Books and articles about Rogers Hornsby

Baseball's greatest righthanded hitter always stood in the far back corner of the batter's box and strode into the pitch with a perfectly level swing. Catchers frequently called low and away against him, but his diagonal stride brought those pitches comfortably within reach. High and inside, he said, was hardest to hit, because his move edged him so close to the pitch. Often he simply leaned away, and umpires who respected his judgment of the strike zone would call a ball.

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RELATED LINKS » 1923: The Haunting Eviction » 1973: O, Charlie O. » "I had a lot of admiration for Hornsby, particularly his hitting. And I think he was a good manager too": Clyde Sukeforth Photos » Photo: Hornsby, O'Farrell, and Frisch from New York Giants: A Baseball Album Book Excerpts » "Hornsby never chewed tobacco or smoked or drank anything at all, and he expected all his ballplayers to live that way. He didn't know how to handle men": Charlie Grimm » "I broke in with the Cubs under Hornsby in 1931. He ignored me completely, and I figured it was because I was a rookie. But then I saw he ignored everybody": Billy Herman » "[Gil McDougald] had one of the craziest stances anyone had ever seen; but he had hit .336 that way at Beaumont, where Rogers Hornsby, his manager, had sense enough to leave him alone": Leonard Koppett Ask The Experts » Who had the highest single-season OPS? » Has any player ever hit .300 for four different teams? » Who has the most career home runs at each position? Around the Web » Rogers Hornsby from baseball-reference.com » Rogers Hornsby from sportingnews.com » Rogers Hornsby from thebaseballpage.com Jump directly to Library content from any website!

At the plate, Hornsby was imperturbable. He never argued with umpires, and was never thrown out of a game. He hit line drives to all fields, and was swift down to first and going for extra bases. His power was formidable; he led his league four times in doubles, once in triples, and twice in home runs, and his 289 HR as a second baseman are an all-time record. He hit safely in 33 consecutive games in 1922. Only thirteen players have amassed more than his 1,011 extra-base hits, and just six have topped his .577 career slugging average. Only Ty Cobb exceeded his .358 lifetime batting average, and no modern player (four did it before 1900) ever hit higher than his .424 in 1924. Since he could hit them all, he feared no pitcher. He disdained golf, he once explained, because when he hit a ball, he wanted someone else to chase it.

Hornsby came to the Cardinals as a shortstop, but was tried at third, and even in the outfield. By 1920 he was settled at second. No disgrace in the field, he led the NL in various categories, ending with a .957 career fielding average. As a shortstop in 1917 he tied a ML record with 14 assists in a game. He was known for the difficulty he had with pop flies, due to a balance problem when going back and looking up.

Outwardly, Hornsby was clearly made in the heroic mold. Handsome, dimpled, rosy-cheeked, forthright, professional, spirited, and motivated, he had the statistics to prove his preeminence. When Sam Breadon traded him to the Giants in 1926, following his first MVP year and at the height of his popularity as a World Series-winning player-manager, St. Louis rocked in a hurricane of protest. But Breadon had had a bellyful of Hornsby. The other side of the man was a barbed-wire personality, cold, contentious, and brutally frank. He had a big problem dealing with authority. Owners and front-office men invariably saw him at his most belligerent. His hazel eyes locking into theirs, he told them to get out of his clubhouse, stop harassing his players, mind their own business, and leave him alone or get someone else to do the job.

For Breadon, already infuriated by his employee's verbal abuse, the last straw was a contract dispute. Hornsby wanted three years at $50,000 each. Breadon, always nervous about money, offered one year, lost patience with the impasse, and dealt him away for Frank Frisch and Jimmy Ring, a better @Z] @@ trade for St. Louis than it first seemed. The Rajah then added insult to injury by pushing Breadon for top dollar for the 1,167 shares of Cardinal stock he had acquired at Branch Rickey's departure. He got it, too. He received $100,000 even though every club in the league had to ante up to pay for it.

