View source for Joe Gordon

{{Short description|American baseball player, coach, and manager (1915–1978)}}
{{Other people}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Joe Gordon
|image=Joe Gordon 1942 (2).jpg
|caption=Gordon with the New York Yankees in 1942
|position=[[Second baseman]] / [[Manager (baseball)|Manager]]
|birth_date={{birth date|1915|2|18}}
|birth_place=[[Los Angeles]], California, U.S.
|death_date={{Death date and age|1978|4|14|1915|2|18}}
|death_place=[[Sacramento, California]], U.S.
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|debutleague=MLB
|debutdate=April 18
|debutyear=1938
|debutteam=New York Yankees
|finalleague=MLB
|finaldate=September 30
|finalyear=1950
|finalteam=Cleveland Indians
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
|stat1value=.268
|stat2label=[[Home run]]s
|stat2value=253
|stat3label=[[Runs batted in]]
|stat3value=975
|stat4label=Managerial record
|stat4value=305–308
|stat5label=Winning %
|stat5value={{winpct|305|308}}
|teams=
'''As player'''
* [[New York Yankees]] ({{Baseball year|1938}}–{{Baseball year|1943}}, {{Baseball year|1946}})
* [[Cleveland Indians]] ({{Baseball year|1947}}–{{Baseball year|1950}})
'''As manager'''
* [[Cleveland Indians]] ({{Baseball year|1958}}–{{Baseball year|1960}})
* [[Detroit Tigers]] ({{Baseball year|1960}})
* [[Kansas City Athletics]] ({{Baseball year|1961}})
* [[Kansas City Royals]] ({{Baseball year|1969}})
|highlights=
* 9× [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] ([[1939 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1939]]–[[1943 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1943]], [[1946 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1946]]–[[1949 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1949]])
* 5× [[World Series champion]] ({{wsy|1938}}, {{wsy|1939}}, {{wsy|1941}}, {{wsy|1943}}, {{wsy|1948}})
* [[AL MVP]] (1942)
* [[Cleveland Guardians Hall of Fame]]
| hoflink = National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
| hoftype = National
| hofdate=[[2009 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|2009]]
| hofvote=83.3%
| hofmethod=Veterans Committee
}}
'''Joseph Lowell Gordon''' (February 18, 1915 – April 14, 1978), nicknamed "'''Flash'''", in reference to the comic-book character ''[[Flash Gordon]]'', was an American [[second baseman]], [[coach (baseball)|coach]] and [[manager (baseball)|manager]] in [[Major League Baseball]] who played for the [[New York Yankees]] and [[Cleveland Indians]] from 1938 to 1950. He was posthumously inducted into the [[Baseball Hall of Fame]] in [[2009 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|2009]].

As a rookie second baseman in 1938, Gordon set a new record for home runs in a season for a second baseman with 25. Gordon was the outstanding player at his position during the 1940s, winning the {{Baseball year|1942}} [[American League]] [[MLB Most Valuable Player Award|MVP Award]] and being named to ''[[The Sporting News]]'' Major League All-Star Team in nine of his eleven seasons. Known for his acrobatic defense, he led the AL in [[assist (baseball)|assists]] four times and in [[double play]]s three times. He was the first AL second baseman to hit 20 [[home run]]s in a season, doing so seven times, with his peak being 32 in 1948. His single season record of home runs at the position was a record until 2001. His 253 home runs were second all-time among players primarily playing the position of second base when he retired, and only seven players have passed him since.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://stathead.com/tiny/IEsYo|website=Stathead|title=For combined seasons, Played at least 51% of games at 2B, in the regular season, sorted by descending Home Runs.}}</ref> He played a major role on the {{Baseball year|1948}} champion Indians, leading the team in homers and [[run batted in|runs batted in]]. He ranked sixth in major league history in double plays (1,160) upon retiring and was sixth in AL history in games (1,519), [[putout]]s (3,600), assists (4,706) and [[total chances]] (8,566) and seventh in [[fielding percentage]] (.970).

