| For nearly three-quarters of a century, the Cardinals have
been taking players from all over the diamond and converting them into third
basemen. It all began in 1924, when they put shortstop Howard
Freigau at the hot corner, where he remained for three years. They
tried outfielder Wattie Holm at third in '28, and used second baseman
Sparky Adams there in '30 and '31.
Outfielder Pepper Martin served a three-year stint at third from 1933
through '35 before returning to the outfield. Middle infielder Jimmy
Brown was pressed into service at third in 1941 and 1942.
Whitey Kurowski, Ray Jablonski and Ken Boyer gave the Cards three
legitimate third basemen from World War II through the mid-60's, but when
they needed a third baseman in 1967, outfield Mike Shannon got the call.
When Shannon's career was ended in mid-1970 with a kidney ailment,
catcher Joe Torre shed his shin-guards and moved to third. He
remained there until '73. Ken Reitz held down the position for most
of the 1970's, but when he was traded after the 1980 season, second
baseman Ken Oberkfell was next in line. He was succeeded in 1984 by
minor league second baseman Terry Pendleton, who hadn't ever played third
base prior to that season. When he left as a free agent after the
1990 season, catcher Todd Zeile was shifted to third by someone who'd made
the same move himself, manager Joe Torre. Zeile was moved to first base
prior to the 1995 season, to make room for Scott Cooper. Zeile was
later traded to the Chicago Cubs. Cooper's was a short-lived tenure,
failing miserably in his single-season at the position, which allowed
Red's cast-off Chris Sabo a little playing time also. Prior to the
1996 season, Gary Gaetti joined the club to play third. His bat and
steady defensively play contributed to the division-winning team.
During the 1998 season, the Cardinals traded for a young third-sacker
named Fernando Tatis, who shared time with Gaetti until he was waived. Tatis
played the position well, emerging as an up-and-coming star. His
star fell with a groin injury that limited him to only 96 games in
2000. He came back from the injury out of shape and failed to
maintain his job. Supersub Placido Polanco played the position the
remainder of 2000, including the post-season. Tatis was traded to
the Expos in the off-season. Spelling Polanco were also Craig
Paquette and Shawon Dunston, though the latter played the position
sparingly. Rookie Albert Pujols emerged in the 2001 Spring Training Camp
as the third baseman of the future. Just 21, Pujols shows poise at
the plate beyond his years. While moving positions to cover for
injuries, Polanco has shared time at third, as has Craig Paquette. Pujols is the odds-on favorite to win the
N.L. Rookie of the Year Award. |