In New York, Hornsby had grudging admiration for manager John McGraw, and served as deputy manager in his absence. He won few friends among the players, however, and had no admiration at all for the management. Owner Charles Stoneham and his subordinates suffered the rough edge of Hornsby's tongue in public, and Stoneham was so angry that he took a fraction of the hero's value from the Braves to get rid of him after one season.

Boston liked him, and his .387 average, but could not refuse the Cubs' offer of $200,000 and five players in a trade after the 1928 season. The Rajah won his second MVP award in 1929 (.380, 39 HR, 149 RBI, and a league-leading 156 runs scored) as the Cubs took their first pennant since 1918. Hornsby was cool, distant, and professional with everyone, though still outspoken. A broken leg kept him out of action in 1930, and shortly before season's end he replaced Joe McCarthy as manager.

He led the Cubs to third place in 1931, batting .331, but was fired in mid-1932. A heel spur had kept him from playing much, but the club was doing well. Again, it was front-office trouble that got him ousted. Gambling on horses, a lifelong compulsion, had him in debt. Even scoldings by Commissioner Landis were received in chill silence or were bluntly rebuffed. Under Charlie Grimm, the club clinched the']-(((pennant, and its smoldering dislike for Hornsby ignited when the team did not vote him a World Series share.

Hornsby played out his career as a pinch hitter, hitting .300 for both St. Louis teams. He then managed the Browns and a succession of minor league teams. Bill Veeck brought him back in 1952 to manage the Browns again, and Gabe Paul gave him a shot with Cincinnati. In 1961 he scouted for the about-to-be New York Mets, and then he coached for them in 1962. Through it all, he never changed. He didn't smoke or drink, not even coffee. To preserve his unparalleled batting eye, he refused to read or go to the movies. He was an old-time lobby-sitter, and would talk endlessly about hitting to anyone who wanted to learn, though he never understood why ordinary players didn't become Hornsbys by heeding his instructions. (ADS)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » September 10, 1915: Rogers Hornsby, brought up a week earlier from class D Denison (Western Association), makes his ML debut for the Cardinals. With the Cards trailing the Reds, 70, after six innings, Hornsby plays SS and goes hitless in two appearances against Cincy rookie Charles "King" Lear, who wins, 7–1. » September 14, 1915: The Cardinals, battling for 4th place in the NL, lose 6–2 to Brooklyn's Jack Coombs. Rogers Hornsby is in the starting lineup for the first time, but goes hitless. Tomorrow he will get his first ML hit, a single off Rube Marquard. » April 12, 1916: In St. Louis, the Cardinals open with a 2–1 win over the Pirates Erv Kantlehner. "Spitting Bill" Doak scatters six hits -- three by Honus Wagner -- and SS Rogers Hornsby drives in both runs for St. Louis. » May 14, 1916: The Cardinals rookie Rogers Hornsby hits his first home run, off Brooklyn's Jeff Pfeffer. It is a bounce home run (legal till 1931) that lands behind 3B and skips into the stands at Robison Field in St. Louis. » June 28, 1916: Rogers Hornsby, playing his first full season for St. Louis, has a 5-hit day, with three singles and two doubles. » June 25, 1917: The Reds salvage a split with the Cards by pounding out 25 hits in the 2nd game of a doubleheader to win 15–4. The Cards win the opener, 4–2, with SS Rogers Hornsby making 10 assists. » June 8, 1920: Failing in his efforts to buy Rogers Hornsby from St. Louis, John McGraw picks up the NL's top SS, Dave Bancroft, from the Phils for over-the-hill SS Art Fletcher, P Bill Hubbell, and cash. » March 17, 1921: The Yankees, training in Shreveport, LA, journey to Lake Charles to play a game against the Cardinals, based in Orange, Texas. The game was proclaimed "Ruth-Hornsby Day," but the Rajah hits only a single while the Babe lofts a home run over the short RF fence. The Yanks win 14–5. » March 9, 1922: Rogers