1934-1936 Diamond Stars: #123 Joe Cronin MG

Sunday, March 13, 2022

#123 Joe Cronin MG - Boston Red Sox

Joseph Edward Cronin

Boston Red Sox

Shortstop-Manager

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 5'11" Weight: 180

Born: October 12, 1906, San Francisco, CA

Major League Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates 1926-1927; Washington Senators 1928-1934; Boston Red Sox 1935-1945

World Series Appearances: Washington Senators 1933

As a Manager: Washington Senators 1933-1934; Boston Red Sox 1935-1947

Died: September 7, 1984, Barnstable, MA (77)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1956

Joe Cronin spent almost 50 years in baseball as an All-Star shortstop, manager and president of the American League. Cronin's best seasons as a player came as a member of the Washington Senators in the early 1930s. He became the club's regular shortstop in 1929 and quickly established himself as one of the best hitters in the league. Cronin batted a career-high .346 in 1930 and he was the American League's starting shortstop in the first All-Star Game in 1933. He'd appear in seven All-Star Games overall. Cronin led the league in triples with 18 in 1932, and twice led the league in doubles with 45 in 1933 and 51 in 1938 after he had moved on to the Red Sox. First assuming the role of player-manger with the Senators in 1933 at the age of 26, Cronin guided the team to the American League pennant. He'd serve as player-manager for the Red Sox between 1935 and 1945, retiring as a player following the 1945 season. In 1946, Cronin took the Red Sox to the World Series for the first time since 1918, but they fell to the Cardinals in seven games.

In 2,124 career games, Cronin tallied 2,285 hits (currently 160th all-time) and a .301 average. His career putouts and assists at shortstop are currently 20th and 29th all-time respectively. As a manager, he won two pennants and had a lifetime record of 1,236-1,055. Cronin assumed the role of Red Sox general manager in 1947 and he held that role until 1959. Cronin, along with Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey, did nothing to integrate the Red Sox during Cronin's tenure as the team's general manager and the first black player to appear with the Red Sox (Pumpsie Green) was promoted after Cronin had departed to assume the role of American League President. He held that position until 1973. Cronin was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1956, and he had his #4 retired by the Red Sox in 1984.

Header cards included with the complete set
Building the Set

December 16, 2020 from Albion, NY

Within days of officially deciding to collect the Diamond Stars set, I found myself searching for the 1993 extension set consisting of 36 more "what if" cards this time issued by the Chicle Fantasy Company. Individual cards from this set are very prevalent on eBay, but I wanted to buy a complete set to save myself some time and money. Given this is a relatively modern set, I was somewhat surprised at the closing auction prices for previously sold complete sets and I was happy to win my set at a lower price. These cards are gorgeous, and I can tell a lot of hard work and love for the originals went into making this tribute set. What's more, the set's creators were smart enough to start the numbering with card #121, given the 1981 extension set had left off with #120.

As I slowly collect the originals from the 1930s, I'll also highlight each of the cards from these extension sets with their own posts.

Variations Available

1 - 1993 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1993 copyright

The Card / Red Sox Team Set

The biography on the back gives a nice recap of Cronin's career to date and mentions his status as one of the best clutch hitters in baseball. His page on the Baseball Hall of Fame website features a quote from Connie Mack (#142) saying, "Joe is the best there is in the clutch. With a man on third and one out, I'd rather have Cronin hitting for me than anybody I've ever seen."

1936 Season

In his second season as player-manager for the Red Sox, Cronin suffered a broken thumb limiting him to 81 games and dropping his average to .281. With Cronin sidelined, Billy McNair received most of the starts at shortstop for the team. The Red Sox finished a disappointing 74-80-1, in sixth place in the American League. As manager, Cronin spent most of the season fielding complaints from pitchers Lefty Grove (#1), Wes Ferrell (#94) and third baseman Bill Werber (#61). Ferrell was especially problematic, threatening to "punch Cronin in the jaw" to the press.