Ben Chapman (baseball player)
Encyclopedia
William Benjamin "Ben" Chapman (December 25, 1908 – July 7, 1993) was an American
outfielder
and manager
in Major League Baseball
who played for several teams, most notably the New York Yankees
. During the period from 1926 to 1943, he had more stolen base
s than any other player, leading the American League
four times. After twelve seasons, during which he batted
.302 and led the AL in assists
and double play
s twice each, he spent two years in the minor leagues and returned to the majors as a National League
pitcher
for three seasons, becoming player-manager of the Philadelphia Phillies
, his final team. In later years, his playing reputation was eclipsed by the role he played in as manager of the Phillies, opposing the presence of Jackie Robinson
on a major league team on the basis of Robinson's race.
, Chapman batted and threw right-handed. He was a teammate of Babe Ruth
, Lou Gehrig
, Bill Dickey
, Joe DiMaggio
and other stars on the Yankees from 1930 through the middle of the 1936 season. In his rookie season with the Yankees, during which he batted .316, he played exclusively in the infield as a second
and third baseman
; although he played only 91 games at third, he led the AL in errors
, and after Joe Sewell
was acquired in the offseason, Chapman was shifted to the outfield to take advantage of his speed and throwing arm. He led the AL in stolen bases for the next three seasons (1931–33); his total of 61 was the highest by a Yankee since Fritz Maisel
's 74 in , and would be the most by any major leaguer between 1921 and 1961, equalled only by George Case
in ). With the Yankees, he also batted over .300 and scored 100 runs
four times each, batted in
100 runs twice, led the AL in triples
in , and made each of the first three AL All-Star
teams from 1933–35, leading off in the 1933 game as the first AL hitter in All-Star history. In the 1932 World Series
he batted .294 with six runs batted in as the Yankees swept the Chicago Cubs
. In one game on July 9, 1932, he had three home run
s, two of which were inside-the-park
, and on May 30, 1934 he broke up Detroit Tiger
Earl Whitehill
's no-hitter
in the ninth inning.
It was in New York that the extent of Chapman's bigotry first surfaced. He taunted Jewish fans at Yankee Stadium with Nazi salute
s and disparaging epithets. In a 1933 game, his confrontation with the Washington Senators
' Jewish infielder, Buddy Myer
, caused a 20-minute brawl that saw 300 fans participate and resulted in five-game suspensions and $100 fines for each of the players involved.
In June 1936, Chapman – then hitting .266 and expendable with the arrival of DiMaggio – was traded to the Senators. The trade was ironic in that the player the Yankees received in return was Jake Powell
, who would become infamous for a 1938 WGN
radio interview in which he stated that he liked to crack blacks over the head with his nightstick as a police officer in Dayton, Ohio
during the off-season. Furthermore, earlier in the 1936 season, Powell had purposely collided with Hank Greenberg
, the Detroit Tigers
' Jewish first baseman, breaking Greenberg's wrist and ending his season after only 12 games.
After the trade, Chapman rebounded to finish the year with a .315 average, again making the All-Star team and scoring 100 runs, and collecting a career-high 50 doubles
. In June 1937 the Senators sent him to the Boston Red Sox
, and he led the AL in steals for the fourth time with 35. The following year he hit a career-best .340 with Boston, after which he was traded to the Cleveland Indians
. After seasons hitting .290 and .286, Cleveland sent him back to Washington in December 1940; he hit .255 with the Senators before they released him in May 1941, and after he batted only .226 with the Chicago White Sox
over the remainder of the year, his major league career appeared to be finished.
in 1942 and 1944 — he was suspended for the 1943 season for punching an umpire
— Chapman resurfaced, following brief World War II
military service, as a pitcher in the National League with the Brooklyn Dodgers
in 1944, earning five wins
against three losses. After starting the next year 3-3, he was traded to the Phillies on June 15, 1945, becoming player-manager on June 30. He made three relief appearances for the team that year, and played his final game in with one inning of relief. He appeared in 1,717 games over 15 seasons, batting .302 lifetime with 287 stolen bases (including 15 of home), 1,144 runs, 90 home runs, 407 doubles, 107 triples and 977 RBI, and winning eight of 14 decisions as a pitcher; his 184 steals with the Yankees placed him second in team history behind Hal Chase
.
