| Wally Moses | |
|---|---|
Moses later in his career with Philadelphia. |
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| Outfielder | |
| Born: October 8, 1910 Uvalda, Georgia |
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| Died: October 10, 1990 (aged 80) Vidalia, Georgia |
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| Batted: Left | Threw: Left |
| MLB debut | |
| April 17, 1935 for the Philadelphia Athletics | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 30, 1951 for the Philadelphia Athletics | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .291 |
| Hits | 2,138 |
| Runs batted in | 679 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Wallace Moses (October 8, 1910 — October 10, 1990) was a right fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1935 through 1951, he played for the Philadelphia Athletics (1935–1941, 1949–1951), Chicago White Sox (1942–1946) and Boston Red Sox (1946–1948). Moses batted and threw left-handed. He was born in Uvalda, Georgia.
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Moses started his professional career with Galveston of the Texas League, where he batted .316 in 1934.[1] He debuted with the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1935 season. He batted over .300 each of his seven years with them, with a career-best .346 in his sophomore year.
Moses had by far his most productive season in 1937, when he hit career-highs in home runs (25), RBI (86), runs (113), hits (208) and doubles (48), batting .320 with 13 triples. In 1939, he missed a World Series opportunity when his trade to the Detroit Tigers for Benny McCoy was nullified by Baseball Commissioner K.M. Landis. The verdict made several Tigers free agents.
Through years of last place finishes with Philadelphia, Moses had little chance to display his speed on the basepaths. But in 1943, with the Chicago White Sox, he posted a career-high 56 stolen bases and co-led the American League in triples (12). A strong-armed right fielder, he led the AL in putouts (329) in 1945.
In the 1946 World Series with the Boston Red Sox, Moses hit .417 (5-for-12) and tied a WS record with four hits in a game. He finished his career with the Athletics in 1951.
In a 17-season career, Moses hit .291 with 89 home runs and 679 RBI in 2012 games played. He added 1,124 runs, 2,138 hits, 435 doubles, 110 triples and 174 stolen bases. A patient hitter with a good eye, Moses collected a 1.80 walk-to-strikeout ratio (821-to-457). He also made the American League All-Star team in 1937 and 1945.
Following his playing career, Moses was a coach for the Athletics, Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers from 1952 through 1970. He was known as one of the foremost batting instructors of the time.
Moses died in Vidalia, Georgia, just two days after his 80th birthday.
Moses was the last 20th century Athletics player with a 200-hit season. He had 208 in 1937. Sixty-five years later, Miguel Tejada collected 204 (October 5, 2002). The reason Wally never excelled in his career beyond the 1937 season was because of an injury that Connie Mack refused to have corrected. At the end of the 1937 season it became clear that Wally was one of the best offensive weapon in major league baseball. He went to Mack requesting a $2500. a year raise. Mack waited. Moses was finally offered a 2 year contract three days before the season began. He received $37,500 a year which was near the top of baseball. Mack made him play a game against a minor league team at this time. He hit a ball into the gap and while sliding into second the shortstop came down on his collarbone trying to take the throw. Wally's collarbone was broken, he laid in the hospital for 3–4 days before Mack O.K.ed the operation to set the bone. Wally had to have the collarbone broken and reset by the doctors and from that time on he did not have the ability to bring his arm to his body normally. Talk to any Hall of Fame hitter from the 1060s to the Late 1970s and they will all tell you that they could not wait to talk to Wally if they were in a funk. That only happened when they were on their way out of town after the last game of the stand. Wally coached Mantle and Maris in 1961 and 1962 their most productive years. H was hitting coach for Detroit in 1968. He has more hits then games played and probably belongs in the Hall of Fame when his playing and coaching accomplishments are really looked at closely.
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