Muddy Ruel

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Herold Dominic Ruel

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 5' 9", Weight 150 lb.

Debut May 29, 1915
Final Game August 25, 1934
Born February 20, 1896 in St. Louis, MO USA
Died November 13, 1963 in Palo Alto, CA USA

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[edit] Biographical Information

Bing Miller, of the Philadelphia Athletics, tagged out at home plate by Washington Nationals catcher "Muddy" Ruel in 1925.

Muddy Ruel was a catcher in the major leagues for 19 years, from 1915 to 1934. After his playing days, he was general manager of the Detroit Tigers, then assistant to the commissioner of baseball, and later manager of the 1947 St. Louis Browns. A scholar with a legal degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Ruel was legal counsel for Commissioner Chandler in 1946. He was admitted to argue cases in front of the Supreme Court.

He was the catcher for the New York Yankees when Carl Mays threw the pitch that killed Ray Chapman.

Ruel's best years were in the mid 1920's. He was 11th in the MVP voting in both 1923 and 1924, and was 6th in 1927. He was on the Washington Senators teams in 1924 and 1925 that went to the World Series. He scored the winning run in Washington's only World Series championship in 1924.

He originally broke in as a 19-year-old rookie with the St. Louis Browns in 1915, the same year that George Sisler pitched 15 games as a 22-year-old rookie with the Browns. Sisler was to spend most of his playing career with the Browns, while Ruel was there in 1915, again in 1933, and then as manager in 1947.

Ruel was the farm director of the Cleveland Indians in 1951 and the Detroit Tigers from 1952 to 1954.