Hornsby signs a three-year contract with Cards owner Sam Breadon calling for $18,500 per season. This makes the young star the highest paid player in National League history. » July 5, 1922: The Cards' Rogers Hornsby hits his 20th home run, tying Ken Williams of the American League for home run leadership., and the Cards whip the Reds, 12–4. » July 20, 1922: At Sportsman's Park, Rogers Hornsby belts a 2-out 9th inning home run with two men on the give the Cards a 7–6 win over Boston. It is the Rajah's 25th home run of the year, breaking Gavvy Cravath's National League home run mark (post-1900). In two weeks, Hornsby will break the record of 27 homers set in 1884 by Chicago's Ned Williamson. » September 20, 1922: Brooklyn's Burleigh Grimes stops the Cardinals on three scratch hits to win the opener, 6–1, of twinbill against St. Louis. Grimes also snaps Rogers Hornsby's hit streak at 33 games, which still stands as a Cardinal record. Hornsby recovers his stroke in the nightcap and hits two home runs as the Cards outslug the Robins, 13–7. » September 23, 1922: Rogers Hornsby belts his 40th homer, a solo shot in the 6th at the Polo Grounds, but the Giants hang on to win, 7–5. Ross Youngs saves a homer in the 9th when he leaps to snag Jack Smith's drive. Jack Scott hits 4-for-4 and goes all the way for the win to keep the Giants six games in front of Pittsburgh. » September 24, 1922: Rogers Hornsby hits his 41st and 42nd home runs of the year, connecting off brothers Jesse Barnes and Virgil Barnes of the Giants. Rosy Ryan, in relief of Hugh McQuillan, picks up the 10–6 Cards win. » October 1, 1922: Rogers Hornsby’s 3-for-5 on the last day puts him at .401, the first .400-hitter in the NL since Ed Delahanty in 1899. His NL-record 250 hits top Willie Keeler’s 243 in 1897. Hornsby wins the Triple Crown with 152 RBIs and 42 HRs. His 102 extra-base hits will be the NL’s tops until Chuck Klein’s 107 in 1930. » June 13, 1923: Rogers Hornsby, out since May 24th, comes back with 3 hits. He'll "slump" to .384 but still capture his 4th straight title. » September 25, 1923: Rogers Hornsby is fined $500 and suspended indefinitely by the Cardinals when, feeling ill, he refuses to take the field for a game against the Robins, despite the team doctor's opinion that he is in condition to play. Raj is not needed as Haines tops Brooklyn, 4–1, for his 20th win. » April 15, 1924: The Cards' Rogers Hornsby is the only batter who ever goes 2-for-5 (against Vic Aldridge of the Cubs) on Opening Day and improves on his BA for the rest of the year. His .424 will be the highest ML BA in the 20th century. The Cardinals open the season with the players wearing small numbers on their sleeves. The experiment will continue in 1925, then be dropped. » September 28, 1924: Dazzy Vance fires a 5-hitter at the Phillies, beating them 5–1, for his 28th win. He strikes out 9, including five in a row, to run his season total to 277. Vance will win the MVP over Rogers Hornsby and his .424 average. One sportswriter, Jack Ryder, will leave the cranky Hornsby off all 10 spots on his ballot. Vance also wins a preseason bet with Brooklyn teammate Jack Fournier. He bet that he would win more games than Fournier would hit home runs; the first sacker tops the National League in round trippers with 27. » May 7, 1925: Pirates SS Glenn Wright pulls a solo triple play at 2B in the 9th, grabbing Jim Bottomley's liner, stepping on the bag before Johnny Cooney can get back, and tagging Rogers Hornsby coming down from 1B to end the game. The Pirates win 10–9 after scoring six runs in the 8th. » May 30, 1925: Between games today, Rogers Hornsby is named manager of the Cardinals by Sam Breadon, replacing Branch Rickey, who remains as general manager. An angry Rickey will sell his shares in the team to Hornsby. St. Louis, in last place, drops two games to Pittsburgh, losing 4–1 in the morning and 15–5 in the P.M. contest, despite two homers by the new manager. Playing in front of an overflow crowd at spacious Forbes Field, the Pirates sets a modern National League record by stroking eight triples