Buried in the Cardinal farm system for five years, Mancuso was rescued in 1930 by
Judge Landis, who told St. Louis to keep him on the ML club or lose him. The stocky
catcher went on to become one of the top NL catchers of the 1930s. After working
as a backup for two Cardinal pennant winners (1930-31), Mancuso was traded to the
Giants in 1933. Manager Bill Terry credited his acquisition as the major factor in
moving New York from sixth in 1932 to the '33 pennant. A fine defensive receiver,
the swarthy Mancuso handled a pitching staff that included Carl Hubbell, Fred Fitzsimmons,
and Hal Shumacher. He continued as the Giants' regular through the pennant seasons
of 1936-37 and later shared catching duties on other NL clubs until the end of WWII.
Although he admitted, "I was so slow-footed I
x
x
could be a real rally-stopper
on the bases," Mancuso hit a respectable .265 for his career. In 1936, his best all-around
season, he batted .301 and drove in 63 runs.
His younger brother, Frank, caught
four years in the AL during the mid-1940s.
(FS)
FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY
»February 16, 1930: Judge Landis rules that the Cards cannot farm out C Gus Mancuso to Rochester. Forced to keep him, the commissioner's edict pays off when Cardinals regular C Jimmie Wilson is injured and Mancuso bats .366 in 76 games.
»May 19, 1937: Dizzy Dean instigates another donnybrook following a number of knockdown pitches in a game with the Giants. The Giants score three runs in the 6th inning after Dean is called for a balk by ump George Barr. Losing 4–1 to Carl Hubbell in the 9th, Dean knocks down Jimmy Ripple with a pitch. Ripple follows with a bunt on the first base side in a effort to make Dean field the ball. The bunt, however, bounces to 2B Jimmy Brown, who prepares to throw to Johnny Mize at 1B. Dean, who had started toward the ball, keeps running and barrels into Ripple. The two benches empty, and when the field is cleared by the umpires and policemen, the batter Ripple, who was never put out at first base, is credited with a single. Catchers Gus Mancuso and Mickey Owen are ejected after staging their own private boxing match. The only player who doesn't leave the bench is Hubbell, who wins his 6th straight game of the year and 22nd regular-season decision in a row. The Cards scoreboard attendant counts pitches in the game: 172 by Dean and 93 by Hubbell (70 strikes, 23 balls). King Carl uses five pitches in both the 1st and 8th.
»December 6, 1938: In a trade of major names, the Giants send Dick Bartell, Hank Leiber, and Gus Mancuso to the Cubs for Billy Jurges, Frank Demaree, and Ken O'Dea. The trade works best for the Giants as the New York-born Jurges will anchor the infield for seven years; Chicago-born Bartell lasts just a season at Wrigley.
»December 4, 1940: MacPhail continues his dealing and gets his catcher. The Dodgers trade for Mickey Owen, giving Gus Mancuso and $85,000 to the Cardinals.
»September 1, 1944:
The Giants lose to Brooklyn 8-1, as Giant Joe
Medwick is hit on the elbow and leaves the game for
treatment. With both teams out of the race, Dodgers
manager Leo Durocher agrees to allow Medwick to reenter
the game if Durocher can pick the pinch runner for
him. He selects slow-footed Gus Mancuso, who is promptly
erased on a DP ground ball.
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