Vada Pinson                      Elected 1992

Center Fielder
Manhattan Gray Sox (LA, CLE, BOS)
1959-1975

Looking for a contemporary UL model for Vada Pinson? He was Ken  Landreaux before Ken Landreaux. Or at least Ken Landreaux before Ken Landreaux became a regular .333 hitter. And excepting the fact that Pinson was a Gold Glove-caliber centerfielder, whereas Landreaux plays the corners. And the fact that Pinson was crucial to his team’s World Series win. But other than that, he’s exactly like Ken Landreaux. That is, a very good, speedy, lefty leadoff man who makes every team he’s on better.

Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Pinson moved to the Bay Area and attended Oakland's McClymonds High School, alma mater of Frank Robinson, Curt Flood, Hall of Fame center Bill Russell, Congressman Ron Dellums, and MC Hammer. An accomplished musician, he considered a career as a trumpet player before his high school coach convinced him to pursue baseball.

Pinson entered the league as the second overall pick in 1959, and promptly took down the Rookie of the Year Award for the pre-Peter Vays L.A. Outlaws. The next year, he won the Gold Glove in centerfield, demonstrating his tremendous range and value patrolling the green. He was traded at the deadline in 1964 to Manhattan, where he’d spend the better part of a decade before being traded to Cleveland, where his glove and wheels would take the Barons to some of their very best seasons. His last UL season came in 1975 at age 36 where he showed he still possessed remarkable range, putting up +10 ZR in just 50 games in LF.

He played much of his career in that odd period where Brooklyn and Chicago hogged many of the playoff appearances, so it’s difficult to measure the guy’s success in terms of hardware. Similarly, he played a position dominated by Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, so it was very hard to rack up personal accolades. It’s no demerit to say the guy was a great centerfielder, just not as good as Willie and the Mick. But that does mean we need to look at career stats to see where VPizzle stands among the league’s all-time greats. Indeed, he posted a career WAR of 62, which is good for 27th all time. But look at it through a different lens—at his position he is third all time behind you guessed it, Mays and Mantle. In terms of individual seasons, 7 times he put up 4 WAR or more. 5 other times he put up a WAR in the 3s. That’s 12 times in his career that he put up 3 WAR or more, where 3 WAR is defined as a very good season. I mean I’d kill to have this guy in center all day, every day. 

He ranks third in career stolen bases with just under 700 bags. But what are steals worth if they don’t translate into runs scored? Well, it turns out that Pinson ranks 11th in career runs scored, surrounded on the list by guys name of Banks, Colavito, Adcock and Brock. For those keeping score at home, three of those four are Beachville residents. Vada ranks 20th in UL history with nearly 2200 hits, and his legs meant that he was racking up doubles and triples at a prodigious rate; indeed, he’s third all time in both categories.

To understand just how good this dude was, consider the crucial role he played on the 1968 Manhattan World Series team. That was the Gray Sox first and only championship until the C-Rob era. Just like Kenny Landreaux led his 1984 Brooklyn Superbas on a remarkable late-season charge to qualify for the postseason, so too did Pinson lead the Dingy Hose on a mind-blowing 16-2 run to close out the season and reach the playoff promised land. To wit, with just four days to go in the season, presumptive league MVP and Manhattan catcher Joe Torre was out with injury (!) at a time when Manhattan were in a dead heat with Ballsie Quallsie’s Cleveland Barons for the East Division pennant. I mean, no Joe Torre!!! At that point, the Sox could’ve folded or gone into hiding under the washing machine or behind the couch or wherever it is Dirty Sox go. But instead, Pinson put the team on his back and carried them to the playoff promised land. That day, they won a thrilling 7-6 contest to set them on their way to eventual Series glory in a game where Pinson scored twice. Early in the game he reached on an error, stole second, took third on a groundout and then scored by stealing home(!!!). Finally, he scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth off a walk, a steal and a single.

And is it a coincidence that the last time Cleveland made the playoffs, both the 1973 and ’74 seasons, came with Pinson patrolling the center of the park? Nah, I think it’s more proof that a pacey, lefty-hitting, Gold Glove, leadoff centerfielder is a legit cornerstone piece—witness Richie Ashburn in Brooklyn and dare I say it, Andy Van in Washington. Sorry Ken Landreaux, you don’t make the list! Pinson, however, does qualify as a legend of the game, despite the fact that he toiled away for much of his career in the shadow of two absolute titans at his position. (Glen Reed)