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| Bucky Walters | |
|---|---|
 Walters with the Cincinnati Reds in the 1940s | |
| Pitcher /Third baseman /Manager | |
| Born:(1909-04-19)April 19, 1909 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| Died: April 20, 1991(1991-04-20) (aged 82) Abington, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 17, 1931, for the Boston Braves | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 23, 1950, for the Boston Braves | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 198–160 |
| Earned run average | 3.30 |
| Strikeouts | 1,107 |
| Batting average | .243 |
| Home runs | 23 |
| Runs batted in | 234 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
As player
As manager | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
William Henry "Bucky"Walters (April 19, 1909 – April 20, 1991) was an American professionalbaseballpitcher andthird baseman who played inMajor League Baseball from 1931 to 1950. As a pitcher, he was a six-timeAll-Star and the 1939National LeagueMost Valuable Player.
Walters began his MLB career as a position player, and appeared in 184 games (177 started) as a third baseman before he converted to full-time pitcher. Over the course of his 19-year big-league career, he played for theBoston Braves (1931–1932, 1950),Boston Red Sox (1933–1934),Philadelphia Phillies (1934–1938) andCincinnati Reds (1938–1948). Walters later became a major leaguemanager andpitching coach. He was born inPhiladelphia, batted and threw right-handed, stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 180 pounds (82 kg).
In his 16-seasonMLB pitching career, Walters posted a 198–160won–lost record with 1,107strikeouts and a 3.30ERA in 3,1042⁄3innings and 428appearances. He allowed 2,990hits and 1,121bases on balls, and posted a 1.34WHIP. Walters threw 242complete games and 42shutouts during his career, and was 160–107 (2.93) in 312 games as a member of the Reds.
Walters broke into the majors as athird baseman for the Boston Braves in 1931. After two seasons, he failed with the Braves (hitting only .191 in 32 total games). But in 1933, he hit .376 in thePacific Coast League to earn a shot with the Boston Red Sox of theAmerican League, where he batted .244 with eighthome runs in 75 games between July 19, 1933, and May 18, 1934.
It was not until Walters was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies from the Red Sox onJune 14, 1934—and he was 25 years old—that he converted to pitching. After getting into 83 games as aninfielder (80 at third base) for the Phils, he made his mound debut September 24 by tossing twoinnings ofhitlessrelief against theBrooklyn Dodgers. He got his first MLB start six days later against the Braves, and allowed oneunearned run in five innings.[1] Then, in 1935, Walters pitched in 24 games, with 22 starts, and notched ninevictories. He became asinker-ball specialist, and after winning 14 games (for a Phillies team that won only 61 contests all year) and leading theNational League with 34starts in 1937, he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds onJune 13, 1938.
In 1939 and 1940, Walters helped the Reds win two straight National Leaguepennants, in each season leading NL pitchers in wins, ERA,complete games and innings pitched. His most productive season came in 1939, when he won theTriple Crown with 27 victories, a 2.29 ERA, and 137 strikeouts (tied withClaude Passeau). For his performance, Walters garneredMost Valuable Player honors, the second of three straight Cincinnati players to win the award (Ernie Lombardi andFrank McCormick were the others). In 1940, Walters won 22 games and posted a 2.48 ERA.
When theYankees swept the Reds in four games In the1939 World Series, Walters started and lost Game 2 and was the loser inrelief of the final game. Nevertheless, in the1940 Series, facingDetroit, Walters gave the National League its first Series game victory since 1937 with a three-hitter in Game 2. Four days later, he evened the Series for the Reds in Game 6 with a five-hitshutout. He also became the first pitcher in 14 years to hit ahome run in the Series. In Game 7, the Reds won the second world championship of their modern (post-1900) history.
In 1944, Walters posted a league-high 23 wins while losing only 8 and compiled a 2.40 ERA.
An excellent hitting pitcher in his major league career, Walters posted a .243batting average (477-for-1966) with 227runs, 23home runs and 234RBI. Like fellow pitcherWes Ferrell, Walters was occasionally used as apinch hitter during the 1940s.
He was namedmanager of the Reds on August 6, 1948, his last year as active player for Cincinnati, taking over fromJohnny Neun. At the time, the club was 44–56 (.440) and seventh in the eight-team National League. Walters led the Reds to a 20–33 (.377) mark, still in seventh place but only one-half game from the league cellar. Retained for 1949, his Reds were 61–90 (.404) on September 27, again lodged in seventh place and 341⁄2 games out of first, when Walters was replaced byLuke Sewell at the club's helm. As a manager, he had an 81–123 (.397) record.
He briefly returned to pitching in 1950, and made a four-inning relief appearance with the Braves, for whom he was the full-time pitching coach.
Walters coached for the Braves (inBoston from 1950–1952, and inMilwaukee from 1953–1955) andNew York Giants (1956–1957). He took a leave of absence from his Boston Braves' coaching tenure on June 6, 1952, to serve as the interim manager of the lastminor league edition of theMilwaukee Brewers through the end of that season. The 1952 Brewers won 101 regular-season games, but fell in the finals of theAmerican Association playoffs. Walters then was reappointed the Braves' pitching coach for 1953, with the franchise transferring to Milwaukee duringspring training on March 18.
He was inducted into theCincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1958.
Bucky Walters died inAbington, Pennsylvania, one day after his 82nd birthday.
In August 2008, he was named as one of the ten former players that began their careers before 1943 to be considered by the Veterans Committee for induction into theNational Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009.
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Boston/Milwaukee Bravespitching coach 1950–June 6, 1952 1953–1955 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | New York Giantspitching coach 1956–1957 | Succeeded by n/a |
| Preceded by | Milwaukee Brewers (AA)manager 1952 June 6–September 21 | Succeeded by Franchise transferred |
