MVP Profile: Dizzy Dean, 1934

Pitcher, St. Louis Cardinals

Age:  24

3^rd season with Cardinals

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’2”    Weight: 182

Prior to 1934:

A native of Arkansas, Jay (which he later changed to Jerome) Hanna Dean was raised in a family of migrant farmers whose regular moving kept him from obtaining much steady formal schooling. Dean became schooled in hard work picking cotton and playing baseball. While still underage he joined the Army in 1926 and, playing barracks league baseball, he put his outstanding fastball, which he called “fogger” to good use and also developed a fine curve. He also picked up the nickname “Dizzy”. Upon leaving the Army, Dean joined the San Antonio Public Service Corp. where he was a meter reader and pitcher for the company’s team. Signed by a scout for the Cardinals for $100 per month, he was first assigned to St. Joseph of the Class A Western League in 1930 where he went 17-8 with a 3.69 ERA before being promoted to the Houston Buffaloes of the Class A Texas League, where he produced an 8-2 record with a 2.86 ERA. Called up to the Cardinals in late September, Dean pitched a complete game victory in his lone start for the NL pennant-winning club. Brash and carefree, Dean was returned to Houston in 1931 and went 26-10 with a 1.57 ERA. He was promoted to the Cardinals to stay in 1932, earning a spot in the rotation and posting an 18-15 record with a 3.30 ERA and a league-leading 191 strikeouts. The Cards contended in 1933 and finished fifth, and Dean went 20-18 and topped the NL with 26 complete games and 199 strikeouts (including 17 in one game) to go with his 3.04 ERA. For 1934 he was joined in the rotation by his brother Paul, a righthander and quieter person who was ironically tagged with the nickname “Daffy”.

1934 Season Summary

Appeared in 51 games

P – 50, PR – 1

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 50 [2, tied with Snipe Hansen]

Games Started – 33 [7]

Complete Games – 24 [2]

Wins – 30 [1]

Losses – 7

PCT - .811 [1]

Saves – 7 [2, tied with Dolf Luque]

Shutouts – 7 [1]

Innings Pitched – 311.2 [3]

Hits – 288 [5, tied with Benny Frey]

Runs – 110 [15]

Earned Runs – 92 [15]

Home Runs – 14 [13, tied with four others]

Bases on Balls – 75 [7]

Strikeouts – 195 [1]

ERA – 2.66 [2]

Hit Batters – 6 [5, tied with Ed Holley & Roy Parmelee]

Balks – 0

Wild Pitches – 2

League-leading wins were +7 ahead of runner-up Hal Schumacher

League-leading winning percentage was +.097 ahead of runner-up Waite Hoyt

League-leading shutouts were +2 ahead of runners-up Carl Hubbell & Paul Dean

League-leading strikeouts were +11 ahead of runner-up Van Lingle Mungo

Midseason Snapshot: 14-3, ERA - 5.53, SO - 90 in 155.2 IP

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Most strikeouts, game – 10 (in 9 IP) vs. Cincinnati 7/8

10+ strikeout games – 1

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 3 (in 9 IP) at Brooklyn 9/5, (in 9 IP) at Brooklyn 9/21

Batting

PA – 126, AB – 118, R – 15, H – 29, 2B – 3, 3B – 1, HR – 2, RBI – 9, BB – 1, SO – 15, SB – 1, CS – N/A, AVG - .246, GDP – 5, HBP – 0, SH – 7, SF – N/A

Fielding

Chances - 66

Put Outs – 18

Assists – 46

Errors – 2

DP – 1

Pct. - .970

Postseason Pitching: (World Series vs. Detroit)

G – 3 GS – 3

CG – 2, Record – 2-1, PCT – .667, SV – 0, ShO – 1, IP – 26, H – 20, R – 6, ER – 5, HR – 2, BB – 5, SO – 17, ERA – 1.73, HB – 1, BLK – 0, WP – 0

Awards & Honors:

NL MVP:BBWAA

All-Star

Top 5 in NL MVP Voting:

Dizzy Dean, StLC.: 78 pts. – 98% share

Paul Waner, Pitt.: 50 pts. – 63% share

Jo-Jo Moore, NYG: 42 pts. – 53% share

Travis Jackson, NYG.: 39 pts. – 49% share

Mel Ott, NYG: 37 pts. – 46% share

Cardinals went 95-58 to win the NL pennant by two games over the New York Giants. The pitching staff led the league in complete games (78), shutouts (15) and strikeouts (689). The “Gas House Gang” trailed the Giants throughout the summer, not helped when the Dean brothers (who ended up winning 49 games) briefly quit the team after being fined for insubordination. A 13-2 finish allowed them to catch and surpass the Giants. Won World Series over the Detroit Tigers, 4 games to 3 as the Dean brothers won two games apiece. The Cardinals had a scare in Game 4 when Dizzy was knocked unconscious by a thrown ball while pinch running.

Aftermath of ‘34:

A natural public speaker and raconteur, Dean was not shy about talking off-the-cuff to sportswriters and presenting himself to the public. In the offseason he went barnstorming several times with a group of players that included Negro League stars such as RHP Satchel Paige, whose abilities Dean much admired. Following up on his big 1934 season, Dean produced a 28-12 record in 1935 while leading the NL in complete games (29), innings pitched (325.1) and strikeouts (190), to go along with a 3.04 ERA. He placed second in league MVP voting while the Cardinals finished second in the standings, four games out of first place. Dean had another strong season in 1936, going 24-13 with a 3.17 ERA and 195 strikeouts, and again leading the league in complete games (28) and innings pitched (315). He started well in 1937 and was selected to start the All-Star Game for the NL. In the third inning Cleveland outfielder Earl Averill hit a line drive that broke a toe on Dean’s left foot that forced him out of the lineup for several weeks. When he returned, he changed his pitching motion, which resulted in a sore arm and cost him his fastball and effectiveness. He finished the season with a 13-10 record and 2.69 ERA. In the offseason Dean was dealt to the Chicago Cubs for three players and cash. Used as a spot starter and relying on his curve and changeup, he was 7-1 with a 1.81 ERA for the pennant-winning Cubs. In 1939 he was 6-4 with a 3.36 ERA in 19 games and spent some time in the minors in 1940 trying to develop a new sidearm motion. With the Cubs he was ineffective and finished at 3-3 with a 5.17 ERA, after which he retired at age 30. He was lured out of retirement for one game, the 1947 season finale, by the St. Louis Browns, and pitched four shutout innings. For his all-too-brief career, Dean produced a 150-83 record with a 3.02 ERA, 154 complete games, and 26 shutouts along with 1163 strikeouts over 1967.1 innings pitched. He led the NL in strikeouts in four consecutive seasons. With the Cardinals he was 134-75 with a 2.99 ERA and 1095 strikeouts over 1737.1 innings. In five World Series games he had a 2-2 record with a 2.88 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 34.1 innings. Dean was a four-time All-Star who finished in the top two in NL MVP voting on three occasions, with the one win. The Cardinals retired his #17 and he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953. He was later elected to the Cardinals Hall of Fame in its inaugural class. Following his playing career, Dean became a radio broadcaster, initially for St. Louis Cardinals and Browns games. Popular with the public, he drew the ire of English teachers for his poor grammar and colloquial speech. Moving on to television in the 1950s he was color commentator for the Saturday Game of the Week, first on ABC and later CBS. Dean died in 1974 at the age of 64.

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MVP Profiles feature players in the National or American leagues who were winners of the Chalmers Award (1911-14), League Award (1922-29), or Baseball Writers’ Association of America Award (1931 to present) as Most Valuable Player.