Mickey Cochrane

At 59 years old, Mickey Cochrane physical status not available right now. We will update Mickey Cochrane's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.

Gordon Stanley Cochrane (April 6, 1903 – June 28, 1962), nicknamed "Black Mike" by the American professional baseball player, manager, and mentor.

He was a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and Detroit Tigers in Major League Baseball.

Cochrane was one of baseball's finest catchers and is a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

He preferred baseball over basketball and football in college.

He made his major league debut in 1925 but he played in just one season in the minor leagues.

He was named as the Most Valuable Player in 1928 by the American League, and he appeared in the World Series from 1929 to 1931.

Philadelphia won the first two of the World Series, but Cochrane was chastised for giving up stolen bases when his team lost the series in 1931.

Cochrane's career batting average (3.21) was a record for MLB catchers until 2009. After a near-fatal head injury from a pitched ball in 1937, Cochrane's career came to a halt abruptly.

He served in the United States Navy in World War II and ran a car dealership after his career in baseball.

In 1962, Cochrane died of cancer.

The Sporting News ranked him 65th on its list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999.

Later life and legacy

Despite a head injury, Cochrane served in the United States Navy during World War II. As a lieutenant and sent to Naval Station Great Lakes, he oversaw physical preparation of new recruits and coached the baseball team. Cochrane coached an All-Service squad at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium on July 7, 1942; the American League defeated the servicemen 5-0; the servicemen lost 5-0. Later in the war Cochrane, now a lieutenant commander, was sent to a similar role in the Pacific Theater.

After Roger Bresnahan and Buck Ewing's introduction in 1947, Cochrane became the third catcher enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Philadelphia Phillies paid tribute to the Athletics' move to Kansas City in 1954 without retiring his uniform number 2 by retiring him. The Athletics' plaques from that display have since been relocated to the Philadelphia Athletics Museum in Hatboro, Pennsylvania. The Tigers named National Avenue (behind the third-base stands of the old Tiger Stadium) Cochrane Avenue. Despite being in the Hall of Fame, the Tigers did not sell his uniform number No. 1 until retirement. 3.

Alan Trammell's retirement was a 21-years old company, 22 years after it was retired.

After World War II, Cochrane served as a baseball coach and then as the Athletics' general manager for a brief period of time. Mack was only president George Sobel in 1959. He operated a car business before his baseball days; he sold it in the mid-1950s. Cochrane, a heavy smoker, died in 1962 in Lake Forest, Illinois, of lymphatic cancer.

Bill James, a baseball historian, ranked Cochrane fourth all-time among major league catchers in his book The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. He was ranked 65th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players in 1999 and a candidate for the Major League Baseball All-Centure Team. Mickey Mantle, the slugger in the Yankee Hall of Fame, was named after him.

In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honoured Cochrane as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the US Navy during World War II.

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Playing career

Cochrane was born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. John Cochrane's father had immigrated from Omagh, County Tyrone, in Northern Ireland, and Sadie Campbell, his mother, had immigrated from Scotland when she first arrived. Due to his fiery and competitive nature, he was also known as "Black Mike." Cochrane was educated at Boston University, where he competed in five sports, excelling at football and basketball. Despite Cochrane's claim that he was a better football player than a baseball player at the time, professional football was not as well known as Major League Baseball, so he signed with the Portland Beavers of the Pacific Coast League in 1924.

Cochrane was promoted to the major leagues after just one season in the minor leagues, making his Philadelphia Athletics debut on April 14, 1925 at the age of 22. He made a quick impact by replacing Cy Perkins, who was deemed one of the best catchers in the major leagues at the time. He was a left-handed batter, and Mack would even have him bat leadoff. He often came third in third, but whatever his position in the order was, his primary job was to base so Al Simmons and Jimmie Foxx, who were hard-hitting Al Simmons and Jimmie Foxx, could bring him home. He set a new century major league record by hitting three home runs in a game. He finished his rookie season with a.331 batting average and a.397 on-base percentage, leading to the Athletics to a second-place finish.

Cochrane was already rated as the top catcher in the major leagues by the start of the 1926 season. He received the 1928 American League Most Valuable Player Award, mainly for his leadership and defensive skills, when he led the American League in putouts and finished in.293 with 10 home runs and 58 runs batted in. Cochrane was a catalyst in the Athletics' pennant-winning years of 1929, 1930, and 1931, during which he reached.331,.357, and.349 respectively. He played in those three World Series, winning the first two, but was also blamed for the 1931 World Series's failure, when the St. Louis Cardinals, led by Pepper Martin, took eight bases and the Series. However, author Charlie Bevis cites the Philadelphia pitching staff's carelessness in holding runners as a contributing factor in his book The Life of a Baseball Hall of Fame Catcher. Despite this, Cochrane's punishment for the 1931 World Series loss dogged him for the remainder of his life.

Mack began to disassemble his dynasty for financial reasons and placed Cochrane on the trade block in 1934. In the Detroit Tigers, he discovered a willing fan. Frank Navin, the company's founder, was also suffering from financial difficulties. They had not placed higher than third since 1923, and had a reputation for being content with mediocrity. Navin Field's attendance had been sluggish for some time. Navin had hoped to attract Babe Ruth and name him player-manager, but after those talks fell apart, he turned to the A's. Navin immediately announced Cochrane as the player-manager.

Cochrane's reputation as a team leader and his competitive spirit led the Tigers, who had been selected to finish in fourth or fifth place in the 1934 American League championship, the first pennant in 25 years. They won 101 games, the first by the team in 34 years, and Cochrane was the first rookie boss to win 100 games. Gee Walker, a right-handed batter, was used by Cochrane to name left fielder Goose Goslin and center fielder Jo-Jo White, who were both left-handed batters. He received the 1934 Most Valuable Player Award, thanks in part to Lou Gehrig's winning the Triple Crown. In 1935, he continued his play by leading the Tigers to their second American League pennant and a triumph over the Chicago Cubs. The Detroit Free Press predicted that Cochrane would replace Navin as the team's president in late 1935. He suffered a nervous breakdown during the 1936 season due in large part to his high-strung appearance.

Cochrane was struck in the head by Yankees pitcher Bump Hadley on May 25, 1937. In his previous at-bat that day, Cochrane had homered. Cochrane was hospitalized for seven days after suffering a severe brain injury. This incident sparked a call for new batters' protective helmets, but tradition didn't exist at the time. After doctors told him not to try to play baseball again, Cochrane was forced to retire at the age of 34.

During his 13-year playing career, Cochrane had a.320 batting average, with 119 home runs and 830 runs batted. He had 1,652 hits, 1,041 runs scored, 333 doubles, 64 triples, 64 stolen bases, and a.478 slugging percentage. His.320 batting average is the highest ever recorded for catchers. His.419 on-base percentage is one of the highest in baseball history, and he ranks as the highest among catchers ever. In 1932, he became the first major league catcher to score 100 runs and produce 100 runs batted in during the same season.

He attempted the cycle twice in his career, on July 22, 1932, and August 2, 1933.

He played fewer than 110 games in his first 11 years. He led American League catchers six times in putouts and twice each in double plays assists and fielding percentages.

Cochrane returned to the dugout to continue coaching the Tigers, but he had lost his competitive fire. He lasted for the remainder of the 1937 season but was fired midway through 1938 by coach and former catcher Del Baker. For a.582 winning percentage, he had a 348-250 record.

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