as manager. The team improved somewhat through the end of the year, and climbed to fifth place in 1946, the first year of the postwar baseball boom and the last season in which the color line
was in force. In April 1947, Brooklyn called up Robinson from the Montreal Royals
and made him their regular first baseman
: he was the first African-American to play in the major leagues in more than sixty years. Chapman's Phillies were not the only NL team to oppose integration
– several Dodger players had allegedly tried to petition management to keep him off the team – but during an early-season series in Brooklyn
, the level of verbal abuse directed by Chapman and his players at Robinson reached such proportions that it made headlines in the New York and national press. Chapman instructed his pitchers, whenever they had a 3-0 count against Robinson, to bean
him rather than walk him.
Chapman's attempts to intimidate Robinson eventually backfired, with the Dodgers rallying behind him, and there was increased sympathy for him in many circles. The backlash against Chapman was so severe that he was asked to pose in a photograph with Robinson as a conciliatory gesture when the two teams next met in Philadelphia in May. This incident prompted Robinson's teammate Dixie Walker
to comment, "I never thought I'd see old Ben eat shit like that."
Robinson went on to stardom and a ten-year career, a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame, and a revered position in American sporting and civil rights
circles. Chapman's baseball career, however, was coming to an end. He survived the 1947 season, but the Phillies fell to seventh place. In July , with the team still in seventh, Chapman was fired and eventually replaced by Eddie Sawyer
. He would surface one more time in the majors, as a coach for the 1952 Cincinnati Reds
.
Chapman's career major league managing record was 196-276 (.415). He died of a heart attack at age 84 at his home in Hoover, Alabama
. He was interred at Birmingham's Elmwood Cemetery
.
' poem "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer
", is mentioned in Vladimir Nabokov
's novel Pale Fire
(lines 97–98), where it is misinterpreted by the character Charles Kinbote
. Sources disagree on whether the headline is genuine or not.
In Harry Turtledove
's alternate history novel American Empire: The Victorious Opposition
, Chapman is a member of the Freedom Party (an analogue of the Nazi Party) as a Chief Assault Band Leader (a captain in Army ranking). His only appearance is when he drops off Willy Knight as a political prisoner at Camp Dependable (an extermination camp in the Population Reduction, an analogue of the Holocaust) in the dead of night.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
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 several teams, most notably 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...
. During the period from 1926 to 1943, he had more stolen base
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...
s than any other player, leading the 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...
four times. After twelve seasons, during which he batted
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.302 and led the AL in assists
Assist (baseball)
In baseball, an assist is a defensive statistic, baseball being one of the few sports in which the defensive team controls the ball. An assist is awarded to every defensive player who fields or touches the ball prior to the recording of a putout, even if the contact was unintentional...
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 twice each, he spent two years in the minor leagues and returned to the majors as a 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...
pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
for three seasons, becoming player-manager of 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...
, his final team. In later years, his playing reputation was eclipsed by the role he played in as manager of the Phillies, opposing the presence of 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...
on a major league team on the basis of Robinson's race.
Playing career
Born in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Chapman batted and threw right-handed. He was a teammate of Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
, Lou Gehrig
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig , nicknamed "The Iron Horse" for his durability, was an American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 17-year baseball career for the New York Yankees . Gehrig set several major league records. He holds the record for most career grand slams...
, Bill Dickey
Bill Dickey
William Malcolm Dickey was a Major League Baseball catcher and manager.He played his entire 19-year baseball career with the New York Yankees . During Dickey's playing career, the Yankees went to the World Series nine times, winning eight championships...
, Joe DiMaggio
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul "Joe" DiMaggio , nicknamed "Joltin' Joe" and "The Yankee Clipper," was an American Major League Baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career for the New York Yankees. He is perhaps best known for his 56-game hitting streak , a record that still stands...
and other stars on the Yankees from 1930 through the middle of the 1936 season. In his rookie season with the Yankees, during which he batted .316, he played exclusively in the infield as a second
Second baseman
Second base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
and third baseman
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...
