Leo Durocher was born on Thursday, July 27, 1905, in West Springfield, Massachusetts. Durocher was 20 years old when he broke into the big leagues on October 2, 1925, with the New York Yankees. His biographical data, year-by-year hitting stats, fielding stats, pitching stats (where applicable), career totals, uniform numbers, salary data and miscellaneous items-of-interest are presented by Baseball Almanac on this comprehensive Leo Durocher baseball stats page.
"I don't care if the guy (Jackie Robinson) is yellow or black of if he has stripes like a $&!*@#$ zebra. I'm the manager of this team and I say he plays." - Leo Durocher (1947) [Leo Durocher Quotes]
Leo DurocherLeo Durocher Autograph on a Topps Baseball Card (#147) |
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Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Leo DurocherLeo Durocher Pitching Stats |
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Year | Age | Team | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
- | - | Did Not Pitch | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Career | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
Leo DurocherLeo Durocher Hitting Stats |
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Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
1925 | 20 | Yankees | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1928 | 23 | Yankees | 102 | 296 | 46 | 80 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 22 | 0 | 52 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 6 | .270 | .327 | .338 |
1929 | 24 | Yankees | 106 | 341 | 53 | 84 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 34 | 0 | 33 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 7 | .246 | .320 | .287 |
1930 | 25 | Reds | 119 | 354 | 31 | 86 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 32 | 20 | 0 | 45 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 6 | .243 | .287 | .328 |
1931 | 26 | Reds | 121 | 361 | 26 | 82 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 18 | 0 | 32 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 5 | .227 | .264 | .294 |
1932 | 27 | Reds | 143 | 457 | 43 | 99 | 22 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 33 | 36 | 1 | 40 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 13 | .217 | .275 | .293 |
1933 | 28 | Reds | 16 | 51 | 6 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .216 | .273 | .294 |
1933 | 28 | Cardinals | 123 | 395 | 45 | 102 | 18 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 26 | 0 | 32 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 13 | .258 | .306 | .339 |
1934 | 29 | Cardinals | 146 | 500 | 62 | 130 | 26 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 70 | 33 | 4 | 40 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 16 | .260 | .308 | .350 |
1935 | 30 | Cardinals | 143 | 513 | 62 | 136 | 23 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 78 | 29 | 3 | 46 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | .265 | .304 | .376 |
1936 | 31 | Cardinals | 136 | 510 | 57 | 146 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 58 | 29 | 3 | 47 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 18 | .286 | .327 | .347 |
1937 | 32 | Cardinals | 135 | 477 | 46 | 97 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 47 | 38 | 5 | 36 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 17 | .203 | .262 | .245 |
1938 | 33 | Dodgers | 141 | 479 | 41 | 105 | 18 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 47 | 7 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 9 | .219 | .293 | .284 |
1939 | 34 | Dodgers | 116 | 390 | 42 | 108 | 21 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 27 | 6 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | .277 | .325 | .369 |
1940 | 35 | Dodgers | 62 | 160 | 10 | 37 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 12 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .231 | .285 | .319 |
1941 | 36 | Dodgers | 18 | 42 | 2 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .286 | .302 | .310 |
1943 | 38 | Dodgers | 6 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .222 | .263 | .222 |
1945 | 40 | Dodgers | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .200 | .200 | .200 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
17 Years | 1,637 | 5,350 | 575 | 1,320 | 210 | 56 | 24 | 3 | 567 | 377 | 34 | 480 | 82 | 0 | 18 | 146 | .247 | .299 | .320 |
Leo DurocherLeo Durocher Fielding Stats |
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Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1928 Yankees | 2B | 66 | 44 | 1,026 | 306 | 4.6 | 290 | 112 | 178 | 16 | 31 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .948 | 7.63 |
1928 Yankees | SS | 29 | 27 | 717 | 151 | 5.2 | 142 | 46 | 96 | 9 | 11 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .940 | 5.35 |
1929 Yankees | 2B | 12 | 7 | 156 | 61 | 5.1 | 60 | 32 | 28 | 1 | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 10.38 |
1929 Yankees | SS | 93 | 90 | 2,091 | 518 | 5.6 | 496 | 197 | 299 | 22 | 59 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .958 | 6.40 |
1930 Reds | 2B | 13 | 9 | 126 | 54 | 4.2 | 54 | 24 | 30 | 0 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 11.57 |
