Whitey Kurowski
George John Kurowski
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 5' 11", Weight 193 lb.
- School Wyomissing Polytechnic Institute
- Debut September 23, 1941
- Final Game October 1, 1949
- Born April 19, 1918 in Reading, PA USA
- Died December 9, 1999 in Sinking Spring, PA USA
Biographical Information[edit]
Whitey Kurowski played nine seasons in the major leagues, all for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1940's. He hit over .300 several times and posted a career Adjusted OPS+ of 125, equal to that of Ron Santo and Bobby Grich. He was a third baseman who appeared in four World Series and five All Star games in his relatively short career.
In 1945 he was fifth in the league in batting average and also fifth in the MVP voting and second in slugging percentage. In 1947 he was second in the league in OBP. He was once third in the league in doubles, once fourth in the league in RBI and twice fourth in the league in homers. He led the league in hit-by-pitch in 1947.
None of the most similar players (by the similarity scores method) has as high an Adjusted OPS+ as Kurowski does.
His minor league playing career ran from 1937 to 1949 with some appearances after that as a player-manager through 1959.
After retiring, Kurowski became a minor league manager in the St. Louis Cardinals chain from 1950 to 1962. He also managed the Buffalo Bisons for the New York Mets in 1964, the Cleveland Indians with the Reading Indians in 1965, and for the Washington Senators from 1970 to 1971 with the Denver Bears in 1970 and Burlington Senators in 1970 and 1971. Overall his teams were 983-916 in 15 years.
Notable Achievements[edit]
- 5-time NL All-Star (1943-1947)
- 20-Home Run Seasons: 3 (1944, 1945 & 1947)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 2 (1945 & 1947)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 1 (1947)
- Won three World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals (1942, 1944 & 1946)
Year-by-Year Managerial Record[edit]
Further Reading[edit]
- Rick Swaine: "Whitey Kurowski", in Bill Nowlin, ed.: Van Lingle Mungo: The Man, The Song, The Players, SABR, Phoenix, AZ, 2014, pp. 55-58. ISBN 978-1-933599-76-2
We're Social...for Statheads
Every Sports Reference Social Media Account
Site Last Updated:
Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction?
Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter
Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE
Your All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database
Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Find out more.