Highlighted Year: Ernie Banks, 1962

First Baseman, Chicago Cubs

Age: 31

9^th season with Cubs

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’1”    Weight: 180

Prior to 1962:

Banks, a native of Dallas, Texas, was the son of a Negro League catcher. He starred in football and basketball at Booker T. Washington High School, which did not have a baseball team, so he played softball instead to develop a similar skill set. Shy and introverted, Banks signed to play baseball with a traveling team during the summers after his sophomore and junior years. Catching the attention of the Negro League Kansas City Monarchs, he signed following his high school graduation in 1950 and performed well at shortstop. After a stint in the Army, Banks signed with the Cubs, who bought his contract from the Monarchs. Moving directly to the major league club, he played in the last ten games for the Cubs in 1953 and took over at shortstop in ’54. He was selected as an All-Star for the first time in 1955, a season in which he totaled 44 home runs (a record 5 of them grand slams) and 117 RBIs. After playing in 424 straight games, an infection in his right hand sidelined him for part of the 1956 season and his numbers dropped accordingly. But he was back over forty home runs in 1957 (43) and a hundred RBIs (102) while playing in every contest. In 1958 Banks led the NL in home runs (47), RBIs (129), slugging percentage (.614), and total bases (379), while batting .313 with 193 hits and 119 runs scored. He was named league MVP for the first time despite playing for a fifth-place Cubs team. Banks repeated as NL MVP in 1959 as he led the league with 143 RBIs while batting .304 with 45 home runs, a .374 OBP, and a .596 slugging percentage. Banks had his fourth straight 40-home run season in 1960 (a league-leading 41) and placed fourth in league MVP voting. Sure-handed at shortstop but without much range, Banks was moved to first base full-time in 1962, following a trial in left field in 1961, a season in which he batted .278 with 29 home runs, 80 RBIs, a .346 OBP, and a .507 slugging percentage.

1962 Season Summary

Appeared in 154 games

1B – 149, PH – 4, 3B – 3

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 657

At Bats – 610 [14]

Runs – 87 [20, tied with Tony Taylor & Bob Skinner]

Hits – 164

Doubles – 20

Triples – 6

Home Runs – 37 [4]

RBI – 104 [8]

Bases on Balls – 30

Int. BB – 3

Strikeouts – 71

Stolen Bases – 5

Caught Stealing – 1

Average - .269

OBP - .306

Slugging Pct. - .503 [12]

Total Bases – 307 [6]

GDP – 19 [2, tied with Willie Mays]

Hit by Pitches – 7 [8, tied with four others]

Sac Hits – 0

Sac Flies – 10 [2]

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 14, HR – 22, RBI - 57, AVG. – 274, SLG - 525, OBP - .314

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 5 AB) vs. Houston 4/18 – 10 innings, (in 5 AB) vs. Mil. Braves 5/29, (in 5 AB) vs. Mil. Braves 7/6 - 10 innings, (in 6 AB) at LA Dodgers 8/5 – 14 innings

Longest hitting streak – 15 games

HR at home – 19

HR on road – 18

Most home runs, game – 3 (in 5 AB) vs. Mil. Braves 5/29

Multi-HR games – 2

Most RBIs, game – 4 on five occasions

Pinch-hitting – 2 for 4 (.500) with 1 R, 1 HR & 3 RBI

Fielding 

Chances – 1575

Put Outs – 1458

Assists – 106

Errors – 11

DP – 134

Pct. - .993

Awards & Honors:

All-Star

18^th in NL MVP voting, tied with Ken Boyer, StL, Johnny Callison, Phila. & Harvey Kuenn, SF (5 points – 2% share)

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Aftermath of 1962:

Weakened by illness in 1963, Banks was limited to 130 games and his production dropped to .227 with 18 home runs, 64 RBIs, a .292 OBP, and a .403 slugging percentage. He rebounded in 1964 to bat .264 with 29 doubles, 6 triples, 23 home runs, 95 RBIs, a .307 OBP, and a .450 slugging percentage. Banks was back in All-Star form in 1965 while hitting .265 with 25 doubles, 28 home runs, 106 RBIs, a .328 OBP, and a .453 slugging percentage. Despite issues with injuries and illness, he played until age 40 in 1971, ending up with a total of 512 home runs, 2583 hits, and a .274 lifetime batting average. He had 30 or more home runs in seven seasons and reached 100 RBIs eight times. With a pleasant and friendly personality, Banks was highly popular with Cubs fans, a team he played with for all his 19 major league seasons (without ever seeing postseason action), and his #14 was retired by the club. The player known as “Mr. Cub” was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977. Banks died in 2015 at the age of 83.

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.