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FatJack · 05-17-2016, 01:37 AM

Dick "Mad Dog" McAuliffe passed away on Friday (May 13, 2016). Dick was a long time infielder with the Detroit Tigers who closed out his career with the Red Sox. He played his high school ball in Connecticut, where he was scouted by both the Red Sox and Tigers. He signed with Detroit in 1957, receiving a $500 bonus.

In the pros, Dick quickly discovered that the pitchers threw a lot harder than in high school. Hitting just .206 for Erie that first year, his manager, Red Kress, felt compelled to ask him, "Don't they throw curves in Unionville, sonny?" Dick's biggest problem, as he recalls it, was getting around on the fastball. Tigers hitting instructor Wayne Blackburn worked with him and, together, they developed the unusual stance (seen in the attached image) that Dick would use for the rest of his career. It served him well. Reaching the majors in 1960, Dick would put up some pretty good numbers for a middle infielder during what is known as the second deadball era. Three times, he hit more than 20 home runs and he hit more than 10 every year from 1962 to 1971 and again in 1973. He was an All-Star in '65, '66 and '67.

Dick's defense, on the other hand, was a work in progress for quite a few years. In 1960, he made 5 errors in 7 games. There were 30 errors in '62, 24 in '63, and 32 in '64. It wasn't really until 1968 that Dick got his fielding under control. Moved from short to second the year before, Dick committed just 9 errors in 1968 and was actually surprised he didn't win the Gold Glove that year (Bobby Knoop, with 15 errors, got the honor). 1968 was the year the Tigers went to the World Series. Dick led the league with 95 runs scored, hit 16 home runs, 24 doubles, 10 triples, and drove in 56. He finished 7th in MVP voting that year (3 of his teammates were ahead of him in the voting, including Denny McLain who won the award on the strength of his 31 win season).

1968 is also the year for one of Dick's most remembered moments. In an August game against Chicago, three Tommy John fastballs seemed aimed directly at McAuliffe's head (Tommy John, of course, tells a different story). Having walked, Dick and Tommy started jawing at each other, Dick started seeing stars and charged the mound. John suffered torn ligaments in his shoulder, ending his season. McAuliffe was fined and suspended.

Dick had had a fairly good season for the Tigers in 1973, but he was about to turn 34 and the Tigers wanted to get younger, so they shipped him to Boston for Ben Oglivie. Dick had hoped to win the Red Sox second base job but, instead, played a utility role for the team and batted just .210. At season's end, he retired and took a job managing Boston's Double-A affiliate in Bristol. The team won the Eastern League title but, by then, Dick was back in Boston--activated to fill in for an ailing Rico Petrocelli in the final weeks of the 1975 season. He played 7 games for the team that was on its way to an epic World Series with Cincinnati, and he was awful--both with the bat and the glove. For the first time that he could recall in his career, he was booed by the hometown fans. And he was left off the post season roster.

The Red Sox wanted Dick to continue managing in their minor league system but, at that point, Dick had had enough of the travel (and the low minor league salary) and called it quits.

After baseball, Dick owned a coin-op business and ran a number of baseball schools. In recent years, he'd been in declining health. He died at the age of 76.

The image below is from the '68 World Series and I pulled it from a google search that shows it as having been posted to the website uni-watch.

05-17-2016, 01:37 AM	#27835
FatJack All Star Reserve Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 847	Dick McAuliffe - Detroit Tigers 1960 Dick "Mad Dog" McAuliffe passed away on Friday (May 13, 2016). Dick was a long time infielder with the Detroit Tigers who closed out his career with the Red Sox. He played his high school ball in Connecticut, where he was scouted by both the Red Sox and Tigers. He signed with Detroit in 1957, receiving a $500 bonus. In the pros, Dick quickly discovered that the pitchers threw a lot harder than in high school. Hitting just .206 for Erie that first year, his manager, Red Kress, felt compelled to ask him, "Don't they throw curves in Unionville, sonny?" Dick's biggest problem, as he recalls it, was getting around on the fastball. Tigers hitting instructor Wayne Blackburn worked with him and, together, they developed the unusual stance (seen in the attached image) that Dick would use for the rest of his career. It served him well. Reaching the majors in 1960, Dick would put up some pretty good numbers for a middle infielder during what is known as the second deadball era. Three times, he hit more than 20 home runs and he hit more than 10 every year from 1962 to 1971 and again in 1973. He was an All-Star in '65, '66 and '67. Dick's defense, on the other hand, was a work in progress for quite a few years. In 1960, he made 5 errors in 7 games. There were 30 errors in '62, 24 in '63, and 32 in '64. It wasn't really until 1968 that Dick got his fielding under control. Moved from short to second the year before, Dick committed just 9 errors in 1968 and was actually surprised he didn't win the Gold Glove that year (Bobby Knoop, with 15 errors, got the honor). 1968 was the year the Tigers went to the World Series. Dick led the league with 95 runs scored, hit 16 home runs, 24 doubles, 10 triples, and drove in 56. He finished 7th in MVP voting that year (3 of his teammates were ahead of him in the voting, including Denny McLain who won the award on the strength of his 31 win season). 1968 is also the year for one of Dick's most remembered moments. In an August game against Chicago, three Tommy John fastballs seemed aimed directly at McAuliffe's head (Tommy John, of course, tells a different story). Having walked, Dick and Tommy started jawing at each other, Dick started seeing stars and charged the mound. John suffered torn ligaments in his shoulder, ending his season. McAuliffe was fined and suspended. Dick had had a fairly good season for the Tigers in 1973, but he was about to turn 34 and the Tigers wanted to get younger, so they shipped him to Boston for Ben Oglivie. Dick had hoped to win the Red Sox second base job but, instead, played a utility role for the team and batted just .210. At season's end, he retired and took a job managing Boston's Double-A affiliate in Bristol. The team won the Eastern League title but, by then, Dick was back in Boston--activated to fill in for an ailing Rico Petrocelli in the final weeks of the 1975 season. He played 7 games for the team that was on its way to an epic World Series with Cincinnati, and he was awful--both with the bat and the glove. For the first time that he could recall in his career, he was booed by the hometown fans. And he was left off the post season roster. The Red Sox wanted Dick to continue managing in their minor league system but, at that point, Dick had had enough of the travel (and the low minor league salary) and called it quits. After baseball, Dick owned a coin-op business and ran a number of baseball schools. In recent years, he'd been in declining health. He died at the age of 76. The image below is from the '68 World Series and I pulled it from a google search that shows it as having been posted to the website uni-watch. Attached Images Last edited by FatJack; 05-17-2016 at 01:39 AM.