Johnny McCarthy

John Joseph McCarthy

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 1½", Weight 185 lb.

• Debut September 2, 1934
• Final Game September 26, 1948
• Born January 7, 1910 in Chicago, IL USA
• Died September 13, 1973 in Mundelein, IL USA

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Biographical Information

Johnny McCarthy played 11 seasons in the big leagues, and appeared in the 1937 World Series.

McCarthy was born in Chicago, IL, but played all his major league career with teams on the East Coast. While not much of a home run hitter in the majors, he hit over 100 in the minors.

Johnny broke into the majors in September 1934 with the 1934 Dodgers managed by Casey Stengel. After coming up again with the 1935 Dodgers he was traded to the New York Yankees but never appeared in the majors with them. The Yankees traded him to the 1936 New York Giants in August 1936 and he appeared in four games with them, hitting .438.

McCarthy became a regular in 1937-38 with the Giants, playing first base and hitting in the .270's each year. In the 1937 World Series he batted fifth in the lineup in some games and sixth in other games.

He got less playing time with the Giants in 1939-41, and although he hit .325 with the 1941 Giants in limited play, spent most of 1941 with Jersey City. He was in the minors all of 1942 with Indianapolis.

The Boston Braves acquired him and used him in 1943. He was the most-utilized first baseman on the team, hitting .304, and in the second part of the season Casey Stengel again became his manager. McCarthy unfortunately broke his leg in mid-season, thus limiting his playing time.

He then served in the military during World War II. In 1944 he played service ball on a top team managed by Mickey Cochrane. One of his teammates was Billy Herman.

Johnny spent most of 1946-47 with Minneapolis, but came up to the majors for two games with the 1946 Braves. In 1948 he was a back-up again with the New York Giants, after being away from the team for seven years. His manager with the 1948 Giants was his former teammate Mel Ott. One source said that he was brought up so he could qualify for a pension, but he hit .263, decent enough on a team which hit .256.

One of the most similar players (through 2009), based on the similarity scores method, is a current player, Ross Gload, although McCarthy played at a time when power was more rare and so an occasion home run or triple was more important.