Maranville, "Rabbit" (Walter J.)
Baseball
b. Nov. 11, 1891, Springfield, MA
d. Jan. 5, 1954
Though most scouts dismissed him as too small for major-league baseball--he was only 5-foot-5 and 155 pounds--Maranville set a National League record by playing for 23 seasons, and he's sixth all-time with 2,153 games at shortstop.
Not an outstanding hitter, Maranville was one of those players who contribute to their teams with good defense, smart base running, and overall intelligent play. He was also a colorful character who often took a pet monkey on road trips. Maranville once swam across a river rather than walk ten blocks to a bridge and on another occasion he jumped, fully clothed, into a hotel fountain to win a bet.
Maranville entered the major leagues with the Boston Braves in 1912 and played for the "Miracle Braves" who won the 1914 pennant after being in last place on July 4. He batted only .246 that season but set a record for NL shortstops by handling 981 chances. In Boston's four-game sweep of the Philadelphia Athletics in the World Series, Maranville hit .308.
In 1921, Boston traded him to Pittsburgh. He had his best batting averages in his first two seasons there, .294 in 1921 and .295 in 1922. He went to the Chicago Cubs in 1925, the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1926, and the St. Louis Cardinals in 1927, after spending most of the season in the minor leagues and giving up alcohol, which had begun to interfere his play.
The Cardinals won the pennant in 1928, and Maranville again hit .308 in a losing cause in the World Series. He returned to the Braves in 1929 and was named manager of the team in July. After the season, he demanded a five-year contract to manage but was turned down, so he dropped that job but continued as a player.
A broken leg in spring training forced Maranville to miss all of the 1934 season and he retired after playing only 23 games in 1935. He later managed in the minor leagues.
In 2,670 games, Maranville had a .258 average on 2,605 hits, including 380 doubles, 177 triples, and 28 home runs. He stole 291 bases, scored 1,255 runs, and had 884 RBI.