Pee Wee Reese
From BR Bullpen
Harold Henry Reese (The Captain)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 5' 9", Weight 175 lb.
- Debut April 23, 1940
- Final Game September 26, 1958
- Born July 23, 1918 in Ekron, KY USA
- Died August 14, 1999 in Louisville, KY USA
Inducted into Hall of Fame in 1984.
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[edit] Biographical Information
"He was the heart and soul of the 'Boys of Summer'." - Vin Scully
Pee Wee Reese played sixteen years in the major leagues, missing three full years to World War II. He was in the top ten in MVP voting eight different times, appeared in seven World Series and was in ten All-Star games. His entire major league career was with the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers.
A versatile player, he led the league in a variety of categories: walks in 1947, runs scored in 1949, stolen bases in 1952, and sacrifice hits in 1953. He was also second in triples in 1946 and was in the top ten in doubles three times. On the pennant-winning 1947 Dodgers, he and Jackie Robinson tied for the team lead in homers with 12. He played mostly in the days before Gold Gloves, but his range factors and fielding percentages during most of his career were good.
He entered the Navy in January 1943 and was discharged in November 1945.
After his playing career ended, Reese was a Los Angeles Dodgers coach in 1959 and a Cincinnati Reds broadcaster in 1969 and 1970. He was also a broadcaster for NBC's Game of the Week in the 1960's. Later he became an executive with Hillerich & Bradsby, the bat company.
"Pee Wee is the team captain and he plays the part all out. Especially in the dressing room, he knows where to be and what to say at all times." Jackie Robinson, 1952.
"If I had my career to play over, one thing I'd do differently is swing more. Those 1,200 walks I got.....nobody remembers them." - Pee Wee Reese
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 10-time NL All-Star (1942 & 1946-1954)
- NL Runs Scored Leader (1949)
- NL Bases on Balls Leader (1947)
- NL Stolen Bases Leader (1952)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 2 (1949 & 1953)
- Won a World Series with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955
- Baseball Hall of Fame: Class of 1984
[edit] Further Reading
- Roger Kahn: "A Shortstop in Kentucky", in The Boys of Summer, Perennial Classics, Harper and Collins Publishers, New York, NY, 2000, pp. 310-326 (originally published in 1972).
