Al Dark

Positions: Shortstop and Third Baseman
Bats: Right • Throws: Right
5-11, 185lb (180cm, 83kg)
Born: January 7, 1922 in Comanche, OK
Died: November 13, 2014 in Easley, SC
Buried: Robinson Memorial Gardens, Easley, SC
High School: Lake Charles HS (Lake Charles, LA)
Schools: University of Louisiana at Lafayette (Lafayette, LA), Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, LA)
Debut: July 14, 1946 (10,165th in major league history)
vs. PIT 0 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Last Game: October 2, 1960
vs. PIT 5 AB, 1 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Full Name: Alvin Ralph Dark
Nicknames: Blackie or The Swamp Fox
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1946

Yogi Berra
Ralph Kiner
Alvin Dark
Carl Furillo
Bobby Thomson
Joe Garagiola
Ellis Kinder
Vic Raschi
Sherm Lollar

All-Time Teammate Team

Coming Soon

Notable Events and Chronology

July 9, 1948

Johnny Sain becomes the National League’s first 11-game winner

December 25, 1948

Major League Baseball Season Recap 1948

December 14, 1949

In a major trade, the New York Giants get Alvin Dark and Eddie Stanky from the Boston Braves in a swap for Willard Marshall, Sid Gordon, Buddy Kerr and Sam Webb.

September 29, 1954

Willie Mays making a spectacular over-the-shoulder grab of a ball hit to deep to center field & Dusty Rhodes becomes the second player in World Series history to end a game with a homer

September 30, 1954

Dusty Rhodes of the New York Giants rounds first base after hitting a home run during the seventh inning of the second game of the 1954 World Series.

Gaints take game 2 of Series behind Johnny Antonelli and Dusty Rhodes

October 1, 1954

June 2, 1962 - Willie Mays in action as the Giants take on the Mets in a DH at the Polo Grounds.

Giants go up 3 games to 0 over the Indians 1954 World Series Full Radio Broadcast

September 19, 1956

For the third time in his career, P Don Newcombe hits two home runs in one game, in a 17 – 2 laugher.

January 11, 1960

The Phillies send fan-favorite Richie Ashburn to the Cubs in exchange for infielders Alvin Dark and Jim Woods

October 31, 1960

The Giants trade infielder Andre Rodgers to Milwaukee for Alvin Dark

October 2, 1962

Dodgers walkoff with a game 2 Playoff Game win over Giants

May 22, 1963

Cepeda files libel lawsuit vs Look Magazine

September 15, 1963

Jesus, Matty, and Felipe Alou Make History: All three brothers played in the same outfield on September 15, 17 & 22, 1963.

the three Alou brothers – Felipe, Jesus, and Matty – play in the San Francisco Giants’ outfield at the same time

August 18, 1967

Charles Finley Biography flamboyant, innovative, and controversial

Charlie Finley suspends pitcher Lew Krausse for “conduct unbecoming a major leaguer.”

August 20, 1967

Kansas City A’s owner Charlie Finley fires manager Alvin Dark

September 15, 1975

Mike Vail extends his hitting streak to a rookie-record 23 straight games

March 21, 1978

The San Diego Padres fire manager Alvin Dark, replacing him with pitching coach Roger Craig. Dark becomes the second manager ever fired during spring training. Phil Cavarretta, fired by the Chicago Cubs in 1954, was the other.

Biography

In 1969 fans chose Alvin Dark as the top shortstop in Giants’ history. He won the 1948 Rookie of the Year award, hit .300 four times, led the NL in doubles once, led league shortstops three times each in putouts and double plays, and hit 20 or more home runs and scored over 100 runs twice each. Dark’s single in the ninth inning of the third 1951 NL playoff game started the rally that culminated in Bobby Thomson’s famous pennant-winning homer. As a manager, Dark won the 1962 NL pennant for San Francisco and the 1974 World Championship with Oakland. While leading San Francisco, he once tore off a finger at the joint throwing a metal chair after a loss. After finding religion, his calmer personality enabled him to work two tours for A’s owner Charlie Finley.@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@

Factoids, Quotes, Milestones and Odd Facts

Played For
Boston Braves (1946-1949)
New York Giants (1950-1956)
St. Louis Cardinals (1956-1958)
Chicago Cubs (1958-1959)
Philadelphia Phillies (1960)
Milwaukee Braves (1960)

Managed
San Francisco Giants (1961-1964)
Kansas City Athletics (1966-1967)
Cleveland Indians (1968-1971)
Oakland Athletics (1974-1975)
San Diego Padres (1977)

Awards and Honors
1948 ML Rookie of the Year

All-Star Selections

Post-Season Appearances
1948 World Series
1951 World Series
1954 World Series

Hitting Streaks
23 games (1948)
22 games (1952)

Quotes About Dark
“Alvin Dark, the Giant manager, took batting practice with his players, slapping the ball about the park just as he had done for ten years as an active player. Dark was a ‘scientific’ hitter who always studied a pitched ball carefully, measuring its plateward movement with delicate optical precision, and striking at it with calculated force. At least 70 percent of the time all this concentrated coordination netted him a big, fat A.B. and a trip back to the dugout. The frustration tore at his soul, and Alvin, who eschews profanity, often released his pent-up self-torment by slinging his batting helmet around the dugout.” — from Jim Brosnan‘s The Pennant Race, his diary of the 1961 season.

All-Star Selections
1951 NL
1952 NL
1954 NL

Other Resources & Links