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Big Jawn

By Bill James
September 28, 2023
  

              Branch Rickey was a GREAT judge of talent, absolutely fantastic.  Probably the best ever.   And the allegation that "his decision to trade Johnny Mize away from the Cardinals likely cost the team a couple of pennants" is absurd.  Mize was traded/sold to New York after the 1941 season.   The Cardinals won the pennant in 1942, 1943 and 1944.  Mize was in the Army in 1945, and the Cardinals won the pennant in 1946.   So what year are you talking about?  

 
 

COMMENTS (3 Comments, most recent shown first)

Rallymonkey5
And to be clear, I’m just playing Devil’s advocate. I certainly didn’t make the allegation against Rickey.​
10:21 PM Oct 2nd
 
Rallymonkey5
Maybe 1947? Mize hit 51 homers, Cardinals finished 5 games back of the Dodgers. Cards had a pretty good 1B that year but obviously could have moved The Man back to outfield.

It’s a stretch, 5 years after the trade and a lot of other things may not happen the same way if Mize stayed. They got 50k for him, I have no idea how much that might have helped them sign other players.

But put 47 Mize back on the Cards, and I’d say it’s even money on whether they keep the Dodgers out of the WS.
10:20 PM Oct 2nd
 
ForeverRoyal
As requested, in response to SteveN's Hey Bill about about Dave Parker not making the All-Star team despite winning the MVP and a Gold Glove, there is only one other who had that happen: Jimmy Rollins in 2007.

Of course there are plenty of MVPs who failed to make the All-Star game in the All-Star Era (but these guys didn't get a Gold Glove):
Hank Greenberg (1st MVP), Don Newcombe, Willie Stargell, Robin Yount (2nd MVP), Terry Pendleton, Juan Gonzalez (1st MVP), Chipper Jones, and Justin Morneau.

The 1945 MVPs (Newhouser and Cavarretta) are given credit for being All-Stars that season but there was no All-Star game due to the war.

Lastly, as we've mentioned previously (probably in this thread) Kirk Gibson not only did not make the All-Star team in his MVP season, he is the only MVP to never make an All-Star team.
11:19 AM Sep 29th
 
 
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