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 Dizzy Dean Photo Gallery
Click on any image below to see photos in full size:

Let’s Remember the Dean Brothers On Their Great Day:

Dizzy and Daffy!

“Gee, Paul, if I’d a-known you was gonna’ throw a no-hitter, I’d a-throw’ed one too!” –Dizzy Dean, after his brother threw a no-hitter in the nightcap of a doubleheader.

Ninety years ago today, September 21, 1934, was a memorable day in baseball history. It was also a memorable day for the Dean family.  In the second game of a doubleheader at Ebbets Field, 22-year-old Cardinal rookie pitcher Paul “Daffy” Dean became the fifth rookie to throw a no-hitter, beating the Dodgers, 3-0. What made the day so memorable was that older brother Dizzy had held the Dodgers hitless until the eighth inning in the Opener, settling for a complete-game two-hitter in the Cardinals’ 13-0 shutout of the Bums.

What a day! All told, the Dean brothers pitched 16.3 innings of hitless ball out of 18 innings pitched, with a combined 13 strikeouts between them, shutting out the Dodgers in both ends of the twinbill. There has to be some kind of record for brothers in there somewhere!

So let’s take a moment to celebrate the career of the great Hall-of-Fame pitcher, Dizzy Dean, shown above with brother Paul and the Cardinals’ great Hall of Famer, Grover Cleveland “Pete” Alexander.

Dizzy: One of Baseball’s Most Colorful Characters

With the possible exception of Yogi Berra, has baseball ever had a more colorful or more quotable character than Dizzy Dean?

Jay Hanna “Dizzy” Dean pitched 12 seasons in the major leagues (1930-1941, 1947) for the Cardinals, Cubs, and Browns. Over his career, Dizzy went 150-83 (.644) with a 3.02 ERA, 154 complete games, and 1163 strikeouts. Career highlights for the four-time All-Star include four consecutive strikeout titles (1934-37); two-time major league wins leader (1934-35); National League leader in shutouts four consecutive years (1934-37); ace pitcher for the 1934 World Series champion Cardinals; three-time 20-game winner; the National League MVP award winner (1934); and the last player in the National League to win 30 or more games.

1934 World Series and the Gashouse Gang

Dizzy was best known for leading the 1934 St. Louis Cardinals’ “Gashouse Gang” to the 1934 pennant and World Series championship over a strong Tigers team. He went 30–7 (.811) that year with a 2.66 ERA; and then started and won two games in the World Series. He followed this with 28-12 (3.04 ERA) in 1935, and 24-13 (3.17 ERA) in 1936.

Much like later sports legends Joe Namath and Muhammad Ali, Dizzy liked to brag and make predictions. Before the start of the 1934 season, Dizzy famously predicted, “Me an’ Paul are gonna win 45 games.” As mentioned above, on September 21, Diz pitched no-hit ball for eight innings against the Brooklyn Dodgers, finishing with a two-hit shutout in the first game of a doubleheader, his 27th win of the season. Paul then threw a no-hitter in the nightcap, to win his 18th, matching the 45 that Diz had predicted. By season’s end, they had won a total of 49 games, going a combined 49-18 for the year.

“X-ray of Dean’s head reveals nothing…”

Dizzy was known for antics which inspired his nickname. In Game Four of the 1934 World Series, Dean was sent to first base as a pinch-runner. The next batter hit a potential double-play groundball. Intent on breaking up the double play, Dean threw himself in front of the throw to first. The ball struck him on the head, knocking him out. The famous headline the next day read: “X-ray of Dean’s head reveals nothing.”

Although the Tigers went on to win the game 10-4, Dizzy recovered in time to pitch in Game Five which he lost. After his brother Paul won Game Six for the Cardinals, Dizzy came back and pitched a complete-game shutout in Game Seven to clinch the Series for the Cardinals.

After his playing career, Dizzy became a popular television sports commentator, known for his home-spun humor and his mangling of the English language which endeared him to his fans. An English teacher once wrote to him, complaining that he shouldn’t use the word “ain’t”, as it was a bad example to children. On the air, Dean responded,

“A lot of folks who ain’t sayin’ ‘ain’t,’ ain’t eatin’. So, Teach, you learn ’em English, and I’ll learn ’em baseball!”

Despite having what amounted to only half a career, in 1999 he ranked Number 85 on The Sporting News’ list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players and was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. Dizzy Dean’s #17 was retired by the Cardinals, and he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953.

A Few Great Dizzy Dean Quotes:

-“If Satch (Paige) and I were pitching on the same team, we would clinch the pennant by July fourth and go fishing until World Series time.

-“Slud is something more than slid. It means sliding with great effort.”

-“I only went to the third grade because my father only went to the fourth and I didn’t want to pass him.”

-“Heck, if anybody told me I was setting a record (strikeouts in a game on July 30, 1933) I’d of got me some more strikeouts.”

-“The good Lord was good to me. He gave me a strong body, a good right arm, and a weak mind.” 

So today, I’m happy to shine our baseball spotlight on one of baseball’s most enduring and lovable characters: Dizzy Dean. 

Gary Livacari 

Photo Credits: All from Google search; Dizzy Dean colorization by Don Stokes

We’d love to hear what you think about this or any other related baseball history topic…please leave comments below.

Gary Livacari 

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