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We’re Contacted By Son of Former 1930s Cub Star, Stan Hack!

“Stan Hack has more friends than Leo Durocher has enemies!” (1)

And that’s saying a lot!…

As I’ve mentioned many times, we always love it when we’re contacted by a relative of a former major leaguer. It makes no difference if the player was a star or a sub. Anyone who makes it to the majors is special in our eyes and we’re always glad to shine our baseball spotlight on him. It’s even more special when the player was one of his era’s most dominant players at his position.

When evaluating former ballplayers from days gone by, we have to rely on the stark, cold career numbers we find on the pages of Baseball-Reference, leaving us with a one-dimensional view of the player. “He was good, but what kind of man was he?” we ask ourselves. We have no way of knowing. It’s only when a family member or friend contacts us that we can assess intangibles like character and integrity. This gives us a much more rounded, nuanced perspective.

Such was the case with my interesting conversation with Stanford “Stan” Hack, son of former major leaguer, Stan Hack. Son Stan, along with his brother David, were the two children from Stan Hack’s second marriage. His father was 50 years old when son Stan was born in 1959.

 Stan Hack’s Outstanding Career

“Smiling Stan” Hack is recognized as one of the best third basemen not in the Hall of Fame, the most underrepresented position in the Hall.  No less an authority than Bill James ranks him the ninth-best third baseman of all-time, ahead of enshrined members Pie Traynor, Jimmy Collins, and George Kell. (2) With his warm, friendly demeanor, the Sacramento native is remembered in Chicago as being extremely popular, beloved by fans and teammates alike. He was the original “Mr. Cub,” in the era before Ernie Banks earned the title for himself.

Stan played 16 years in the majors (1932-1947), all with the Cubs. A left-handed leadoff man who knew how to use the entire field, the five-time All-Star hit .301, with 1239 runs, and a .394 on-base percentage. His 1092 walks (against only 466 strikeouts) ranked fourth in National League history when he retired and remain a Cub franchise record. He scored 100 runs seven times and led the National League in hits and stolen bases twice. At the end of his career, he ranked second in major league history behind Traynor in games, putouts, assists, and total chances for third basemen. At one point he held the record for most consecutive games without an error at third.

Recent research by SABR member Herm Krabbenhoft has established that Stan Hack was one of the best lead-off hitters in major league history. Known for his clutch hitting, Stan often shined when the pressure was on. He played in four World Series, hitting .348 with a .408 on-base percentage. 

I asked Stan what he recalls from his childhood about his dad:

“He was always very supportive and always there for me. I remember how everyone loved him and always said such nice things about him. Like many from his generation, he was modest, somewhat shy, and never bragged or inflated his achievements. Many players would freeze up in the postseason, not my dad. Some of his most memorable moments were in the 1935 and 1945 World Series.”

Growing up in Grand Detour, Illinois, about 80 miles west of Chicago, son Stan was a fine athlete, making the varsity on his Dixon high school team as a sophomore and developing into a star shortstop. By senior year, he was also pitching and even threw a no-hitter. He got a “look-see” from the Pirates after graduation, but his hopes of making the majors ended due to a finger injury “thanks to my kid brother Dave.” He hoped to use his high school success to land a spot on the Western Illinois baseball team. Laughingly, Stan recalls:

“When I got cut, I tried to use the ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ line with the coach. But unfortunately, that didn’t work!”

I asked Stan if, while growing up, his dad ever gave him any hitting advice:

“He once noticed I had a hitch in my swing and advised me to try to eliminate it. Of course, like any other kid my age, I thought I knew better than my dad, and basically told him to leave my swing alone. Needless to say, he was right. I thought I knew better than a .300 lifetime major league hitter!”

With such an age gap between father and son, young Stan never had the benefit of hanging around major league ballparks and meeting players. But he does recall going to an Old-Timers game with his dad in Detroit:

“My dad told me to go out and shag ground balls before the game started. Apparently, I overstayed my welcome on the field, and I was rudely escorted off by security. I remember Charlie Grimm yelling at the guards, ‘Don’t you know who that is…that’s Stan Hack’s son!‘ ”

One interesting story goes back to 1932 when the Cubs held spring training on Catalina Island.

