Joe Medwick (1968)


Date of Birth: 11/24/1911
Date of Death: 3/21/1975
Birthplace: Carteret, New Jersey

Joe Medwick excelled in four sports in high school - baseball, basketball, football, and track. After signing with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1930, he played in the minor leagues for most of three seasons (1930-1932).

St. Louis Cardinals

Medwick started his major league career with the Cardinals in 1932, playing in 26 games that season. The following year, his first full season in the major leagues, he showed his power potential by batting .306 with 182 hits, 40 doubles, 10 triples, 18 home runs, and 98 RBIs in 148 games. He also proved to be a good defender, leading all NL left fielders in putouts with 314.

In 1934, Medwick led the NL in triples with a career high of 18. He batted .319 with 198 hits, 40 doubles, 18 home runs, and 106 RBIs in 149 games. He had an even better season in 1935, when he batted .353 in 154 games. He had 224 hits, 46 doubles, 13 triples, 23 home runs, and 126 RBIs. He again led all NL left fielders in putouts with 353.

Medwick continued to improve, and in 1936, he led the NL in hits, doubles, and RBIs. He finished the season with 223 hits, a career high 64 doubles, 13 triples, 18 home runs, 138 RBIs, and a .351 batting average. He continued to excel defensively, again leading the league in putouts with 359.

Medwick's best season was 1937 when he won the NL MVP award and the NL Triple Crown, leading the league in home runs, RBIs, and batting average. He also led the league in hits and OPS. That season he batted .374 with 237 hits, 56 doubles, 10 triples, 31 home runs, 154 RBIs, and a 1.056 OPS in 156 games. He was named the Sporting News MVP in 1937.

Medwick again led the NL in doubles and RBIs in 1938. He batted .322 with 190 hits, 47 doubles, 21 home runs, and 122 RBIs in 146 games. He also led all NL left fielders in putouts with 320. He had another strong season in 1939, finishing with 201 hits, 48 doubles, 14 home runs, 117 RBIs, and a .332 batting average in 150 games.

During the 1940 season, the Cardinals traded Medwick to the Brooklyn Dodgers. He finished the season with 175 hits, 30 doubles, 12 triples, 17 home runs, 86 RBIs, and a .301 batting average in 37 games with the Cardinals and 106 games with the Dodgers.

Brooklyn Dodgers

Medwick had a strong first full season with the Dodgers in 1941, finishing with a .318 batting average in 133 games. He had 171 hits, 33 doubles, 18 home runs, and 88 RBIs. The following season was similar, with 166 hits, 37 doubles, 18 home runs, 96 RBIs, and a .300 batting average in 142 games. Defensively, he again led all NL left fielders in putouts with 284.

After 48 games with the Dodgers in 1943, they traded him to the New York Giants. He played in 78 games with the Giants and finished the season with a .278 batting average.

Final Years as a Player

In 1945, Medwick was traded by the Giants to the Boston Braves. He lasted just 66 games with the Braves before moving back to the Dodgers for 41 games in 1946. He spent his last two seasons, 1947 and 1948, with his first team, the Cardinals, playing in 75 games in 1947, and in just 20 games in his final season.

Awards and MLB Records

  • NL MVP
  • NL Triple Crown
  • Sporting News MVP award
  • Led the NL in hits (2 times)
  • Led the NL in doubles (3 times)
  • Led the NL in RBIs (3 times)

Career Statistics

Medwick played in over 100 games in each of 12 seasons (1933-1944). His statistics during that time include:

  • 11 seasons with over 150 hits, with a high of 237 in 1937
  • 11 seasons with 30 or more doubles, with a high of 64 in 1936
  • 8 seasons with 10 or more triples, with a high of 18 in 1934
  • 3 seasons with over 20 home runs, with a high of 31 in 1937
  • 6 seasons with over 100 RBIs, with a high of 154 in 1937
  • 11 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .374 in 1937

Career batting statistics for Medwick include:

  • 1,984 games played
  • 2,471 hits
  • 540 doubles
  • 113 triples
  • 205 home runs
  • 1,383 RBIs
  • 551 strikeouts to 437 walks
  • .324 batting average
  • .362 on-base percentage
  • .867 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Medwick as a left fielder include:

  • 1,790 games played
  • 3,763 putouts
  • 86 errors
  • .978 fielding percentage

Post Playing Career

After Medwick left major league baseball, he played in the minor leagues for four seasons (1949-1952).

Medwick was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1968 on the ninth ballot with 84.8% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Joe Medwick
ESPN - Joe Medwick
Baseball Reference - Joe Medwick

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