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Ray Schalk

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Ray Schalk
Schalk with the Chicago White Sox in 1920
Catcher/Manager
Born:(1892-08-12)August 12, 1892
Harvel, Illinois,U.S.
Died:May 19, 1970(1970-05-19)(aged 77)
Chicago, Illinois,U.S.
Batted:Right
Threw:Right
MLB debut
August 11, 1912, for the Chicago White Sox
Last MLB appearance
September 15, 1929, for the New York Giants
MLB statistics
Batting average.253
Home runs11
Runs batted in594
Managerial record102–125
Winning %.449
Teams
As player

As manager

Career highlights and awards
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction1955
Election methodVeterans Committee

Raymond William Schalk(August 12, 1892 – May 19, 1970) was anAmericanprofessionalbaseballplayer,coach,managerandscout.[1]He played as acatcherinMajor League Baseballfor theChicago White Soxfor the majority of his career.[1][2]Known for his fine handling ofpitchersand outstanding defensive ability, Schalk was considered the greatest defensive catcher of his era.[3][4]He revolutionized the way the catching position was played by using his speed and agility to expand the previously accepted defensive capabilities for his position.[5]Schalk was elected to theBaseball Hall of Famein1955.[6]

Early life

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Born inHarvel, Illinoisto German immigrant parents,[5]Schalk grew up inLitchfield, Illinois.[7]He dropped out of high school to enter the printer's trade, learning to operate alinotype machine.[5]When career advancement proved difficult in that trade, and after excelling in local baseball games, he began to playprofessional baseball.[5]

Baseball career

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By the age of 18 in 1911, Schalk split time between theClass DTaylorville Christiansin theIllinois–Missouri League,where he hit.387, and theClass AMilwaukee Brewersof theAmerican Association.[5][8]In 1912, he posted a.271batting averagein 80 games for Milwaukee and attracted the attention of the Chicago White Sox because of his aggressive approach to the catching position.[5]The White Sox purchased his contract from the Brewers for $10,000 and two other players.[9][10]

Schalk made his major league debut the day before his twentieth birthday on August 11, 1912.[1]He appeared in 23 games that season, batting.286, but it was his defense behind the plate that impressed the most.[1][5]White Sox coachKid Gleasonhelped him hone his skills, and by the following year Schalk had become the starting catcher in place ofBilly Sullivanand led theAmerican Leaguecatchers inputouts.[5][11]

He soon developed a reputation as one of the best defensive catchers in major league baseball.[12]Before Schalk, most catchers were large and slow of foot.[12]Schalk was a small, agile man — he was only 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall — who caught with the energy and mobility of a fifthinfielder.[5]Due to his small size and youthful appearance, he was often the butt of jokes from opposing players. One time, a policeman refused to let him into the locker room atComiskey Park,mistaking Schalk for a child.[13]

1914 E145-1 Cracker Jack baseball card

In 1914, he batted.270 in 136 games and once again led the league in putouts by a catcher.[1]Despite the White Sox's sixth-place finish, he ranked sixth in voting for the 1914 American LeagueMost Valuable Player Award.[14]He continued to improve in 1915, batting.266 with a.366on-base percentageand leading American League catchers infielding percentage,caught stealingpercentage, and putouts as the White Sox rose to third place.[1]

In 1916, Schalk had a career-high 30stolen bases(a record for a catcher untilJohn Wathanbroke it in 1982) and led the league in fielding percentage, putouts,assists,andrange factoras the White Sox finished in second place, only two games behind theBoston Red Sox.[1][15]His pitch-calling skills were evident as he guided the White Sox pitching staff to the lowestearned run averagein the league.[16]

He batted only.226 in 1917, but his on-base percentage was.331 and he led all American League catchers in putouts for a fifth consecutive year.[1]He once again guided the White Sox pitching staff to the lowestearned run averagein the league as they won 100 games to win the American Leaguepennantby 9 games over the Boston Red Sox[17]and went on to defeatJohn McGraw'sNew York Giantsin the1917 World Seriesfour games to two for their last world championship until 2005.[18]