in the 2nd game; the Cards tally one for a combined record-tying nine triples. The normal rules about balls hit into the crowds being ground-rule doubles is expanded to make them triples today: eight of the three-baggers are ground-rule triples. » September 3, 1925: The Cardinals score five runs in the 9th to break the first-place Pirates 9-game win streak, winning 9–3. Rogers Hornsby, the majors leading hitter at .387, has three hits including his 37th homer of the year to pace the attack. Babe Adams, who takes over for Emil Yde in the 9th, is hammered for four hits and five runs, but the loss goes to Yde. Art Reinhart is the winner. » September 27, 1925: In a doubleheader split with the Braves in St. Louis, the Cards player-manager Rogers Hornsby hits his 38th and 39th home runs of the year, along with a single, double, and triple to push his average to .403. In batting practice tomorrow, Hornsby will foul a ball off his foot splitting his toenail, and will sit the last three games. The Rajah calls reporters into the club house to view his bloody toe, "because some of those in the East may say I'm stallin' because I want to save my .400 average." Hornsby will be the only player-manager to win the triple crown, which he does by topping .400 for the 3rd time in four years, while his 39 home runs and 143 RBI are National League highs. His .756 slugging average is still the NL's best. The Cards take the opener 6–5 and lose the nitecap 7–6. » December 9, 1925: Cards' player-manager Rogers Hornsby is named the MVP in the National League, gathering 73 out of a possible 80 votes. Hornsby was runnerup in 1924 to Dazzy Vance. Other strong contenders are Kiki Cuyler, the Pirates top hitter at .357; the Giants' George Kelly; Pirates' SS Glenn Wright; Brooklyn's Dazzy Vance; and Dave Bancroft, who hit .319 and topped NL shortstops in fielding average while managing the 5th-place Braves. » May 22, 1926: At Rogers Hornsby Day in St. Louis, the Cards player-manager is presented $1,000 in gold and a medal as the National League MVP for 1925. The Cards then whip the Phillies, 9–2, to even their record at .500. » December 20, 1926: In probably the biggest player-for-player trade to date, Rogers Hornsby is traded from the Cardinals to the New York Giants for Frankie Frisch and P Jimmy Ring. Hornsby, after 12 years in St. Louis, will play for three teams in the next three years. Hornsby and owner Sam Breadon had had an increasingly stormy relationship, and feelings between Frankie Frisch and John McGraw were equally as bad. Thirty years later, Hornsby will call the trade "the biggest disappointment in my life." » January 31, 1927: National League President John Heydler rules that Rogers Hornsby cannot continue to hold stock in the Cardinals and play for the Giants. Seemingly oblivious, the Cards board of directors meeting in St. Louis, voted stockholders a 10% dividend, earning Hornsby $2916 for his 1167 shares. » March 8, 1927: In the grapefruit league, Rogers Hornsby appears in a Giants game for the first time and contributes three hits as New York pounds the Browns, 13–1. » April 8, 1927: Four days before the season opens, recently traded Rogers Hornsby breaks the impasse by selling his stock in the Cardinals for $112,000. He receives $86,000 from Sam Breadon, $2,000 from each of the other 7 NL clubs, and an extra $12,000 from the Giants. » June 18, 1927: It's Charles Lindbergh Day in St. Louis as the transatlantic flyer helps raise the Cardinals National League pennant before a 6–4 win over the Giants. Rogers Hornsby makes his first appearance in St. Louis since the big trade of last fall and Cards owner Sam Breadon picks today to raise the pennant and hand out Series rings. The Rajah has a double in the game, off Pete Alexander, but Jim Bottomley's 3-run homer for the Cards offsets that. » June 22, 1927: The Cards strengthen their hold on 2nd place by defeating the Cubs, 11–5, to sweep the series. Pete Alexander, pitching out of turn at his own request, stops the Cubs on six hits. Alexander wanted to face the team that had shipped him down