When people think about longtime MLB OF Dixie Walker, the first thing that pops out in one's mind was his unwillingness to play with Jackie Robinson in 1947 for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Yes, Walker did organize the petition with what hoped to get Robinson off the team. But, whether or not Dixie Walker was morally correct has little to nothing to do with what he was as a baseball player. It is a fair assessment if one wants to describe Walker as a bigot. Remember though, he was not the only one who felt that way. Society has done very much in the lines of social equality, that some forget how bad and prejudice people were in the 1940s.
The fact that Walker eventually warmed up to Robinson makes Walker look better than he did when Robinson first made the team. Quite possibly, his initial treatment of Robinson was the reason he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates after the 1947 season. Walker would play his final two season, 1948 and 1949, wearing a Pirates uniform.
Dixie Walker made his only two postseason appearances with the Brooklyn Dodgers, the team he played with from 1939-1947. He played in all five games of the 1941 World Series against the Yankees as well as all seven games against the same team in 1947. Walker hit .222 (4-18) in the 1941 WS and hit .222 (6-27) in the 1947 World Series. I have written before about the extreme differences between the Pennant winning Dodgers clubs of 1941 and 1947. For a timeframe that was only six years away, it is amazing that there were only four players who played for both of those Dodgers teams. Only Walker, Pee Wee Reese, Hugh Casey and Kirby Higbe played on the Dodgers on both of those teams. Higbe was traded (according to the movie "42, he was traded to Pittsburgh because he did not want to play with Robinson) early in the 1947 season. Leo Durocher was the manager of the 1941 Dodgers and was supposed to manage the 1947 team. That was before he was suspended for the entire 1947 season for his association with gamblers.
Dixie Walker is the only player in MLB history to have played with both Jackie Robinson and Babe Ruth. Walker came up as an outfielder with the Yankees in the 1931 season. Walker were teammates throughout the 1933 season and for a little time in 1934. Of course, Walker was teammates witih Robinson in 1947 with the Dodgers.
Walker went from the Yankees to the Chicago White Sox, where he had his first big season. He was claimed on waivers by the White Sox during the 1936 season, In 1937, Walker hit .302, 9, 95 with a league leading 16 3B and 17 sacrifice hits. His best success came when he played for the Dodgers. He hit over .300 in 7 of his 8 full seasons in Brooklyn and consistently drove in runs. He won a batting title (.355) in 1944 and led the NL in RBI (124) in 1945. As much of a run producer Walker was, though, he never hit many HRs. In fact, he topped 10 HR just once (1944) in his entire career.
Walker's brother Harry was also an OF who played mostly for the Cardinals and Phillies in the 1940s and 1950s. His father, Dixie, pitched for the Washington Senators from 1909-1912 and his uncle Ernie was an OF for the St Louis Browns from 1913-1915. Dixie and his brother became the first set of second generation brothers to play in the big leagues.
Dixie Walker was a very good player and had a solid career. He hit .306 in his 18 big leagues seasons. He finished his career with 2064 career hits, 1023 RBI and finished with a .820 career OPS. He had 376 2Bs, 96 3Bs and 105 HRs in his career. Walker finished with 2 seasons of 100 or more RBI and had 5 seasons of over 90 RBI. The four time All Star finished in the top 25 in the NL MVP award voting 8 times. That includes 5 top 10 finished. 2 of them being 2nd and 3rd place in the vote, respectively. He is not a Hall of Fame player, since his numbers did not dominate. He may not have won the Man of the Year Award for 1947, but I bet the Dodgers don't hold off the Cardinals and Braves in 1947 without him.
The fact that Walker eventually warmed up to Robinson makes Walker look better than he did when Robinson first made the team. Quite possibly, his initial treatment of Robinson was the reason he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates after the 1947 season. Walker would play his final two season, 1948 and 1949, wearing a Pirates uniform.
Dixie Walker made his only two postseason appearances with the Brooklyn Dodgers, the team he played with from 1939-1947. He played in all five games of the 1941 World Series against the Yankees as well as all seven games against the same team in 1947. Walker hit .222 (4-18) in the 1941 WS and hit .222 (6-27) in the 1947 World Series. I have written before about the extreme differences between the Pennant winning Dodgers clubs of 1941 and 1947. For a timeframe that was only six years away, it is amazing that there were only four players who played for both of those Dodgers teams. Only Walker, Pee Wee Reese, Hugh Casey and Kirby Higbe played on the Dodgers on both of those teams. Higbe was traded (according to the movie "42, he was traded to Pittsburgh because he did not want to play with Robinson) early in the 1947 season. Leo Durocher was the manager of the 1941 Dodgers and was supposed to manage the 1947 team. That was before he was suspended for the entire 1947 season for his association with gamblers.
Dixie Walker is the only player in MLB history to have played with both Jackie Robinson and Babe Ruth. Walker came up as an outfielder with the Yankees in the 1931 season. Walker were teammates throughout the 1933 season and for a little time in 1934. Of course, Walker was teammates witih Robinson in 1947 with the Dodgers.
Walker went from the Yankees to the Chicago White Sox, where he had his first big season. He was claimed on waivers by the White Sox during the 1936 season, In 1937, Walker hit .302, 9, 95 with a league leading 16 3B and 17 sacrifice hits. His best success came when he played for the Dodgers. He hit over .300 in 7 of his 8 full seasons in Brooklyn and consistently drove in runs. He won a batting title (.355) in 1944 and led the NL in RBI (124) in 1945. As much of a run producer Walker was, though, he never hit many HRs. In fact, he topped 10 HR just once (1944) in his entire career.
Walker's brother Harry was also an OF who played mostly for the Cardinals and Phillies in the 1940s and 1950s. His father, Dixie, pitched for the Washington Senators from 1909-1912 and his uncle Ernie was an OF for the St Louis Browns from 1913-1915. Dixie and his brother became the first set of second generation brothers to play in the big leagues.
Dixie Walker was a very good player and had a solid career. He hit .306 in his 18 big leagues seasons. He finished his career with 2064 career hits, 1023 RBI and finished with a .820 career OPS. He had 376 2Bs, 96 3Bs and 105 HRs in his career. Walker finished with 2 seasons of 100 or more RBI and had 5 seasons of over 90 RBI. The four time All Star finished in the top 25 in the NL MVP award voting 8 times. That includes 5 top 10 finished. 2 of them being 2nd and 3rd place in the vote, respectively. He is not a Hall of Fame player, since his numbers did not dominate. He may not have won the Man of the Year Award for 1947, but I bet the Dodgers don't hold off the Cardinals and Braves in 1947 without him.
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