| Pete Ward | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Third baseman /Left Fielder /First baseman | |
| Born:(1937-07-26)July 26, 1937 Montreal,Quebec, Canada | |
| Died: March 16, 2022(2022-03-16) (aged 84) Lake Oswego, Oregon, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 21, 1962, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 25, 1970, for the New York Yankees | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .254 |
| Home runs | 98 |
| Runs batted in | 427 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Member of the Canadian | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 1991 |
Peter Thomas Ward (July 26, 1937 – March 16, 2022) was a Canadian-born professionalbaseball player who appeared in 973games over nine seasons inMajor League Baseball as athird baseman,outfielder andfirst baseman for theBaltimore Orioles (1962),Chicago White Sox (1963–1969) andNew York Yankees (1970).
Ward was the runner-up for theAmerican League (AL)Rookie of the Year Award (topitcher and teammateGary Peters) in 1963,[1] but was named that season's ALRookie of the Year byThe Sporting News.[2] He finished in the Top 10 in the AL'sMost Valuable Player poll in both 1963 (ninth) and1964 (sixth).[3]
Ward was born inMontréal, on July 26, 1937.[4] Ward's family moved toPortland, Oregon when Ward was eight years old.[4] He was the son of formerNational Hockey LeagueforwardJimmy Ward, who played 11 seasons for theMontreal Maroons andMontreal Canadiens. Jimmy had been hired to coach thePortland Eagles of theWestern Hockey League, and became a longtime coach in professional and amateur hockey in Portland.[5][6][4] While Ward's brother continued on in hockey (playing atMichigan State University from 1951 to 1955), Ward discovered baseball in Portland.[7]
Ward attended Portland'sJefferson High School, graduating in 1955.[5] He was an All-State shortstop at Jefferson.[8] In 1986, he was inducted into the Portland Interscholastic League Hall of Fame.[5] He starred in college baseball atLewis & Clark College of theNorthwest Conference located in Portland, also playing shortstop.[5][9][10] Ward was a member of the Northwest Conference All-Star teams in 1957 and 1958.[11][12] He was the first Lewis & Clark player to play in major league baseball.[5]
Ward battedleft-handed, threwright-handed, and was listed as 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and 185 pounds (84 kg) (13stone, 3 pounds).[13]
Ward signed with the Orioles in 1958,[4] as ashortstop.[citation needed] In 1959, he was assigned to theStockton Ports of theClass CCalifornia League, where he played principally at third base (63 games), but also at shortstop (36 games), and second base (15 games).[14] In 1960, playingClass B baseball for the Fox City Foxes of theIllinois-Indiana-Iowa League (the Three-I League), he played 114 games at third base and 21 in the outfield. In 1961, he played for two differentDouble-A teams, playing only 10 games at third base and 109 games among the three outfield positions.[14] In 1962, his last year of minor league baseball, he played 80 games at third base and 83 in the outfield for theTriple-ARochester Red Wings. He joined the Orioles at the end of the 1962 season, playing solely in the outfield.[14]
Wardbatted over .300 at three levels ofminor league baseball and won the batting title in the Three-I League in 1960 with a .345 mark.[15][citation needed] In 1962 at Rochester, he hit .328, with 22home runs, 114runs scored and 90runs batted in (RBI). After he was selected to theInternational League All-Star Team in 1962 as an outfielder,[citation needed] Ward received a September trial with Baltimore, where he hit .143 with twodoubles in 21at bats.[14]
Although he would be known in the major leagues as a third baseman, the big-league Orioles possessed futureBaseball Hall of FamerBrooks Robinson,[16] only two months older than Ward (May 18, 1937),[17] at the position. By the time Ward was called up in 1962, Robinson had been the Orioles starting third baseman for years, was an All-Star (1960–1962) and was about to win his thirdGold Glove Award at third base.[17] Ward knew he would not be playing third base for the Orioles, and the plan was to moveBoog Powell from the outfield to first base, and then play Ward in the outfield.[7]
