Danny Murtaugh
Danny Murtaugh | |
---|---|
Second baseman / Manager | |
Born: Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S. | October 8, 1917|
Died: December 2, 1976 Upland, Pennsylvania, U.S. | (aged 59)|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
July 3, 1941, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 6, 1951, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .254 |
Home runs | 8 |
Runs batted in | 219 |
Managerial record | 1,115–950 |
Winning % | .540 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Daniel Edward Murtaugh (October 8, 1917 – December 2, 1976) was an American
Life and career
As player
Murtaugh appeared in all or parts of nine big-league seasons, initially for the
A native of
As a rookie, Murtaugh led the National League in stolen bases with 18, even though he played only 85 games after his acquisition from Houston in late June. In 1942–43 he got into 257 games before joining the United States Army in August 1943 for World War II service. He declined the opportunity to play baseball in the United States and served in combat with the 97th Infantry in Germany.[2]
Returning to baseball in 1946, he played in only six games for Philadelphia before he was sold back to the Cardinals' organization. At Triple-A Rochester, Murtaugh hit .322 and his 174 hits were tied for first in the International League. The Braves then selected him in the 1946 Rule 5 draft, but Murtaugh played in only three early-season games for them before he was again sent to Triple-A. At 29, he had another good offensive season, hitting .302 for Milwaukee. Although his performance did not earn Murtaugh a return to the Braves, it led to perhaps his biggest break when, on November 18, Boston included him in a five-player trade to the Pirates, where he spent the rest of his big-league career.
His most productive season came in his first year with the Bucs,
As manager
After retiring as a player, Murtaugh managed the New Orleans Pelicans (1952–54), the Pirates' Double-A farm club, and the unaffiliated Triple-A Charleston Senators (April 19–July 16, 1955). In 1956 he returned to the Pirates as a coach under Bobby Bragan. In his second year in the job, on August 4, 1957, he succeeded Bragan as skipper with the Bucs 36–67 and one game out of last place; under Murtaugh, they perked up to win 26 of their final 51 games. In his first full season, 1958, Murtaugh led the Pirates to a surprise second-place finish in the National League. He went on to hold the Pittsburgh job for all or parts of fifteen seasons over four different terms (1957–64, 1967, 1970–71, 1973–76).
In
From 1961 to 1964, his Pirates had only one over-.500 season and, after the conclusion of the
Well aware of the abundance of talent in the Pittsburgh system, Murtaugh asked to reclaim the managing job after
Murtaugh's first two clubs won the 1970–71
Citing renewed health concerns — he had been hospitalized for chest pain during the 1971 season[3] — Murtaugh again resigned as manager after the world title. He moved back into the Pittsburgh front office, and his hand-picked successor, Bill Virdon (center fielder for his 1960 champions), took over for 1972 — although Murtaugh, as manager of the reigning World Series champs, did return to uniform to manage the National League entry in the 1972 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Atlanta, a 4–3 triumph for the Senior Circuit.
With the 1973 Pirates scuffling with a 67–69 mark on September 5, Brown fired Virdon and asked Murtaugh to reclaim his old job. Murtaugh reluctantly returned to managing, his fourth term in the post, and stayed through the 1976 season, winning NL East titles in 1974 and 1975 but falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Reds in the NLCS in successive years. After a second-place finish in 1976, both Murtaugh and Brown announced their retirements during the final week of the season.
Death and legacy
Murtaugh suffered a
Murtaugh was a two-time winner (1960 and 1971) of The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award. He compiled a 1,115–950–3 record in 2,068 games (.540),[8] second in Pirates history behind only Fred Clarke. In addition to his two National League pennants and world championships, he won four Eastern Division titles (1970–1971-1974–1975), and no Pirates manager has won more division titles in their tenure since his death. In twelve full seasons as manager, he led the Pirates to a winning record nine times; his five postseason appearances with the Pirates is still the most by any manager in team history.
Managerial record
Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
PIT | 1957 | 51 | 26 | 25 | .510 | 7th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1958 | 154 | 84 | 70 | .545 | 2nd in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1959 | 155 | 78 | 76 | .506 | 4th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1960 | 155 | 95 | 59 | .617 | 1st in NL | 4 | 3 | .571 | Won World Series (NYY) |
PIT | 1961 | 154 | 75 | 79 | .487 | 6th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1962 | 161 | 93 | 68 | .578 | 4th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1963 | 162 | 74 | 88 | .457 | 8th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1964 | 162 | 80 | 82 | .494 | 6th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1967 | 79 | 39 | 39 | .500 | 6th in NL | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1970 | 162 | 89 | 73 | .549 | 1st in NL East | 0 | 3 | .000 | Lost NLCS (CIN) |
PIT | 1971 | 162 | 97 | 65 | .599 | 1st in NL East | 7 | 4 | .636 | Won World Series (BAL) |
PIT | 1973 | 26 | 13 | 13 | .500 | 3rd in NL East | – | – | – | – |
PIT | 1974 | 162 | 88 | 74 | .543 | 1st in NL East | 1 | 3 | .250 | Lost NLCS (LAD) |
PIT | 1975 | 161 | 92 | 69 | .571 | 1st in NL East | 0 | 3 | .000 | Lost NLCS (CIN) |
PIT | 1976 | 162 | 92 | 70 | .568 | 2nd in NL East | – | – | – | – |
Total[8] | 2,068 [a] | 1115 | 950 | .540 | 12 | 16 | .429 |
Highlights
- Led NL in stolen bases (1941)
- Led NL second basemen in putouts, assists and double plays (1948)
- Finished 9th in the NL MVPselection (1948)
- Selected "Man of the Year" by Sportmagazine (1960)
- Twice received The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award (1960, 1970)
- Three-time Dapper Dan Award-winner (1958, 1970, 1971)
- One of 65 managers in major league history to win 1,000 or more games, and one of only twelve to win 1,000 games while also not losing 1,000 games
See also
- List of Major League Baseball retired numbers
- List of Major League Baseball annual stolen base leaders
- List of Major League Baseball managers by wins
- Tim Murtaugh
References
- ^ Retrosheet box score: 1941-07-03
- ^ "Danny Murtaugh". sabr.org. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
- ^ The Associated Press (December 2, 1976). "Danny Murtaugh is Dead at 59; Won 2 Series as Pirate Manager". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
- ^ Alonso, Nathalie (September 1, 2022). "The Pirates Lineup That Changed Baseball". mlb.com. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ "Danny Murtaugh Dies in Coma After Stroke". The Daily American. Somerset, Pennsylvania. December 3, 1976. p. 12. Retrieved April 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ ""Civilized World Love Murtaugh," Says His Eulogy". The Press of Atlantic City. December 7, 1976. p. 20. Retrieved April 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bucs Face Cards at Home". The Salem News. Salem, Ohio. April 7, 1977. p. 10. Retrieved April 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Danny Murtaugh". Baseball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
- "A great manager, a great man" Hroncich, Colleen, Columbia, (KofC, New Haven, CT, July 2016)
Notes
- ^ Murtaugh also managed in three games that ended in a tie
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Danny Murtaugh managerial career statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
- Danny Murtaugh at Baseball Almanac
- Baseball Hall of Fame – 2008 Veterans Committee candidate profile Archived 2007-11-30 at the Wayback Machine
- Danny Murtaugh at Find a Grave
- Danny Murtaugh photo tribute at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette[permanent dead link] (commemorating 50th anniversary of 1960 Bucs' World Series victory over the Yankees)
- Danny Murtaugh at the SABR Baseball Biography Project