Ralph Mauriello

“The best birthday present I ever got.” – Ralph Mauriello, September 6, 19581

Ralph Mauriello had been born on August 25, 1934, in Brooklyn, New York, and less than two weeks after his 24th birthday, after six minor-league seasons, he joined the Los Angeles Dodgers. Within two weeks of joining the club, he had his first major-league win. It was his only major-league win. Although he won only one big-league game and was out of Organized Baseball shortly after his 26th birthday, Mauriello, for the balance of his life has regaled those wanting to listen – and seemingly everyone does – to stories of his time in baseball and the people with whom he interacted.

His parents were Salvatore and Rachel Mauriello. Ralph’s older sister, Gina Mauriello Garcia, was born in 1931. Younger sisters Mary Mauriello Taylor (born in 1941; died in 1986) and Marjorie Mauriello Baker (born in 1949) completed the family. Ralph’s father was a barber who had been born in Port-de-Bouc, France, and raised on the Italian island of Ischia. He came to the United States at the age of 14. Salvatore Mauriello achieved a degree of fame in Brooklyn  in 1945 when he rescued a 2-year-old boy, Marvin Goldstein, who had fallen from the fifth-floor ledge of an apartment building in Brooklyn.2 Ralph’s sister Marjorie, an accomplished chef, authored a cookbook featuring four generations of her family’s recipes, taught Italian cooking, and served as guest chef at small dinner parties in the Los Angeles area.3 She was married for 45 years to journalist Robert Baker, who died in 2015.4

Singing has always been a big part of Ralph’s life, and he recollected that “one of my earliest memories as a child was singing in the ‘Amateur Hour’ contests at my grandmother’s house every Sunday. My Aunt Mary always organized it. All the cousins (and there were many) had to perform in some way; sing, dance, recite a poem, etc. And I’ve been singing ever since … in church, in choirs, in choruses, and, while I was still working, even while walking down the hall to a meeting.”5

Ralph started playing baseball at a young age and was encouraged by his father. He remembered attending games at Ebbets Field and one was particularly memorable. Dolph Camilli and Dixie Walker were Ralph’s favorite players. Camilli, in his MVP year, led the league in homers and RBIs in 1941, when Ralph turned 7. Late in the season, Ralph and his dad took in a game. His father said that Camilli would not be with the Dodgers much longer. Ralph asked why and his father explained that Dolph was 34, which was old for a ballplayer. Ralph then realized that even if he played pro ball, he would have to find another career after his playing days.

He would play catch with his dad, but the catches ended when Ralph was 12. One day, one of his fastballs hit his father on the hand and jammed his thumb. Even then, Ralph was big and playing with the older kids.6 The right-hander got his start playing sandlot ball at McCarron Park in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn, playing against older boys in the Police Athletic League during the summer of 1948.

Ralph’s family moved to California shortly after he turned 14. They arrived in Los Angeles on September 1, 1948, in 100-degree heat. He attended North Hollywood High School in Los Angeles, graduated in 1952, and received a scholarship to USC.

As a 14-year-old he showed promise while pitching for the Sherman Way Merchants in the North Hollywood Playground League. In a mound duel on August 5, 1949, he allowed no hits until there were two outs in the ninth inning. He struck out 19 batters but was on the losing end when a Texas League double brought across the winning run in the ninth inning.7 As a high-school sophomore in 1950, he went 8-0 and was named to the All-Valley League team. On April 30, 1951, he hurled a no-hitter as his North Hollywood team defeated Verdugo Hills, 13-0. Teammate Bert Convy led the offense with five hits, two of which were triples.8

After graduating from high school, Mauriello participated in the annual All-City vs. CIF game at Gilmore Field in Los Angeles, sponsored by the Los Angeles Herald-Express. He hurled five shutout innings for the All-City team, allowing two hits and striking out 11 batters, as his team won, 6-4.9 Off this performance, he was selected to represent Los Angeles in the annual Hearst Sandlot Classic in New York, where he was named the starting pitcher. In the game at New York’s Polo Grounds on August 20, he hurled two shutout innings, allowing one hit and striking out three batters. He did not figure in the decision. His team, the US All-Stars, lost in 11 innings to the New York All-Stars, 5-4.

While in New York, Mauriello took time to visit his aunt in Brooklyn and pal around with teammate Bobby Locke. He also remembered one night back in his room at the Hotel New Yorker with roommate Bob Borovicka (the other Los Angeles representative). Bob had gone 0-for-2 in the Hearst Sandlot Classic and was taking some vicious swings with his bat. The bat flew out of his hands through the open window and sailed down to the street. Thankfully, nobody was injured. Borovicka, an outfielder, signed with Cleveland but made it only as far as Class B.

The folks back home got to see a pregame picture of Ralph, Bob, and Joe DiMaggio in the Los Angeles Herald-Express.10  

Before heading back to Los Angeles, Mauriello worked out with the Yankees and the Dodgers, and he went home with a professional contract. The signing with the Dodgers was announced on August 30.

