- Wally Judnich
Infobox MLB retired
name=Wally Judnich
position=Outfielder
bats=Left
throws=Left
birthdate=birth date|1917|1|24|mf=y
city-state|San Francisco|California
deathdate=death date and age|1971|7|12|1917|1|24
city-state|Glendale|California
debutdate=April 16
debutyear=by|1940
debutteam=St. Louis Browns
finaldate=May 12
finalyear=by|1949
finalteam=Pittsburgh Pirates
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.281
stat2label=Home runs
stat2value=90
stat3label=Runs batted in
stat3value=420
teams=
*St. Louis Browns (1940-42, 1946-47)
*Cleveland Indians (1948)
*Pittsburgh Pirates (1949)Walter Franklin Judnich (
January 24 ,1916 -July 10 ,1971 ) was acenter fielder inMajor League Baseball who played for three different teams between by|1940 and by|1949. Listed at 6' 1", 205 lb., Judnich batted and threwleft-handed . In baseball books, he is known indistinctly as Wally or Walt Judnich. A native ofSan Francisco, California , Judnich entered the majors in 1940 with the St. Louis Browns, playing for them five years (1940-42, 1946-47) before joining theCleveland Indians (by|1948) andPittsburgh Pirates (1949). Basically a contact, line-drive hitter, Judnich was a fine outfielder with a strong throwing arm. But he was one of many major leaguers who saw his baseball career truncated after his stint in the US Army Air Force duringWorld War II . When he came back after discharge, he was 29 years old and no longer at the top of his game.In his
rookie season with the Browns, Judnich posted career-numbers inhome run s (24), RBIs (89), and runs scored (97), while hitting a .303batting average to become one of only seven players in theAmerican League to reach the .300 mark in the season; ranking 6th behindTed Williams (.356),Johnny Pesky (.331),Stan Spence (.323),Joe Gordon (.322) andGeorge Case (.320), and surpassingJoe DiMaggio (.305). After his heroics, Judnich was considered in the American League MVP vote.In by|1941, Judnich enjoyed another good season batting .284 with 14 homers, 40 doubles, 83 RBIs and 90 runs in a career-high 146 games. Then, in by|1942 he hit 17 home runs (7th in AL) with 82 RBIs and a .313 average (a career-high), being nominated again to the American Leaague MVP honors. After that, he served in military for the next three years (1943-45).
Judnich was released from the USAAF in time for the start of the by|1946 season with the Browns, when he hit .262 with 15 homers and 72 RBIs in 132 games. The next year he went .258, 18, 64 in 144 appearances, and was traded to Cleveland before the by|1948 season.
With the Indians, Judnich was part of a very congested outfield that included
Larry Doby , Dale Mitchell andThurman Tucker , between nine others. He did, however, manage to get a World Series ring as part of the 1948 Cleveland Indians World Champions, playing 49 games in the outfield and 20 at first base, as a backup. He also made 10 appearances for Pittsburgh in 1949, his last major league season. In a seven-season career, Judnich was a .281 hitter (782-for-2786) with 90 home runs and 420 RBIs in 790 games, including 424 runs, 150 doubles, 29 triples, 20stolen base s, a .369on-base percentage , and a solid 1.30walk-to-strikeout ratio (385-to-298). In four postseason games, he hit .077 (1-for-13) with a run and one RBI.Following his majors career, Judnich played for many years in the
Pacific Coast League , including stints with the San Francisco Seals,Seattle Rainiers , andPortland Beavers .Judnich died in
Glendale, California , at the age of 55.References
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Wally_Judnich BR Bullpen]
* [http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/J/Pjudnw101.htm Retrosheet]
* [http://www.garybed.co.uk/those_who_served.htm Baseball in Wartime]
* [http://www.sportsartifacts.com/pacoastleg.html PCL Memorabilia]ources
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