==Early life==
Gordon was born in Los Angeles, on February 18, 1915, to Benjamin Lowell Gordon (1875–1946) and Lulu Pearl Evans (1893–1984).<ref name="bballref">{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/g/gordojo01.shtml|title=Joe Gordon Statistics|work=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=2008-12-09}}</ref> The family moved to [[Oregon]], where he attended [[Jefferson High School (Portland, Oregon)|Jefferson High School]].<ref name="oregonian">{{cite news|title=Portland native Joe Gordon elected to baseball's Hall of Fame|date=December 8, 2008|work=The Oregonian|publisher=OregonLive.com}}</ref> After graduation, Gordon attended the [[University of Oregon]],<ref name="bballref"/> where he also competed as a [[running back|halfback]] on the [[college football|football]] team as well as in [[gymnastics]], [[football (soccer)|soccer]] and the [[long jump]]. Not limiting himself to sports, he also played the [[violin]] in the college orchestra.<ref>{{cite book|last=Reidenbaugh |first=Lowell |author2=Steve Zesch |title=The Sporting News Selects Baseball's 25 Greatest Teams |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AR7wAAAAMAAJ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310111054/https://books.google.com/books?id=AR7wAAAAMAAJ |archive-date=2016-03-10 |type=Hardback |year=1988 |edition=1 month=August |publisher=Sporting News |location=Charlotte, North Carolina, US |isbn=0-89204-280-X |page=166 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Playing on the [[Oregon Ducks baseball|Ducks baseball team]] during the 1934 and 1935 seasons, Gordon helped lead the team to a combined record of 30-14 – winning the [[Pacific Coast Conference]]'s Northern Division both years.<ref name="oregonian"/> Gordon hit .358 while at Oregon which ranks him tied for fourth in team history.<ref name="oregonian"/> While in college, Gordon was a member of the [[Sigma Chi]] fraternity.<ref>{{cite journal |year=1947 |title=Society of the Sigma |journal=Magazine of Sigma Chi |volume=66 |issue=4 |page=XI}}</ref>

==Playing career==
===New York Yankees===
After [[batting average (baseball)|batting]] .418 in his sophomore year, he signed with the Yankees in 1936, with scout Bill Essick reporting: "(Gordon was) at his best when it meant the most and the going was toughest." After being assigned to the Yankees AA-level club, the [[Oakland Oaks (PCL)|Oakland Oaks]], in the [[Pacific Coast League]], Gordon proceeded to put up solid numbers in his first season in professional baseball, hitting .300 while spending the majority of time in the field at shortstop.<ref name=brm>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=gordon002jos|title=Joe Gordon Minor League Statistics & History|work=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=April 19, 2012}}</ref> In 1937, Gordon was moved to the [[Newark Bears]], another AA team in the [[International League]] and continued to excel, hitting .280 with 26 home runs. His 1937 Bears' team is often regarded as the best [[Minor League Baseball|minor league]] team in history with future all-stars [[George McQuinn]], [[Charlie Keller]], [[Tommy Henrich]], [[Babe Dahlgren]], and [[Spud Chandler]] joining Gordon to lead the team to an incredible 110 wins in 158 games.<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/team.cgi?id=26820 1937 Newark Bears Statistics – Minor Leagues] ''Baseball-Reference.com''</ref>

Gordon's success led to the release of 33-year-old [[Tony Lazzeri]] following the 1937 season,<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/lazzeto01.shtml Tony Lazzeri Statistics and History] ''Baseball-Reference.com''</ref> and he made his debut with the Yankees in April {{Baseball year|1938}}. His 25 home runs as a rookie set an American League record for second basemen, surpassing [[Detroit Tigers|Detroit Tiger]] [[Charlie Gehringer]]'s previous record of 19. Gordon would hold the AL record for home runs by a second baseman 64 years before being surpassed by [[Bret Boone]]'s 36 home runs in 2001.<ref name=brm/> Along with [[Jeff Heath]] of the Indians, who had batted .343, Gordon was one of the AL's top rookies, hitting .255 with 97 RBI and placing second to Gehringer in the AL with 450 assists as the Yankees won their third straight pennant. In the [[1938 World Series]] sweep of the [[Chicago Cubs]], he hit .400 and slugged .733. He had an RBI single, [[double (baseball)|doubled]], and recorded the final out in a 3-1 victory in Game 1. Gordon doubled in the first two runs in Game 2's 6-3 win. In Game 3, a 5-2 win, he had a solo home run to tie the game 1-1 in the fifth inning, and singled home two more runs in the sixth. He scored twice in an 8-3 win in the final Game 4 as New York took their third consecutive title.

