Ernie Lombardi
Lumbering man-child Ernie Lombardi won two batting titles, the first catcher to do so. In 1938 he was named National League Most Valuable Player, in 1939 he helped the Cincinnati Reds to the World Series, and in 1940 he led the Reds to the World Championship. A cartoon-lie figure, Lombardi was considered the slowest player in the game, had a notoriously large nose, and hands so large he could hold five baseballs in one palm. A fair defensive player, he made his name with his bat, fashioning a .306 lifetime average with 190 home runs, a total exceeded by only two other right-handed hitting catchers when he retired. Like Enos Slaughter, Lombardi was an outspoken critic of the Hall of Fame, as the years passed and he was not elected. In 1986, eight years after Lombardi had died, the Veterans Committee elected him to Cooperstown.
| Career Batting Stats |
| G |
AB |
H |
R |
HR |
RBI |
SB |
AVG |
SLG |
OBP |
OPS |
OPS+ |
| 1853 |
5855 |
1792 |
601 |
190 |
990 |
8 |
.306 |
.460 |
.358 |
.818 |
116.3 |
|
Where does Ernie Lombardi rank among baseball greats?
Ernie Lombardi ranks #20 among the Top 50 all-time at C. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1938
Lombardi hit .342 with 19 homers and 95 RBI in 129 games, and was named National League Most Valuable Player. The "Homer in the Gloamin'" was a large reason why.
Most Games Caught, (1931-1947)
Al Lopez... 1,730
Ernie Lombardi... 1,544
Bill Dickey... 1,474
Rick Ferrell... 1,362
Gus Mancuso... 1,250
Where He Played
Catcher - could this guy have played anywhere else?
Born
Ernesto Natali Lombardi was born on April 6, 1908, in Oakland, CA.
Died
September 26, 1977, Santa Cruz, CA
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Major League Debut
4 15,
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1931
Billy Herman
Ernie Lombardi
Dixie Walker
Billy Jurges
Red Rolfe
Bucky Walters
Paul Derringer
Van Lingle Mungo
Gee Walker
Nicknames
Schnozz,Bocci
Uniform Numbers
Ernie wore ten different uniform numbers, for some reason: #7 (1932-1933), #27 (1934), #17 (1935), #2 (1936-1937), #35 (1938), #4 (1939-1941), #5 (1942), #9 (1943), #8 (1944-1946), #6 (1947)
Similar Players
Spud Davis and Smoky Burgess, though neither was quite as good.
Related Players
Babe Herman was the player the Reds wanted in their March 14, 1932, trade with the Dodgers, but Lombardi was thrown in as an afterthought, making it one of the best trades in Cincinnati history... Lombardi caught each of Johnny Vander Meer's consecutive no-hit games in 1938... In Game Four of the 1939 World Series, Yankee outfielder Charlie Keller collidded with Lombardi at home plate, stunning the Reds' catcher. Two more runners glided in to score as Lombardi lay on the ground semi-conscious. The play became known as "Lombardi's Snooze" or "Lombardi's Swoon"... After Lombardi suffered an injury in the middle of the 1940 season, Reds #2 catcher Willard Hershberger took over. Despite playing well, the fragile Hershberger committed suicide in August after a poor performance in a game against the Giants.
| Hall of Fame Voting |
| Year |
Election |
Votes |
Pct |
| 1950 |
BBWAA |
3 |
1.8% |
1951 |
BBWAA |
3 |
1.3% |
1956 |
BBWAA |
8 |
4.1% |
1958 |
BBWAA |
4 |
1.5% |
1960 |
BBWAA |
6 |
2.2% |
1962 |
BBWAA |
5 |
3.1% |
1964 |
Run Off |
9 |
4.0% |
1964 |
BBWAA |
33 |
16.4% |
1966 |
BBWAA |
34 |
11.3% |
1967 |
BBWAA |
43 |
14.7% |
1967 |
Run Off |
25 |
8.2% |
1986 |
Veterans |
|
% |
|
Post-Season Appearances
1939 World Series
1940 World Series
Post-Season Notes
Lombardi was injured and only appeared in two games of the 1940 World Series.
Awards and Honors
1938 NL MVP
Batting Feats
Transactions
March 14, 1932: Traded by the Brooklyn Dodgers with Wally Gilbert and Babe Herman to the Cincinnati Reds for Tony Cuccinello, Joe Stripp, and Clyde Sukeforth; February 7, 1942: Purchased by the Boston Braves from the Cincinnati Reds; April 27, 1943: Traded by the Boston Braves to the New York Giants for Hugh Poland and Connie Ryan.
The Dodgers dealt Lombardi to he Reds because they already had a fine catcher: Al Lopez.
All-Star Selections
1936 NL
1937 NL
1938 NL
1939 NL
1940 NL
1942 NL
1943 NL
1945 NL
Replaced
Clyde Sukeforth, who was dealt to Brooklyn in the deal that netted Lombardi for the Reds.
Replaced By
Walker Cooper, who returned from the war in 1946 and took back his starting job with the Giants.
Best Strength as a Player
He was a pure hitter.
Largest Weakness as a Player
He was quite possibly the slowest runner in baseball history. If he and Edgar Martinez were to have a foot race, I think it's plausible that Edgar would beat Ernie by a significant margin.
Learn More about Ernie Lombardi
Search Amazon.com for Books about Ernie Lombardi ⇒
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View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