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  Pee Wee Reese Photo Gallery

Another Edition of Baseball’s Lopsided Trades:

The Red Sox Send Pee Wee Reese to the Dodgers…Almost For Free!

When you touched Jackie Robinson, you touched all of us. With Pee Wee, it was No. 1 on his uniform and No. 1 in our hearts. — Joe Black, African-American major league baseball pioneer, speaking at Pee Wee Reese’s funeral.

Eighty-seven years ago today, July 18, 1939, the Red Sox made a trade with the Brooklyn Dodgers that they surely came to regret. On that day, they sent the Louisville Colonels’ 21-year-old shortstop prospect named Harold (Pee Wee) Reese to the Dodgers for $35,000, Red Evans, and three minor leaguers. Reportedly, player-manager Joe Cronin scouted Reese and submitted a less-than-enthusiastic report, as Cronin viewed him as a threat to his shortstop job. All the future Hall of Famer did with the Dodgers over his 16 seasons with the team was help them win seven pennants and the 1955 World Series championship.

Over his career with the Dodgers (1940-’42, 1946-’58 with three seasons lost to military service), the Ekron, Kentucky native averaged .269, with 2170 hits, 126 home runs, 885 RBIs, 330 doubles, 80 triples, 252 stolen bases, 1338 runs (still a Dodger record), and a .366 on-base percentage. The 5’10”, 160-pound shortstop became a Brooklyn fan favorite and a ten-time All-Star. He led the National League in runs scored (132) in 1939, and in stolen bases (30) in 1952. 

Known for his defensive prowess, with a .962 career fielding percentage, he led the National League in putouts four times and is in the top ten all-time in putouts and double plays. In 44 World Series games, he hit .272, with 20 runs, two home runs, and 16 RBIs. His #1 has been retired by the Dodgers, and he was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1984.

Pee Wee and Jackie

As much as Pee Wee Reese is remembered for his excellence as a glove man, he is also remembered for the support he gave Jackie Robinson in his difficult task of breaking baseball’s color barrier. In 1947. Reese was one of the few Dodgers welcoming Robinson to the team. Prior to Jackie joining the team, Pee Wee had refused to sign a petition circulated by some Dodger players stating that they would not play if Robinson were brought up from the Dodgers’ Montreal farm team.

When a sportswriter asked Reese if he felt threatened by Robinson taking his position of shortstop, Reese simply responded, “If he can take my job, he’s entitled to it.” Their ensuing camaraderie helped the duo become one of the most effective defensive combinations in baseball history. The friendship between Reese and Robinson is prominent in Roger Kahn’s classic 1972 work, The Boys of Summer.

Baseball’s Finest Moment!

Reese’s signature moment regarding Jackie Robinson came in 1947 during the team’s first road trip. With Jackie enduring heckling during pre-game infield practice at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Pee Wee, then the Dodgers’ captain, went over to Robinson, engaged him in conversation, and put his arm around his shoulder in a gesture of support that silenced the crowd. The gesture is considered representative of Reese’s numerous public acts of support towards Robinson, which signaled the inclusion and acceptance of his teammates.

According to  journalist Lester Rodney:

“The moment of solidarity between Robinson and Reese in Cincinnati sparked a gradual decline in vile fan behavior by 1948. Rodney reported, ‘You began to get that feeling that the racists knew they were in the minority, and they may still be racist to the core, but at least their mouths were shut! And you never heard them again.’ ”

The historic moment is depicted in a bronze sculpture of Reese and Robinson, created by sculptor William Behrends, unveiled on November 1, 2005, and placed at MCU Park in Brooklyn. Sportswriter Roger Kahn’s wrote that Reese’s gesture to Jackie Robinson is “Baseball’s finest moment.”

Following his retirement as a player, Reese became a successful baseball play-by-play announcer and color commentator. He called Game of the Week telecasts on CBS from 1960 to 1965 with Dizzy Dean, and for NBC from 1966 to 1968 with Curt Gowdy. Pee Wee Reese passed away on August 14, 1999, aged 81, survived by his wife, Dottie, and two children.

So today we gladly recall a trade that worked out pretty well for the Brooklyn Dodgers, as they obtained a 16-season Hall of Fame shortstop almost for free. And we gladly shine our baseball spotlight on an outstanding ball player and one of baseball’s greatest humanitarians, Pee Wee Reese.

Gary Livacari

Photo Credits: All found on Google search

Information: Excerpts and quotes from the Pee Wee Reese Wikipedia page

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