the river last season. Frankie Frisch has three hits to put him at .331, a point ahead of Rogers Hornsby, for whom he was traded. » December 4, 1927: Pirates OF Paul Waner noses out Frank Frisch for National League MVP honors with 72 points to 66. Rogers Hornsby, Cubs P Charlie Root, and Giants SS Travis Jackson also score high. » January 10, 1928: After unsuccessful attempts to engineer a trade with Chicago, Cincinnati and Brooklyn, Giants owner Charles Stoneham announces "that in the best interests of the team" he has traded Rogers Hornsby to the Braves for a young catcher Shanty Hogan and journeyman OF Jimmy Welsh. Stoneham was not a fan of Hornsby abrasive style as fill-in manager for McGraw this past season, and thought that Hornsby welched on gambling debts. Hornsby was sued by a gambler, but in a civil case decided the previous December 21st in Missouri, where gambling is illegal, was found not liable. » May 23, 1928: Jack Slattery quits as manager of the last place Braves. Owner Emil Fuchs announces that "after much persuasion" Rogers Hornsby has consented to takes over as manager. » May 27, 1928: Aging star George Sisler clears American League waivers and joins another former St. Louis hero Rogers Hornsby on the Braves. Sisler will hit .340 for the remainder of the season. » November 7, 1928: The Cubs get Rogers Hornsby from the financially strapped Braves in exchange for $200,000, IF Fred Maguire, P Percy Jones, C Lou Legett, former A's P Harry Seibold, and P Bruce Cunningham. Braves owner-president Emil Fuchs also decides to be his own manager. He'll be the last manager with no pro playing experience until Ted Turner's one game, in the 1970s. Under Fuchs, the Barves will finish 56-98, good for last place. » May 4, 1929: At Baker Bowl, Cubs pitcher Pat Malone holds the Phillies scoreless, and collects three singles and two RBI to win easily, 16–0. Hack Wilson and Kiki Cuyler each hit two doubles, and Rogers Hornsby homers. The Cubs take the 2nd game as well, 9–7. » August 8, 1929: Rogers Hornsby cracks a 4th inning homer—one of his four hits—as Chicago edges the Reds 1–0 at Wrigley. Charlie Root allows seven hits in beating rookie Benny Frey. » September 2, 1929: The Cubs beat the Cards twice 11-7 and 12­10, before 81,000 fans at Wrigley Field. A crowd of 38,000 fans sees the morning game and 43,000 watch the afternoon game. Rogers Hornsby has two HRs and Hack Wilson has one. » September 24, 1929: The Giants sweep the Braves, 5-4 and 6­5, as Mel Ott hits a homer in each game, his 41st and 42nd HRs of the year. This ties Rogers Hornsby's NL mark. » October 5, 1929: Mel Ott and Chuck Klein go into today's Giant-Phils doubleheader tied at 42 home runs apiece. In the opener, a 5–4 Phils victory, Ott manages a single, but Klein homers off Carl Hubbell in his first at bat to take the home run lead. In game 2, Ott singles in his first at bat. After that, manager Burt Shotton orders the Phillies pitchers, rather than give Ott a chance to tie Klein, to semi-intentionally walk him five times. The last (semi) intentional walk comes on a 3-2 count with the bases loaded as the Giants win, 12–3. Phillie Lefty O'Doul gets six hits in the two games for an National League record of 254 hits for the season. In the 5th inning of game 1, Lefty's 3rd hit of the game, a 5th inning home run, is his 251st of the year. He has a 4th hit in game one, then two more in the nitecap. Chuck Klein follows O'Doul's home run with one of his own, his 43rd. For Rogers Hornsby, it was a tough inning, as the two home runs eclipse two of his NL season records: most hits (250) and most home runs (42). » October 14, 1929: After a Sunday off, a special train from Washington brings President and Mrs. Hoover to Shibe Park to see if Howard Ehmke can wind up the Series against Pat Malone. They match zeroes for 3, but with two outs in the 4th, a walk and three hits give the Cubs a 2–0 lead. Malone stifles the A's with two hits and the 2–0 lead holds up into the 9th. The Athletics rally and come up with three runs, the winning run scoring on a Bing Miller double, and