; although he played only 91 games at third, he led the AL in errors
Error (baseball)
In baseball statistics, an error is the act, in the judgment of the official scorer, of a fielder misplaying a ball in a manner that allows a batter or baserunner to reach one or more additional bases, when such an advance would have been prevented given ordinary effort by the fielder.The term ...
, and after Joe Sewell
Joe Sewell
Joseph Wheeler Sewell was a Major League Baseball infielder for the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees...
was acquired in the offseason, Chapman was shifted to the outfield to take advantage of his speed and throwing arm. He led the AL in stolen bases for the next three seasons (1931–33); his total of 61 was the highest by a Yankee since Fritz Maisel
Fritz Maisel
Frederick Charles "Fritz" Maisel , was a professional baseball player who played third base in the Major Leagues from 1913-1918. He played for the New York Yankees and St. Louis Browns. Because of his speed on the basepaths, Fritz was known as "Catonsville Flash" or just "Flash" by his fans...
's 74 in , and would be the most by any major leaguer between 1921 and 1961, equalled only by George Case
George Case
George Washington Case was an American left and right fielder in Major League Baseball who played most of his career for the Washington Senators...
in ). With the Yankees, he also batted over .300 and scored 100 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...
four times each, 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...
100 runs twice, led the AL in triples
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
in , and made each of the first three AL 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...
teams from 1933–35, leading off in the 1933 game as the first AL hitter in All-Star history. In the 1932 World Series
1932 World Series
The 1932 World Series was played between the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs , with the Yankees holding home field advantage. The Yankees swept the Cubs, four games to none...
he batted .294 with six runs batted in as the Yankees swept 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 one game on July 9, 1932, he had three 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, two of which were inside-the-park
Inside-the-park home run
In baseball parlance, an inside-the-park home run, "leg home run", or "quadruple", is a play where a batter hits a home run without hitting the ball out of play.-Discussion:...
, and on May 30, 1934 he broke up Detroit Tiger
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
Earl Whitehill
Earl Whitehill
Earl Oliver Whitehill was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Detroit Tigers for the most significant portion of his career , and later with the Washington Senators , Cleveland Indians , and the Chicago Cubs...
's no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...
in the ninth inning.
It was in New York that the extent of Chapman's bigotry first surfaced. He taunted Jewish fans at Yankee Stadium with Nazi salute
Nazi salute
The Nazi salute, or Hitler salute , was a gesture of greeting in Nazi Germany usually accompanied by saying, Heil Hitler! ["Hail Hitler!"], Heil, mein Führer ["Hail, my leader!"], or Sieg Heil! ["Hail victory!"]...
s and disparaging epithets. In a 1933 game, his confrontation with the Washington Senators
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
' Jewish infielder, Buddy Myer
Buddy Myer
Charles Solomon "Buddy" Myer was an American second baseman in Major League Baseball from 1925 to 1941.An excellent hitter, he batted .300 or better in eight full seasons, and retired with a career average of .303. He walked more than twice as many times as he struck out...
, caused a 20-minute brawl that saw 300 fans participate and resulted in five-game suspensions and $100 fines for each of the players involved.
In June 1936, Chapman – then hitting .266 and expendable with the arrival of DiMaggio – was traded to the Senators. The trade was ironic in that the player the Yankees received in return was Jake Powell
Jake Powell
Alvin Jacob Powell born in Silver Spring, Maryland, was an outfielder for the Washington Senators , New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies ....
, who would become infamous for a 1938 WGN
WGN (AM)
WGN is a radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is the only radio station owned by the Tribune Company, which also owns the flagship television station WGN-TV, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and Chicago magazine locally. WGN's transmitter is located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois...
radio interview in which he stated that he liked to crack blacks over the head with his nightstick as a police officer in Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
during the off-season. Furthermore, earlier in the 1936 season, Powell had purposely collided with Hank Greenberg
Hank Greenberg
Henry Benjamin "Hank" Greenberg , nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank" or "The Hebrew Hammer," was an American professional baseball player in the 1930s and 1940s. A first baseman primarily for the Detroit Tigers, Greenberg was one of the premier power hitters of his generation...