“My dad had a pilot’s license and one year flew a plane to Catalina rather than take the ferry. When he landed on the island, he must have put the brakes on too fast, because the plane suddenly flipped over on the runway. Luckily, my dad wasn’t hurt, but Mr. Wrigley immediately put an end to my dad’s flying career.”

Also from the 1930s Catalina years, Stan remembers seeing photos of his dad and Ronald Reagan, there as a Cub broadcaster, rowing a boat and fishing off the coast of the island.

The last player Bob Feller faced in his career was Stan Hack who he struck out to end the 1939 All-Star game. As son Stan remembers:

“Dad told me Feller fast-pitched him. That’s why he struck out. Years later I met Bob Feller, told him who I was, and asked him about it. Feller just laughed, recalling it right away, and said the pitch was high and outside. I think Feller knew the fast-pitch story was true.”

Stan Hack’s Post-Playing Career

Following his playing days, Stan bounced around the minors as a coach and manager and briefly coached for the Cardinals and later managed them (1958). He was named Cubs manager in 1954 when Phil Cavaretta was abruptly fired in spring training. Son Stan is proud that, just seven years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier, his dad was the manager who first installed Ernie Banks at shortstop. Stan had also managed the Cubs’ first black player, Gene Baker, at the Cubs’ Los Angeles Triple-A affiliate. In 1954, he teamed Baker up with Banks to form one of the majors’ first African American double-play combinations.

Stan Hack was also at the Cubs’ helm in 1955 when “Toothpick” Sam Jones became the first African-American ballplayer to throw a no-hitter.  Years later son Stan was watching a game on TV with his dad when old back-and-white film highlights from the game came on. With a no-hitter through eight innings, Jones walked the first three batters to open the ninth. The highlight clip showed Cub manager Stan Hack walking to the mound to have a chat with his pitcher. The narrator said, ‘Here comes Stan Hack to give his pitcher some encouragement and words of advice.” But according to son Stan, that’s not actually what transpired on the mound:

“My dad just chuckled and said to me, ‘I’ll tell you what really happened. As I put the ball in his mitt I said, ‘Just throw the G*d-d*mn ball over the plate! I turned and walked away.’ Whatever my dad said, it seemed to work, as Jones struck out the next three batters—the second being Roberto Clemente—to preserve the no-hitter.”

Fired after the 1956 season, Stan eventually retired to Grand Detour where he enjoyed hunting, fishing, and golf. He and his wife Gwen ran the Landmark restaurant for twenty years, from 1960 until Stan’s death in 1979. Son Stan recalls that the restaurant was loaded with great Cub memorabilia. “Dad would hang out there and would talk baseball with everyone…white collar, blue collar, he’d talk baseball to anyone. It was his favorite topic.”

Stan Hack For the Hall?

Although overlooked and underrated and a member of the Cubs’ Hall of Fame, an interesting question is: Should Stan Hack be in the National Baseball Hall of Fame? His teammates Phil Cavarretta once said of him:

“Stan never got the credit he deserved. … To me, with his stats and knowing Stan Hack, I can’t understand why he isn’t in the Hall of Fame.”(4)

Son Stan and I agreed that he’s fallen off the radar screen even though he compares favorably with other third basemen in the Hall. The fact that he wasn’t a power hitter and never was on a winning World Series team has hurt his cause, as is the fact that he was overshadowed on Cub teams of the 1930s by such stars as Gabby Hartnett, Kiki Cuyler, Cavarretta, and Bill Nicholson. (3) Stan also had some issues with sportswriters, reminiscent of Ted Williams:

“My dad wasn’t popular with some Chicago sports writers and I think that had something to do with it. I think he was blackballed.”

As with many stars from past eras, it’s hard to estimate what Stan hack would be worth in today’s market. As a leadoff man who consistently hits over .300, with a .390 on-base percentage, scores over 100 runs, and plays stellar defense at third, no doubt his agent would be demanding a huge, multi-year contract.

So today we thank Standford “Stan” Hack for sharing with us some interesting information about his dad, the fine Cub star from the 1930s, “Smiling Stan” Hack. 

Gary Livacari 

Information: Phone conversation with Stanford “Stan” Hack on February 27, 2023; background information and quotes (2) and (3) from Stan Hack SABR biography by Eric Hanauer. Quote (1) from Baseball Library.com and cited on the Stan Hack SABR biography by Eric Hanauer; quote (4) from the Stan Hack Wikipedia page.

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