take the series four games to one. There won't be another winning rally by a team down two runs in the 9th of game seven this century; the Diamondbacks, in 2001, will do it next. National League MVP Rogers Hornsby, hobbled with a heel spur, manages just five hits in the Series. » May 30, 1930: The Cubs Rogers Hornsby, already limping after off-season surgery on his heel, breaks an ankle sliding into 3B in the first game of a doubleheader in St. Louis. The Cubs win both games, 2–0 and 9–3, to move into 3rd place, but Hornsby will miss most of the season. » September 4, 1930: Rogers Hornsby returns to the Chicago lineup as the Cubs beat the Pirates. Hornsby had been absent since Memorial Day because of a broken ankle. » September 25, 1930: Joe McCarthy, not receiving the support of Cubs owner William Wrigley, resigns as manager. Rogers Hornsby is named to finish the season. » April 24, 1931: Rogers Hornsby, player/manager of the Chicago Cubs, hits 3 consecutive HRs to beat the Pirates at Forbes Field 10-6. » September 13, 1931: At Wrigley, the Cubs win 11–7 over the Braves when player-manager Rogers Hornsby cracks an 11th inning pinch grand slam. According to historian David Vincent, this is the first extra inning pinch grand slam in ML history. The Cubs take the second game, 8–1, behind Guy Bush's one-hitter, his 2nd of the year. His first was against the Cards on August 9th. » August 2, 1932: Rogers Hornsby is fired as manager of the Chicago Cubs, and 1B Charlie Grimm is put in charge. » August 13, 1932: Commissioner Landis clears Rogers Hornsby of charges of fraudulently "borrowing" money from Cubs players. The Chicago papers said Hornsby had obtained money from players, either loaned to him to bet on horse races, or to share in joint ventures. When Hornsby is fined, the players want refunds. Hornsby wants a lump payoff by the Cubs, who refuse. Landis holds several hearings, and as he doesn't punish anyone, it is taken as exoneration. » September 20, 1932: The Chicago Cubs clinch the NL pennant when Kiki Cuyler hits a triple with the bases loaded for a 5–2 win over Pittsburgh. Guy Bush wins his 19th game and rookie Billy Herman tops the 200 mark in hits for the season. Tomorrow the Cubs will snub ex-manager Rogers Hornsby on the split of World Series shares. » September 22, 1932: The Cubs announce World Series shares and snub former player-manager Rogers Hornsby. Late-season arrival Mark Koenig gets just a half share. Hornsby appeals to Judge Landis, arguing that he was an active player for two-thirds of the season, and deserved a full share. Landis turns him down. In today's contest, Cubs Burleigh Grimes loses, 7–0, to Hal Smith of the Pirates. It's Hal's first major league start and his only decision of the year. » October 14, 1932: Judge Landis rejects Rogers Hornsby's appeal for a share of the Cubs' WS money. » October 24, 1932: Rogers Hornsby signs to play with the St. Louis Cardinals, whom he had managed to the World Championship in 1926. » March 11, 1933: Rogers Hornsby, out of baseball since being fired as Cubs manager in August 1932, joins the Cardinals in spring training as a player. He will return to 2B after a 6-year absence from St. Louis. » July 26, 1933: Rogers Hornsby swaps St. Louis uniforms, leaving the Cards to manage the Browns. » October 22, 1933: Phil Ball, millionaire owner of the St. Louis Browns, dies. Manager Rogers Hornsby will run the team. » May 17, 1934: Down 2–0 in the 8th, Browns manager Rogers Hornsby inserts himself as pinch hitter and ties the game with a homer off Red Sox lefty Fritz Ostermueller. The Browns add another and hold on for a 4–3 win. » November 23, 1935: The Giants purchase veteran P Dick Coffman from the Browns. Coffman, who was on the outs with Rogers Hornsby, will go 24–14 over the next four years for New York. » May 31, 1936: In a 5-run rally in the 9th at Detroit, Rogers Hornsby's pinch single drives in the winner and gives the Browns an 11–10 win over the Tigers. Starting pitcher Chief Hogsett, making his first appearance with the last-place Browns, hits four Detroit