View source for Gil McDougald

{{short description|American baseball player (1928-2010)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Gil McDougald
|image=Gil McDougald 1953.jpg
|caption=McDougald in 1952
|position=[[Infielder]]
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|birth_date={{Birth date|1928|5|19}}
|birth_place=[[San Francisco|San Francisco, California]], U.S.
|death_date={{death date and age|2010|11|28|1928|5|19}}
|death_place=[[Wall Township, New Jersey]], U.S.
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=April 20
|debutyear=1951
|debutteam=New York Yankees
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=October 2
|finalyear=1960
|finalteam=New York Yankees
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
|stat1value=.276
|stat2label=[[Home run]]s
|stat2value=112
|stat3label=[[Runs batted in]]
|stat3value=576
|teams=
* [[New York Yankees]] ({{Baseball year|1951}}–{{Baseball year|1960}})
|highlights=
* 6× [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] ([[1952 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1952]], [[1956 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1956]]–[[1959 Major League Baseball All-Star Game (second game)|1959²]])
* 5× [[World Series champion]] ({{wsy|1951}}–{{wsy|1953}}, {{wsy|1956}}, {{wsy|1958}})
* [[AL Rookie of the Year]] (1951)
}}
'''Gilbert James McDougald''' (May 19, 1928 – November 28, 2010) was an American [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) [[infielder]] who played for the [[New York Yankees]] from [[1951 New York Yankees season|1951]] through [[1960 New York Yankees season|1960]].

McDougald was the 1951 [[American League|American League (AL)]] [[Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award|Rookie of the Year]]. He was an [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] for five seasons, and was a member of eight American League [[pennant (sports)|pennant]]-winning teams and five [[World Series]] champion teams. He was known for hitting a [[line drive]] that severely injured [[pitcher]] [[Herb Score]]'s right [[human eye|eye]] during a game at [[Cleveland Stadium|Municipal Stadium]] in {{Baseball year|1957}}.

==Early life==
McDougald was born in San Francisco, the younger of two sons born to William James McDougald and his wife, the former Ella McGuire.  
He attended Commerce High School, where he was an All-City basketball player. He did not make the varsity baseball team until his senior year.

After graduation in 1946, he attended [[City College of San Francisco]] and the [[University of San Francisco]].  During this time, he played with the local [[History of the Boston Braves|Boston Braves]] feeder team, the Bayside Braves, where he adopted his unorthodox but effective batting stance.

==MLB career==
The Yankees signed him to a contract in the spring of 1948.  He played for various minor league teams before being promoted to the big leagues in 1951.

McDougald played his first major league game on April 20, 1951. On May 3 of that year, he tied a major league record, since broken, by [[Run batted in|batting in six runs]] in one inning.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://baseballbiography.com/gil-mcdougald-1928 |title=The Ballplayers – Gil McDougald |access-date=2009-01-28 |last=Clifton |first=Merritt |publisher=baseballbiography.com }}</ref> Later in the year, in the [[1951 World Series|World Series]], he became the first [[rookie]] to hit a [[grand slam (baseball)|grand slam]] [[home run]] in the Series. He narrowly beat out [[Minnie Miñoso]] in the voting for the 1951 [[American League]] [[MLB Rookie of the Year award|Rookie of the Year]]. His entire major league career was spent on the [[New York Yankees]]. He was a versatile player, playing all the infield positions except [[first baseman|first base]]: 599 games at [[second baseman|second base]], 508 games at [[third baseman|third]], and 284 at [[shortstop]]. He was an All-Star in {{Baseball year|1952}}, {{Baseball year|1956}}, {{Baseball year|1957}}, {{Baseball year|1958}}, and {{Baseball year|1959}}, playing in four of the six games that were played (two All-Star games were held in 1959).

McDougald led all [[American League]] infielders in [[double play]]s at three different positions – at third base ({{Baseball year|1952}}), at second base ({{Baseball year|1955}}) and shortstop ({{Baseball year|1957}}). He was the double play leader at shortstop despite sharing time at the position with rookie [[Tony Kubek]].

On May 7, {{Baseball year|1957}}, McDougald, batting against [[Herb Score]] of the [[Cleveland Indians]], hit a line drive that hit Score in the right eye. It caused Score to miss the rest of the 1957 and much of the {{Baseball year|1958}} season. While addressing reporters following the contest, McDougald said, "If Herb loses the sight in his eye, I'm going to quit the game." Score regained his vision and returned to pitching in the majors late in 1958.<ref name="rgoldsteinnyt">[https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/sports/baseball/30mcdougald.html?ref=obituaries Goldstein, Richard. "Gil McDougald, Ex-Yankee, Dies at 82," ''The New York Times'', Tuesday, November 30, 2010.]</ref> Only two years before, McDougald was struck in the left ear during batting practice by a ball hit by teammate [[Bob Cerv]].  Though initially believed to be a concussion (he missed only a few games), McDougald soon lost the hearing in his left ear and later also in his right.  He retired in 1960 at only age 32, though not directly because of his hearing loss.<ref name=si>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.si.com/vault/1996/09/16/217387/sounds-great-to-him-former-yankees-star-gil-mcdougald-regained-his-hearing-after-a-cochlear-implant|first=Jim|last=Reisler|title=Sounds Great to Him|magazine=Sports Illustrated|date=September 16, 1996|access-date=November 29, 2010}}</ref>

In {{Baseball year|1958}}, McDougald was given the [[Lou Gehrig]] Memorial Award, which is awarded annually by the [[Phi Delta Theta]] fraternity (to which Gehrig belonged) at [[Columbia University]].

