My All-Time Polish American All-Star baseball team

Stan Musial, a 3-time National League MVP, was a Polish American icon.

Its baseball all-star time, so heres my All-Time Polish American All-Star Baseball team. Just keep in mind that all my selections were retired ballplayers. No current major leaguers like A.J. Pierzynski and Troy Tulowitzki were considered.

Outfield: Stan Musial, Al(Szymanski) Simmons, Carl Yastrzemski. This is an outstanding Hall of Fame outfield headed by Stan the Man, who had a batting average of .331, 475 home runs and 1,951 RBIs. He is joined by Simmons (.334, 307, 1,827) and Yaz (.285, 452, 1,844). This trio is so remarkable that I had to leave off Barney McCosky. McCosky (his last name is actually derived from his Lithuanian fathers name; his mother was named Magdalena Rutkowski) was considered the best leadoff hitter of his era, and had a .312 career batting average over his 11 seasons. However, he lost three seasons to military service, and then suffered serious back problems. If Barney had been able to play longer, hed likely be in Cooperstown too.

First base: Ted Kluszewski. Yankee greats Bill Moose Skowron and Joe (Kollonige) Collins were good, but Big Klu was special. Hes remembered as the slugger with the big arms who had fiveseasons of 100 RBI or more and led the NL with 49 homers and 141 RBI in 1954. Despite his size and power, he was an excellent hitter who batted .300 or better seven years in a row and was difficult to strike out, and a very smooth fielding first baseman.

Second base: Bill Mazeroski. An easy choice the Pirate great and Hall of Famer is widely considered the best defensive second baseman ever. A clutch hitter, hes best known for his dramatic World Series-clinching home run against the Yankees in 1960.

Shortstop: Alan Trammell. Trammell (his mothers name was Anne Panczak) isnt in the Baseball Hall of Fame, but he should be. The long-time Detroit Tiger retired in 1996 with 2,365 hits, 1,231 runs scored, 185 home runs, 1,003 RBIs and four Gold Gloves.

Catcher: Frankie Pytlak. I chose Buffalo native Pytlak over John Grabowski, Stan Lopata and Carl Sawatski. Pytlak was a terrific hitter in the 1930s and 1940s (he batted over .300 three times) and was a fine fielder. He once set a Major League record for handling 581 consecutive chances without an error. (Most people dont remember Grabowski, since he retired in 1931, but he caught for the team many consider baseballs best ever, the 1927 New York Yankees).

Third base: Whitey Kurowski. The hero of the 1942 World Series was an excellent all-around third baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals despite the fact that childhood osteomyelitis left him with his right arm shorter than his left.

Utility Infielder: Tony Kubek. Kubek gets the nod here ahead of Bob (Bialogowicz) Bailor and Ted Kubiak. The latter two were more of the traditional utility men, but Kubek first appeared on a New York Yankees roster as a utility ballplayer before becoming the regular shortstop. He also filled in at several infield positions and the outfield during his career. He retired prematurely at age 29 due to serious neck and back problems, possibly costing him a place in Cooperstown.

Designated hitter: Greg Luzinski Bull was chosen over Richie Zisk by virtue of his greater home run production. Both played around the same time 70s and early 80s and were prototypical DHs: big, powerful guys with bad knees. Luzinski hit .276 with 307 homers. Zisk hit just 207 homers, though he batted 11 points better over his career, .287.

Righthander Pitcher: Phil Niekro. Niekro, with a career record of 318-274 is one of just 24 men with at least 300 wins. The great knuckleballer had a long and productive career, utilizing the polka as part of his workout regime. Stan Coveleski (215-142) was no slouch, either, using the spitball in the 1910s and 1920s when the pitch was legal. Both men are in the Hall of Fame. Other great rightys include Jack (Picus) Quinn (247-217), Phils brother Joe Niekro (221-204), Steve Gromek (123-108) and Hank Borowy (108-82).

Lefthander Pitchers: Frank Tanana. Tanana (240-236) tops another impressive group of hurlers. Both Eddie Lopat (166-112) and Johnny Podres (148-116) had great career numbers, and much success in World Series play as well. Tanana, despite having had a fantastic career, played for many mediocre teams and never appeared in the fall classic. A former Angels No. 1 draft pick, he threw a 100-mph fastball and made three consecutive All-Star games (1976-78). He suffered a shoulder injury that cut his fastball down to 88-mph, but he reinvented himself as an outstanding junk-ball pitcher.

Reliever: Casimir Jim Konstanty. Konstanty was the first relief pitcher to be named MVP. That happened in 1950, when he led Philadelphia to the pennant with 16 wins and 22 saves, both NL highs. He beat out Ron Perranoski, who posted a 79-74 record, 179 saves and a 2.79 ERA during the 1960s and early 1970s. Also, dont forget Myron Moe Drabowsky, who won 88 games pitching mostly in relief. In 1966 and 1970, the Polish-born righty played a big role in the Baltimore Orioles World Series championships.

Manager: Danny Ozark. Daniel Leonard Orzechowski was born in Buffalo and grew up in Cheektowaga. The WWII veteran played in the Brooklyn Dodgers organization before coaching under the Dodgers Manager Walter Alston. Ozark was eventually hired to take over the last place Philadelphia Phillies in 1972, and led them to three NL Eastern Division titles from 1976 to 1978. He posted a 618-542 record managing Philadelphia and San Francisco. Ozark was a clear choice over John Goryl, who managed Minnesota in the early 1980s and John Lipon, who managed briefly with Cleveland in the early 1970s.

Ill be writing more about some of these players, particularly Pytlak and Ozark, in future editions of Polonia Pressbox.

Source: http://ampoleagle.com/my-alltime-polish-american-br-allstar-baseball-team-p7007-208.htm

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