Shortstop, Boston
Braves
Age: 26
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 5’11” Weight: 185
Prior to 1948:
An Oklahoma
native, Dark starred in football and basketball in high school, which didn’t
field a baseball team, so he played American Legion baseball as a teen. He
enrolled at LSU in 1940, where he lettered in football, baseball, and
basketball. In 1943 with World War II well underway, Dark entered a Marine
Corps program which allowed him to stay in school for another year. The Marines
sent him to Southwestern Louisiana Institute where he continued to display his
all-around athletic prowess until his Marine training began. Once his military
commitment was completed, Dark considered his options, including an offer from pro
football’s Philadelphia Eagles, who had chosen him in the third round of the 1945
NFL draft. Preferring to play baseball he signed a $50,000 contract with the
Braves in 1946. Dark appeared in 15 games with the Braves in ’46 and hit .231
with three doubles in 13 at bats. He spent 1947 with Milwaukee of the Class AAA
American Association where he batted .303 with 49 doubles, 7 triples, 10 home
runs and 66 RBIs. Dark made the Braves for the 1948 season, initially as a
backup to veteran SS Sibby Sisti, who he replaced in the lineup in short order.
1948 Season Summary
Appeared in 137
games
SS – 115
[Bracketed
numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]
Batting
Plate
Appearances – 581 [19, tied with Bill Nicholson]
At Bats – 543 [14]
Runs – 85 [12,
tied with Stan Rojek & Tommy Holmes]
Hits – 175 [5]
Doubles – 39 [3]
Triples – 6 [14,
tied with Ed Stevens, Wally Westlake & Duke Snider]
Home Runs – 3
RBI – 48
Bases on Balls
– 24
Int. BB – N/A
Strikeouts – 36
Stolen Bases – 4
Caught Stealing
– N/A
Average - .322 [4]
OBP - .353 [18]
Slugging Pct. -
.433 [16]
Total Bases – 235
[13, tied with Stan Rojek]
GDP – 4
Hit by Pitches
– 2
Sac Hits – 10
[6, tied with Earl Torgeson]
Sac Flies – N/A
Midseason
snapshot: 2B – 14, HR - 2, RBI - 23, AVG - .333, OBP – .375
---
Most hits, game
– 4 (in 5 AB) at St. Louis Cards 7/23, (in 5 AB) vs. NY Giants 8/10
Longest hitting
streak – 23 games
Most HR, game –
1 (in 4 AB) vs. Pittsburgh 6/25, (in 3 AB) at Phila. Phillies 7/4, (in 4 AB) at
Pittsburgh 7/18
HR at home – 1
HR on road – 2
Multi-HR games
– 0
Most RBIs, game
– 3 vs. NY Giants 4/24
Pinch-hitting –
3 of 4 (.750)
Fielding
Chances – 671
Put Outs – 253
Assists – 393
Errors – 25
DP – 66
Pct. - .963
Postseason
Batting: 6 G (World Series vs. Cleveland)
PA – 25, AB –
24, R – 2, H – 4, 2B – 1, 3B – 0, HR – 0, RBI – 0, BB – 0, IBB – 0, SO – 2, SB
– 0, CS – 0, AVG - .167, OBP - .167, SLG - .208, TB – 5, GDP – 1, HBP – 0, SH –
1, SF – N/A
Awards & Honors:
MLB Rookie of
the Year: BBWAA
3rd in
NL MVP voting (174 points, 1 first place vote, 52% share)
MLB ROY Voting:
Al Dark, BosB.:
27 of 48 votes, 56% share
Gene Bearden,
Clev.: 8 votes, 17% share
Richie Ashburn,
PhilaP.: 7 votes, 15% share
Lou Brissie,
PhilaA.: 3 votes, 6% share
Billy Goodman,
BosRS.: 3 votes, 6% share
---
Braves went 91-62
to win the NL pennant by 6.5 games over the St. Louis Cardinals. They led the
NL in hits (1458), doubles (272), walks drawn (667), batting (.275), and
on-base percentage (.358). Benefiting from the arrival of newcomers like the
rookie Dark and veteran 2B Eddie Stanky, obtained from the Dodgers, as well as the pitching of Warren
Spahn and Johnny Sain, the Braves moved into the lead thanks to a hot stretch
in June and July and remained there until late August when a slump bumped them
out of first, which they regained on Sept. 2. They clinched the pennant on
Sept. 26 and lost the World Series to the Cleveland Indians, 4 games to 2.
Aftermath of ‘48:
The Braves
dropped to fourth place in 1949, although Dark had another solid season,
batting .276. He and second baseman Eddie Stanky were traded to the New York
Giants in the offseason, where Manager Leo Durocher named him team captain,
making good use of his leadership qualities. Dark hit .279 with 16 home runs
and 67 RBIs in 1950. A natural #2 hitter with speed on the basepaths, Dark was
prone to making errors in the field, although he had good range, continued to
team well with Stanky in the middle of the infield, and led NL shortstops in
assists (465) in 1951 and was named an All-Star for the first time. Dark hit
.303 with a league-leading 41 doubles, plus 14 home runs and 69 RBIs for the
Giants, who forced a season-extending playoff by tying the Brooklyn Dodgers atop
the NL standings, winning the pennant in dramatic fashion. Dark hit .417 in the
ensuing loss to the Yankees in the World Series. He remained a highly regarded
player and team leader with the Giants, who finished second in 1952 and sank to
fifth in ’53 before surging to the NL pennant in 1954. He hit .293 with 20 home
runs and 70 RBIs for the first-place club and .412 in the stunning four-game
sweep of Cleveland in the World Series. Dark suffered through an injury-plagued
season in 1955, appearing in just 115 games and batting .282 with 9 home runs
and 45 RBIs. An eight-player midseason trade in 1956 sent Dark to the St. Louis
Cardinals and he batted .275 for the year. He hit .290 for the Redbirds in 1957
and was shifted to third base in 1958, a season during which he was traded once
again, this time to the Chicago Cubs for RHP Jim Brosnan in May. He hit .295
the rest of the way for the Cubs and .264 in 1959, after which he was dealt
again, this time to the Philadelphia Phillies for outfielder Richie Ashburn.
Dark appeared in 55 games for the Phillies in 1960 before being dealt to the
Braves in June where he finished the season and his playing career as a utility
infielder, backup outfielder, and pinch-hitter. Overall for his major league
career Dark hit .289 with 2089 hits that included 358 doubles, 72 triples, and
126 home runs. He knocked in 757 runs and was a three-time All-Star, all with
the Giants. Dark didn’t stay away from
the game for long, as he was hired to manage the Giants, now in San Francisco, in
1961 guiding them to the 1962 NL pennant. Fired following a third-place finish
in 1964, he next managed the Kansas City Athletics in 1966 and part of ’67. His
next stop was the Cleveland Indians from 1968 to ’71. He returned to the
Athletics in 1974, now in Oakland and winners of two consecutive World Series
titles under Dick Williams, who had resigned due to conflicts with owner
Charlie Finley. The A’s made it three straight championships in ’74 and were
division winners under Dark in 1975, falling to Boston in the ALCS, after which
Dark was terminated by Finley. Dark next managed the San Diego Padres in 1977,
his last managerial stop. His overall record as a major league manager was 994-954
with two league pennants and a World Series title. Dark was inducted into the
LSU Athletics Hall of Fame and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.
--
Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of
the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America
(1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from
its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major
league.
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