Don Mueller
| Don Mueller | |
|---|---|
 Mueller in about 1953. | |
| Right fielder | |
| Born: April 14, 1927 St. Louis, Missouri | |
| Died: December 28, 2011 (aged 84) St. Louis, Missouri | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| debut | |
| August 2, 1948, for the New York Giants | |
| Last appearance | |
| May 2, 1959, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .296 |
| Home runs | 65 |
| Runs batted in | 520 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Donald Frederick Mueller (April 14, 1927 – December 28, 2011) was a professional baseball player who played mainly as a Right fielder in Major League Baseball for 12 seasons from 1948 until 1959. The first 10 of those years were spent with the New York Giants, for whom he batted over .300 for three consecutive seasons (1953–55) and led the National League in hits (212) in 1954. Mueller, who batted left-handed and threw right-handed, never hit more than 16 home runs in a season, but was called "Mandrake the Magician" in tribute to his hitting skills. His lifetime batting average was .296.
Mueller was born in St. Louis, Missouri on April 14, 1927.[1] His father, Walter Mueller, was also a major leaguer who spent parts of four seasons during the 1920s with the Pittsburgh Pirates.[2]
Mueller played a central, but painful, role in the famous October 3, 1951, playoff game that won the NL pennant for the Giants. With New York trailing the Brooklyn Dodgers, 4–1, in the ninth inning, Mueller singled Alvin Dark to third base. With one out, Whitey Lockman doubled to score Dark, but Mueller broke his ankle sliding into third. He was carried from the field, and missed both Bobby Thomson's game-winning home run that followed Lockman's hit and the 1951 World Series. But in 1954 - when he finished second to teammate Willie Mays in the NL batting race – Mueller batted .389 in the 1954 Fall Classic to help lead the Giants to a four-game sweep of the Cleveland Indians.
Mueller finished his playing career with the 1958-59 Chicago White Sox. Mueller died on December 28, 2011, six months after his wife, Genevieve.[3]
See also
References
- ^ Goldstein, Richard. "Don Mueller, Giants Outfielder, Is Dead at 84," The New York Times, Saturday, December 31, 2011.
- ^ Paulling, Daniel. "Mueller family baseball: Like great-grandfather, like grandfather, like father, like son," Columbia Missourian, Tuesday, November 3, 2009.
- ^ "St. Louisian Don Mueller, former big-league star, dies". STLtoday.com. December 30, 2011. Retrieved December 30, 2011.