{{Baseball year|1939}} saw Gordon improve his batting average to .284 and top his own home run mark with 28. He led the AL in putouts, assists and double plays, and was second on the team to [[Joe DiMaggio]] and fifth in the league in both homers and RBI (111). On June 28 he hit three home runs; he made his first of nine [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] teams, and finished ninth in the MVP vote. In the [[1939 World Series|World Series]] against the [[Cincinnati Reds]] he hit only .143, but scored the first run in a 2-1 Game 1 victory. In Game 4, he drove in the tying run with one out in the ninth inning, and the Yankees scored three in the tenth to win 7-4 and complete another sweep for their fourth straight championship. In {{Baseball year|1940}} Gordon again increased his home run total to 30 and was second on the team to DiMaggio in homers and RBI (103), leading the AL in assists and posting career highs in [[run (baseball)|runs]] (112), [[triple (baseball)|triples]] (10), [[slugging average]] (.511), [[total bases]] (315) and [[stolen base]]s (18) while hitting .281. On September 8, he [[hitting for the cycle|hit for the cycle]]. But the Yankees finished two games behind Detroit, in the only year between 1936 and 1943 that they lost the pennant.

In {{Baseball year|1941}} he batted .276 with 24 home runs and 87 RBI, scoring 104 runs and teaming with rookie shortstop [[Phil Rizzuto]] to lead the AL in double plays; Gordon placed seventh in the MVP vote as New York returned to the top of the standings. In the [[1941 World Series]] against the [[Brooklyn Dodgers]] he played phenomenally, hitting .500 with stellar defense. In Game 1 he started the scoring with a solo home run in the second inning, had an RBI single and was [[base on balls|walked]] twice (once [[intentional base on balls|intentionally]]), and turned a double play with the tying run on first base to end a 3-2 win. In Game 2, he was walked three times, once intentionally, and had three double plays in a 3-2 loss. In Game 3 he tripled, walked and had four assists, one of them to end the 2-1 win. He doubled in two runs in the ninth inning of Game 4 to give the Yankees their final 7-4 lead, four batters after Dodger catcher [[Mickey Owen]] famously dropped a third strike which would have ended the game. And he drove in another run in the final 3-1 victory in Game 5. His five double plays (three of them in Game 2) remain a record for a five-game Series. After the Series, Yankees manager [[Joe McCarthy (manager)|Joe McCarthy]] said, "The greatest all-around ballplayer I ever saw, and I don't bar any of them, is Joe Gordon."

[[File:New York Yankees 1943 infield.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Gordon (left) with his Yankees infield teammates in 1943]]
Gordon led the Yankees to another pennant in his 1942 MVP season, edging [[triple crown (baseball)|Triple Crown]] winner [[Ted Williams]] of the [[Boston Red Sox]] for the award. He batted .322, fourth in the AL, with 18 homers and 103 RBI, and finished sixth in the league in total bases (264) and slugging (.491) while he and Rizzuto again led the league in double plays. He had another poor [[1942 World Series|World Series]], however, batting just .095 in the five-game loss to the [[St. Louis Cardinals]] – his only Series loss in six trips; he was [[pickoff|picked off]] at second base in the bottom of the ninth in the last game. By his own lofty standards, he had a subpar yet productive season in {{Baseball year|1943}}, batting .249 with 17 home runs (5th in the AL), 69 RBI and 82 runs, and leading the AL in assists; despite his low batting mark, he was still among the league's top ten players in both slugging (.413) and [[on-base percentage]] (.365), thanks to a career-best 98 walks (second in the AL).