1930 Reds | SS | 103 | 103 | 1,980 | 590 | 5.7 | 566 | 216 | 350 | 24 | 77 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .959 | 7.72 |
1931 Reds | SS | 120 | 114 | 1,971 | 576 | 4.8 | 556 | 212 | 344 | 20 | 86 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .965 | 7.62 |
1932 Reds | SS | 142 | 140 | 2,946 | 742 | 5.2 | 712 | 283 | 429 | 30 | 76 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .960 | 6.53 |
1933 Reds | SS | 16 | 16 | 420 | 106 | 6.6 | 101 | 37 | 64 | 5 | 10 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .953 | 6.49 |
1933 Cardinals | SS | 123 | 121 | 2,553 | 620 | 5.0 | 596 | 238 | 358 | 24 | 64 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .961 | 6.30 |
1934 Cardinals | SS | 146 | 146 | 3,330 | 760 | 5.2 | 727 | 320 | 407 | 33 | 86 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .957 | 5.89 |
1935 Cardinals | SS | 142 | 139 | 3,459 | 761 | 5.4 | 733 | 313 | 420 | 28 | 81 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .963 | 5.72 |
1936 Cardinals | SS | 136 | 135 | 3,345 | 713 | 5.2 | 692 | 300 | 392 | 21 | 80 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .971 | 5.59 |
1937 Cardinals | SS | 134 | 132 | 3,216 | 688 | 5.1 | 660 | 279 | 381 | 28 | 72 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .959 | 5.54 |
1938 Dodgers | SS | 141 | 138 | 3,141 | 710 | 5.0 | 686 | 287 | 399 | 24 | 90 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .966 | 5.90 |
1939 Dodgers | 3B | 1 | 0 | - | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.00 |
1939 Dodgers | SS | 113 | 112 | 2,481 | 575 | 5.1 | 550 | 228 | 322 | 25 | 73 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .957 | 5.99 |
1940 Dodgers | 2B | 4 | 1 | 27 | 14 | 3.5 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .929 | 13.00 |
1940 Dodgers | SS | 53 | 49 | 975 | 243 | 4.6 | 233 | 102 | 131 | 10 | 22 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .959 | 6.45 |
1941 Dodgers | 2B | 1 | 0 | - | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.00 |
1941 Dodgers | SS | 12 | 9 | 171 | 48 | 4.0 | 44 | 16 | 28 | 4 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .917 | 6.95 |
1943 Dodgers | SS | 6 | 6 | 108 | 34 | 5.7 | 34 | 23 | 11 | 0 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 8.50 |
1945 Dodgers | 2B | 2 | 2 | 42 | 7 | 3.5 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 4.50 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
SS Totals | 1,509 | 1,477 | 32,904 | 7,835 | 5.2 | 7,528 | 3,097 | 4,431 | 307 | 895 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .961 | 6.18 | |
2B Totals | 98 | 63 | 1,377 | 443 | 4.5 | 425 | 178 | 247 | 18 | 46 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .959 | 8.33 | |
3B Totals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 0.00 | |
16 Years | 1,608 | 1,540 | 34,281 | 8,280 | 5.1 | 7,955 | 3,275 | 4,680 | 325 | 941 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .961 | 6.27 |
Leo DurocherLeo Durocher Miscellaneous Stats |
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Baserunning Statistics | Other Positions | Common Hitting Ratios | Common Pitching Ratios | |||||||||
Team | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
1925 Yankees | 0 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 1 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | - | - |
1928 Yankees | 1 | 4 | .200 | 4 | 3 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.7 | 9.5 | - | - | - |
1929 Yankees | 3 | 1 | .750 | 1 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 10.3 | 10.7 | - | - | - |
1930 Reds | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 3 | n/a | 118.0 | 7.9 | 11.1 | - | - | - |
1931 Reds | 0 | 6 | .000 | 0 | 1 | n/a | 361.0 | 11.3 | 12.4 | - | - | - |
1932 Reds | 3 | 2 | .600 | 0 | 1 | n/a | 457.0 | 11.4 | 13.8 | - | - | - |
1933 Reds | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 51.0 | 10.2 | 17.0 | - | - | - |
1933 Cardinals | 3 | 4 | .429 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 197.5 | 12.3 | 9.6 | - | - | - |
1934 Cardinals | 2 | 3 | .400 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 166.7 | 12.5 | 7.1 | - | - | - |
1935 Cardinals | 4 | 5 | .444 | 0 | 2 | n/a | 64.1 | 11.2 | 6.6 | - | - | - |
1936 Cardinals | 3 | 3 | .500 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 510.0 | 10.9 | 8.8 | - | - | - |
1937 Cardinals | 6 | 3 | .667 | 1 | 1 | n/a | 477.0 | 13.3 | 10.1 | - | - | - |
1938 Dodgers | 3 | 6 | .333 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 479.0 | 16.0 | 8.6 | - | - | - |
1939 Dodgers | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 0 | n/a | 390.0 | 16.3 | 11.5 | - | - | - |
1940 Dodgers | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2 | 3 | n/a | 160.0 | 12.3 | 11.4 | - | - | - |
1941 Dodgers | 0 | 1 | .000 | 5 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 14.0 | 7.0 | - | - | - |
1943 Dodgers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 9.0 | 18.0 | - | - | - |
1945 Dodgers | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.5 | - | - | - |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
17 Years | 31 | 41 | .431 | 16 | 15 | n/a | 222.9 | 11.1 | 9.4 | - | - | - |
Leo DurocherLeo Durocher Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1925 New York Yankees | n/a | $1,800.00 | n/a | - |
1928 New York Yankees | n/a | $3,000.00 | n/a | Stats |
