Alvin Dark
Encyclopedia
Alvin Ralph Dark nicknamed "Blackie" and "The Swamp Fox", is a former shortstop
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...

 and manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...

 in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 who played for five National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

 teams from 1946 to 1960. Named the major leagues' Rookie of the Year
MLB Rookie of the Year Award
In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is annually given to one player from each league as voted on by the Baseball Writers Association of America . The award was established in 1940 by the Chicago chapter of the BBWAA, which selected an annual winner from 1940 through 1946...

 with the Boston Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

 when he batted .322. After joining the New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....

 he hit .300 three more times and became the first NL shortstop to hit 20 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...

s more than once. His .411 career slugging average was the seventh highest by an NL shortstop when he retired, and his 126 home runs placed him behind only Ernie Banks
Ernie Banks
Ernest "Ernie" Banks , nicknamed "Mr. Cub", is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and first baseman. He played his entire 19-year baseball career with the Chicago Cubs . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.-High school years:Banks was a letterman and standout in football,...

 and Travis Jackson
Travis Jackson
Travis Calvin Jackson was a Major League Baseball player during the 1920s and 1930s. His exceptional range at shortstop led to the nickname "Stonewall."...

. After leading the NL in putout
Putout
In baseball statistics, a putout is given to a defensive player who records an out by one of the following methods:* Tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base...

s and double play
Double play
In baseball, a double play for a team or a fielder is the act of making two outs during the same continuous playing action. In baseball slang, making a double play is referred to as "turning two"....

s three times each, he ended his career with the seventh most double plays (933) and tenth highest fielding percentage
Fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball...

 (.960) in league history. He went on to become the third manager to win pennants with both National and American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...

 teams.

Baseball career

Dark attended LSU
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...

, in 1942 and was a football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 standout there as well as a baseball player. During World War II, he transferred through the V-12 program to the University of Louisiana-Lafayette (then Southwestern Louisiana Institute) in Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...

, where he again showed his baseball skills, batting .461 in 1944. His football skills were evident there as well as he quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...

ed SLI to an undefeated season in 1943 and a New Year's Day victory in the Oil Bowl
Oil Bowl
Oil Bowl was a college football bowl game played at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas, in 1944, 1946, and 1947. Muddy conditions for the first and freezing temperatures for the third game doomed future contests....

. This led to his getting drafted
NFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...

 by the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

 in the 1945 NFL Draft
1945 NFL Draft
The 1945 National Football League Draft was held on April 8, 1945. It was the last draft held in Chicago; later in the year the league moved its offices to Philadelphia.-Player selections:-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:...

. After serving in Asia during the war, however, he came home and chose baseball.

He was named the MLB Rookie of the Year and finished third in the MVP
MLB Most Valuable Player Award
The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award is an annual Major League Baseball award, given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America...

 voting in 1948 after playing a vital part of the Braves' unlikely run to the pennant, their first since 1914, though he hit only .167 in the World Series
1948 World Series
The 1948 World Series matched the Cleveland Indians against the Boston Braves. The Braves had won the National League pennant for the first time since the "Miracle Braves" team of . The Indians spoiled a chance for the only all-Boston World Series by winning a one-game playoff against the Boston...

 loss to the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...

. He was traded after the season, which turned out to be a boon for the Giants. Dark was immediately named team captain
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...

 by manager Leo Durocher
Leo Durocher
Leo Ernest Durocher , nicknamed Leo the Lip, was an American infielder and manager in Major League Baseball. Upon his retirement, he ranked fifth all-time among managers with 2,009 career victories, second only to John McGraw in National League history. Durocher still ranks tenth in career wins by...

, and had several great seasons in New York. In he batted .303 with 114 runs
Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured...

 and a league-leading 41 doubles
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....

 as the Giants won their first pennant since 1937; he hit .417 in the World Series
1951 World Series
The 1951 World Series matched the two-time defending champion New York Yankees against the New York Giants, who had won the National League pennant in a thrilling three-game playoff with the Brooklyn Dodgers on the legendary home run by Bobby Thomson .In the Series, the Yankees showed some power of...

 against the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

, including a three-run home run in Game 1, though the Giants lost in six games. He followed up with seasons hitting .301 and .300 in 1952-53, scoring 126 runs with 23 home runs and 41 doubles in the latter season. In he batted .293 with 20 home runs and was fifth in the MVP voting as the Giants won another pennant; in the World Series
1954 World Series
The 1954 World Series matched the National League champion New York Giants against the American League champion Cleveland Indians. The Giants swept the Series in four games to win their first championship since , defeating the heavily favored Indians, who had won an AL-record 111 games in the...

 against the heavily favored Indians, he batted .412 with a hit
Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....

 in every game, and the Giants pulled off an astonishing sweep to win their first championship since 1933. He was the NL's starting shortstop for the All-Star
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual baseball game between players from the National League and the American League, currently selected by a combination of fans, players, coaches, and managers...

 game in 1951, , and 1954. In he was awarded the first Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
The Lou Gehrig Memorial Award was created by the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity in honor of the former Major League Baseball player Lou Gehrig, who was a member of the fraternity at Columbia University. It is given to players who best exemplify his character and integrity both on and off the field...

