Red Schoendienst Stats & Facts
Red Schoendienst Essentials
Positions: Second Baseman and Leftfielder
Bats: Both • Throws: Right
6-0, 170lb (183cm, 77kg)
Born: February 2, 1923 in Germantown, IL us
Died: June 6, 2018 in Town and Country, MO
Buried: Resurrection Cemetery, St. Louis, MO
Debut: April 17, 1945 (7,703rd in MLB history)
vs. CHC 4 AB, 1 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Last Game: July 7, 1963
vs. SFG 1 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1989. (Voted by Veteran’s Committee)
View Red Schoendienst’s Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos).
Full Name: Albert Fred Schoendienst
Red Schoendienst Baseball Reference Page
Pronunciation: \SHANE-deenst\
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1945
Red Schoendienst
Whitey Lockman
Del Rice
Billy Pierce
Art Houtteman
Sal Maglie
Joe Astroth
Herm Wehmeier
Pete Gray
All-Time Teammate Team
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Notable Events and Chronology for Red Schoendienst Career
Although he suffered a severe eye injury in the Civilian Conservation Corps, Schoendienst signed a minor league contract with the Cardinals for $75 a month in 1942. At Rochester the following season, he was named International League MVP. After spending most of 1944 in the army, he was discharged early in 1945 because of eye problems and an injured shoulder, yet he made the Cardinals as a starting left fielder a few months later. He finished the season with a NL-high 26 stolen bases.
When Lou Klein jumped to the Mexican League in 1946, Schoendienst moved to second base, and led NL second basemen in fielding average for the first of seven seasons. With sure hands and quick reflexes, he handled 320 consecutive chances without an error in 1950. He set a NL record in 1956 with a .9934 fielding average at 2B, eclipsed 30 years later by Ryne Sandberg.
Schoendienst was one of the best switch-hitters of his day. He led the league in at-bats in 1947 and again in ’50, when he also led in doubles. In the 1950 All-Star Game, he hit a dramatic 14th-inning home run to win it for the NL. He batted .342 to finish second behind Carl Furillo in the 1953 NL batting race.
Schoendienst was sent to the Giants as part of a multi-player deal on June 14, 1956. A year and a day later, he was traded to the Braves, and led the NL with 200 hits. A key component of Milwaukee’s consecutive pennant-winners, he played 106 games in 1958 despite bruised ribs, a broken finger, and pleurisy. Tuberculosis cost him part of a lung in 1959, causing him to miss all but five games of the season. His struggle to come back drew national attention. He returned to the Cardinals in 1961, and in 1962 led the league with 22 pinch hits in 72 attempts. He was a .303 career pinch hitter.
A Cardinal coach under Johnny Keane, Schoendienst succeeded him in 1965, beginning the longest managerial tenure in club history. Under his direction, St. Louis won pennants in 1967 and 1968, and defeated the the Red Sox in the ’67 World Series. Friendly and popular, he had an easy-going managerial style. Fired in 1976 after 12 years at the helm, he spent two years coaching for the A’s before returning in that capacity to the Cardinals in 1979. He again served as Cardinal manager for six weeks in 1980 as Whitey Herzog temporarily left the dugout to become general manager.
One of the most popular figures in St. Louis baseball history, Red Schoendienst was in a Cardinals' uniform in seven decades, starting during World War II. As a player, he was a gritty second baseman with a strong arm and a good bat. He overcame great adversity when he rebounded from tuberculosis in 1960, after the illness forced him to miss all but five games the previous season. As a manager, Schoendienst led the Redbirds to two World Series and one World Series title, skippering the team in four different decades. His 14th-inning home run won the 1950 All-Star Game for the National League. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1989. Teams Red Schoendienst Played For
St. Louis Cardinals (1945-1956)
New York Giants (1956-1957)
Milwaukee Braves (1957-1960)
St. Louis Cardinals (1961-1963)
Teams Red Schoendienst Managed
St. Louis Cardinals (1965-1990)
Where does Red Schoendienst ra
Factoids, Quotes, Milestones and Odd Facts
Best Season: 1953
Schoendienst was in his ninth year with the Cardinals, and he finished second in the NL batting race, hitting .342 to Carl Furillo’s .344. He scored 107 runs, collected 193 hits, 35 doubles, five triples and 60 walks. He drove in 79 runs from the #2 spot in the order and set a career-high with 15 home runs. He was elected to the All-Star team for the seventh time.
Where He Played
Led NL second basemen in fielding seven times, and in 1956 his .9934 fielding average set a record. In 1950, Schoendienst went 57 straight games without an error, and 323 chances – a record.
Post-Season Appearances
1946 World Series
1957 World Series
1958 World Series
Notes
Was third in 1957 NL MVP voting, behind Hank Aaron and Stan Musial… Schoendienst was a .303 batter as a pinch-hitter over his career. His lifetime batting average was .289.
Hitting Streaks
28 games (1954)
23 games (1957)
All-Star Selections
1946 NL
1948 NL
1949 NL
1950 NL
1951 NL
1952 NL
1953 NL
1954 NL
1955 NL
1957 NL
Replaced
Emil Verban
Replaced By
Chuck Cottier, Julian Javier
Best Strength as a Player
Range at second base, and he was also excellent at the hit-and-run. He was a prototypical #2 hitter.
Largest Weakness as a Player
He had very little home run power, though for some reason he belted 15 longballs in 1953, which was more than twice as many as he had hit before that. It was his finest offensive season.
Other Resources & Links
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