Position: Outfielder; First baseman
Teams:
Following his 1938 signing with the Cardinals, Musial fashioned an impressive three-year minor-league pitching career. He was 18-5 at Daytona Beach in the Florida State League in 1940. Musial was also a part-time outfielder, batting .311. In late August, he injured his left shoulder while attempting to make a catch. By spring training 1941, the injury still had not healed. Kerr encouraged Stan to make the full transition to the outfield. In 87 games in the Western Association, Musial batted .379 with a league-leading 26 home runs. By season’s end he was called up to St. Louis. Musial maintained a lifetime friendship with Kerr, his baseball mentor. Musial purchased Kerr a home in Houston as a retirement gift.
to the Outfield
Assigned to
In 1942, the emerging Cardinal powerhouse won the first of three straight pennants and the World Series as the rookie Musial hit .315. In 1943, he won his first MVP Award, leading the league with a .357 batting average, 220 base hits, 48 doubles, and 20 triples. He again led the NL in hits and doubles in 1944.
Musial had good home run power, terrific doubles power, and for his time, was a spectacular triples hitter. He was terrifically fast -- one of his nicknames was “The Donora Greyhound.” He was also a fine fielder in left and later as a first baseman. Though he never led the league in homers, he won six slugging titles and in 1954 hit five round-trippers in a doubleheader.
His unique corkscrew batting stance, described by Ted Lyons as “like a kid peeking around the corner to see if the cops are coming,” resulted in seven batting crowns. He posted a lifetime .416 on-base average, scoring at least 105 runs in 11 straight seasons.
After leaving the Navy in 1945, Stan the Man came back to win his second MVP Award in 1946 as the Cards won another world championship. He led the league with a .365 batting average, 50 doubles, 20 triples, and 124 runs scored. He won his third Most Valuable Player trophy in 1948. He missed the Triple Crown by a single home run, hitting a career-high 39 to Johnny Mize’s and Ralph Kiner’s 40. He had a .376 average (the NL’s highest since Bill Terry hit .401 in 1930), 230 base hits, 46 doubles, 18 triples, 131 RBI, and 135 runs scored, all of which led the National League.
![]() Stan Musial clubbed 475 career regular-season home runs. |
But while Stan maintained his excellence, the St. Louis Cardinals from 1953 to 1959 would get no closer than fourth place or 17 games out at the end. Musial hit .330 in 1962, when he was 42 years old. In his final season, 1963, he hit a home run in his first at bat after becoming a grandfather. Musial was voted the Player of the Decade in 1956 for the period from 1946 to 1955. Stan the Man was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1969.
Here are Stan Musial's major league totals:
BA | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB |
.331 | 3,026 | 10,972 | 1,949 | 3,630 | 725 | 177 | 475 | 1,951 | 78 |
See more information on the Baseball Hall of Fame:
- Baseball Hall of Fame Overview
- History of the Baseball Hall of Fame
- How a Person is Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
- List of Baseball Hall of Fame Members
- Cooperstown Lodging
- Restaurants in Cooperstown
- Baseball Hall of Fame Managers
- Baseball Hall of Fame Umpires
- Negro Leagues Hall of Fame Members
See the players in the Baseball Hall of Fame by position:
Catchers | Second Basemen | Shortstops | Pitchers |
First Basemen | Third Basemen | Outfielders |
See the members of the Baseball Hall of Fame by team:
Advertisement