, given to the player who best exemplified Gehrig's character and integrity both on and off the field.

In June 1956 he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 in a nine-player deal; he continued to hit well, and led the NL in putouts and double plays for the third time in 1957. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...

 in May 1958, batting .295 over the remainder of the season and .264 in 1959; with Ernie Banks
Ernie Banks
Ernest "Ernie" Banks , nicknamed "Mr. Cub", is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and first baseman. He played his entire 19-year baseball career with the Chicago Cubs . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.-High school years:Banks was a letterman and standout in football,...

 at shortstop, the Cubs shifted Dark to third base
Third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...

, where he remained in his last seasons.

Dark had a role in one of baseball history's weirdest plays. It took place during a game played on June 30, 1959, between the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 and Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...

. Stan Musial
Stan Musial
Stanley Frank "Stan" Musial is a retired professional baseball player who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals . Nicknamed "Stan the Man", Musial was a record 24-time All-Star selection , and is widely considered to be one of the greatest hitters in baseball...

 was at the plate, with a count of 3-1. Bob Anderson's
Bob Anderson (baseball)
Robert Carl Anderson , is a former professional baseball player who played pitcher in the Major Leagues from 1957-1963. He would play for the Chicago Cubs and Detroit Tigers....

 next pitch was errant, evading catcher Sammy Taylor
Sammy Taylor (baseball)
Samuel Douglas "Sammy" Taylor is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played from 1958 to 1963 for the Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians....

 and rolling all the way to the backstop. Umpire Vic Delmore
Vic Delmore
Victor "Deacon" Delmore was an umpire who worked in the National League from 1956 to 1959. His professional umpiring career began in 1948 in the KITTY League. He worked in the Southern Association from 1949 to 1955...

 called ball four on the pitcher, but Anderson and Taylor contended that Musial foul tip
Foul tip
In baseball, a foul tip is defined as "a batted ball that goes sharp directly from the bat to the catcher’s hands and is legally caught. It is not a foul tip unless caught and any foul tip that is caught is a strike, and the ball is in play."...

ped the ball. Because the ball was still in play, and because Delmore was embroiled in an argument with the catcher and pitcher, Musial took it upon himself to try for second base. Seeing that Musial was trying for second, Dark ran to the backstop to retrieve the ball. The ball wound up in the hands of field announcer Pat Pieper
Pat Pieper
Frank "Pat" Pieper served as the Chicago Cubs field announcer from to , a span of 59 years. Coincidentally, his first year as announcer was also the first season in which Wrigley Field was used as the home park of the Cubs...

, but Dark ended up getting it back anyway. Absentmindedly, however, Delmore pulled out a new ball and gave it to Taylor. Anderson finally noticed that Musial was trying for second, took the new ball, and threw it to second baseman Tony Taylor
Tony Taylor
Antonio Nemesio Taylor is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1958 through , Taylor played for the Chicago Cubs , Philadelphia Phillies and Detroit Tigers...

. Anderson's throw flew over Tony Taylor's head into the outfield. Dark, at the same time that Anderson threw the new ball, threw the original ball to shortstop Ernie Banks
Ernie Banks
Ernest "Ernie" Banks , nicknamed "Mr. Cub", is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and first baseman. He played his entire 19-year baseball career with the Chicago Cubs . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.-High school years:Banks was a letterman and standout in football,...

. Musial, though, did not see Dark's throw and only noticed Anderson's ball fly over the second baseman's head, so he tried to go to third base. On his way there, he was tagged by Banks, and after a delay he was ruled out.

In January he was traded with two other players to the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

 in exchange for Richie Ashburn
Richie Ashburn
Don Richard "Richie" Ashburn , also known by the nicknames, "Putt-Putt", "The Tilden Flash", and "Whitey" due to his light-blond hair, was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball. He was born in Tilden, Nebraska...

; after hitting .242 in 55 games, he was traded back to the Braves (now in Milwaukee) in June, and hit .298 in his final 50 games. On October 31 of that year, he was traded back to the Giants (who had moved to San Francisco two years earlier), who wanted him as their new manager rather than as a player. Dark retired with a .289 career batting average, 2089 hits, 1064 runs and 757 runs batted in
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...

 over 1828 games played
Games played
Games played is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated ; the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested.-Baseball:In baseball, the statistic applies also to players who, prior to a game,...

. According to baseball writer Bill James
Bill James
George William “Bill” James is a baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball history and statistics...

