St. Louis Cardinals - The World War II Era (1940-1949)

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1940

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1940

105

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106

Titles:

Top Cardinals Players of the Forties

1942 - World Champs (Beat Yankees)

1943 - NL Champs (Lost to Yankees)

Pitchers:

1944 - World Champs (Beat Browns)

Harry Brecheen (32.68) - 68

1946 - World Champs (Beat Red Sox)

Mort Cooper (25.28) - 63

Howie Pollet (24.13) - 51

Ballpark:

Max Lanier (21.06) - 45

Sportsman's Park

Red Munger (13.37) - 33

Murry Dickson (13.08) - 30

Team Name:

Al Brazle (13.41) - 30

Cardinals

Lon Warneke (7.84) - 24

Ted Wilks (13.83) - 20

Owners:

Howie Krist (4.07) - 19

Sam Breadon

Gunboat Gumbert (6.18) - 17

Robert M Hannegan (1947-1949)

Red Barrett (5.51) - 15

Fred M Saigh (1949)

Johnny Beazley (4.56) - 15

Ernie White (6.46) - 15

General Managers:

Ken Burkhart (6.91) - 13

Branch Rickey (1940-1942)

William Walsingham (1943-1949)

Catchers:

Walker Cooper (9.25) - 36

Managers:

Ken O'Dea (4.56) - 15

Ray Blades (1940)

Joe Garagiola (2.73) - 10

Mike Gonzalez (1940)

Billy Southworth (1940 - 1945)

First Basemen:

Eddie Dyer (1946 - 1949)

Ray Sanders (9.36) - 23

Johnny Mize (12.8) - 20

Hall of Famers:

Johnny Mize

Second Basemen:

Red Schoendienst

Red Schoendienst (7.94) - 37

Enos Slaughter

Jimmy Brown (4.66) - 14

Stan Musial

ShortStop:

Rookie of the Year:

Marty Marion (30.7) - 92

None

Lou Klein (6.77) - 14

MVP

Third Base:

Mort Cooper (1942)

Whitey Kurowski (23.98) - 53

Stan Musial (1943)

Marty Marion (1944)

Outfield:

Stan Musial (1946)

Stan Musial (57.56) - 110

Stan Musial (1948)

Enos Slaughter (32.77) - 74

Johnny Hopp (10.82) - 46

No Hitters:

Terry Moore (11.45) - 43

Lon Warneke (1941)

Harry Walker (2.68) - 16

Ron Northey (4.84) - 13

Notable Events:

1940 - Marty Marion, who for some reason is not a Hall of Famer,

is a twenty three year old rookie

1943 - Harry Brecheen, a late bloomer, comes up to the Cards

at the age of twenty eight. He would be an effective big league

1940 - Lights are installed in Sportsman's Park

pitcher for the next ten years.

1940 - Coming into the decade, the Cards are poised for a good run.

1944 - The Cards win their third consecutvie pennant and second

The club has five outstanding position players, all twenty eight years

World title in those three years. They once again dominate the

old and under, in outfielders Ducky Medwick, Enos Slaughter and

competition as they have won 106, 105 and 105 games in the

Terry Moore, first baseman Johnny Mize and shorstop Marty Marion.

three seasons. It was a combination of exceptional talent on the

Three of them will end up in the Hall of Fame. On the mound, they've

Cardinals that would have compteted in any era and the watered

got twenty seven year old Mort Cooper, who was a bit of a late bloomer,

down competition due to the war that created the dominance.

not coming up to the club until he was twenty five

Knowing Rickey, you know that he signed players that weren't going

to be called into military service right away. His 1944 club still had

1941 - Branch Rickey trades outfielder Ducky Medwick to the Dodgers

players who would have been stars in any era such as Musial, Marion,

for $125K. Medwick's numbers had been declining since his

Walker Cooper, Mort Cooper, Kurowski, Hopp, Lanier, Wilks and

sensational 1937 season and Rickey was always on the prowl for a

Brecheen and, obviously, were not in the military.

good deal. He also had twenty four year old Johnny Hopp waiting in the

wings. Hopp would ably fill the hole created by the Medwick trade.

1944 - The 1944 World Series is a cross town St. Louis rivalry

between the Cardinals and the Browns.

1941 - Twenty year old lefty Howie Pollet is a rookie.

It's the Brownies only World Series appearance ever.

1941 - Twenty three year old third baseman Whitey Kurowski is a rookie

1945 - The Cards win 95 games, but it's only good enough for

second place to the Cubs. St. Louis lost Musial to the military in 1945.

1941 - Twenty year old outfielder Stan the Man Musial is a rookie. He will

go on to be one of the great players of all time with the Cards.

1945 - Red Schoendienst comes up as a twenty two year old rookie.

1941 - Altho' they only finish second, St. Louis gains thirteen games in

1946 - The war ends and wholesale upgrades occur for all teams

the standings. The improvement is mainly due to a solid pitching staff.

including the Cardinals who get back Musial, Slaughter, Walker,

There's an abundance of young talent everywhere on this club.

Pollett and Dickson

1942 - The Cards win the first of their four pennants during the

1947 - Sam Breadon sells the club to Robert M Hannigan and

decade after a seven year drought. Three of the seasons result in

Fred Saigh. Breadon's health was failing, but he was also

World Series titles. The Cardinals demolish the competition

facing a player revolt as his miserliness almost caused a mass

winning 106 games

exodus to the Mexican League prior to the 1946 season. Not

to mention, without Branch Rickey around, Breadon didn't have

1943 - Branch Rickey's contract is not renewed. After over twenty years

a clue as to how to run the club successfully.and, at this point,

the Rickey - Sam Breadon relationship had become strained.

he most likely knew it.

Rickey then signed on with Brooklyn and proceeded to build the core ot

the great Dodgers post war era dynasty - a double whammy to Breadon.

1947 - Branch Rickey, now General Manager of the Dodgers,

Meahwhile, without Rickey, the Cards would sink into mediocrity.

beats out the Cardinals for the pennant

1949 - The Dodgers beat the Cardinals again for the pennant.