In 1918, he recorded his first putout atsecond baseagainst theSt. Louis Browns.[5]On ahit and run play,the Browns'Ray Demmittran past second base asShoeless Joe Jacksonmade a catch in deepleft fieldoff the bat ofJoe Gedeon.[5]Schalk, in the middle of the diamond, ran to second base to take the relay from White Sox shortstopSwede RisbergandtaggedDemmittout.[5]The White Sox fell to sixth place in the 1918 season, however, as Schalk batted only.219.[1]

They rebounded in 1919 to recapture the American League pennant, with Schalk hitting a career-high.282 and leading the league in putouts for a seventh consecutive season.[1]The1919 World Series,which the White Sox lost to theCincinnati Reds,was shrouded in a controversy which became known as theBlack Sox Scandal.[19]Several White Sox players were accused of intentionally throwing games.[5]This was in sharp contrast to Schalk; it is said that Schalk's reputation as an honest and honorable man led the gamblers not even to consider approaching him.[20]Schalk played to win, hitting for a Series.304 batting average and was later officially absolved from any wrongdoing.[21]He told investigators he knew something was wrong when pitchers Eddie Cicotte andLefty Williamsdid not throw the pitches he had called for.[5]The White Sox lost the series five games to three, and eight of their players were banned for life from major league baseball as complicit in the scandal, though not Schalk.[5][22]Years later, Schalk said that the conspirators caught a break when one of the "Clean Sox," pitcherRed Faber,was forced to sit out the Series with the flu. Schalk believed that had Faber been available, there would have never been a fix since Faber would have likely gotten starts that went to Cicotte and Williams.[13]

He had another good year in 1920, hitting.270 with a.362 on-base percentage and a career-high 61runs batted in.He led the American League for an eighth consecutive year in putouts as the White Sox finished in second place.[1]The 1922 season was one of his finest. On April 30, 1922, he caughtCharlie Robertson'sperfect gameagainst theDetroit Tigers,the last perfect game in the major leagues until Don Larsen's in the1956 World Series.[23]Two months later, on June 27, hehit for the cycle.[5]He ended the season with a.281 average, hit 4home runsand drove in 60 runs.[1]He led the league in putouts, and tied the American League record for fielding percentage for a catcher at.989. He finished third in voting for the 1922 American League's Most Valuable Player Award.[24]

By 1924, the wear and tear of catching began to catch up with him.[25]He had played in 100 games or more in 11 consecutive seasons, but injured three fingers on his throwing hand which limited him to 57 games and a career-low.197 batting average in 1924.[25]He rebounded in 1925 to play in 125 games, bat.274 with a career-high.382 on-base percentage, and lead the league in baserunners caught stealing.[1]In November 1926, he succeededEddie Collinsas the White Soxplayer-managerat the age of 33.[26]His playing time diminished in 1927, as he appeared in only 16 games while concentrating on managing the team. Over the two seasons he played and managed, he won 102 and lost 125 for a.449 won-lost percentage.[27]He then had a salary disagreement with team ownerCharles Comiskey,and left the White Sox to become a player-coach with theNew York Giantsin 1929, but appeared in only five games before retiring as a player at the age of 36.[1][5]

Managerial record

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Team Year Regular season Postseason
Games Won Lost Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
CWS 1927 153 70 83 .458 5th in AL – – – –
CWS 1928 74 32 42 .432 resigned – – – –
Total 227 102 125 .449 0 0 –

Career statistics and legacy

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Schalk's plaque at theNational Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

In an 18-year major league career, Schalk played in 1,762games,accumulating 1,345hitsin 5,306at batsfor a.253 career batting average along with 11 home runs, 594 runs batted in, 579runs,177 stolen bases, anon-base percentageof.340 and a.981 fielding percentage.[1]He established himself as one of the American League's outstanding defensive catchers by leading AL catchers in fielding percentage eight times, putouts nine times,double playsfour times and assists twice.[28]He set major league catching records for putouts, and still holds the major league career record for double plays (217) and the American League career mark for assists.[28][29]No catcher has approached Schalk's record for career double plays, and none has led the league in fielding percentage eight times.[30]He held the record for mostno-hitterscaught (four), until a rules change in the early 1990s disallowed one of them.[citation needed]Schalk's 51.32% career caught stealing percentage ranks eighth all-time among major league catchers.[31]He caught 144shutoutsin his career, ranking third all-time among catchers behindYogi BerraandCarlton Fisk.[32]