On January 14, 1963, Ward was included in one of the off-season's biggest transactions when the Orioles traded him, future Hall of Fame pitcherHoyt Wilhelm, shortstopRon Hansen and outfielderDave Nicholson to the White Sox for shortstop and future Hall of FamerLuis Aparicio and veteran outfielderAl Smith.[18] In 1963, the White Sox installed Ward as their regular third-baseman, and he responded with a stellarrookie campaign: 177hits (second in the league), 34doubles (again second in the AL), 22home runs, and a .295 batting average (fifth in the league).[13][19] Chicago won 94 games and finished second to the Yankees.[20] In 1964, Ward avoided the "sophomore jinx" by hitting .282 with 23 home runs and a career-best 94runs batted in,[13] as the White Sox battled the Yankees and Orioles to the wire before finishing second by a single game.[21]
Ward suffered a neck injury in a 1965 automobile accident, that also injured teammateTommy John's neck, affecting the remainder of Ward's career. Ward also suffered from back problems in 1966.[5][7] His production fell off in1965, when he hit only .247 in 138 games. Troubled by his injuries, he would fail to reach the .250 mark for the rest of his Chicago tenure.[13]
He appeared in only 84 games in1966, and although he was able to play regularly as the White Sox'left fielder in1967 and third baseman in1968, only his power numbers (18 and 15 home runs) remained robust.[13] He was traded to the Yankees in December 1969 for pitcherMickey Scott and cash,[18] and played a single season for the1970 Yankees as apinch hitter and back-up first baseman toDanny Cater, a former White Sox teammate in 1965–66; with only 77 at bats and 13 games in the field at first base.[13][22] He was released by the Yankees in March 1971.[18] For his nine-year MLB career, Ward amassed 776 hits, including 136 doubles, 17triples and 98 home runs; he batted .254 with 427 career runs batted in.[13]
He related that during his tenure with the Sox, his team engaged in sign stealing that involved a scout on a chair next to the flagpole at center field with binoculars. The scout would signal a pitch based on if he sat on the chair, stood up, or leaned on a pole, although Ward stated that it would sometimes confuse a hitter's swing.[23]
After serving as a minor league coach for the Rochester Red Wings in the early 70s, under managerJoe Altobelli,[24] Ward rejoined the Yankees as a minor-leaguemanager (1972–1977) at theSingle-A (Fort Lauderdale Yankees),Double-A (West Haven Yankees) and Triple-A (Syracuse Chiefs) levels.[14] He served one season as the first base coach (1978) forBobby Cox with theAtlanta Braves,[25] before returning to manage in the minors. In 1980, he managed theIowa Oaks of the Triple-A American Association (a White Sox affiliate), and in 1981 he managed his hometownPortland Beavers in the Triple-APacific Coast League (aPittsburgh Pirates affiliate).[5][14][25]
He was inducted into theOregon Sports Hall of Fame,[26] theCanadian Baseball Hall of Fame,[4] and theChicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.[citation needed] In 1963, he came in second to teammate pitcher Gary Peters in rookie of the year voting (10 votes to 6),[27] althoughThe Sporting News did name him its rookie of the year.[28][5]
Ward was supposed to be featured on the June 7, 1965 cover ofSports Illustrated, but was replaced with a photo fromMuhammad Ali's fight againstSonny Liston,[7] that had taken place on May 25, 1965, inBangor, Maine.[29]
In 1964, he was named Oregon's Athlete of the Year at Portland's Haywood Banquet of Champions.[30]
After retiring as a manager, Ward opened a travel related business inLake Oswego, Oregon. He was a founding member of the Kruse WayRotary Club and active in the Lake OswegoChamber of commerce.[8]
Ward died on March 16, 2022, at the age of 84.[31] He was survived by his wife Margaret, two sons, seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.[8]