Jan
10
2012

This Day In MLB History…

An article by Former Writers

January 10th, 1928: The Giants trade Rogers Hornsby to the Boston Braves for Shanty Hogan and Jimmy Welsh. It’s the Rajah’s third team in three years.

Why exactly is this trade monumental? Mostly because I find it hard to believe that any team would want to trade one of the best second basemen in the history of the game, especially when he is still in the prime of his career. In 1927 for the Giants, Hornsby hit .361, slugged 25 home runs, and had 125 RBI.

Apparently, that wasn’t a good enough stat line and New York traded Hornsby within the National League to the Boston Braves. He then proceeded to hit at a .387 clip, hit 21 homers, and 94 RBI. In his 23 year MLB career, Rogers Hornsby played for five different teams. I find it odd that he switched teams that many times during his professional career. In today’s game, we see players switch teams every year due to free agency, but it didn’t always used to be like that.

Before the 1970s, the reserve clause allowed an organization to hold onto a player for as long as they wish. Due to this, it was common for a player to spend his entire career with only one or two teams. That’s why I think it’s so weird that a career .358 hitter with 301 home runs, 1,584 RBI, and almost 3,000 hits would move around to so many teams during a time when players didn’t move around after they were established.

This fact alone makes me wonder what type of player Hornsby was in the clubhouse. I haven’t read anything bad about his character, but with him moving around to so many teams, there must have been some sort of personality conflict, either with Hornsby and his fellow players, his coaching staff, or the front office; especially with Boston and New York since he only spent one year with each organization.

On the other hand, the star second baseman could have have been too expensive for either the Giants or Braves to hold onto because he was at the peak of his game. There are obviously a number of things that caused Rogers Hornsby to play for five teams during a time in which it was unprecedented. He has always been a personal favorite of mine, and one of a few Major Leaguers that I wish I had the chance to watch in person.

Want to read more of On The Way Home? Visit my blog at http://on-the-way-home.org!

About the Author: Former Writers

5 Comments + Add Comment

Joe Diaz January 10, 2012 at 11:54 am

I always thought the same thing.How could arguably the greatest RH hitter of all time be moved as much as he was.He averaged over 400 for a 5 year stretch and had one of the greatest seasons of alltime.450 totalbases.A 2nd baseman with a career OPS over 1000 is insane.Injuries always were an issue,rarely did he make it through a full season without missing significant time and he still put up crazy numbers.
Matt Musico January 10, 2012 at 2:16 pm

I agree, it boggled my mind when I saw that the other day. Maybe those teams felt that even though he put up monster numbers they didn’t want to spend the money if he wasn’t going to be consistently healthy? I’m not sure, but it’s definitely something to think about.
Allyoop January 10, 2012 at 3:37 pm

I read a book a long time ago titled “The Giants of the Polo Grounds” and apparently he was a fantastic hitter but a real pain in the ass towards his teammates. He was always ordering his teammates around when McGraw wasn’t around and it looks like he had problems with gambling addiction.Just didn’t get along with anyone.
He was an original Met coach in 1962 and a teammate of Casey Stengels in from 1921-23. Hornby died of a heart attack in 1963 ( I wonder if the Mets had anything to do with that!).
Joe D January 10, 2012 at 7:09 pm

I have a confession to make. I played in the original Bill James Classic Baseball League for 3 years back in the day. I won the World Series twice and beat Rob Neyer both times. (evil laugh) Anyway my secret weapon was Rogers Hornsby. He was my top pick each season and I always made sure to grab another favorite Al (Bucketfoot) Simmons too. They were my Dynamic Duo.

I don’t know whatever happened to Bill James Classic Baseball, but it was a thousand times better than a traditional fantasy baseball league. One year we each kicked in an extra $50 bucks each for a cash prize and an engraved bat which I still have and here is my crappy photo I took with my phone to prove it.

http://metsmerizedonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/IMG00199-20120110-1855.jpg

Thanks Rajah!
Joey D. January 10, 2012 at 8:11 pm

Hornsby was a great hitter who wore out his welcome rather quickly. With his figures, he would have had to.

Need Tickets To The Mets Game?

Check Out These Great MLB Links!

For wholesale prices on New York Mets gifts and equipment, check these stores out!
Mets Autograph Signings
Mets Fan Apparel
Mets Autographed Baseballs
Baseball Card Supplies
Baseball Equipment

For the best seats and lowest MLB ticket prices, go to PurchaseSeats.com. Get your Mets Tickets now and follow them on the road with Yankees Tickets, Phillies Tickets, Nationals Tickets and Braves Tickets!