He set standards for longevity for catchers, catching 100 or more games for 11 straight seasons.[33]His major league record of 1,726 games caught stood until 1945 when it was broken byRick Ferrell.[33]He also established himself as one of the finest baserunning catchers, setting a single-season stolen base record for the position in1916with 30, which stood untilJohn Wathanstole 36 bases in 1982.[33]

Schalk helped revolutionize the way the catcher's position was played.[12]He is credited with being the first catcher to back up infield throws tofirst baseandoutfieldthrows tothird base.[5]He claimed to be the only major league catcher to have made a putout at every base, and once made three assists in oneinning.[5][34]He also became known for his handling of the White Sox pitching staff and his pitch-calling skills.[5]His reputation as a defensive standout is enhanced due to the era in which he played: in thedeadball era,catchers played a much greater defensive role than subsequently, given the large number ofbuntsand stolen base attempts, as well as the difficulty of handling thespitballpitchers who dominated pitching staffs.[30]He had to catch every type ofpitchimaginable, including shine balls, spitballs,knuckleballsand emory balls from pitchers such as,Ed Walsh,Eddie Cicotte,Dickie Kerr,Urban FaberandTed Lyons.[30]

Schalk's career batting average of.253 is the lowest of any position player in the Hall of Fame.[33]That he was selected by theVeterans Committeefor enshrinement in1955is largely a tribute to his outstanding defensive skills and to the fact that he played to win the infamous 1919 World Series for the White Sox.[33][35]

Schalk and pitcher Red Faber started 306 games as abattery,fourth-most of any such duo since 1900.[36][37]

Post-playing career

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Schalk's grave at Evergreen Cemetery

Schalk became a coach for theChicago Cubsin1930and1931,and later managed theBuffalo Bisonsin the Double-AInternational Leaguefrom1932to1937.[5][38]He also managed theIndianapolis Indians,theOklahoma City Indiansand the Milwaukee Brewers minor league teams.[38]In1944,he became ascoutfor the Chicago Cubs.[3]He was an assistant baseball coach atPurdue Universityfor 18 seasons, on the staff of luminaries such asWard LambertandHank Stram.He retired from baseball at 72.[5]

After his retirement as an active player for the MLB, Schalk invested in a successful bowling alley located in Evergreen Park, Illinois. He named the business "Schalk's Evergreen Towers". In 1948, Schalk, his wife Lavinia, and 34 others were taken down to the basement, locked inside various rooms, and held hostage inside the bowling alley by 6 armed robbers. After 2 hours of confinement and people passing out from lack of air inside the rooms, several pin-boys were able to knock a door down and free everyone. The robbers were never caught.[39]

In1955,he was elected to theBaseball Hall of Fameby theVeterans Committee.[40] He was invited to catch the first ball of the1959 World Series–the White Sox' first appearance in the World Series in 40 years–thrown out by fellow Hall of Fame member and former White Sox pitcherRed Faber.[5]

A museum inNokomis, Illinois,is dedicated to Schalk and two other Hall of Famers,Jim BottomleyandRed Ruffing.[7]TheLittle Leagueball fields inLitchfield, Illinois,near his birthplace of Harvel, are named for him. He died of cancer on May 19, 1970, at the age of 78,[34]and is buried in Evergreen Cemetery inEvergreen Park, Illinois.

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Schalk was portrayed byGordon Clappin the 1988 filmEight Men Out.