, the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
' Jewish first baseman, breaking Greenberg's wrist and ending his season after only 12 games.
After the trade, Chapman rebounded to finish the year with a .315 average, again making the All-Star team and scoring 100 runs, and collecting a career-high 50 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....
. In June 1937 the Senators sent him to the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, and he led the AL in steals for the fourth time with 35. The following year he hit a career-best .340 with Boston, after which he was traded 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...
. After seasons hitting .290 and .286, Cleveland sent him back to Washington in December 1940; he hit .255 with the Senators before they released him in May 1941, and after he batted only .226 with the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
over the remainder of the year, his major league career appeared to be finished.
Managerial career
After managing in the Class B Piedmont LeaguePiedmont League
The Piedmont League was a minor league baseball league that operated from 1920 through 1955. The league operated principally in the Piedmont plateau region in the eastern United States.- Former :...
in 1942 and 1944 — he was suspended for the 1943 season for punching an umpire
Umpire (baseball)
In baseball, the umpire is the person charged with officiating the game, including beginning and ending the game, enforcing the rules of the game and the grounds, making judgment calls on plays, and handling the disciplinary actions. The term is often shortened to the colloquial form ump...
— Chapman resurfaced, following brief World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
military service, as a pitcher in the National League with the Brooklyn Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
in 1944, earning five wins
Win (baseball)
In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...
against three losses. After starting the next year 3-3, he was traded to the Phillies on June 15, 1945, becoming player-manager on June 30. He made three relief appearances for the team that year, and played his final game in with one inning of relief. He appeared in 1,717 games over 15 seasons, batting .302 lifetime with 287 stolen bases (including 15 of home), 1,144 runs, 90 home runs, 407 doubles, 107 triples and 977 RBI, and winning eight of 14 decisions as a pitcher; his 184 steals with the Yankees placed him second in team history behind Hal Chase
Hal Chase
Harold Homer Chase , nicknamed "Prince Hal", was a first baseman in Major League Baseball, widely viewed as the best fielder at his position...
.
Jackie Robinson
With the Phillies buried in last place in 1945 (winners of only 17 of 68 games), Chapman replaced Freddie FitzsimmonsFreddie Fitzsimmons
Frederick Landis Fitzsimmons , nicknamed "Fat Freddie," was an American right-handed pitcher, manager and coach in Major League Baseball who played from 1925 to 1943 with the New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers...
as manager. The team improved somewhat through the end of the year, and climbed to fifth place in 1946, the first year of the postwar baseball boom and the last season in which the color line
Baseball color line
The color line in American baseball excluded players of black African descent from Organized Baseball, or the major leagues and affiliated minor leagues, until Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization for the 1946 season...
was in force. In April 1947, Brooklyn called up Robinson from the Montreal Royals
Montreal Royals
The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec, that existed from 1897–1917 and from 1928–60 as a member of the International League and its progenitor, the original Eastern League...
and made him their regular first baseman
First baseman
First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...
: he was the first African-American to play in the major leagues in more than sixty years. Chapman's Phillies were not the only NL team to oppose integration
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
– several Dodger players had allegedly tried to petition management to keep him off the team – but during an early-season series in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, the level of verbal abuse directed by Chapman and his players at Robinson reached such proportions that it made headlines in the New York and national press. Chapman instructed his pitchers, whenever they had a 3-0 count against Robinson, to bean
Beanball
"Beanball" is a colloquialism used in baseball, for a ball thrown at an opposing player with the intention of striking him such as to cause harm, often connoting a throw at the player's head...
him rather than walk him.
Chapman's attempts to intimidate Robinson eventually backfired, with the Dodgers rallying behind him, and there was increased sympathy for him in many circles. The backlash against Chapman was so severe that he was asked to pose in a photograph with Robinson as a conciliatory gesture when the two teams next met in Philadelphia in May. This incident prompted Robinson's teammate Dixie Walker
Dixie Walker
Fred E. "Dixie" Walker was a right fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yankees , Chicago White Sox , Detroit Tigers , Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates...
to comment, "I never thought I'd see old Ben eat shit like that."
