Wally Schang
From BR Bullpen
Walter Henry Schang
- Bats Both, Throws Right
- Height 5' 10", Weight 180 lb.
- Debut May 9, 1913
- Final Game June 22, 1931
- Born August 22, 1889 in South Wales, NY USA
- Died March 6, 1965 in St.Louis, MO USA
Contents |
[edit] Biographical Information
"Wally Schang, the kid catcher of the Athletics, will go down into history as the sensation of the 1913 world's series." - from an article in the November 2, 1913 New York Times
Wally Schang, who played 19 years in the big leagues, was in six World Series and five times placed in the top 20 in MVP voting. He was often among the leaders in on-base percentage and hit-by-pitch. He was known as both a good hitter and also a good defensive catcher.
Schang continued to play in the minors as a player-manager for many years after his major league career.
Wally broke into the majors originally with the 1913 Philadelphia Athletics at the time of the $100,000 infield. In the 1913 World Series Schang slugged .714. Spending five years with the A's, he played catcher and also third base and outfield while manager Connie Mack dismantled the team, which tumbled from first to last. During most of his time with the A's, Schang was a strong hitter, usually posting OPS+ scores close to 140.
After the 1917 season, Schang was traded to the Boston Red Sox. He played catcher and infield on a team that also featured Babe Ruth as a pitcher and which won the 1918 World Series. Schang hit .444 in the Series. With the Red Sox from 1918 to 1920, Schang twice in that period had OPS+ scores over 130.
Schang came to the New York Yankees a year after Ruth did, and he spent five years with them. At this point past the age of 30, he didn't hit as well as before, but was above average as a hitter most of his time with the Yanks and in two of the three World Series in which he appeared with the team. His last year with them was Lou Gehrig's rookie year.
By 1926, Schang was now 36 years old. The Yanks traded him to the St. Louis Browns and he had one more excellent year, hitting .330 and slugging over .500. The next two years were also well above average, but after his performance dropped a bit in 1929 at age 39, he was traded. He returned to the A's, at age 40, a team which was still managed by Connie Mack. After a year with the A's he went to the 1931 Detroit Tigers for his last major league season. He was seven years older than the Tigers' player-manager, Bucky Harris.
Although the large majority of his major league games were spent at catcher (1,435 games out of 1,663 total), Schang is listed as the regular third baseman for the 1915 Athletics and a regular outfielder for the 1916 Athletics, years in which he also played some catcher.
After his playing career ended, Schang was a Cleveland Indians coach from 1936 to 1938. He is the brother of Bobby Schang.
After baseball he ran a farm for 20 years.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- Won four World Series with the Philadelphia Athletics (1913 & 1930; he did not play in the 1930 World Series), the Boston Red Sox (1918) and the New York Yankees (1923).
[edit] Year-by-Year Managerial Record
| Year | Team | League | Record | Finish | Organization | Playoffs | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1934 | Joplin Miners | Western Association | 66-68 | 3rd | Boston Red Sox | ||
| 1935 | Muskogee Tigers | Western Association | 60-71 | 4th | none | ||
| 1939 | Ottawa Senators | Canadian-American League | 55-69 | 6th | none | ||
| 1940 | Trois-Rivières Renards | Quebec Provincial League | 37-43 | 4th | none | League Champs | |
| 1941 | Trois-Rivières Renards | Canadian-American League | -- | none | -- | replaced by Charlie Small | |
| 1942 | Owensboro Oilers | KITTY League | 16-32 | 5th | Boston Red Sox | League disbanded June 19 | |
| Augusta Tigers | South Atlantic League | 8th | New York Yankees | replaced Alton Biggs | |||
| 1943 | Utica Braves | Eastern League | 37-101 | 8th | Philadelphia Phillies | ||
| 1945 | Marion Cardinals | Ohio State League | 5th | St. Louis Cardinals | replaced Grover Hartley | ||
| 1946 | Marion Cardinals | Ohio State League | -- | St. Louis Cardinals | replaced by Bob Kline |