In the [[1943 World Series|World Series]] rematch with the Cardinals, he gave New York a 2–1 lead in the fourth inning of Game 1 – a 4–2 win – with a solo homer, and scored the first run in a 2–1 win in Game 4. He threw out the final batter of the Series with the tying runs on base in the 2–0 Game 5 victory, with the Yankees taking home another title. He again fielded brilliantly, setting still-standing records for a five-game Series of 20 putouts, 23 assists, 43 total chances, and a 1.000 fielding average; his 8 assists in Game 1 and 3 assists in the eighth inning of Game 5 are also records. Afterwards, he served in the [[United States Army|U.S. Army]] in 1944–45 during World War II, missing those seasons.

He returned to the Yankees in 1946, which turned out to be his most challenging year in major league baseball. Gordon was spiked in an exhibition game and severed a tendon in his hand, which required surgery, and he suffered a chipped bone in his finger. As the rest of the Yankees headed to The Bronx to begin the 1946 regular season, Gordon stayed behind in Florida for a month to recover. As Gordon told ''Oregonian'' sports editor L. H. Gregory, just two weeks after returning to the Yankees lineup, Gordon tore a leg muscle. He taped the leg and resumed playing, only to tear a muscle in his other leg. Following a brief break, Gordon re-tore a leg muscle and then fractured his thumb. Gordon played in just 112 games that year and stepped up to the plate just 376 times, nearly 170 fewer at bats than his pre-war 1943 season. As a result, he batted .210 with 11 home runs and 47 RBI, much to the displeasure of new Yankees president/general manager Larry MacPhail. With Gordon-ally Joe McCarthy resigning from the Yankees club in May 1946 and following his worst season in baseball, Gordon was in trouble. Trade rumors were rampant and MacPhail even consulted Gordon teammate DiMaggio about "Flash's" eventual trade for one of Cleveland's pitchers. Taking DiMaggio's advice, on October 11 MacPhail settled on Indians pitcher [[Allie Reynolds]] in exchange for Gordon, a move that benefited both clubs. Gordon departed New York after precisely 1,000 games and 1,000 [[hit (baseball)|hits]]: the only player in baseball history with those statistics.

===Cleveland Indians===
[[File:Joe Gordon bowman.jpg|thumb|1950 Joe Gordon baseball card]]
While Reynolds would go on to win 131 games in eight seasons for the Yankees, Gordon proved resilient and kept his new team from regretting the deal. In {{Baseball year|1947}} he returned to his old levels of production, batting .272 and leading the club with 93 RBI, and again pacing the AL in assists. His 29 homers and 279 total bases were second in the league to Williams, and his .496 slugging average trailed only Williams and DiMaggio; Gordon again finished seventh in the MVP balloting. Additionally, he played a major role in befriending teammate [[Larry Doby]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/espn/print?id=1572794&type=columnist |title=Remembering Larry Doby's dignity, courage |access-date=2007-11-29 |author=Joe Morgan |date=2003-06-26 |work=ESPN.com}}</ref> the AL's [[baseball color line|first black player]], who had been a second baseman in the [[Negro league baseball|Negro leagues]] but became a [[center fielder]] with Cleveland. Over Doby's first two seasons, Gordon became close to the player who was theoretically there to replace him, and Doby would later refer to him as his first friend in white baseball; however, reports that Gordon deliberately [[strikeout|struck out]] in Doby's first game to keep him from looking bad are erroneous.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/sports/baseball/doby.asp |title=Larry Doby |access-date=2007-11-29 |author=Barbara and David P. Mikkelson |date=2006-01-02 |publisher=snopes.com}}</ref> 1948 was even better, as Cleveland won their first AL title since 1920. Batting .280, he was second in the league to DiMaggio with 32 home runs, which remained the AL's single-season mark for a second baseman until [[Bret Boone]] hit 36 in {{Baseball year|2001}}. He again led the team with a personal high of 124 RBIs, and was sixth in the league in slugging (.507). Gordon placed sixth in the MVP vote, won by teammate and manager [[Lou Boudreau]]. In the [[1948 World Series]] against the [[Boston Braves (baseball)|Boston Braves]], batting cleanup, he had a RBI single and later scored to give Cleveland a 2-1 lead in Game 2; they went on to win 4-1. In the final Game 6, he homered to give the Indians a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning, and they went on to win 4-3 to capture the championship. His seven double plays in the Series are still the record for a six-game Series. In {{Baseball year|1949}} he slipped to a .251 average, though his 20 home runs and 84 RBI were still second on the team to Doby. His major league career ended in {{Baseball year|1950}} as he hit .236 with 19 home runs and 57 RBI.

