Mathes spent 68 years in professional baseball, calling everyone he met along the
way "Hustler." He joined the Cardinals' scouting staff in 1936 after an inconsequential
ML playing career and two decades in the minors as a player and manager. Mathes convinced
Branch Rickey to make an outfielder out of sore-armed pitcher Stan Musial. He remained
with the Cardinals until 1958, and returned from 1964 to 1976, after brief stints
with the Tigers, Giants, and Mets. He signed Red Schoendienst after he had been overlooked
at a tryout camp.
(FVP)