Dixie Walker
From BR Bullpen
Fred Walker (The Peoples Cherce)
- Bats Left, Throws Right
- Height 6' 1", Weight 175 lb.
- Debut April 28, 1931
- Final Game September 22, 1949
- Born September 24, 1910 in Villa Rica, GA USA
- Died May 17, 1982 in Birmingham, AL USA
[edit] Biographical Information
"It wasn’t easy for me to accept Jackie (Robinson) when he came up. But he and I were shaking hands at the end." - Dixie Walker
Dixie Walker played eighteen seasons in the major leagues with a lifetime average of .306. He led the 1944 National League in batting average and the 1945 National League in RBI. He gets 126 points on the Gray Ink method of appraising ballplayers, compared to 144 for the average Hall of Famer.
He was the son of Ewart "Dixie" Walker, brother of "Harry the Hat" Walker, and nephew of Ernie Walker. Until the Hairstons arrived, the Walkers were the only set of major-leaguers to have two generations in a row of brothers.
He was the only player to be a teammate of arguably the two most historically important baseball players. Walker played on the New York Yankees in 1931, 1933 and 1934 with Babe Ruth and on the 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers with Jackie Robinson.
Walker's own standing in baseball history suffered because he was involved in the efforts of several Dodgers to block Robinson from joining Brooklyn and breaking the color barrier. Although this is a large part of what people remember about Walker, it has perhaps been overstated. An Article entitled Jackie Robinson and Dixie Walker points out that Walker wasn't in much of a position to be the leader of a movement against Robinson, and once Robinson proved himself a top player and leader, Walker changed his mind about Robinson.
Walker played in the minors from 1928-32 as well as 1935 and 1950, with an overall batting average of .329. He also managed ten seasons in the minors, including as a player-manager in 1950. In 1947 he was named as part of the inaugural class of the International League Hall of Fame.
After his playing career ended, Walker was a coach with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1953 and again when his brother managed the club in 1955. In both cases, he started the season on the coaching staff, but was later sent to manage one of the team's top farm clubs in mid-season; in 1955, he actually replaced his brother Harry as manager of the Rochester Red Wings, following a brief interim by Lou Kahn. He later was a member of the Milwaukee Braves staff from 1963 to 1965. He was a scout for the Braves before and after that, from 1960 to 1962 and from 1966 to 1968.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 5-time NL All-Star (1943-1947)
- NL Batting Average Leader (1944)
- AL Triples Leader (1937)
- NL RBI Leader (1945)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 2 (1945 & 1946)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 2 (1937 & 1945)
[edit] Year-by-Year Managerial Record
| Year | Team | League | Record | Finish | Organization | Playoffs | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Atlanta Crackers | Southern Association | 92-59 | 1st | Boston Braves | Lost League Finals | |
| 1951 | Atlanta Crackers | Southern Association | 6th | Boston Braves | replaced by Whit Wyatt from June 30 to July 29 | ||
| 1952 | Atlanta Crackers | Southern Association | 82-72 | 2nd | Boston Braves | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1953 | Houston Buffaloes | Texas League | 6th | St. Louis Cardinals | replaced Al Hollingsworth | ||
| 1954 | Houston Buffaloes | Texas League | 89-72 | 2nd | St. Louis Cardinals | League Champs | |
| 1955 | Rochester Red Wings | International League | 4th | St. Louis Cardinals | League Champs | replaced Lou Kahn | |
| 1956 | Rochester Red Wings | International League | 83-67 | 2nd | St. Louis Cardinals | League Champs | |
| 1957 | Toronto Maple Leafs | International League | 88-65 | 1st | none | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1958 | Toronto Maple Leafs | International League | 87-65 | 2nd | none | Lost League Finals | |
| 1959 | Toronto Maple Leafs | International League | 65-81 | -- | none | -- | replaced by Lou Kahn (4-4) August 30 |