Gordon was a career .268 hitter with 253 home runs, 975 RBI, 914 runs, 1,530 hits, 264 doubles and 89 stolen bases in 1,566 games. His .466 slugging average then placed him fifth among second basemen, behind Hornsby (.577), Gehringer (.480), Lazzeri (.467) and [[Nap Lajoie]] (.466), and only Hornsby had more homers among second basemen. Gordon might have had even higher batting totals had he played in other stadiums. His first several seasons were spent in [[Yankee Stadium (1923)|Yankee Stadium]], with its immense "Death Valley" in left field that frustrated right-handed power hitters; during his New York years, he hit 69 home runs at home and 84 on the road. [[Cleveland Stadium|Municipal Stadium]] in Cleveland was also an unhelpful venue, being hostile to power hitters on both sides of the plate. Over his career, he batted 23 points higher on the road (.279) than he did at home (.256). He was selected for the [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] team nine times, in all but his first and last seasons. He was also selected to ''The Sporting News'' Major League All-Star Team in 1939–42 and 1947–48, and was runner-up to Gehringer in 1938 and to [[Billy Herman]] in 1943. In {{Baseball year|2001}} he was selected as one of the Indians' 100 greatest players.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.clevelandmemory.org/indians100/ |title=Top 100 Greatest Cleveland Indians Players |access-date=2007-11-29 |publisher=Cleveland State University Library }}</ref>

==Later years==
[[File:Joe Gordon 1961.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|Gordon as manager of the [[Kansas City Athletics]] in 1961.]]
Gordon next became a player-manager with the [[Pacific Coast League]]'s (PCL) [[Sacramento Solons]] in 1951–52.  Showing he still had something in the tank, Gordon hit .299 with 43 home runs and 136 RBI in 148 games in 1951, but tailed off badly in 1952, hitting only .246 with just 16 home runs – his fewest since his World War II-shortened 1946 season.<ref name=brm/> His teams also performed poorly under his direction, winning just over 40% of their games in those two years.<ref name=brm/> Gordon then worked as a [[scout (sport)|scout]] with the Tigers from 1953 to 1955, and as a [[coach (baseball)|coach]] during the early months of the 1956 season. In mid-year he returned to the PCL to manage the 1956–57 [[San Francisco Seals (PCL)|San Francisco Seals]], winning a pennant in 1957.

He then went on to manage for four different MLB teams. Gordon began his major league managing career with the Indians in 1958, but had difficult relations with general manager [[Frank Lane]], who publicly questioned his decisions.{{Citation needed|date=August 2012}} After Gordon announced late in 1959, with Cleveland in second place, that he would not return the next season, Lane fired him four days later. However Lane recanted and apologized after negotiations with [[Leo Durocher]] broke down and Gordon was rehired.{{Citation needed|date=August 2012}} But in the middle of the {{Baseball year|1960}} season, he was involved in a rare trade between managers, when the Indians traded him to the Tigers for their skipper [[Jimmy Dykes]]. After the season, Gordon was hired by the [[Kansas City Athletics]] for 1961. However, owner [[Charlie Finley]] fired him on June 19, replacing him with [[Hank Bauer]],<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/06/20/archives/finley-and-lane-agree-on-change-athletics-officials-give-job-to.html | title=FINLEY AND LANE AGREE ON CHANGE; Athletics' Officials Give Job to Bauer, 38, Ex-Yankee --Gordon to be Paid in Full | newspaper=The New York Times | date=20 June 1961 }}</ref> and Gordon became a scout and minor league instructor for the [[Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim|Los Angeles / California Angels]] from 1961 to 1968. In 1969, he had the distinction of managing his second team in [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]], this time with the expansion [[Kansas City Royals|Royals]], but lasted only one season with the club before resigning at the end of his one-year contract. Gordon later went into real estate. 