, he may have lost a Hall of Fame career due to his debut being delayed by his military service during World War II.

Managerial career

Dark quickly became a successful manager, winning a pennant with the Giants in , but losing the 1962 World Series
1962 World Series
The 1962 World Series matched the defending American League and World Series champions New York Yankees against the National League champion San Francisco Giants, who had won their first NL pennant since 1954 and first since moving from New York in 1958, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in a...

 in seven games to the Yankees. In 1964 he became embroiled in controversy when he was quoted in Newsday
Newsday
Newsday is a daily American newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties and the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, although it is sold throughout the New York metropolitan area...

as complaining about the number of black and Hispanic players on the team and saying, "They are just not able to perform up to the white player when it comes to mental alertness." He responded that he had been severely misquoted; Willie Mays
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his...

, whom he had named as team captain, came to his defense and calmed the team, and Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...

 further noted, "I have found Dark to be a gentleman and, above all, unbiased. Our relationship has not only been on the ballfield but off it." Dark weathered the imbroglio, but Giants owner Horace Stoneham
Horace Stoneham
Horace C. Stoneham was the principal owner of Major League Baseball's New York/San Francisco Giants from the death of his father, Charles Stoneham, in 1936 until 1976. During his ownership, the team won National League pennants in 1936, 1937, 1951, 1954 and 1962, a division title in 1971, and a...

 fired him during the sixth inning of the last game of the season, with the team about to finish in fourth place. He was hired as an assistant to Kansas City Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....

 owner Charlie Finley
Charles O. Finley
Charles Oscar Finley , nicknamed Charlie O or Charley O, was an American businessman who is best remembered for his tenure as the owner of the Oakland Athletics Major League Baseball team. Finley purchased the franchise while it was located in Kansas City, moving it to Oakland in 1968...

 in 1965, and became that team's manager the next season, but was dismissed in August 1967 in a disagreement over player discipline after Finley fined and suspended pitcher Lew Krausse, Jr. for his behavior on a team flight. (Finley also released first baseman Ken Harrelson
Ken Harrelson
Kenneth Smith Harrelson , nicknamed "The Hawk" due to his distinctive profile, is a former All-Star first baseman and outfielder in Major League Baseball...

, who had been quoted as saying that Finley was a menace to the sport.)

Dark was hired to manage the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...

 in 1968 by Vernon Stouffer
Vernon Stouffer
Vernon B. Stouffer, owned a national chain of restaurants, motor inns, and food-service operations and the Cleveland Indians from 1966-72. He played a key part in developing frozen foods and microwavable foods. His company Stouffer's was valued at $21.5 million when it was merged with Litton...

; after an initial third-place season, he was given the additional duties of general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...

, but having the field manager negotiate the players' contracts proved an untenable situation. The Indians returned to their losing ways and Dark was fired in mid-1971 with the team in last place. In the meantime, the Athletics had moved to Oakland, and after manager Dick Williams
Dick Williams
Richard Hirschfeld "Dick" Williams was an American left fielder, third baseman, manager, coach and front office consultant in Major League Baseball. Known especially as a hard-driving, sharp-tongued manager from 1967–69 and 1971–88, he led teams to three American League pennants, one National...

 resigned following consecutive World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...

 triumphs in 1972-73, Finley rehired Dark. He guided the A's to a third straight championship in 1974
1974 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 12, 1974 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CaliforniaReggie Jackson put the A's on the board first with a solo homer in the top of the second off 20-game winner Andy Messersmith...

, joining managers Joe McCarthy and Yogi Berra
Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra is a former American Major League Baseball catcher, outfielder, and manager. He played almost his entire 19-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...

 by winning pennants in both leagues, but was again fired after losing the 1975 American League Championship Series
1975 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 4, 1975 at Fenway Park in Boston, MassachusettsBoston Red Sox starter Luis Tiant allowed just one run on three hits to defeat the Oakland Athletics, 7–1, in the ALCS opener....

. He was hired by the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...

 in mid-1977, but left the team after that season following a fifth-place finish. He ended his career with a 994-954 record, despite the decided weakness of his teams in Cleveland and San Diego. In a 1969 poll, Giants fans selected him as the greatest shortstop in team history.

In 1980, Dark penned an autobiography (with John Underwood) entitled When in Doubt, Fire the Manager, published by E. P. Dutton, the back cover of which included endorsements by Ted Williams and Gene Mauch. In it, Dark focused mostly on his career as manager, especially of the Oakland A's under Charlie Finley, and how his conversion to Christianity affected how he chose to manage his teams.

With the death of Ralph Houk
Ralph Houk
Ralph George Houk , nicknamed The Major, was an American catcher, coach, manager, and front office executive in Major League Baseball...

 in 2010, Dark is the oldest-living manager of a World Series-winning, pennant-winning or post-season team.

See also


External links

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