Tales from the Detroit Tigers Dugout by Jack Ebling

Author:Jack Ebling
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781613212851
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Published: 2012-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

THE BATS

Heilman, Kell, Kuenn-Colavito, Fielder & Ordonez

The bats have come in all shapes and sizes. So have the batters. But the fact remains, the Detroit Tigers have won more than twice as many American League batting titles as the New York Yankees. Even without Ty Cobb’s greatness, Detroit would have a 12-9 advantage.

From 1921 to 1927 the Tigers won five batting crowns in seven seasons. That didn’t include a .401 runner-up finish by Cobb in 1922. Instead, it was a decade when Harry Heilmann was “The Man,” with four batting championships in odd-numbered seasons. And teammate Heinie Manush kept Heilmann’s throne warm in 1926.

Twelve years after Charlie Gehringer had the league’s top average in 1937, George Kell was king. And four seasons after Al Kaline was the youngest titlist at age 20 in 1955, Harvey Kuenn captured the crown. Kell and Kuenn shared another thing a decade apart. Each ended a two-year run by Ted Williams.

Before Kuenn could take his next at-bat, he was dealt to Cleveland for home run champion Rocky Colavito. But the only Tiger to lead the league in homers in back-to-back years was Cecil Fielder in 1990-1991. His 51 dingers in ’90 were second in franchise history behind Hank Greenberg’s 58 in ’38.

Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Cabrera added batting crowns in 2007 and 2011, respectively. “Maggs” hit .363 and “Miggy” .344a—the best in either league. And as much as Detroit loves cars, it’s almost as big on Caracas when an ALCS-winning homer is in flight.

But let’s start with one of the most underrated players any sport has known, right fielder-first baseman Harry Edwin Heilmann. Only Cobb, Rod Carew and Wade Boggs have led the American League in hitting more often. And no one in either league, not even Cobb, could say he won three or more titles and hit .393 or better every time.

Heilmann ranks second on Detroit’s all-time list with a .342 batting average. His .342 career mark, including one season plus another 31 at-bats with Cincinnati, ranks 10th in Major League history—.002 behind Williams’ numbers and the same as Babe Ruth’s.

“I never saw him play but knew all about him,” Hall of Fame voice and historian Ernie Harwell said. “To hit that close to .400 four times says an awful lot. He played for Cobb in the ’20s and was overshadowed by Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx. The averages were all inflated in those days. But to lead the league that often in that era was pretty good.”

The San Francisco native improved immediately when Cobb became a player-manager. Heilmann’s average soared from .309 in 1920 to .394 the following year—.005 higher than Cobb’s runner-up effort. Heilman also led the league with a career-high 237 hits and finished second to Ruth with a .606 slugging percentage and 139 RBIs. More than just a slap hitter, Heilmann rapped 43 doubles, 14 triples and 19 homers in 1921.

After “slumping” to .356 the next year, when he had a career-best 21 homers, a player known as “Slug” hit .

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