Highlighted Year: Sherm Lollar, 1959

Catcher, Chicago White Sox

Age: 35 (Aug. 23)

8^th season with White Sox

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’1”    Weight: 185 

Prior to 1959:

An Arkansas native, John Sherman Lollar grew up in Fayetteville where his father operated a grocery store until his death when Lollar was eight. His mother sold the grocery store and Lollar took on added responsibilities at home caring for his younger siblings while his mother worked at a VA nursing home. Always interested in baseball, he became batboy for the local minor league team at age 12. Following high school he played baseball with a Chamber of Commerce-affiliated team in Pittsburg, Kansas, while working at a store and studying at Pittsburg State Teachers College (now Pittsburg State University). He went on to play semipro ball with the Baxter Spring Miners before signing with the Baltimore Orioles of the International League in 1943. The 18-year-old backstop batted a mere .118 in 42 plate appearances. Returning to Baltimore in 1944 his batting production improved to .250 with 14 doubles, 15 home runs, 72 RBIs, a .394 on-base percentage, and a .416 slugging percentage. He followed up with an outstanding season for Baltimore in 1945 in which he hit .364 with 27 doubles, 34 home runs, 111 RBIs, a .483 OBP, and a .659 slugging percentage. He was honored as the International League’s Most Valuable Player. As the Orioles were affiliated with the Cleveland Indians, he was sold to Cleveland in 1946. Stuck behind veteran catchers Jim Hegan and Frankie Hayes, Lollar saw little action with the Indians and requested to be returned to Baltimore so he could get playing time. Back with Baltimore his average dropped to .234, but he hit 20 home runs in 67 games and had a .356 OBP and .532 slugging percentage. In the offseason he was traded to the New York Yankees as part of a five-player deal. Jammed up by a glut of catchers in New York, Lollar spent most of the 1947 season back in the International League, this time with the Newark Bears. He hit .280 with 16 home runs, 64 RBIs, a .376 OBP, and a .468 slugging percentage. Quiet and low-key (often described as solemn), Lollar was a workmanlike and effective player. Although he appeared in only 11 games for the Yankees in 1947, he did see action in the World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers and generated three hits and scored three runs. Hindered by a hand injury in 1948, he saw action in only 22 games in 1948 while backing up Yogi Berra and was traded to the St. Louis Browns in the offseason. Splitting time behind the plate with Les Moss in 1949, Lollar batted .261 with 9 doubles, 8 home runs, 49 RBIs, and a .340 OBP. In 1950 he was an All-Star for the first time as he hit .280 with 22 doubles, 13 home runs, 65 RBIs, a .391 OBP, and a .449 slugging percentage. He appeared in 98 games in 1951 and batted .252 with 21 doubles, 8 home runs, 44 RBIs, and a .350 OBP and, much sought after by the Red Sox and White Sox in the offseason, the White Sox obtained him as a key part of an eight-player deal. With a new club and pay increase to $12,000 in 1952, although hindered by a slow start, he hit .240 with 15 doubles, 13 home runs, 50 RBIs, and a .354 OBP while providing solid play behind the plate. Having been directed by manager Paul Richards, an ex-catcher, to improve his agility behind the plate, Lollar developed a style of catching with his left knee on the ground. He also improved his throwing and, accused of being lackadaisical, became more animated. He also became a better handler of pitchers, which would become one of his key strengths over time. In 1953 his production improved to .287 with 19 doubles, 8 home runs, 54 RBIs, and a .388 OBP. Defensively, he ranked third among AL catchers in assists (51) and percentage of baserunners caught stealing (55.6). An All-Star in 1954, Lollar batted .244 with 13 doubles, 7 home runs, 34 RBIs, and a .334 OBP. His defense behind the plate made up for any offensive shortcomings, which included his lack of running speed (Matt Batts and Carl Sawatski caught in a combined 75 games in comparison to Lollar’s 93). Catching in 136 games in 1955, he hit .261 with 16 home runs, 61 RBIs, a .374 OBP, and a .408 slugging percentage. In addition to being an All-Star for the second straight year, he placed eleventh in league MVP voting. Behind the plate in 132 games in 1956, Lollar batted .293 with 28 doubles, 11 home runs, 75 RBIs, a .383 OBP, and a .438 slugging percentage. He was an All-Star once again and placed sixteenth in league MVP balloting. In 1957 he didn’t commit an error in the field until September on his way to leading AL backstops with a .993 fielding percentage and receiving a Gold Glove, although he missed 41 games at midseason due to a wrist fracture. At the plate he ended up hitting .256 with 11 home runs, 70 RBIs, and a .342 OBP. Lollar continued to excel in 1958, batting .273 with 16 doubles, 20 home runs, 84 RBIs, a .367 OBP, and a .454 slugging percentage, while winning another Gold Glove for his defensive excellence.  

