Johnny Mize
Johnny Mize
John Robert "Johnny" Mize, nicknamed Big Jawn and The Big Cat, was a baseball player who was a first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Giants, and New York Yankees. He played in Major League Baseballfor 15 seasons between 1936 and 1953, losing three seasons to military service during World War II. Mize was a ten-time All-Star. Late in his career, he played with the Yankees when they won five consecutive World Series...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionAthlete
Date of Birth7 January 1913
CountryUnited States of America
One day, the infielders were having a pretty bad time and were making some bad throws to me at first base. After digging a few out of the dirt, Joe Orengo called over to me, 'Atta boy, John, you look like a big cat.' Some of the writers overheard the remark and asked Joe about it later. The nickname has stuck with me ever since.
Years ago, the writers were telling me that I'd make the Hall of Fame, so I kind of prepared a speech. But somewhere along in the 28 years, it got lost.
The fact is, when I was 15 and a sophomore at high school, I played on the varsity baseball team for the college.