| Wes Westrum | |
|---|---|
 Westrum with the New York Giants in 1955 | |
| Catcher /Manager | |
| Born:(1922-11-28)November 28, 1922 Clearbrook, Minnesota, U.S. | |
| Died: May 28, 2002(2002-05-28) (aged 79) Clearbrook, Minnesota, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 17, 1947, for the New York Giants | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 29, 1957, for the New York Giants | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .217 |
| Home runs | 96 |
| Runs batted in | 315 |
| Managerial record | 260–366 |
| Winning % | .415 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
| As player As manager | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Wesley Noreen Westrum (November 28, 1922 – May 28, 2002) was an American professionalbaseball player,coach,manager, andscout. He played for 11 seasons as acatcher inMajor League Baseball for theNew York Giants from1947 to1957[1] and was known as a superb defensive catcher.[2] He served as the second manager in the history of theNew York Mets, replacingCasey Stengel in1965 after the latter fractured his hip and was forced to retire.[3]
A native ofClearbrook, Minnesota, Westrum was a stalwart defensive player for theNew York Giants (1947–57) and, in his prime, a powerful right-handed hitter, although he had trouble making contact and hit for a low .217 careerbatting average. He began his major league career as the Giants' reserve catcher, playing behindWalker Cooper.[4] When Cooper was traded in1949, Westrum shared the catching duties withRay Mueller for the remainder of the season.[4] He became the full-time catcher for the Giants in1950, leadingNational League catchers with a .999fielding percentage, 31 baserunnerscaught stealing, a 54.4% caught stealing percentage and 71assists, and finished second toRoy Campanella with 608putouts.[4][5]
Westrum was a key player for the Giants’ during the remarkable1951pennant race in which the Giants, 13 games behind theBrooklyn Dodgers on August 12, fought back to win 16 games in a row and finished the season tied with the Dodgers for first place.[6][7] His two-run, eighth-inning home run againstRalph Branca on August 13 snapped a 1–1 tie and gave the Giants a 3–1 victory over the Dodgers.[8] Westrum contributed 20home runs with 70runs batted in, and led National League catchers in baserunners caught stealing.[1][4][9] The two teams met in the1951 National League tie-breaker series in which the Giants' season was climaxed byBobby Thomson'sShot Heard 'Round the World, a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning for a 5–4 win of the third and final playoff game.[6][7][10] Afterwards, the Giants would lose to theNew York Yankees in the1951 World Series.[11]
His1952 season was plagued by injuries and he only managed to hit for a .220batting average in 114 games, although he still managed to finish second toDel Rice among catchers in assists.[1][12] Westrum remained the Giants' starting catcher throughout the1954 season, catching all four games in the1954 World Series against theCleveland Indians.[13] Injuries continued to take their toll, and by1955,Ray Katt had replaced him as the starting catcher.[4] Westrum lasted three more seasons but never played more than 70 games a year.[14] On September 29, 1957, managerBill Rigney started all the Giants who had been on the 1954 World Series team in the ballclub's final game at the Polo Grounds; Westrum caught during the 9–1 loss to Pittsburgh.[15] When the Giants moved to San Francisco in1958, he was offered a role as a third-string catcher or as a coach.[4] He decided to retire as a player at the age of 34, and accepted the coaching job.[4]
In his biography of Willie Mays, entitledWillie Mays: The Life, The Legend, writerJames S. Hirsch described Westrum as being "built like a block of granite" and praised his defensive abilities.[1][16]
In an eleven-year major league career, Westrum played in 919games, accumulating 503hits in 2,322at bats for a .217 career batting average along with 96 home runs, 315 runs batted in, and a .356on-base percentage.[1] He ended his career with a .985 fielding percentage.[1] He made the National LeagueAll-Star teams in1952 and1953.[17][18]
In the 1950 season, Westrum committed only oneerror in 139games played, and had 21double plays, the 11th highest season total for a catcher.[19][20] His .999 fielding percentage for that season stood as a National League record for catchers, until it was surpassed byCharles Johnson in1997.[21] Westrum's 49.29% career caught stealing percentage ranks 21st all-time among major league catchers.[22] He played more games as a catcher than any other player in Giants history (902).[23]
Westrum was pictured on the cover of the first issue ofSports Illustrated on August 16, 1954, along with Milwaukee Braves starEddie Mathews and umpireAugie Donatelli.
Westrum served as the Giants'bullpen coach and then became their first base coach through the1963 season.[2] He joined the Mets as a coach in1964, working at first base and then in the bullpen, and became pitching coach on July 14, 1965, after the release of pitcher-coachWarren Spahn. But only 11 days later, Westrum was named the Mets' interim manager when Stengel, 75, fractured his left hip getting out of a car on July 25.[19] On that day, the Mets were 31–64, in tenth and last place in the National League.[24] They fared no better under Westrum for the rest of1965, losing 48 of the 67 games under his leadership.[3] The hip fracture would end Stengel's Hall of Fame managerial career.
Westrum then was appointed the second full-time manager in the history of the perennial last-place club. But his1966 Mets escaped the basement for the first time in the franchise's five-year history when they finished ninth, one notch above the cellar, posting a record of 66 wins and 95 losses, a 16-game improvement over the previous season.[3] The Mets were slowly developing an array of youngpitchers in theminor leagues; however, apart fromTom Seaver, none arrived in time to help Westrum in1967, when New York again finished tenth and last. Westrum resigned with 11 games to go in the season.[25] CoachSalty Parker took over the team for the remaining games of the 1967 season, andGil Hodges was named manager for1968.
Westrum then rejoined the Giants as a coach (1968–71) andscout. They eventually gave him a second managing opportunity onJune 28, 1974, when he succeededCharlie Fox with the club in fifth place. He was not able to post a winning record in his 1½ years as San Francisco's manager, although he came close when his team finished one game under .500 in1975 and in third place in the National LeagueWestern Division. That marked his last year as a major league manager, although Westrum stayed in the game as ascout for theAtlanta Braves for many years.[19] His final record as a manager: 260 wins and 366 losses (.415).[3]
Westrum died from cancer at the age of 79 in Clearbrook, Minnesota on May 28, 2002.[2]
| Preceded by | New York Metsfirst base coach 1964 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | New York Metsbullpen coach 1965 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | New York Metspitching coach 1965 | Succeeded by |