His last appearance was in Game Seven of the [[1960 World Series]] against the [[Pittsburgh Pirates]]; as a [[pinch runner]] in the top of the ninth, he scored on [[Yogi Berra]]'s ground ball to tie the game at 9–9. The Pirates, however, won the Series on [[Bill Mazeroski]]'s [[Bill Mazeroski's 1960 World Series home run|walk-off home run]] in the bottom of the ninth.

On December 9, 1960, McDougald announced his retirement. McDougald said he made up his mind to retire during the World Series and that his inclusion by the Yankees on a list of players eligible to be selected in the [[1960 Major League Baseball expansion draft|1960 Expansion Draft]] had nothing to do with his decision.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2202&dat=19601210&id=BkgmAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2v4FAAAAIBAJ&pg=6206,1457610&hl=en Gil McDougald will retire]</ref>

While with the Yankees, McDougald was a resident of [[Tenafly, New Jersey]].<ref>Drebinger, John. [https://www.nytimes.com/1960/03/03/archives/will-gil-move-his-bag-or-baggage-mcdougald-may-go-to-2d-3d-or-short.html "Will Gil Move His Bag or Baggage?; McDougald May Go to 2d, 3d or Short or to New Team"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', March 3, 1960. Accessed October 11, 2015. "The former Californian, who now lives in Tenafly, N.&nbsp;J., has helped the Yankees win pennants as a star second baseman, third baseman and shortstop."</ref>

In 1336 games over 10 seasons, McDougald posted a .276 [[batting average (baseball)|batting average]] (1291-for-4676) with 697 [[run (baseball)|runs]], 187 [[double (baseball)|doubles]], 51 [[triple (baseball)|triples]], 112 [[home runs]], 576 [[Run batted in|RBI]], 45 [[stolen bases]], 559 [[bases on balls]], .356 [[on-base percentage]] and .410 [[slugging percentage]]. Defensively, he recorded a .975 [[fielding percentage]] playing at second and third base and shortstop. In 53 World Series games, he batted .237 (45-for-190) with 23 runs, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 7 home runs, 24 RBI, 2 stolen bases and 20 walks.

==Personal life==
McDougald was the head baseball coach at [[Fordham University]] from 1970 to 1976.  He resigned this position due to his worsening hearing loss, a result of being hit in the head by a line drive during batting practice in 1955.

His hearing was somewhat restored by a [[cochlear implant]] he received during surgery at the [[New York University Medical Center]] in 1994.<ref>[[Ira Berkow|Berkow, Ira]]. [https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=990CE7D61E39F937A35752C0A963958260 BASEBALL: The Sweetest Sound of All; McDougald, Yankee Star of 50's, Can Hear Again After Operation], ''[[The New York Times]]'', January 4, 1995. Accessed July 14, 2011. "The McDougalds had taken the nearly two-hour train ride from their home in Spring Lake, N.J., and would be going across the street to Bellevue Hospital."</ref> McDougald later became a paid spokesperson for the implant manufacturer, Cochlear Americas.  He also became a speaker at benefits for hearing organizations, and testified before Congress.<ref name=si/>

McDougald died of [[prostate cancer]] at his home in [[Wall Township, New Jersey]], at the age of 82.  He was survived by his wife of 62 years, the former Lucille Tochilin (1928&ndash;2014), seven children, and 14 grandchildren.<ref>{{cite news|last=Bollinger|first=Rhett|title=Yankees' McDougald, '51 ROY, dies at 82|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20101129&content_id=16226630&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb|access-date=1 December 2010|newspaper=MLB.com|date=29 November 2010}}</ref><ref>Goldstein, Richard. [https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/sports/baseball/30mcdougald.html "Gil McDougald, Ex-Yankee, Dies at 82"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', November 29, 2010. Accessed October 20, 2015. "Gil McDougald, the Yankees’ versatile All-Star infielder who played on five World Series championship teams but was remembered as well for a single at-bat resulting in one of baseball's most frightening moments, died Sunday at his home in Wall Township, N.J."</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Baseball}}
*[[List of Major League Baseball annual triples leaders]]
*[[List of Major League Baseball players who spent their entire career with one franchise]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
{{Baseballstats|espn=24921|br=m/mcdougi01}}
*[https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=mcdougi01 Baseball Almanac]
*{{Find a Grave}}

{{1951 New York Yankees}}
{{1952 New York Yankees}}
{{1953 New York Yankees}}
{{1956 New York Yankees}}
{{1958 New York Yankees}}
{{Texas League Player of the Year}}
{{AL Rookie of the Year}}
{{Lou Gehrig Memorial Award}}
{{Fordham Rams baseball coach navbox}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:McDougald, Gil}}
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]
[[Category:American League All-Stars]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball second basemen]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball shortstops]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball third basemen]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award winners]]
[[Category:New York Yankees players]]
[[Category:Beaumont Roughnecks players]]
[[Category:Twin Falls Cowboys players]]
[[Category:Victoria Athletics players]]
[[Category:San Francisco Dons baseball players]]
[[Category:Fordham Rams baseball coaches]]
[[Category:Baseball players from San Francisco]]
[[Category:People from Spring Lake, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Monmouth County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Tenafly, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Wall Township, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Deaths from prostate cancer in New Jersey]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]