Roy Campanella
From BR Bullpen
Roy Campanella (Campy, Poochinella)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 5' 8", Weight 200 lb.
- Debut April 20, 1948
- Final Game September 29, 1957
- Born November 19, 1921 in Philadelphia, PA USA
- Died June 26, 1993 in Woodland Hills, CA USA
Inducted into Hall of Fame in 1969
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[edit] Biographical Information
[edit] Early career; Mackey's understudy
A three-time Most Valuable Player for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Roy Campanella is often listed as one of the three best major league catchers of all time. A high school star in Philadelphia, he was reportedly invited for a tryout for the Philadelphia Phillies before they discovered he was black. In 1937, the 15-year-old signed with the Baltimore Elite Giants, quitting high school to study catching under Hall-of-Famer Biz Mackey. Roy later credited Mackey with teaching him everything he knew about catching. He played sparingly in 1938 and hit .245 in 1939. Mackey was dealt that year to the Newark Eagles and Campy became the starter at that point. Roy hit .310 with a homer in a dramatic post-season match against Josh Gibson and the Homestead Grays; Josh clearly outperformed the youngster at the plate. Campanella played in the Puerto Rican Winter League in 1939-40 and hit .263 with 8 homers, tying for the league lead with Buck Leonard.
At age 18, Roy hit .280 with 6 HR in 50 AB, splitting catching duties with Bill Perkins. Campy emerged as a star in 1941, hitting .344 (fifth in the Negro National League), batting fifth in the order now. He started for the East in the 1941 East-West Game, going 1 for 5 with an error while hitting sixth.
[edit] Suspension and flight to Mexico
Roy hit .306 for Baltimore in 1942 but was suspended for playing in an exhibition game for the Cincinnati Buckeyes without permission. He was fined $250 by the NNL after he jumped ship and was suspended indefinitely. Campanella signed with the Monterrey Industrials and hit .296/~.367/.494 in the 20 games that year after he came south and .289/~.375/.494 in 1943 with 12 homers and 74 runs. Overall, he hit .291/~.374/.494 in the Mexican League. For comparison's sake, Gibson batted .393/~.496/.802 in Mexico in the two prior seasons.
[edit] Back to Baltimore and winter ball in three countries
After hitting .266 in the 1943-44 Cuban Winter League, Campanella rejoined Baltimore, having patched up his differences. He was the club's offensive leader, batting .350. The 22-year-old made the East team for the 1944 East-West Game, but was on the bench as Gibson started. Campanella came in as a pinch-hitter and stayed in at third base, going 1 for 2 with a run and RBI. He hit .294 that winter in the Puerto Rican Winter League. In the 1945 season, Roy hit .319 for Baltimore and also won a game as a pitcher. His 7 doubles were third in the Negro National League and his 4 homers tied for third, though he was 7 behind the leader, Gibson. In his last East-West Game, he went 2 for 5 with a run as the East's catcher and was voted as the game MVP by journalists and given the Olde Tymer A.C. Trophy. Overall, he hit .333/~.333/.333 in 12 AB in three East-West appearances. He hit a very disappointing .211 in the Venezuelan League that winter.
[edit] In the minor leagues
The veteran joined newcomer Jackie Robinson as one of the first black players signed by Branch Rickey. In 1946, Campanella and Don Newcombe integrated the New England League. Playing for the Nashua Dodgers, the backstop batted .290/~.393/.477 with 96 RBI, 16 steals, 64 walks, 75 runs, 8 triples and 13 homers. He was second to Mo Mozzali in RBI and helped Nashua to the title, winning the MVP award in the process. He played for San Juan in the Puerto Rican Winter League and only batted .222 in 45 at-bats.
In 1947, Campy batted .273/~.368/.432 with the Montreal Royals as they finished a half-game behind the pennant-winners. He was hitting .325 with 13 homers for the 1948 St. Paul Saints when he was finally called up to Brooklyn.
[edit] In the majors
Roy made the All-Star team his first eight years in the major leagues and won the MVP award three times, tying the record at the time. One of the top sluggers of the era, he finished third in the league in homers twice and was fifth once, peaking at 41 long balls. He led the National League once in RBI and was in the top five in OPS three times. He was arguably the greatest NL catcher to that point in terms of offense, with Gabby Hartnett being the closest competition. Campanella continued to display the inconsistency he displayed in winter ball, three times posting an OPS+ under 90 and twice hitting under .220 while batting .300 three times and topping a 150 OPS+ three times. In 1953, he set the MLB record for RBI by a catcher (142), since unbroken. He was a member of the famed "Boys of Summer", the 1955 Dodgers team that won the first title in the club's long history in the NL. Through 2006, he is one of only 15 major leaguers to catch three no-hitters:
- June 19, 1952 with Carl Erskine, vs. Chicago
- May 12, 1956, again with Carl Erskine, vs. the Giants
- September 25, 1956, with Sal Maglie, vs. the Phillies
He was paralyzed in a near-fatal automobile accident in 1958 that ended his career, having never played a game in the majors after age 35. Like Jackie Robinson, he played for the last Brooklyn club and never played for a Los Angeles Dodgers team.
[edit] Honors
He is highlighted in Heroes Behind the Mask and other publications as one of the top catchers of all-time.
Campanella was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1969, one of the first black inductees. He was voted into the Salon de la Fama two years later, a very odd choice. While other Negro League stars like Gibson and Monte Irvin were voted into the Salon based on one- or two- season careers, they had dominant years, whereas Campanella had merely been "good" in his one-and-a-bit seasons in Mexico.
He was recently honored by the U.S. Postal Service with a commemorative stamp.
[edit] Statistical trivia
His main teammates included Duke Snider (5852), Jackie Robinson (5369), Gil Hodges (4758), Pee Wee Reese (4385).
[edit] Sources
The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics by Pedro Treto Cisneros, The International League: Year-by-Year Statistics by Marshall Wright, 1947 Baseball Guide, Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database, Black Baseball's National Showcase by Larry Lester, The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues by John Holway, The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues by James Riley
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 8-time NL All-Star (1949-1956)
- 3-time NL MVP (1951, 1953 & 1955)
- NL RBI Leader (1953)
- 20-Home Run Seasons: 7 (1949-1953, 1955 & 1956)
- 30-Home Run Seasons: 4 (1950, 1951, 1953 & 1955)
- 40-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1953)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 3 (1951, 1953 & 1955)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 1 (1953)
- Won a World Series with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955
- Baseball Hall of Fame: Class of 1969
| NL MVP | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1951 | 1952 |
| Jim Konstanty | Roy Campanella | Hank Sauer |
| 1952 | 1953 | 1954 |
| Hank Sauer | Roy Campanella | Willie Mays |
| 1954 | 1955 | 1956 |
| Willie Mays | Roy Campanella | Don Newcombe |
[edit] Further Reading
- Roy Campanella: It's Good to Be Alive, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, NE, 1995.
- Roger Kahn: "Manchild at Fifty", in The Boys of Summer, Perennial Classics, Harper and Collins Publishers, New York, NY, 2000, pp. 355-373 (originally published in 1972).
