Joseph Charles Schultz Jr. (August 29, 1918 – January 10, 1996) was an American Major League Baseball catcher,

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

, and manager. Schultz was the first and only manager for the

Seattle Pilots The Seattle Pilots were an American professional baseball, professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington during the 1969 Major League Baseball season. During their single-season existence, the Pilots played their ho ...

franchise during their lone season before they became the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

. Seattle entered the American League as an expansion franchise in

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

, and moved to Wisconsin shortly before the following season.

Playing career

Born in Chicago, he was the son of a major league baseball player— Joe (Germany) Schultz, an outfielder who played for seven of the eight National League clubs (1912–16; 1919–25) and who later became a manager in the St. Louis Cardinals' extensive

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

. In 1932, at age 13, Joe Jr. appeared in his first professional game, as a

pinch hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute Batting (baseball), batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the dead ball (baseball), ball is dead (not in active play); the manager (baseball), manager may use any player who has not yet ...

for the Houston Buffaloes of the Class A Texas League; the elder Schultz was managing Houston and Joe Jr. was serving as the Buffaloes' batboy that season. Joe Jr. batted left-handed and threw right-handed; he was listed as tall and . He had a distinguished prep career at

St. Louis University High School St. Louis University High School (SLUH) is a Jesuit Catholic high school for boys. Founded in 1818, it is the oldest secondary educational institution in the U.S. west of the Mississippi River, and one of the largest private high schools in Miss ...

and signed his first contract with the Cardinals in 1936, but was drafted by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

, where his father had become minor league director, after the 1939 season. After appearing in only 22

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

for Pittsburgh between 1939 and 1941, Schultz made his way back to St. Louis with the Browns of the American League, where he spent six seasons (1943–48) as a backup catcher and

. In 328 major-league

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

s over all or parts of nine MLB seasons, Schultz batted .259 with 85

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, 13 doubles and one home run, struck as a pinch hitter against

Pete Gebrian Peter Gebrian (August 10, 1923 – May 6, 2005) was an American professional baseball player, scout and front office executive. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher in for the Chicago White Sox.Chicago White Sox at

Comiskey Park Comiskey Park was a baseball park in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Armour Square neighborhood on the near-southwest side of the city. The stadium served as the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League from 1910 through 1990. Buil ...

on August 11, 1947. retrosheetbr>box score: 1947-08-11
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Coach for Browns and Cardinals

In 1949, Schultz served as a coach with the Browns, and then he managed in the minor leagues from 1950 to 1962, returning to the Cardinals' organization in 1958. He became a Cardinals coach in 1963 and worked with three National League pennant winners (1964, 1967 and 1968), and two world championship clubs (1964, 1967) through 1968.

Manager for Seattle Pilots

The success of the Cardinals led to Schultz's 1969 opportunity with the Pilots. Although they were badly outdrafted by their fellow expansion team, the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

, during the player selection lottery, Schultz and general manager Marvin Milkes actually thought the Pilots would finish third in the newly formed American League West. Indeed, Schultz managed to keep his patchwork team within striking distance of .500 for most of the early part of the season. However, a 9–20 July effectively ended any chance at respectability, and the Pilots finished last in the new West, with a mark of However, it can be argued that Schultz's efforts were hamstrung by the Pilots' off-the-field problems. They played at

Sick's Stadium Sick's Stadium, also known as Sick's Seattle Stadium and later as Sicks' Stadium, was a baseball park in the northwest United States in Seattle, Washington. It was located in Rainier Valley, on the NE corner of S. McClellan Street and Rainier Av ...

, an aging minor league park that was clearly inadequate even as a temporary facility. The Pilots were also plagued by an unstable, undercapitalized ownership; they were nearly broke by the end of the season. Schultz was relieved of his duties as manager in mid-November, and was replaced by Dave Bristol as the team struggled in limbo during the 1969–70 offseason. Only weeks before the 1970 season opener, the Pilots were purchased by a group headed by Bud Selig and transferred to Milwaukee, where they have remained since. The Pilots' year of existence was immortalized in '' Ball Four'', the best-selling, controversial memoir of the 1969 season by Seattle pitcher Jim Bouton that was published in 1970. Bouton tells humorous anecdotes about Schultz and some of the motivational speeches he gave to the Pilots. According to Bouton, Schultz's speeches were heavily laced with profanity, even with some original curses (his favorites being the seemingly interchangeable and used for all occasions: "''shitfuck''" and "''fuckshit''"). The author claims that Schultz was well liked by his team, but some of his choices were questioned by the players. In a later anthology on managers Bouton edited, '' I Managed Good, But Boy Did They Play Bad'', Bouton noted Schultz's sense of humor and added that, given the circumstances of the last-place team, "I couldn't have had a better manager than Joe Schultz."

Remainder of career

Schultz coached with the

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(1970) and the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

(1971–76) before leaving baseball. After Billy Martin was fired with 28 games left in the 1973 season, Schultz took over as interim manager for Detroit for the rest of the way, compiling a mark of 14–14. Counting his interim stint with the Tigers, he had a career record of 78–112 (.411) as a major league skipper. Apart from that assignment, Schultz never managed in the majors again after the Pilots collapsed.

Death

Schultz died in St. Louis, Missouri, at the age of 77, and is interred at Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schultz, Joe Jr. 1918 births 1996 deaths Albany Travelers players Asheville Tourists players Atlanta Crackers managers Baseball players from Illinois Columbus Red Birds players Detroit Tigers coaches Detroit Tigers managers Houston Buffaloes players Kansas City Royals coaches Kinston Eagles players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball third base coaches Memphis Chickasaws players Pittsburgh Pirates players Portland Beavers players St. Louis Browns coaches St. Louis Browns players St. Louis Cardinals coaches San Antonio Missions managers Seattle Pilots managers Toledo Mud Hens players American expatriate baseball people in the Dominican Republic Baseball players from St. Louis