Robinson went on to stardom and a ten-year career, a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame, and a revered position in American sporting and civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
circles. Chapman's baseball career, however, was coming to an end. He survived the 1947 season, but the Phillies fell to seventh place. In July , with the team still in seventh, Chapman was fired and eventually replaced by Eddie Sawyer
Eddie Sawyer
Edwin Milby Sawyer was an American manager and scout in Major League Baseball. As a manager, he led the 1950 Philadelphia Phillies — the "Whiz Kids", as the youthful club was known — to the second National League championship in team history.-A scholar-athlete:Born in Westerly, Rhode Island,...
. He would surface one more time in the majors, as a coach for the 1952 Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....
.
Chapman's career major league managing record was 196-276 (.415). He died of a heart attack at age 84 at his home in Hoover, Alabama
Hoover, Alabama
Hoover is a city in Jefferson and Shelby Counties in north central Alabama, in the United States. The largest suburb of Birmingham, the population of the city was 62,742 as of the 2000 census and 81,619 in the 2010 census. Hoover is part of the Birmingham-Hoover, AL MSA and is also included in the...
. He was interred at Birmingham's Elmwood Cemetery
Elmwood Cemetery (Birmingham, Alabama)
Elmwood Cemetery is a cemetery established in 1900 in Birmingham, Alabama northwest of Homewood by a group of fraternal organizations. It was renamed in 1906 and gradually eclipsed Oak Hill Cemetery as the most prominent burial place in the city...
.
In literature
The newspaper headline "Red Sox beat Yanks 5–4 on Chapman's Homer," a possibly intentional pun on the title of John KeatsJohn Keats
John Keats was an English Romantic poet. Along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, he was one of the key figures in the second generation of the Romantic movement, despite the fact that his work had been in publication for only four years before his death.Although his poems were not...
' poem "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer
On First Looking into Chapman's Homer
Much have I travell'd in the realms of gold, And many goodly states and kingdoms seen; Round many western islands have I been Which bards in fealty to Apollo hold. Oft of one wide expanse had I been told...
", is mentioned in Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov was a multilingual Russian novelist and short story writer. Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Russian, then rose to international prominence as a master English prose stylist...
's novel Pale Fire
Pale Fire
Pale Fire is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is presented as a 999-line poem titled "Pale Fire", written by the fictional John Shade, with a foreword and lengthy commentary by a neighbor and academic colleague of the poet. Together these elements form a narrative in which both authors are...
(lines 97–98), where it is misinterpreted by the character Charles Kinbote
Charles Kinbote
Charles Kinbote is the unreliable narrator in Vladimir Nabokov's novel Pale Fire.-Academic work:Kinbote appears to be the scholarly author of the Foreword, Commentary and Index surrounding the text of the late John Shade's poem "Pale Fire", which together form the text of Nabokov's novel...
. Sources disagree on whether the headline is genuine or not.
In Harry Turtledove
Harry Turtledove
Harry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
's alternate history novel American Empire: The Victorious Opposition
American Empire: The Victorious Opposition
American Empire: The Victorious Opposition is the third and final book in the American Empire alternate history series by Harry Turtledove, and the seventh in the Southern Victory Series of books.-Plot summary:...
, Chapman is a member of the Freedom Party (an analogue of the Nazi Party) as a Chief Assault Band Leader (a captain in Army ranking). His only appearance is when he drops off Willy Knight as a political prisoner at Camp Dependable (an extermination camp in the Population Reduction, an analogue of the Holocaust) in the dead of night.
See also
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
- List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career stolen bases
- List of Major League Baseball stolen base champions
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
- Major League Baseball titles leadersMajor League Baseball titles leadersAt the end of each Major League Baseball season, the league leaders of various statistical categories are announced. Leading the league in a particular category is referred to as a title....
External links
- BaseballLibrary - career highlights
- The Baseball Page
- http://www.explorepahistory.com/displayimage.php?storyId=2&imgId=32 - Photo of Chapman with Jackie Robinson