Top 106 Baseball Players: #62 - Johnny Mize

Johnny Mize

Johnny Mize was a great power hitter before and after World War II who was also great at getting on base and avoiding strikeouts, and he ended up with a handful of championship rings at the end of his career.

Mize reached the Majors in 1936 with the Saint Louis Cardinals, and he became an All-Star in his second season after batting .364 with 204 hits and 113 RBI. The following season, he led the league in triples and total bases, which was just a glimpse of the power to come.

He led the NL in batting average and home runs in 1939, and home runs and RBI the following season, each time falling one category short of the Triple Crown, and also just one spot away from being awarded the MVP. His numbers dipped slightly the next year, and he was traded to the Giants, who needed a replacement at first base due to military service.

Mize led the league in RBI in his first season in New York, then joined the military himself following the season, taking a 3-year hiatus to serve his country. Upon his return in 1946, he broke his toe, which caused him to fall one home run short of leading the league for a third time.

He had his best overall season in 1947, when he had fully recovered from injury. He led the league with 51 homers, 137 runs, and 138 RBI, and only struck out 42 times. That fact made him the only player in history to hit over 50 home runs in a season with fewer than 50 strikeouts, and it still hasn't been repeated in the 70 years since. Somehow, he still was only #3 in the MVP voting that year.

He led the league in home runs again in 1948, but his batting average dipped below .300 for the first time in his career, and the Giants traded him across town to the Yankees midway through the following season, where he would finish out his career.

He was a part-time player during his 4.5 seasons with the Yankees, but he did earn 5 championship rings during that time. In 1952, his 4th straight season in the World Series, he was the team's star, batting .400 with 6 RBI and 3 home runs as the Yankees beat the Dodgers in 7 games.

Mize still holds the Major League record for most 3-homer games with 6, which has since been tied by Sammy Sosa, but as was said above, he had a knack for hitting a lot of long balls without striking out like most sluggers, and he was able to make a huge contribution to a World Series title at the tail end of his career, which was enough to earn him a spot on the list of all time greats.