Tony Lazzeri
Anthony Michael Lazzeri
(Poosh 'Em Up Tony)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 5' 11½", Weight 170 lb.
- High School Galileo High School
- Debut April 13, 1926
- Final Game June 7, 1939
- Born December 6, 1903 in San Francisco, CA USA
- Died August 6, 1946 in San Francisco, CA USA
Inducted into Hall of Fame in 1991
Biographical Information[edit]
Tony Lazzeri was a Hall of Fame second baseman for the New York Yankees noted for his powerful bat and presence between the lines.
"(Tony) not only was a great ballplayer, he was a great man. He was a leader. He was like a manager on the field." Yankee teammate, shortstop Frankie Crosetti.
Lazerri received his nickname "Poosh 'Em Up" from Cesare Rinetti, a Salt Lake City, UT restaurateur and baseball fan who took a liking to the 21-year-old fellow Italian. Rinetti would yell "Poosh 'em up, Tony"... (meaning to get a hit and advance runners along the basepaths). And that's just what Lazzeri did, setting then organized baseball records of 60 home runs and 222 RBIs while hitting .355 in an incredible 197 games for the 1925 Salt Lake City Bees. With numbers like that it was no surprise he was in the big leagues the next season, starting at second for the Bronx Bombers.
Lazzeri set the American League record for most RBI in a game on May 24, 1936 with 11, piled up on the strength of a pair of grand slams, the first player ever to blast two in one game. He hit for the cycle on June 3, 1932 - a feat overshadowed by teammate Lou Gehrig's four home runs in one game that day.
Notable Achievements[edit]
- AL All-Star (1933)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 7 (1926, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1933 & 1936)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 2 (1929 & 1930)
- Won five World Series with the New York Yankees (1927, 1928, 1932, 1936 & 1937)
- Baseball Hall of Fame: Class of 1991
Records Held[edit]
- Most RBI in an AL game: 11, May 24, 1936 (the NL record of 12 is held jointly by Jim Bottomley and Mark Whiten)
- Most RBI in two consecutive games: 15, May 23 (4), 24 (11), 1936
- Most RBI in four consecutive games: 18, May 21-24, 1936 (tied with Jim Bottomley, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Sammy Sosa and Alfonso Soriano)
Further Reading[edit]
- Lawrence Baldassaro: Tony Lazzeri: Yankees Legend and Baseball Pioneer, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, NE, 2021. ISBN 978-1-4962-1675-5
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