Eddie Gaedel’s 3ft 7in at-bat for the St Louis Browns, 19 August 1951
Eddie Gaedel, a 3ft 7in pinch-hitter, stepped to the plate for the St Louis Browns at Sportsman’s Park in St Louis during the second game of a doubleheader on 19 August 1951 in a stunt organised by owner Bill Veeck; Gaedel drew a walk on four pitches and was immediately replaced by a pinch-runner.
Bill Veeck, known for elaborate promotions including an exploding scoreboard in 1960, later described the Gaedel episode as his most outlandish stunt. Gaedel wore uniform number 1/8 and received a standing ovation as he came to bat; Veeck’s later remarks included, “Were it in my power to turn back the clock, I’d never send a midget to bat,” followed by, “No, I’d use nine of the little fellows, including the designated hitter.” Veeck, who lost his right leg below the knee in the second world war and used a wooden leg, said he called himself a “cripple.”
Veeck had bought the Browns to try to revive a franchise that trailed the city’s more popular Cardinals; the Browns had won their only American League pennant in 1944 and lost the World Series to the Cardinals. Veeck’s earlier ownership of the Cleveland Indians included signing Larry Doby in 1947 and the Indians’ 1948 World Series title. By 1951 the Browns were coming off consecutive seventh-place finishes in the eight-team American League and were in last place when the 19 August promotion attracted more than 18,000 fans to a club that averaged fewer than 4,000 per game.
The doubleheader card featured multiple novelty elements between games: a procession of vintage 1901 cars, a one-man show by Max Patkin, free beer for every adult, acrobats and a band that included Satchel Paige on drums. Gaedel emerged from a giant papier-mâché cake; Veeck paid him $100 for the appearance and news reports identified him as a 26-year-old stunt man from Chicago. Gaedel wore a jersey belonging to the team’s nine-year-old batboy, Bill DeWitt Jr, the son of vice-president Bill DeWitt; today DeWitt Jr is the 84-year-old owner of the Cardinals.
Gaedel entered the bottom of the first inning as a pinch-hitter for leadoff man Frank Saucier. Umpire Ed Hurley initially attempted to prevent Gaedel from batting, telling him, “Why, you can’t play in this game,” until manager Zack Taylor produced Gaedel’s contract and Hurley permitted the plate appearance. An Associated Press photograph shows Detroit catcher Bob Swift kneeling with a ball in his glove while towering over Gaedel’s tiny strike zone; Detroit pitcher Bob Cain proceeded to walk Gaedel on four pitches.
Jim Delsing came on to pinch-run after Gaedel’s walk; Delsing recalled asking Taylor, “What’s going on?’’ and Taylor replying, “Relax, you’ll find out.” Delsing later said Gaedel patted him “on the derriere, says good luck and walks back to the dugout.” Frank Saucier remembered Gaedel stopping on his way to first base to remove his hat and bow to the crowd, and quoted Gaedel as saying, “Man, I felt like Babe Ruth.” Two days after the stunt, American League president Will Harridge voided Gaedel’s contract.
The Tigers won the game 6-2 to complete the doubleheader sweep. Less than a week later Veeck staged “Grandstand Managers Night,” allowing fans to vote by applause on strategic choices while Taylor sat in a rocking chair with his feet up and sipped a drink; the Browns beat the Philadelphia Athletics that evening, one of 52 victories for a Browns team that finished with the worst record in baseball that year.
The Browns remained in St Louis for two more seasons before moving to Baltimore to become the Orioles in 1954; Veeck had sold the team by that point but returned as an owner of the White Sox in the late 1950s/early ’60s and again in the 1970s. After selling the team a second time, Veeck attended games at Wrigley Field and said, “I pay for my tickets so I can complain.”