The image of Casey Stengel that’s probably in your mid is of the white-haired manager of the Yankees and Mets; a unique character who said things that left everyone scratching their heads. Long before those days, though, Casey was a skinny right fielder for the Brooklyn Robins.
In fact, 101 years ago, Stengel helped Brooklyn reach the World Series where he faced a young pitcher named Babe Ruth for the first time. Despite a .364 average, Casey and the Dodgers fell to the Red Sox.
The RMY Auctions Photo of the Day shows Stengel taking a cut during that season, dressed in the famous checkerboard-style uniforms. The Underwood and Underwood news service stamp is visible on the back of the 6 ½” x 8 ½” photo. Original to the time period, it’s among more than 1,000 sports, entertainment and historic images in the March Premier auction that runs through Saturday at RMYAuctions.com.
Stengel’s career began in 1912 and lasted through the 1925 season. He played with Brooklyn for the first six years of his career, leading all of baseball in on-base percentage in 1914. Tired of his annual contract holdouts, the club traded him to Pittsburgh in 1918. He later played with the Philadelphia Athletics, New York Giants and Boston Braves before becoming a minor league manager and eventually, one of the most famous skippers in history.
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