Stan Musial

Stan Musial

Birthdate	11/21/1920
Death Date	1/19/2013
Debut Year	1941
Year of Induction	1969
Teams	Cardinals
Positions	Center Field, First Base, Left Field, Right Field

Originally signed as a pitcher, Musial injured his throwing shoulder. Stan gave up pitching and went on to become one of the greatest hitters ever.

After Musial's first year there was a contentious contract negotiation between Musial and the Cardinals

Stan Musial began his big league career with a 12-game cup of coffee with the St. Louis. After hitting .426 with a 179 OPS+ in the abbreviated stint, Musial proved himself in 1942. His .315/.397/.490 slash line earned him votes in MVP balloting and foreshadowed his future greatness. By season’

The 22-year old Musial rejected the initial offer; this is Breadon's response.

Stan Musial felt the salary offer was not enough and sent the contract back unsigned. A clearly miffed Cardinal owner Sam Breadon scolds Musial in this correspondence. “We have had great outfielders on our ball club, including Hafey, Medwick, Terry Moore, and Slaughter, and none of them in their s

In page 2 of the letter, Breadon urges young Musial to "work together"

In closing the letter, Sam Breadon writes, “Baseball is your business, as well as mine, and we must work together. The club is taking all the chances of a very uncertain season, and the players must cooperate or there will be no season.” Breadon then tells Musial he’s returning the contract an

Breadon's third letter scolds young Musial, the future 24X All Star, 7X batting champ, and 3X MVP

After Musial again rejected the owner’s second proposal, Sam Breadon called the response, “a disappointment”. He tells Musial, “it is impossible to consider the sum you ask for 1943,” and proceeds to blast the young star. “You will have no more to do this year than you had last year. I t

Musial led the NL in 12 offensive categories to earn the 1946 MVP and Sid Mercer Awards

Stan Musial earned the second of his three NL MVP nods in 1946. That year he topped NL batters in hits, doubles, triples, average, slugging percentage, and total bases. The effort earned Musial 22 of the 24 first-place votes in the MVP race. In December that year Musial received this telegram inviti

Musial picked up both the MVP and Sid Mercer Awards at the Waldorf Hotel in NYC

In the photo shown here a smiling Cardinals skipper Eddie Dyer holds Musial close as the two meet in New York. Dyer was on hand for the Winter Meetings; Musial to pick up the award mentioned in the telegram in the previous image. A 24-time All Star and twice an MVP, Musial placed his autograph over

Stan Musial wrote a get well letter to Herb Score just eight days after the hurler is hit by the comebacker

Herb Score accomplished a great deal in his first two big league seasons. The Cleveland pitcher earned the Rookie of the Year Award in 1955, leading the league in strikeouts and making the All Star team. The following season he was even better. Score was again an All Star, once more pacing the AL in

Musial retired after the 1963 season and became Consultant to President LBJ on Physical Fitness

Stan Musial remained in the public eye after his retirement as a big league baseball player. On February 26, 1964 he was sworn in as a Consultant to the President on Physical Fitness for Lyndon Baines Johnson. Twenty-nine days letter, Musial signed this letter on White House letterhead to a man who

Stan Musial got sworn in at the White House then posed for this picture with the president

The same day Stan Musial was sworn into his post as Consultant to the President on Physical Fitness he presented Lyndon Johnson with a personalized photograph. One has to wonder where that photo is now. A smiling LBJ is shown here with Musial as the Cardinals great gives him the picture. Many presid

As Cards GM, Musial was congratulated by Bosox owner Tom Yawkey after 1967 World Series

When the Red Sox won Game 6 of the 1967 World Series agains the Cardinals, the headlines in Boston screamed, “Lonborg and Champagne!”. With Cy Young Award winner Jim Lonborg scheduled to pitch the deciding Game 7, the city was sure the Red Sox would capture the championship. After all, Lonborg

"The Man" received congrats from Commissioner William "Spike" Eckert on Stan Musial Day

In 1968 the Cardinals held “Stan Musial Day” to honor the St. Louis Legend. Baseball luminaries showed up in force to honor one of the game’s all-time greats. On hand was the Commissioner of Baseball Spike Eckert. Only three commissioners were employed before the owners tabbed Ec

Musial made yearly visits to Cooperstown for the Hall of Fame induction weekend

In the collection is this letter from Baseball Commissioner Peter Ueberroth to inner-circle Hall of Famer Stan Musial. Dated July 28, 1987, the letter was written just after induction weekend in Cooperstown. Ueberroth writes, “Dear Stan, Another great weekend in Cooperstown. Thanks for your contin

July 20th, 2017 Leave a comment

World Series championships are won on the field, not in the newspapers. In 1967 the press might’ve given the Cardinals extra motivation in their epic seven-game battle against the Red Sox. Boston wins the pennant on the last day Boston had to grind it out just to get to the postseason. The battle for supremacy in the American League came down to the last day of the regular season. Boston and second-place Detroit were separated by just a half-game. The Tigers had a doubleheader at home against the Angels. The Red Sox played the Twins at Fenway Park. Boston turned to ace Jim Lonborg for the regular season finale. The 1967 Cy Young Award winner, Gentleman Jim responded with a gutty performance. On three days rest he went the distance allowing one earned run before the sellout crowd at Fenway. The October 1st contest was his 15th complete game of the season. The Tigers needed a sweep of California. Detroit won the first game 6-4 but couldn’t contain the Angels in the second, losing 8-5. With the Detroit loss, Boston earned a berth to the World Series against the National Champion St. Louis Cardinals. The World Series begins On only […]

In the collection:

After Musial's first year there was a contentious contract negotiation between Musial and the Cardinals

The 22-year old Musial rejected the initial offer; this is Breadon's response.

In page 2 of the letter, Breadon urges young Musial to "work together"

Breadon's third letter scolds young Musial, the future 24X All Star, 7X batting champ, and 3X MVP

Musial led the NL in 12 offensive categories to earn the 1946 MVP and Sid Mercer Awards

Musial picked up both the MVP and Sid Mercer Awards at the Waldorf Hotel in NYC

Stan Musial wrote a get well letter to Herb Score just eight days after the hurler is hit by the comebacker

Musial retired after the 1963 season and became Consultant to President LBJ on Physical Fitness

Stan Musial got sworn in at the White House then posed for this picture with the president

As Cards GM, Musial was congratulated by Bosox owner Tom Yawkey after 1967 World Series

"The Man" received congrats from Commissioner William "Spike" Eckert on Stan Musial Day

Musial made yearly visits to Cooperstown for the Hall of Fame induction weekend

A Story about Stan Musial

There was no champagne for Red Sox, Lonborg in ‘67

July 20th, 2017 Leave a comment

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