Mauriello was evaluated by Dodgers scout Matt Burns and signed by Fresco Thompson, the club’s vice president of player personnel. His bonus was estimated to be in the $35,000 range ($25,000 at signing and another $10,000 when he made the majors). He also received a stipend of $300 a month. The bonus went for a new home for his parents, a new barbershop for his father, and an Oldsmobile for himself.11 The bonus, at the time, was the largest ever given to a pitcher by the Dodgers, eclipsing the estimated $21,000 that had been given to Billy Loes in 1948.

USC, at the insistence of baseball coach Rod Dedeaux, did not renege on the scholarship offer, and Ralph began classes there in the fall of 1952.

After playing semipro ball in the Los Angeles area in the 1952-1953 offseason, Mauriello’s professional travels began at Vero Beach when he went to spring training with the Dodgers, appearing in several games with their minor-league affiliates. Opening Day found him hurling for Newport News in the Class-B Piedmont League. His first performance was a bit of a disappointment. He was removed with one out in the fourth inning after allowing five hits and walking seven batters and yielding seven runs, with a wild pitch and a hit batter, as Richmond defeated Newport News, 10-5 in front of a record 4,392 onlookers.12 Two days later Mauriello redeemed himself, pitching a hitless 3⅓ innings in relief as the Baby Dodgers broke open a tie game in the late innings, giving Mauriello his first professional win, 8-5.13

After going 3-8 with Newport News (his last win coming on June 15), Mauriello was sent to Class-C Santa Barbara on July 23. In one of his more memorable outings in Virginia, on May 23, he lost a 16-inning game at Norfolk, 5-4, when infielder Charlie Neal made two errors in the final inning. In the game, Mauriello allowed 14 hits, walked 16 batters, and had a wild pitch.14 His wildness, a career-long problem, was the key factor in his being sent down. He had walked 88 batters in 90 innings. With Santa Barbara, Mauriello was 6-4 with a 2.49 ERA and walked 55 batters in 83 innings.

One of Mauriello’s teammates with Santa Barbara was first-year pro George Anderson, whom Mauriello called Georgie. In Tales Beyond the Dugout, Mauriello devoted a chapter to Anderson, who later acquired his more familiar nickname, Sparky. They, along with four other players, shared a home in Santa Barbara in 1953. On one occasion, the young teammates were in a hotel in San Jose. In their youthful enthusiasm, Georgie and his road roommate, Dale Johnson, took to throwing balloons filled with water at unsuspecting passers-by on the street below their rooms. One balloon found the head of team manager George Scherger, who was peering out from a window on the floor below. Scherger wound up fining all of the players on the floor above, including Mauriello.15  

In the offseason, while continuing his studies at USC, Mauriello turned to the hardwood, playing semipro basketball with Shortie’s Café in the Los Angeles area Valley Municipal League.

The next year, Mauriello started his season with Pueblo in the Class-A Western League. He was with them through June 18, posting a 1-2 record in nine games. While he was there, on May 15 to be precise, he acquired a new roommate, with whom he roomed for much of his time in the minors. Jim Gentile was a hard-hitting first baseman in an organization with an abundance of hard-hitting first basemen. Their adventures from Pueblo to Mobile to Fort Worth, and eventually the Los Angeles Dodgers were outlined in Tales Beyond the Dugout. Jim was Ralph’s best friend in baseball and served as best man at Ralph’s wedding.

Mauriello was demoted to Asheville in the Class-B Tri-State League, where he was mentored by team manager Ray Hathaway. After winning his first game with Asheville, a complete-game 5-3 victory,16 he went on to register an 8-4 record with a league-leading and career-best 2.45 ERA, and he mastered the changeup. For the Tourists, a 2-0, 11-inning, four-hit whitewashing of Rock Hill on July 26 was Mauriello’s best outing of the season.17 He capped his season with a 12-strikeout performance in an 11-2 win on August 23 that put the Tourists within a game of clinching the league pennant.18 Control, however, continued to be an issue. He walked eight in each of his wins on July 26 and August 23, and, with Asheville, had 101 walks in 136 innings. But his 6.2 hits allowed per nine innings led his league and secured his promotion to Double A the following season.

The 1955 season proved to be the best of Mauriello’s career in terms of games won. He put up an 18-8 record with the Mobile Bears in the Southern Association, and he led the league with a 2.76 ERA. But the walk bugaboo accompanied him to Mobile and almost derailed his season before it began. In his first start, on April 14, he walked three batters and gave up a hit in the first inning before he was removed from the game by manager Clay Bryant. He rebounded in his second start, a 12-inning 2-1 win over Little Rock.19 In June he pitched three consecutive shutouts.

