 stolen bases in 135 games.

Goslin's batting average dropped to .288 in 1929. He finished the season with 159 hits, 28 doubles, 18 home runs, and 91 RBIs in 145 games.

St. Louis Browns (Baltimore Orioles)

The Senators traded Goslin to the St. Louis Browns on June 13, 1930. That season, he had career highs in home runs with 37 and in RBIs with 138. He finished the year with 180 hits, 36 doubles, and a .308 batting average in 47 games with the Senators and 101 games with the Browns. He had a good season also defensively, again leading AL left fielders in putouts with 308.

In 1931, Goslin batted .328 in 151 games. He had 194 hits, a career high 42 doubles, 24 home runs, and 105 RBIs. He walked 80 times and struck out 41 times. He once more led AL left fielders in putouts with 326. The following season, he had a career high 92 walks to 35 strikeouts. He finished the 1932 season with 171 hits, 28 doubles, 17 home runs, 104 RBIs, and a .299 batting average in 150 games.

Return to the Senators

Goslin was traded back to the Senators on December 14, 1932. He played in 132 games with them in 1933, and he batted .297 with 163 hits, 35 doubles, and 64 RBIs.

Detroit Tigers

The Senators traded Goslin to the Detroit Tigers on December 20, 1933. He batted .305 in 151 games in his first season in Detroit. He finished the 1934 season with 187 hits, 38 doubles, and 100 RBIs.

Goslin continued to play well for the Tigers in 1935 and 1936. He batted .292 in 147 games in 1935, and .315 also in 147 games in 1936. He had 172 hits, 34 doubles, and 109 RBIs in 1935, and 180 hits, 33 doubles, 24 home runs, and 125 RBIs in 1936.

In 1937, his last season with the Tigers, Goslin batted .238 in 79 games. He was released on October 3, 1937.

Return again to Senators

Goslin signed with the Senators on April 3, 1938. He played in just 38 games with them and he batted .158.

MLB Records

  • Led AL in triples (2 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Goslin in 18 seasons (1921-1938) in the major leagues include:

  • 14 seasons with over 150 hits, with a high of 201 in 1925 and 1926
  • 10 seasons with 30 or more doubles, with a high of 42 in 1931
  • 9 seasons with 10 or more triples, with a high of 20 in 1925
  • 3 seasons with over 20 home runs, with a high of 37 in 1930
  • 11 seasons with 100 or more RBIs, with a high of 138 in 1930
  • 11 seasons with a batting average of .300 or better, with a high of .379 in 1928

Career batting statistics for Goslin include:

  • 2,287 games played
  • 2,735 hits
  • 500 doubles
  • 173 triples
  • 248 home runs
  • 175 stolen bases
  • 1,609 RBIs
  • 585 strikeouts to 949 walks
  • .316 batting average
  • .387 on-base percentage
  • .887 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Goslin as a left fielder include:

  • 1,947 games played
  • 4,141 putouts
  • 184 errors
  • .959 fielding percentage

Postseason statistics for Goslin include:

  • 5 postseasons
  • 32 games played
  • 129 at-bats
  • 37 hits
  • 5 doubles
  • 7 home runs
  • 19 RBIs
  • 14 strikeouts to 12 walks
  • .287 batting average

Post Playing Career

After retiring as a major league player, Goslin was a player-manager in the minor leagues for one season.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Goose Goslin
ESPN - Goose Goslin
Baseball Reference - Goose Goslin

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