1959 Season Summary

Appeared in 140 games

C – 122, 1B – 24, PH – 6

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 576

At Bats – 505

Runs – 63

Hits – 134

Doubles – 22 [18, tied with Gene Woodling & Bob Cerv]

Triples – 3

Home Runs – 22 [11, tied with Hector Lopez]

RBI – 84 [12]

Bases on Balls – 55 [17]

Int. BB – 6 [7, tied with eight others]

Strikeouts – 49

Stolen Bases – 4

Caught Stealing – 3 [19, tied with eleven others]

Average - .265

OBP - .345 [17]

Slugging Pct. - .451 [18]

Total Bases – 228 [17]

GDP – 27 [1]

Hit by Pitches – 9 [3]

Sac Hits – 2

Sac Flies – 5 [11, tied with seven others]

League-leading times grounded into DPs was +5 ahead of runner-up Bob Allison

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 14, HR – 12, RBI – 49, AVG – .273, OBP - .345, SLG – .469

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 5 AB) at Detroit 8/13

Longest hitting streak – 9 games

Most HR, game – 2 (in 4 AB) at Detroit 4/11, (in 4 AB) at KC A’s 8/14

HR at home – 11

HR on road – 11

Multi-HR games – 2

Most RBIs, game – 4 at KC A’s 8/14, vs. Detroit 9/2

Pinch-hitting – 3 for 5 (.600) with 1 2B & 1 BB

Fielding (C )

Chances – 679

Put Outs – 623

Assists – 51

Errors – 5

Passed Balls – 4

DP – 14

Pct. - .993

Postseason Batting: 6 G (World Series vs. LA Dodgers)

PA – 24, AB – 22, R – 3, H – 5, 2B – 0,3B – 0, HR – 1, RBI – 5, BB – 1, IBB – 0, SO – 3, SB – 0, CS – 0, AVG - .227, OBP - .250, SLG -.364, TB – 8, GDP – 2, HBP – 0, SH – 0, SF – 1

Awards & Honors:

Gold Glove

All-Star

9^th in AL MVP voting (44 points – 13% share)

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The White Sox went 94-60 to win the AL pennant by 5 games over the Cleveland Indians, their first pennant in 40 years while leading the league in triples (46), stolen bases (113), and fewest batting strikeouts (634). The “Go-go Sox”, benefiting from their emphasis on pitching, speed, and defense, of which Lollar played a significant role, moved into first place for good on July 28 but still had to fend off the Indians, solidifying their lead with a late-August four-game sweep of Cleveland. Lost World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4 games to 2.

Aftermath of 1959:

While he was an All-Star one last time in 1960, Lollar began to show signs of decline as he batted .252 with 23 doubles, 7 home runs, 46 RBIs, and a .326 OBP. Briefly sidelined by a leg injury, he remained a good handler of pitchers and led AL backstops with a .995 fielding percentage. Still the league’s top fielding catcher in 1961 in terms of his .998 fielding percentage, Lollar, who turned 37 during the season, hit a solid .282 with only 10 doubles, 7 home runs, 41 RBIs, and a .360 OBP. Splitting time with Camilo Carreon in 1962 Lollar hit .268 with 14 extra-base hits, 26 RBIs, and a .369 OBP. He was released following a 1963 season in which he saw little action, thus ending his playing career. For his major league playing career Lollar batted .264 with 1415 hits that included 244 doubles, 14 triples, and 155 home runs. He scored 623 runs and compiled 808 RBIs, a .357 OBP, and a .402 slugging percentage. With the White Sox he batted .265 with 485 runs scored, 1122 hits, 186 doubles, 9 triples, 124 home runs, 631 RBIs, a .358 OBP, and a .402 slugging percentage. The defensive standout was charged with only 62 errors for a lifetime .992 fielding percentage. Lollar led the AL in fielding percentage five times, and three times in double plays. His passed ball total of 53 gave him a rate of 5.5 per 162 games, an exceptionally low figure. Lollar appeared in eight World Series games with the Yankees and White Sox and batted .308 with one home run and 6 RBIs. He was a nine-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove recipient. Following his playing career he was a coach for the Baltimore Orioles and minor league manager with the Oakland Athletics. He operated a bowling alley prior to his death from cancer in 1977 at age 53.

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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.