His Final Inning

Stan Musial, Baseball Great, Dies at 93

He was simply “The Man.”

Stanley Frank Musial made a name for himself as one of baseball’s best hitters of all time on the field, as well as one of its greatest, most dignified ambassadors off it.

And now “Stan the Man” is gone. Musial died at his Ladue, Missouri, home surrounded by family, the Cardinals said in a statement. According to a post on his Twitter page, which is maintained by his grandson Brian Musial Schwarze, Musial died at 5:45 p.m. (6:45 p.m. ET) Saturday of natural causes.

He was 92.

“We have lost the most beloved member of the Cardinals family,” said William DeWitt Jr., the club’s chairman. “Stan Musial was the greatest player in Cardinals history and one of the best players in the history of baseball.”

The left-hander had a batting average above .300 17 times during his 22-year career—all played with St. Louis—and earned three National League Most Valuable Player awards as well as three World Series titles. The only blip came in 1945, in the thick of World War II, when he left baseball to join the U.S. Navy.

After the 1963 season, Musial retired with a .331 career batting average and as the National League’s career leader in RBI, games played, runs scored, hits and doubles. He has since been surpassed in some of those categories, but he still ranks fourth in baseball history in total hits, behind only Pete Rose, Ty Cobb and Hank Aaron

During and after his playing career, Musial developed a special relationship with the St. Louis fan base, who knew him simply as “Stan the Man.”

A bronze statue of him stands outside Busch Stadium, which is located in Musial Plaza along Stan Musial Drive.

1. Sad but 92 or 3, I guess he had his innings as the saying goes.
   He was part of a baseball world where players and fans were somewhat closer. The players didn’t move around as much as now, and so loyalty was established on a somewhat firmer and more emotional basis. At least, that’s my take on it.

   Posted by peiper       01/20/2013  at  11:25 AM  

2. Sad? If I live to be 93 it will be a certified miracle.
   So he gets the Robert Bird treatment too then( streets named after). And all because he knew how to hit a ball off a bat while wearing fancy pajamas.
   What a Great Country!
      

   Posted by Rich K       01/20/2013  at  01:48 PM  

3. Ever try hitting a ball traveling at you 90 plus miles an hour?

   Posted by peiper       01/21/2013  at  05:44 AM  

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