Romanus "Monty" Basgall (February 8, 1922 – September 22, 2005) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player,

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

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 * Coac ...

and

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

. A former

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

who appeared in 200

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

games A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...

for 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

(1948–49; 1951), Basgall became a longtime member of the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

' organization who served as the bench and

infield Infield is a sports term whose definition depends on the sport in whose context it is used. Baseball In baseball, the baseball field, diamond, as well as the area immediately beyond it, has both grass and dirt, in contrast to the more distant, ...

coach for

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

managers

Walter Alston Walter Emmons Alston (December 1, 1911 – October 1, 1984), nicknamed "Smokey", was an American baseball manager in Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally ...

and

Tommy Lasorda Thomas Charles Lasorda (September 22, 1927 – January 7, 2021) was an American professional baseball pitcher and manager. He managed the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1976 through 1996. He was inducted into the Nation ...

for 14 seasons (1973–86). During that time, he worked with four

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

pennant winners (, , and ), as well as the

1981 World Series The 1981 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1981 Major League Baseball season, 1981 season. The 78th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American Lea ...

-champion Dodgers. Basgall was born in

Pfeifer, Kansas Pfeifer is an unincorporated community in Freedom Township, Ellis County, Kansas, United States. It is located south of Victoria. History Volga German immigrants founded Pfeifer in August 1876, naming it after the village they had emigrated ...

, graduated from high school there, and attended Sterling College.

Playing career

Basgall stood tall, weighed and threw and batted right-handed. He signed with the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...

in 1942, the first year of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

' involvement in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After one season in the minors, he served in the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

for three years before resuming his baseball career in 1946 with the Double-A

Fort Worth Cats The Fort Worth Cats was a professional baseball team based in Fort Worth, Texas, in the United States. The Cats were a member of the South Division of the now disbanded United League Baseball, which was not affiliated with Major League Baseba ...

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. In December 1947, the Dodgers traded Basgall to the Pirates, where he played one full season () and parts of two others ( and ). In 1949, he was the Pirates' starting second baseman for 98 of the club's 154 games. But Basgall's MLB playing career was hampered by poor offensive production; he batted only .216, .218 and .209 in his three years in the majors, with 110 total

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

, which included 15 doubles, three

triples TripleS (; ; stylized as tripleS) is a South Korean 24-member multinational girl group formed by Modhaus. They aim to be the world's first decentralized idol group, where the members will rotate between the full group, sub-units, and solo activi ...

and four

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s. He was credited with 41

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

. Pittsburgh sent him to the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles–based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars ( ...

of the top-level

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

in 1952, and he spent four years in the PCL before starting his managing and coaching career.

Manager, coach and scout

After managing farm teams in the Pirates' organization from 1956 to 1958, he returned to the Dodgers as a scout and minor league infield instructor in 1959, serving a dozen years in that role before becoming the Dodgers' Double-A manager in 1971. During that time, he helped convert former

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

Ted Sizemore and former

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

Bill Russell William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played Center (basketball), center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. He was t ...

and Davey Lopes to middle infielders. The three would play a combined 46 years in Major League Baseball; Russell (three times) and Lopes (four) were multiple members of the National League

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

team, and Sizemore was the

National League Rookie of the Year In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The aw ...

. Russell and Lopes would form the up-the-middle core of the Dodger infield of Garvey, Lopes, Russell and Cey. At the close of the 1972 season, Basgall and Lasorda were promoted to manager Alston's big-league coaching staff, with Lasorda working as third-base coach and Basgall as infield and bench coach. Basgall remained on the Los Angeles staff for another decade after Lasorda's promotion to manager late in 1976. He retired in 1987, and lived in

Sierra Vista, Arizona Sierra Vista (; ) is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, the population of the city is 45,308, and is the 27th most populous city in Arizona. The city is part of the Sierra ...

, until his death in 2005 at the age of 83.

References

External links

Retrosheet playing and coaching recordDodgers coaching list
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Basgall, Monty 1922 births 2005 deaths Baseball coaches from Kansas Baseball players from Kansas Beaumont Pirates players Fort Worth Cats players Hollywood Stars players Indianapolis Indians players Lincoln Chiefs players Los Angeles Dodgers coaches Los Angeles Dodgers scouts Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball second basemen Minor league baseball managers New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players People from Ellis County, Kansas Pittsburgh Pirates players Seattle Rainiers players United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II Valdosta Trojans players Waco Pirates players 20th-century American sportsmen