1947 Brooklyn 1962
July 6, 1980
The Duke of Flatbush played 16 segsons with the Dodgers, playing on a pair of World Championship teams (1955 and 1959) and in six World Series overall. The eight-time All-Star center fielder ranks as the franchise's career leader in home runs (389) and runs batted in (1,271).
Number Retired on July 6, 1980
The Duke of Flatbush was among the game's most feared hitters during his 16 seasons with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers (1947-62), playing on a pair of World Championship teams (1955 and 1959) and in six World Series overall. The eight-time All-star center fielder ranks as the franchise's career leader in home runs (389) and runs batted in (1,271) and during the 1950s he topped all Major Leaguers with 326 homers and 1,031 RBI. He slugged four home runs in both the 1952 and 1955 World Series and he holds the Brooklyn Dodgers single-season mark of 43 homers, which led the National League in 1956. His 736 RBI in 1955 topped the NL. Snider was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980.
Edwin Donald "Duke" Snider (September 19, 1926 – February 27, 2011), nicknamed "the Silver Fox" and "the Duke of Flatbush", was an American professional baseball player. Primarily a center fielder, he spent most of his Major League Baseball (MLB) career playing for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers (1947–1962), later playing one season each for the New York Mets (1963) and San Francisco Giants (1964).Duke Snider:
- Snider was named to the National League (NL) All-Star roster eight times and was the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) runner-up in 1955.
- In his 16 out of 18 seasons with the Dodgers, he helped lead the Dodgers to six World Series, with victories in 1955 and 1959.
- He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980.
- Born in Los Angeles, Snider was nicknamed "Duke" by his father at age 5.
- Snider was a gifted all-around athlete, playing basketball, football, and baseball at Compton High School, class of 1944.
- Spotted by one of Branch Rickey's scouts in the early 1940s, he was signed to a baseball contract out of high school in 1943.
- After serving in the U.S. Navy in 1945 and part of 1946, he came back to play for the Fort Worth Cats that year, and also for St. Paul in 1947.
- 1947 He got his first major league at bat in the second Dodger's game of the 1947 season on April 17 and hit a single. He played in 39 more games that season and became a friend of Jackie Robinson before he was sent to the St. Paul team in early July. [https://www.eatlife.net/dodger-stadium/jackie-robinson.php]
- 1948 Snider (after spring training with the Dodgers) started the 1948 season with Montreal, and after hitting well in that league with a .327 batting average, he was called up to Brooklyn in August and played in 53 games.
- 1949 In 1949, Snider became a regular major leaguer hitting 23 home runs with 92 runs batted in, helping the Dodgers into the World Series. Snider also saw his average climb from .244 to .292.
Duke SniderOften compared with two other New York center fielders, fellow Baseball Hall of Famers, Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, he was the reigning "Duke" of Flatbush.
- 1950 He hit .321 and led the National League with 199 base hits and 343 total bases, earning his first All-Star Game appearance.
- 1951 His average slipped to .277 in 1951 (a season when the Dodgers lost a 13‑game August lead and finished second to the Giants after Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World")
- 1953-1957 Usually batting third in the lineup, Snider established impressive offensive numbers. He hit 40 or more home runs in five consecutive seasons (1953–1957), and between 1953 and 1956 he averaged 42 home runs, 124 RBI, 123 runs, and a .320 batting average. He led the National League (NL) in runs scored, home runs, and RBI in separate seasons.
- 1958 Snider's career numbers declined when the team moved to Los Angeles in 1958. Coupled with an aching knee and a 440-foot (130 m) right field fence at the cavernous Coliseum, Snider hit only 15 home runs in 1958.
- 1959 Duke rebounded that year to hit .308 with 23 home runs and 88 RBI in 370 at bats as he helped the Dodgers win their first World Series in Los Angeles.
Duke SniderHe appeared in six post-seasons with the Dodgers (1949, 1952–53, 1955–56, 1959), facing the New York Yankees in the first five and the Chicago White Sox in the last. The Dodgers won the World Series in 1955 and in 1959.
- 1961 Injuries and age would eventually play a role in reducing Snider to part-time status by 1961.
- 1962 Snider was sold to the New York Mets. It is said that Drysdale, his roommate, broke down and cried when he got the news of Snider's departure.
- 1963 On April 16, 1963, Snider recorded his 2,000th hit. On June 14, he recorded his 400th home run. He was named to the All-Star Game in Cleveland, his eighth and final selection. For the season with the Mets, he appeared in 129 games while batting a slashline of .243/.345/.401, with 14 home runs, 45 RBIs, 45 walks, and 56 strikeouts.
- 1964 Snider was sold to the San Francisco Giants on Opening Day in 1964. In 91 games played with the Giants, he batted a line of .210/.302/.323 while having four home runs and 17 RBIs. He had no triples for the first and only time in his career. He had 40 strikeouts and 22 walks. He made 44 putouts, two assists with one error for a .979 fielding percentage. He retired at the end of the season.
He finished his major league career with a lifetime .295 batting average, 2,116 hits, 1,259 runs, 407 home runs, and 1,333 RBI. Defensively, he posted a .985 fielding percentage playing at all three outfield positions.
Later life
Following his retirement from baseball, Snider became a popular and respected TV/radio analyst and play-by-play announcer for the San Diego Padres from 1969 to 1971 and for the Montreal Expos from 1973 to 1986. He was characterized by a mellow, low-key style.Snider occasionally took acting roles, sometimes appearing in television or films as himself or as a professional baseball player.