See also

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References

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  1. ^abcdefghijklmno"Ray Schalk at Baseball Reference".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  2. ^"Ray Schalk at Baseball Almanac".Baseball Almanac.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  3. ^ab"Ray Schalk Takes Job With Cubs".St. Petersburg Times.Associated Press. June 6, 1944.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  4. ^"In Catching, The White Sox Lead".The Crawfordsville Review.October 2, 1917. p. 7.RetrievedJanuary 15,2011.
  5. ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwStevens, Brian."The Baseball Biography Project: Ray Schalk".Society for American Baseball Research.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  6. ^"Ray Schalk at the Baseball Hall of Fame".baseballhall.org.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  7. ^abNokomis' baseball ties on display at museum.The State Journal-Register.
  8. ^"Ray Schalk minor league statistics".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  9. ^"Ray Schalk Trades and Transactions".Baseball Almanac.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  10. ^"Two Sox for Brewers".The Toledo News-Bee.Associated Press. August 12, 1912. p. 8.RetrievedJanuary 15,2011.
  11. ^"1913 American League Fielding Leaders".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  12. ^abc"Slim Catchers Replace Big Men In Majors".The Pittsburgh Gazette Times.August 6, 1916. p. 8.RetrievedJanuary 15,2011.
  13. ^abPurdy, Dennis (2006).The Team-by-Team Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball.New York City:Workman.ISBN0-7611-3943-5.
  14. ^"1914 American League Most Valuable Player Award voting".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  15. ^"1916 American League standings".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  16. ^"1916 American League pitching statistics".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  17. ^"1917 American League standings".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  18. ^"1917 World Series".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  19. ^"The Black Sox".1919blacksox.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  20. ^"Meet Ray Schalk".
  21. ^Kuenster, John (September 1970).Warm Up Tosses.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help)
  22. ^"1919 World Series".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  23. ^"April 30, 1922 White Sox-Tigers box score".Baseball Almanac.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  24. ^"1922 American League Most Valuable Player Award voting".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  25. ^ab"Ray Schalk, Veteran Catcher, Begins to Show Signs of Wear".The Evening Tribune.August 10, 1924. p. 6.RetrievedJanuary 10,2011.
  26. ^"Ray Schalk New Chicago Pilot".The Youngstown Vindicator.Associated Press. November 12, 1926. p. 14.RetrievedJanuary 10,2011.
  27. ^"Ray Schalk managing record".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  28. ^ab"Ray Schalk".baseballbiography.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  29. ^"Ray Schalk".The Encyclopedia of Baseball Catchers.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  30. ^abcVass, George (May 2005).For Catchers, The Name of the Game is Defense.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help)
  31. ^"Career Leaders & Records for Caught Stealing Percentage".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 3,2013.
  32. ^"The Encyclopedia of Catchers – Trivia December 2010 – Career Shutouts Caught".The Encyclopedia of Baseball Catchers.RetrievedDecember 29,2015.
  33. ^abcde"Ray Schalk".howstuffworks.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  34. ^ab"Chisox Great Ray Schalk Dead At 78".The Spokesman-Review.Associated Press. May 20, 1970. p. 15.RetrievedJanuary 15,2011.
  35. ^James, Bill (1995).Whatever Happened to the Hall of Fame?,p.111-117. Free Press.ISBN0-684-80088-8.
  36. ^Silver, Zachary (February 9, 2021)."'This is my home': Molina ready to chase title ".MLB.RetrievedFebruary 16,2021.
  37. ^"17 amazing Waino-Yadi facts to celebrate their record".MLB.RetrievedFebruary 16,2023.
  38. ^ab"Ray Schalk minor league managing record".Baseball Reference.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  39. ^Andrew (July 3, 2016)."The Baseball Historian: Legendary Catcher Ray Schalk's Escape as a Hostage From a Bowling Alley Armed Robbery".The Baseball Historian.RetrievedJanuary 9,2023.
  40. ^"Home Run Baker And Ray Schalk Are Named To Hall Of Fame".The Daytona Beach Morning Journal.Associated Press. February 1, 1955. p. 11.RetrievedJanuary 15,2011.

Further reading

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Preceded by Hitting for the cycle
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