If there is any player whom one could point to as a reason Bill Mazeroski should have been included into the Hall of Fame, Al Lopez was there man.  Lopez was one of the finest defensive catchers of all time, once being voted as the seventh best in a poll of retired major league players, with limited offensive stats, cracking .300 only three times in his 19-year career, finishing with a .261 average.  The son of a Spanish immigrant was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1977, primarily because of his defensive prowess, just like Maz was in 2001.  The difference between the two though, was Lopez also had the distinction of being one of the top managers of all time, which certainly helped him get into to Cooperstown.
    
Lopez, who used to work in a cigar factory while going to school, first appeared in the majors in 1928,going hitless for the Dodgers in 12 at bats.  Many questioned whether or not the lanky 5’11” 165 pound backstop would ever be a decent major leaguer, but what he had was a great ability to handle pitchers coupled with a good glove and strong arm.
    
He never would try to intimidate or embarrass them, but more or less tried to use a positive approach, which he successfully utilized when becoming a manager later on.  Lopez would set his personal record for batting average, .309 and RBI’s, 57 in his official rookie year of 1930.  He followed that up in 1933 with a .301 mark and a top 10 finish in the NL MVP voting.  Lopez was chosen to play in his first all-star game the following year, before heading off to Boston in 1936 to play with the Braves.
    
After 4 ½ years in Beantown, the Bucs would pick the 32-year old catcher up midway in the 1940 season for Ray Berres and $40,000.  Al would finish that season with a .990 fielding percentage tops in the league for the first time and was one again selected to play in the all-star game the following campaign in 1941.
    
Although the Tampa native would only hit .244 during the war years for Pittsburgh, he captured three successive fielding percentage titles between 1942-1944 showing his excellent defensive ability. 
    
By the end of his time in the Steel City, he was pretty much reduced to backup work and a defensive replacement, nonetheless, he still was able to break the all-time record for games caught while in Pittsburgh, surpassing Rick Ferrell with 1918 games.  It was a record that stood until 1987 when Bob Boone broke it.
    
Al was sent to the Indians for a young Gene Woodling, in 1947 where he ended his career that year, and began another when he took over as a manager for Indianapolis. Lopez finally made the majors in 1951 taking over the Indians from another Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau.  Al, who was known for his aggressive running game and being one of the first to use relievers in a percentage situation, was at the helm of the Tribe between 1951-1956, winning the AL pennant in 1954 with 111 wins and never finishing lower than second.
    
He took over the reigns in Chicago managing the White Sox in 1957 and led them to a surprise World Series berth in 1959.  Overall Lopez, who was very effective at positively influencing players and try to use the best attributed each had rather than try to force a system down their throats that they weren’t able to be successful at, retired in the midst of the 1969 season with a 1410-1004 record, good enough for a .584 winning percentage, 9th highest of all time.  The same poll that voted him the seventh best defensive catcher also tabbed him as the seventh best manager of all-time.  During the Pirate dog days of the 1950’s, it certainly would have been fortuitous for them to have realized what a great managerial talent they had in their midst, the great Hall of Famer, Al Lopez.