==Personal life and death==
Gordon married Dorothy Irene Crum of [[Los Angeles]] in [[Elkton, Maryland]] in June 1938, who he had two children with. Gordon went into a Sacramento hospital on April 9, 1974 upon suffering a heart seizure. On April 14, 1978, he had another heart seizure and died at age 63 in [[Sacramento, California]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/04/15/archives/joe-gordon-is-dead-exyankee-star-63-skilled-second-baseman-named-an.html | title=Joe Gordon is Dead | work=The New York Times | date=April 15, 1978 | last1=McGowen | first1=Deane }}</ref>

==Legacy==
On August 16, 2008, Gordon was inducted into the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame. Two of Gordon's grandchildren were present for his induction ceremony. On December 7, [[2008 in baseball|2008]], Gordon was elected to the [[Baseball Hall of Fame]] by the [[Veterans Committee]] with 10 out of 12 possible votes, 83.3%,<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20081208&content_id=3706850&vkey=pr_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081210003926/http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20081208&content_id=3706850&vkey=pr_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 10, 2008 |title=New York Yankees celebrate the election of Joe Gordon to the Hall of Fame |publisher=New York Yankees|date=December 8, 2008 |access-date=December 12, 2008}}</ref> and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on [[2009 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|July 26, 2009]]; of the 20 candidates on two ballots, he was the only player to be selected.  His only daughter, Judy Gordon of Idaho Falls, Idaho, gave his induction speech in Cooperstown in front of 21,000 people in attendance.  "He (Joe) insisted against having a funeral", Judy said in the closing remarks of her speech. "And as such, we consider Cooperstown and the National Baseball Hall of Fame as his final resting place to be honored forever."

''Wall Street Journal'' sports writer Russell Adams wrote a piece titled "Who Is the Greatest Yankee?" Adams ranked Gordon as the 9th-greatest Yankees' position player in franchise history. "Gordon's great strength was defense — his range was the best of any of the 30 candidates we studied."<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704423504575212293929927062 | work=[[Wall Street Journal]] | first=Russell | last=Adams | title=Who Is the Greatest Yankee? | date=April 29, 2010}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Bob Feller Act of Valor Award]] honored Gordon as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Army Air Force during World War II.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://actofvaloraward.org/hof-players/|title=WWII HOF Players – Act of Valor Award|access-date=2021-08-18|archive-date=2021-10-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211008204152/https://actofvaloraward.org/hof-players/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Managerial Record==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"|Team !! rowspan="2"|Year !! colspan="5"|Regular season !! colspan="4"|Postseason
|-
!Games!!Won!!Lost!!Win %!!Finish!! Won !! Lost !! Win % !! Result
|-
|-
![[1958 Cleveland Indians season|CLE]]|| {{mlby|1958}}
||86||{{WinLossPct|46|40}}|| Interim || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1959 Cleveland Indians season|CLE]]|| {{mlby|1959}}
||154||{{WinLossPct|89|65}}|| 2nd in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1960 Cleveland Indians season|CLE]]|| {{mlby|1960}}
||95||{{WinLossPct|49|46}}|| Traded || – || – || – || 
|-
! colspan="2"|CLE total ||335||{{WinLossPct|184|151}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} ||
|-
![[1960 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1960}}
||57||{{WinLossPct|26|31}}|| 6th in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
! colspan="2"|DET total ||57||{{WinLossPct|26|31}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} ||
|-
![[1961 Kansas City Athletics season|KCA]]|| {{mlby|1961}}
||59||{{WinLossPct|26|33}}|| Fired || – || – || – || 
|-
! colspan="2"|KCA total ||59||{{WinLossPct|26|33}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} ||
|-
![[1969 Kansas City Royals season|KC]]|| {{mlby|1969}}
||162||{{WinLossPct|69|93}}|| 4th in AL West || – || – || – || 
|-
! colspan="2"|KC total ||162||{{WinLossPct|69|93}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} ||
|-
! colspan="2"|Total<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/gordojo01.shtml|title=Joe Gordon Managerial Record|access-date=2010-07-17 |publisher=Sports Reference LLC}}</ref> ||613||{{WinLossPct|305|308}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} || 
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography|Baseball}}
*[[List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders]]
*[[List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle]]
*[[Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award]]

