Antithetical Iron Horse
Eric Vickrey on Manuel Lee - the Cardinals' "perfect" hitter
By Eric Vickrey
The steam locomotive was often referred to as “The Iron Horse” after its advent in the nineteenth century. Lou Gehrig, who played in 2,130 consecutive major-league games—a record eventually eclipsed by Cal Ripken Jr.—was given the same moniker because of his brute strength and unwavering dependability on the ball diamond. When baseball scribes used the nickname to describe Manuel Lee, it was pure sarcasm.[1]
The St. Louis Cardinals’ Manuel Lee era came and went on April 26, 1995. Hours after Ripken Jr. played in his 2010th consecutive game for the Baltimore Orioles, Lee made his Cardinals debut and lasted all of three innings before leaving with an ankle injury in what would prove his only game wearing the Birds on the Bat.
Before getting to St. Louis, Lee had spent parts of 10 seasons in the big leagues—eight with the Toronto Blue Jays and a pair with the Texas Rangers. The Dominican infielder reached the majors at age 20 after the Blue Jays selected him from the Houston Astros in the Rule 5 draft and stashed him on the bench for the 1985 season. By 1988, Lee had earned the starting second base job alongside shortstop Tony Fernández. Lee played solid defense but on offense rarely walked and frequently struck out, a less-than-ideal combination for a player with such scant power. The 5-foot-10, 145-pound switch-hitter averaged less than two home runs per season over the course of his career and in 1991 became the second player in major-league history to strikeout more than 100 times in a season while failing to hit a home run (Billy Maloney of the 1906 Brooklyn Superbas was the first, and only Michael Bourne has done it since).
The Blue Jays traded Fernández to the San Diego Padres after the 1990 season, allowing Lee to slide over to his natural position of shortstop, which he manned for Blue Jays during their championship season of 1992. Lee, who was often called Manny but preferred his given name, then reached free agency and signed a multi-year pact with the Rangers. His time in the Lone Star State proved to be mostly disappointing. A pulled intercostal muscle and thumb sprain cost him 70 games in ’93, and he had another two-week stint on the disabled list in ’94. Lee had been no stranger to the trainer’s room with Toronto either. He landed on the DL twice in ’88 with a sore shoulder, missed more than a month in ’89 with a sprained ankle, and was out of the lineup for three weeks in ’92 with a balky knee.
Because of Lee’s injury history and unimpressive career slash line of .255/.305/.323, there was little interest in his services entering the 1995 campaign, the start of which was delayed because of a players’ strike. In fact, the first and only team to reach out was the Cardinals, whose projected everyday lineup included 40-year-old Ozzie Smith at shortstop and the just as oft-injured Gerónimo Peña at second base. With only José Oquendo cemented as a middle infield option off the bench, general manager Walt Jocketty sought veteran depth and signed the 29-year-old Lee to a minor-league contract just eight days before the season opener.
Comments Lee made to Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch upon reporting to Cardinals’ camp did not exactly exude confidence: “Second base is going to make for extra work. It’s going to be hard. I’m not ready yet … Now, my legs are not like they were before. I know I’ve lost a little range right now.” [2]
Despite his lack of conditioning and reservations about returning to the keystone, Lee made the big-league roster when Peña invariably pulled a hamstring two days before the opener. When manager Joe Torre wrote his lineup for the Cards’ opener against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies on April 26, Lee was penciled in at second base hitting eighth.
Lee did not have to wait long for his first defensive chance. Darren Daulton led off the second inning with a slow grounder to the right of second base. Lee charged the ball and bobbled it briefly, just enough time for the Phillies’ catcher to reach safely. One frame later, pitcher Curt Schilling hit a three-hopper in the same direction. Lee again ranged to his right, fielded the ball, and took several steps before unleashing an off-balance throw that pulled John Mabry off first base. While both ground balls were generously scored infield singles, Lee’s feeling of unpreparedness was validated and would not be assuaged as the game progressed.
Schilling’s “single” was followed by a walk and a two-run double, putting the Phils up 2-0 and bringing Gregg Jefferies to the plate. The former Cardinal first baseman redirected Ken Hill’s 2-2 pitch in the direction of Lee, who attempted to backhand the ball, only to have it squirt out of his glove. As he attempted to retrieve the ball, his rubber cleats caught on the AstroTurf and caused his right ankle to roll. Lee crumpled to the turf while Morandini rounded third and scored to extend the Phillies’ lead, causing the Busch Stadium crowd of 33,539 to serenade the home team with a chorus of boos. Lee remained in the game and watched as the next batter, Dave Hollins, homered to deep left. Despite two seemingly harmless ground balls to second base, five Phillies had scored and there were still somehow no outs.
Lee strolled to the plate leading off the bottom of the third with an opportunity to repent for his defensive gaffes and showed no ill effects from turning his ankle. Likewise, when he singled sharply to left field and came around to score later in the inning, he did not appear hobbled. Nevertheless, Lee asked out of the game and was replaced by Oquendo in the top of the fourth. Hummel later reported that “Lee didn’t earn many points with Torre for his early exit from the game.”[3] After the game, Lee blamed his shoddy defense on rust, noting that he hadn’t played the keystone in a full year.
Dr. Stan Landon examined Lee’s tender ankle the next day and deemed it would be 10 days before he could play, so the Cards placed him on the disabled list, installed Oquendo as the starting second baseman, and called up Tripp Cromer from Triple A to provide bench depth.
Three weeks after Lee’s injury, he began a rehab assignment which included stints in St. Petersburg and Louisville. He hit .308 in 12 games between the two stops, but the Cardinals had seemingly lost patience. The team designated him for assignment when his 20-day rehab limit ended rather than activating him from the DL, even though Ozzie was out for an extended period with a shoulder injury. Lee became a free agent but failed to catch on with another team. His career was over before his 30th birthday.
Lee ended his brief Cardinals tenure with a 1.000 batting average. He is one of 10 players in franchise history to carry a perfect batting mark. Each had only one official at-bat, and all were pitchers except for Lee and outfielder Larry Herndon.[4]
Later that season Gehrig’s consecutive game streak would fall to Ripken Jr., baseball's new Iron Man, who rounded Camden Yards, shaking fans’ hands and basking in the adulation. As for Manuel Lee—the antithetical Iron Horse—he never played in the majors again.
[1] Rick Hummel, “Grades Again Show Cards Must Make Steep Climb,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 8, 1995: 33. According to Hummel, Lee had been sarcastically called “The Iron Horse” earlier in his career.
[2] Rick Hummel, “Lee Says He is Ready to Play, but Not Second,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 19, 1995: 38.
[3] Rick Hummel, “Jackson Says Medication May be Root of Problems,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 16, 1995: 30.
[4] Tige Stone played four games in the outfield as a defensive replacement for the 1923 Cardinals but got his one hit as a pitcher.
Eric Vickrey is the author of Runnin' Redbirds: The World Champion 1982 St. Louis Cardinals and Season of Shattered Dreams: Postwar Baseball, the Spokane Indians, and a Tragic Bus Crash That Changed Everything. He is a native of Alton, Illinois, and now makes his home in Washington state.