Mathews, "Eddie" (Edwin L.)
Baseball
b. Oct. 13, 1931, Texarkana, TX
d. Feb. 18, 2001
His apple-cheeked, baby-faced looks didn't deceive NL pitchers for very long. They soon realized that Mathews was a dangerous hitter. The only man to play for the Braves in Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta, Mathews was also a good fielding third baseman with a rifle arm.
A left-handed hitter, he joined the Braves in 1952, their last season in Boston, and hit 25 home runs. Mathews hit 40 or more home runs each of the team's first three seasons in Milwaukee, leading the league with 47 in 1953. He had a league-leading 109 RBI in 1955, when he hit 41 home runs.
The Braves won pennants in 1957 and 1958, with Mathews and Aaron forming the most feared 1-2 punch in baseball. Aaron usually batted third, Mathews fourth, and he later said he benefitted from hitting behind Aaron. "If the pitcher got him out, he was so tired from the effort he might make a mistake with me."
Mathews hit only .225 but scored 4 runs and had 4 RBI in Milwaukee's seven-game World Series victory over the New York Yankees in 1957. He batted only .160 when they lost to the Yankees in seven games the following year.
In 1959, Mathews won his second and last home run title, with 46. He also hit. 306, scored 118 runs, and had 114 RBI that year. He hit 23 or more home runs each of the next six seasons and had 32 or more three times.
After playing with the Braves for one season after they moved to Atlanta in 1966, Mathews was with the Houston Astros and Detroit Tigers in 1967. He ended his major league career with the Tigers in 1968. Mathews became a coach with the Braves after retiring. He took over as manager during the 1972 season and was fired during the 1974 season.
In 2,391 games, Mathews had 2,315 hits, including 354 doubles, 72 triples, and 512 home runs. He had 1,453 RBI and scored 1,509 runs. During their years as teammates, Mathews and Aaron combined for a record 1,267 home runs, 60 more than Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig hit together.