==References==
* ''Baseball: The Biographical Encyclopedia'' (2000). Kingston, New York: Total/Sports Illustrated. {{ISBN|1-892129-34-5}}.
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/14/sports/baseball/14anderson.html?ref=baseball |title=Gordon, Overlooked Yankee, Gets His Due |first=Dave |last=Anderson |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=December 13, 2008}}
*{{cite web |url=http://web.baseballhalloffame.org/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081208&content_id=10447&vkey=hof_news |title=Gordon's Children Thrilled by Father's Election |first=Samantha |last=Carr |website=baseballhalloffame.org |date=December 8, 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20081212014951/http://web.baseballhalloffame.org/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081208&content_id=10447&vkey=hof_news |archive-date=December 12, 2008 |url-status=dead }}
*{{cite web |url=http://web.baseballhalloffame.org/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081107&content_id=10001&vkey=hof_news |title=Gordon combined skills like few others |first1=Jina |last1=Song |first2=Craig |last2=Muder |website=baseballhalloffame.org |date=November 7, 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20081211073208/http://web.baseballhalloffame.org/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081107&content_id=10001&vkey=hof_news |archive-date=December 11, 2008 |url-status=dead }}
*{{cite web |url=http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/4d6bb7cb |title=Joe Gordon |first=Joseph |last=Wancho |website=[[Society for American Baseball Research|SABR]]}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060507095943/http://www.thebaseballpage.com/players/gordojo01.php Career highlights] at The Baseball Page via [[Wayback Machine]]

==External links==
*{{bbhof|gordon-joe}}
*{{baseballstats|mlb=|espn=|br=g/gordojo01|fangraphs=1004874|brm=gordon002jos|retro=G/Pgordj101}}
*[https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=gordojo01 Joe Gordon] at Baseball Almanac

{{S-start}}
{{s-ach|ach}}
{{Succession box| before = [[Joe Cronin]] | title = [[Hitting for the cycle]]| years = September 8, 1940 | after = [[George McQuinn]]}}
{{s-sports}}
{{succession box| title=[[Sacramento Solons]] [[manager (baseball)|manager]]|years=1951–1952|before=[[Joe Marty]]|after=[[Gene Desautels]]}}
{{succession box| title=[[San Francisco Seals (baseball)|San Francisco Seals]] [[manager (baseball)|manager]]|years=1956–1957|before=[[Eddie Joost]]|after=Franchise relocated}}
{{S-end}}

{{2009 Baseball HOF}}
{{Baseball Hall of Fame members}}
{{New York Yankees HOF}}
{{Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame}}
{{AL MVPs}}
{{1938 New York Yankees}}
{{1939 New York Yankees}}
{{1941 New York Yankees}}
{{1943 New York Yankees}}
{{1948 Cleveland Indians}}
{{Cleveland Indians managers}}
{{Detroit Tigers managers}}
{{Athletics managers}}
{{Kansas City Royals managers}}
{{Kansas City Royals}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Joe}}
[[Category:1915 births]]
[[Category:1978 deaths]]
[[Category:American League All-Stars]]
[[Category:American League Most Valuable Player Award winners]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Los Angeles]]
[[Category:California Angels scouts]]
[[Category:Cleveland Indians managers]]
[[Category:Cleveland Indians players]]
[[Category:Detroit Tigers coaches]]
[[Category:Detroit Tigers managers]]
[[Category:Detroit Tigers scouts]]
[[Category:Jefferson High School (Portland, Oregon) alumni]]
[[Category:Kansas City Athletics managers]]
[[Category:Kansas City Royals managers]]
[[Category:Los Angeles Angels scouts]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball second basemen]]
[[Category:National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:New York Yankees players]]
[[Category:Newark Bears (International League) players]]
[[Category:Oakland Oaks (baseball) players]]
[[Category:Oregon Ducks baseball players]]
[[Category:Sacramento Solons managers]]
[[Category:Sacramento Solons players]]
[[Category:San Francisco Seals (baseball) managers]]
[[Category:San Francisco Seals (baseball) players]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel of World War II]]