167: Chuck Klein - MLB

When Chuck Klein broke into Major League Baseball with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1928, few knew about the power he possessed. In just 64 games, he connected for 11 home runs and hit .360. A great debut. What followed was six of the most prolific seasons in not just Phillies history, but MLB history, too! From 1929 through 1933, he averaged 36 home runs a season, averaged .359 a season, and averaged 138 RBI a season. He won an MVP, won a triple crown, four times he led the National League in total bases, twice in hits, twice in doubles, and he even led the National League in stolen bases one season. As if all that isn't enough, he set the record for most assists as an outfielder with 44 in 1930. Back to total bases, his 445 in 1930 rank fourth all-time, and his 420 in 1932 ranks ninth all-time. Lou Gehrig is the only other player to appear in the top 10 twice. Yet, for all Klein accomplished, his career is largely overlooked. When he played, the Phillies' home field was the Baker Bowl, and it was only 280 feet down the right field line. But the right field wall was 60-feet-tall. Many experts hold the 280-feet against Klein despite the height of the wall. Yet, those same experts don't hold the dimensions of 314 feet down the right field line against left-handed hitters in the Yankees lineup, or the 258 feet down the right field line against Mel Ott of the New York Giants, or the 310 feet in left field with the 37-foot wall in Fenway Park against right-handed batters. Klein's numbers were phenomenal. Klein retired, for good, after the 1944 season with 300 homeruns and a career batting average of .320. Yet, it took until 1980, 36 years after he retired, before he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, by the Veterans Committee. On this episode of Sports' Forgotten Heroes, the host of Midnight Library of Baseball podcast, Ben Orlando, joins for a terrific discussion about a forgotten baseball great - Chuck Klein.