1929 New York Yankees | 7 | $4,000.00 | n/a | - |
1930 Cincinnati Reds | n/a | $5,000.00 | n/a | - |
1931 Cincinnati Reds | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
1932 Cincinnati Reds | 10 | Undetermined | n/a | - |
1933 Cincinnati Reds | 10 | Undetermined | - | - |
1933 St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | Undetermined | - | - |
1934 St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | Undetermined | - | Stats |
1935 St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | Undetermined | - | - |
1936 St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | $6,000.00 | Stats | - |
1937 St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | $10,000.00 | - | - |
1938 Brooklyn Dodgers | 2 | $12,500.00 | Stats | - |
1939 Brooklyn Dodgers | 2 | $15,000.00 | - | - |
1940 Brooklyn Dodgers | 2 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1941 Brooklyn Dodgers | 2 | Undetermined | - | - |
1943 Brooklyn Dodgers | 2 | Undetermined | - | - |
1945 Brooklyn Dodgers | 2 | Undetermined | n/a | - |
Leo Durocher Stats by Baseball Almanac |
Leo the Lip Durocher was a three-time All-Star infielder (1936, 1938, 1940), who as a player-manager, finished his career as a skipper ranked fifth all-time amongst managers with 2,009 career victories, second only to John McGraw in National League history. His philosophy (and autobiography), Nice Guys Finish Last are often the first thought that comes to mind when this Hall of Fame (1994) manager is discussed:
Nice Guys Finish Last
The saying "nice guys finish last" is a condensation by journalists of a quotation by Durocher. He did not originally say this form himself, though it has often been attributed to him, and he did appropriate it as his own. The original quotation was “The nice guys are all over there, in seventh place.” (July 6, 1946), about the 1946 New York Giants, seventh place was next to last place in the National League. This was shortly afterwards rendered as "Nice Guys Wind Up in Last Place, Scoffs Lippy", thence its present form.
Durocher recounts his recollection and interpretation in his autobiography, Nice Guys Finish Last (1975). The actual quotations (recollected 29 years after the fact) are considered incorrect by many sources, as they are contradicted by the contemporary records (see references above), but show Durocher's philosophy, as epitomized in this maxim of his.
The Giants, led by Mel Ott, began to come out of their dugout to take their warm-up. Without missing a beat, I said, "Take a look at that Number Four there. A nicer guy never drew breath than that man there." I called off his players' names as they came marching up the steps behind him, "Walker Cooper, Mize, Marshall, Kerr, Gordon, Thomson. Take a look at them. All nice guys. They'll finish last. Nice guys. Finish last."
I said, “They lose a ball game, they go home, they have a nice dinner, they put their heads down on the pillow and go to sleep. Poor Mel Ott, he can't sleep at night. He wants to win, he's got a job to do for the owner of the ball club. But that doesn’t concern the players, they're all getting good money."
I said, "you surround yourself with this type of player, they're real nice guys, sure 'Howarya, Howarya' and you're going to finish down in the cellar with them. Because they think they’re giving you one hundred percent on the ball field and they're not.
Give me some scratching, diving, hungry ballplayers who come to kill you. Now, Stanky's the nicest gentleman who ever drew breath, but when the bell rings you’re his mortal enemy. That's the kind of a guy I want playing for me." That was the context. To explain why Eddie Stanky was so valuable to me by comparing him to a group of far more talented players who were, in fact, in last place. Frankie Graham did write it up that way. In that respect, Graham was the most remarkable reporter I ever met. He would sit there and never take a note, and then you'd pick up the paper and find yourself quoted word for word. But the other writers who picked it up ran two sentences together to make it sound as if I were saying that you couldn't be a decent person and succeed.
Baseball Almanac like's Durocher's account of the expression, "Nice Guys Finish Last." Historians say it wasn't that way. Decades after he left the playing field, a simple say was still an item of debate as it relates to this skilled skipper.
Did you know that when he played alongside Babe Ruth, the Bambino nicknamed Durocher "The All American Out?" The more common nickname, "The Lip", was given because Durocher was a truly controversial and outspoken character whose career was dogged by clashes with authority, umpires, and the media. Leo's ninety-five career ejections as a manager trailed only John McGraw when he retired, and still rank fourth on the all-time list!
Leo Durocher | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1994 (HOF)
In 1994, the Veterans Committee inducted Leo Durocher into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, making The Lip the 12th manager enshrined in Cooperstown, following Connie Mack (1937), John McGraw (1937), Wilbert Robinson (1945), Joe McCarthy (1957), Bill McKechnie (1962), Miller Huggins (1964), Casey Stengel (1966), Bucky Harris (1975), Al Lopez (1977), Rube Foster (1981), and Walt Alston (1983).