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tony lazzeri, 1933 goudy #31, yankees

Player: Lazzeri, Tony

Card: 1933 Goudy #31

Position: 2B, 3B, SS

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playerbio

"(Tony) not only was a great ballplayer, he was a great man. He was a leader. He was like a manager on the field." Yankee teammate, shortstop Frankie Crosetti.

Tony was part of the famed "Murderers' Row" Yankee batting lineup of the late 1920s (most notably the legendary 1927 team), along with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Bob Meusel.

South Market Street in San Francisco’s Cow Hollow district was a rough neighborhood at the turn of the century. Living there at the time was an Italian born boilermaker named Augustine Lazzeri. On December 6, 1903, his wife Julia (Cheasa), also from Italy, gave birth to a son – Anthony (Tony) Michael Lazzeri. Growing up in Cow Hollow, Tony often got into fights. “I guess I was a pretty tough kid,” recalled Lazzeri.

After playing in minor league baseball from 1922 through 1925, Tony joined the Yankees in 1926. He was nicknamed "Poosh 'Em Up" by Italian-speaking fans, from a mistranslation of an Italian phrase meaning to "hit it out" (hit a home run).

Tony was voted onto the very first All-Star Game in 1933, in which teammates Babe Ruth homered and Lefty Gomez got the win for the AL.

Lazzeri is one of only 14 major league baseball players to hit for the natural cycle (hitting a single, double, triple and home run in sequence) and the only player to complete a natural cycle with a grand slam. He also holds the American League record for the most RBI in a single game, with 11 on May 24, 1936. In that same 1936 game, he became the first major league player to hit two grand slams in one game. Lazzeri was posthumously inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1991.

Unfortunately, he is sometimes remembered for striking out vs. Grover Cleveland Alexander of the Cardinals in the 1926 World Series 7th game with the bases loaded and two out, quelling the Yankee's threat and giving the Cardinals the Championship.

(excerpted from SABR, BR Bullpen & Wikipedia)

morecards

1934 Batter Up #45
1935 Goudey 4in1 #7D (thanks Michelle!)
1936 Diamond Stars #34
1961 Fleer #54
1980 Laughlin Famous Feats #26
1994 Conlon #1053
2002 SP Legendary Cuts #83
2004 Upper Deck Yankee Classics #85
2009 Italian American Baseball Heroes #62
2014 Panini Classics #135

tourstops


Tony Lazzeri is part of the Hall of Fame Player Tour – Go to the Next Stop


“Poosh ’em Up” is part of the Great Italian American Player Nicknames Tour – Go to the Next Stop


Tony is part of the Born in San Fran/Oakland/Sacramento Tour – Go to the Next Stop


Lazzeri is also part of the Italian American Sports Hall of Fame Tour – Go to the Next Stop


Tony is part of the All-Star Player Tour – Go to the Next Stop


Tony is also part of the New York Yankee Players Tour – Go To the Next Stop


See all Tony’s baseball cards at TCDB


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