H A L L   O F   F A M E   I N D U C T E E S

Roy Campanella · Elected 1968
Catcher, St. Louis Maroons, Los Angeles Outlaws, Brooklyn Superbas, San Franicisco Spiders, Boston Federals · 1951-1964

There is only one candidate for the best catcher in UL history thus far, and that's Roy Campanella.  Roy was originally drafted by the Superbas at the age of 28, but he only spent a couple of months there before he was involved in the UL's first blockbluster deal, with eight players changing hands on his way to St. Louis.  It was in the Gateway City that Campanella made his name, including a stretch of five consecutive all-star selections.  Indeed, over nine consecutive seasons he hit over 20 homers, six of the seasons hitting over .280, seven with over 30 doubles, and each with at least 480 ABs, Campanella's career was marked by consistent, durable performance.   

Yet his two best seasons would come in the rarified West Coast air of Los Angeles, following another blockbuster trade that moved Steve Gromek (who would go 16-30 in two seasons after going 27-10 the year before) and Danny O'Connell (who never quite blossomed either) to the Maroons.  Campanella was coming off the best year of his career, having hit .295 with 30 homers, but in 1955, Campanella set a new UL record for RBIs (132), drove in 9 runs against Detroit one night, made the All-Star team and won the MVP after hitting .350 with 31 homers. Not quite as good in '56, Campanella still hit .315 with 21 HRs for his second straight .900+ OPS season.  One more great year (.295, 24 homers) was followed by two more 20+ homer seasons, albeit without the averages (.261 and .244 respectively).

The following three seasons, Campanella fell into the wilderness somewhat.  Although his .751 OPS would still have made him a starter on most UL sides, Roy found himself as a backup for a succession of teams.  In 1960 with the Superbas he was terrible, hitting just .195 in 72 ABs.  In '61, he was better, hitting .260 with 6 homers in just 200 ABs with San Francisco.  In '62, he got more time with Boston, and responded reasonably well - hitting 10 homers in essentially a half season, but only hitting .232.  Finally, in '63, Campanella got in 100 games (split between Brooklyn and St. Louis) for the first time in four campaigns, and proved to the UL what he already knew -- he could still hit.  In just 350 ABs, Roy smashed 20 home runs and saw his first world series action, getting in three games as the Superbas took home the Championship.  In truth, '63 was closer to the 'off-years' of '58 and '59, but it was still an indication that at 40 years old, he could still cut it.  Roy remained in the Brooklyn system in 1964, but only got 5 big-league ABs and retired at the end of the year. 

If Campy's 1963 season proved anything, its that he could have played bigger roles through '60-'62 than he did, and perhaps missed out on a few reasonable years - indeed, considering he hit 20 homers in '63, it's not too much of a stretch to say that had Campy been used fulltime he could add 300 homers and 1000 runs scored to his career milestones.  Yet Campanella should not be judged on his career statistics as much as his dominance at the position of catcher - 5 time all-star, UL All-Decade Catcher.  If the Hall of Fame is meant to compile the best players in the history of the UL, there has never been another backstop as good as Campanella.  (Doug Aiton)


AWARDS & ACCOLADES
Hall of Fame (1968)
All-Decade Team (1951-60)
Most Valuable Player (1955), All-UL Team (1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956)
RBI Champion (1955), OPS Champion (1955)
6-time Player of the Week