batters to tie the ML record. » September 14, 1936: Pittsburgh's Paul Waner ties Rogers Hornsby's modern NL record, reaching 200 hits for the 7th time. » January 17, 1937: Cleveland gets Moose Solters, Ivy Andrews, and Lyn Lary from the St. Louis Browns for Joe Vosmik, Bill Knickerbocker, and Oral Hildebrand. The three departing Brownies are termed "real playboys" by manager Rogers Hornsby. Solters and Andrews were also the RBI and ERA leaders for the Brownies. » July 21, 1937: Rogers Hornsby is fired as manager of the St. Louis Browns for playing the horses; Jim Bottomley takes over. » January 4, 1942: Rogers Hornsby becomes the 14th player selected to the Hall of Fame, getting 78 percent of the vote. But Frank Chance with 58 percent and Rube Waddell with 54 percent miss out. » February 26, 1943: The Phils sign Bucky Harris as manager. It is the 4th ML club Harris has led, not counting two stints—later 3—at Washington. Clark Griffith, Rogers Hornsby, Donie Bush, and Bill McKechnie have also managed four clubs. » July 6, 1945: The Braves sweep the Pirates 13-5 and 14­8, as Butch Nieman hits a pinch grand slam in the opener. In the second game, Tommy Holmes hits in his 34th consecutive game to pass Rogers Hornsby's record of 33 in 1922. » October 9, 1951: In New York, Browns owner Bill Veeck, Jr. hires Rogers Hornsby to a three-year contract to manage the Browns. The Rajah, who last managed in the majors in 1937 as skipper of the Browns, was fired by Bill Veeck, Sr. in 1932 when Hornsby managed the Cubs. Hornsby chooses the Browns offer over a similar one by the Cardinals, who just let Marty Marion go as manager. » June 10, 1952: The St. Louis Browns fire manager Rogers Hornsby in Boston. The players present owner Bill Veeck with a trophy for freeing them from Rajah's tyranny. The stunt was actually the work of Veeck and team traveling secretary Bill Durney. The Browns name Marty Marion as their player-manager. » July 28, 1952: Rogers Hornsby, after being fired by the St. Louis Browns, replaces another former Brownie manager, Luke Sewell, as manager of the Cincinnati Reds. » January 17, 1953: Martin Aarjan Jole, a Dutch player, gets a tryout with a Reds farm club in Columbia, SC. The 22-year-old, reputed to be a power hitter, wrote to Rogers Hornsby, the new Reds manager, asking for a tryout. » September 17, 1953: With a record of 64-82, the Cincinnati Redlegs fire Rogers Hornsby as their manager with 8 games left in the season. Coach Buster Mills replaces him for the remainder of the year. » July 18, 1957: Dodger slugger Gil Hodges hits his 12th career grand slam to tie the NL record of Rogers Hornsby and Ralph Kiner, as the Dodgers edge the Cards 10-9. St. Louis remains a game behind the Phils. The slam comes against the Cardinals Wilmer Mizell. » January 5, 1963: Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby dies at age 66 of a heart ailment. » June 24, 1984: Oakland's Joe Morgan hits his 265th career home run as a 2B, breaking Rogers Hornsby's major-league record for that position. Morgan, who has 267 home runs overall, connects off Frank Tanana in the first inning of the A's 4–2 win over Texas. » July 2, 1989: Brewers OF Robin Yount, 33, collects his 2,500th hit in a 10–2 win over the Yankees. Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby, Hank Aaron, and Mel Ott are the only players to reach that milestone at a younger age. » August 28, 1990: Ryne Sandberg homers in the Cubs' 5–2 win over the Astros to become the first 2B ever to post back-to-back 30-HR seasons. He will finish the year with 40 home runs to become the first 2B since Rogers Hornsby in 1925 to lead the league in that category. » September 13, 1991: Toronto OF Joe Carter drives in a run in the Blue Jays' 7-6 victory over the A's, becoming the 1st player in history to reach the 100 plateau in three consecutive seasons with three different teams. Nine players (Dick Allen, Orlando Cepeda, Rocky Colavito, Goose Goslin, Rogers Hornsby, Reggie Jackson, Lee May, Al Simmons, and Vic Wertz) have collected 100 RBI with three teams, but none consecutively.