Although Mobile had the fourth best record (79-75) during the regular season, the Bears advanced to the playoffs and eliminated Memphis and Birmingham to win the league championship. In the league playoffs, Mauriello won three games, including the decisive seventh game in the opening series against Memphis on September 13. In the opener of the Dixie Series against Texas League champion Shreveport, Mauriello pitched an 8-0 shutout.20 Mobile went on to sweep the best-of-seven series. Mauriello was named to the season-end Southern Association’s All-Star team. He finished in second place in the MVP balloting and won the league’s Rookie of the Year award.

In 1956 Mauriello got his first taste of Triple-A ball, starting the season with St. Paul. In 10 games (seven starts) with the Saints, he was 1-1 before being sent to the Fort Worth Cats in the Double-A Texas League at the end of May. It was a reunion of sorts as the Dodgers had moved their affiliation from Mobile to Fort Worth at the beginning of the 1956 season. In his first game with the Cats, he defeated Shreveport 4-1 on May 31.21 His season in Texas was plagued, once again, by walks and his record was only 7-10. Mauriello did, however, post a team-best ERA of 3.22 and led his squad’s staff with 107 strikeouts. His best effort of the season was a three-hit shutout of San Antonio on August 19. Backed by five home runs, he defeated the Spurs, 9-0.22

Mauriello spent all of 1957 at the top rung of minor-league baseball. With the Los Angeles Angels of the Open Classification Pacific Coast League, he went 11-5 in front of the home folks. But early that season, he received a notice from his local draft board to report for induction on May 20. During the pre-induction physical he was ruled medically ineligible because of a perforated eardrum. He returned to action after a 21-day layoff and pitched his first complete game of the season on May 31, striking out 11 batters in a 5-2 win over San Diego.23 He followed that up on June 6 with the first of his two shutouts in the season, defeating Seattle 1-0 with nine strikeouts.24 His second shutout was a seven-inning performance in the second game of a doubleheader against Sacramento on July 28. He became the team’s first and only 10-game winner when he defeated Portland 7-1 on September 4. The Angels, in their last Pacific Coast League season, finished in sixth place with an 80-88 record.

In 1958 Mauriello began the season with Spokane, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ new Triple-A team. Mauriello got off to a rocky start. In his first appearance of the season, he lasted only four innings and was charged with the loss as Spokane lost to Seattle, 3-2.25 In 10 games (seven starts) with Spokane, Mauriello went 2-3 and was sent down to Victoria of the Double-A Texas League on June 3. His lack of control once again was the issue as he issued a league-leading 36 walks in 37 innings at Spokane. With Victoria he had his first successful outing of 1958, on June 19, pitching a complete game and defeating Corpus Christi, 6-3.26 He registered a 6-8 record with Victoria and was called up to the Dodgers on September 6.

A week after reporting to the Dodgers, on September 13, Mauriello made his big-league debut, starting against the Pirates at Pittsburgh. After walking Bill Virdon, he gave up a single to Roberto Clemente. He then recorded his first big-league strikeout, getting Dick Stuart to swing in vain at a 3-and-2 pitch. Consecutive run-scoring singles by Bob Skinner and Frank Thomas ended Mauriello’s day. He was charged with the loss as Pittsburgh went on to win, 9-4.

Mauriello’s next start was the realization of the dream that began when he was a child in Brooklyn. On September 19 Mauriello took his 81.00 ERA to the mound at Chicago’s Wrigley Field and pitched a masterpiece. He shut out the Cubs for seven innings on three hits and took a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the eighth inning. After Jerry Kindall became his sixth strikeout victim of the afternoon, singles by Al Dark and Ernie Banks put runners on first and second. Mauriello seemed poised to get out of the inning unscathed when he got Walt Moryn to fly out for the second out of the inning.

Then Mauriello began to stumble. He dropped the ball while throwing his first pitch to Dale Long, balking the runners to second and third.27 After he hurled a wild pitch that allowed Dark to score from third, manager Walt Alston brought in Johnny Podres, who secured the last four outs for Los Angeles, giving Mauriello his first and what was to be his only big-league win.

“And I’ll swear that Alston (our manager) was out on the mound to take the ball out of my hand before the guy (Long) reached first base.” – Ralph Mauriello’s memory of leaving the game on September 27.28

Mauriello’s next, and last, major-league appearance came against the Cubs at Los Angeles on September 27. He entered the game in the third inning with the score tied, 1-1. Nine outs later, his teammates had given him a three-run lead. The score was 4-1 going into the top of the sixth inning. After getting two quick outs, Mauriello walked Walt Moryn, bringing up Bobby Thomson, who homered to bring the score to 4-3. When he walked Dale Long, putting the potential tying run on base, manager Alston summoned Roger Craig to get the Dodgers out of the inning. Mauriello’s hopes for a second win evaporated when the Cubs scored four ninth-inning runs to win the game, 7-4.

The season over, Mauriello, resumed his studies in electrical engineering at USC. On January 31, 1959, he married Caroline June Paulenko, known to the world by her middle name. She is a graduate of Franklin High School and was valedictorian of the Class of 1956. When they were wed, she was a mathematics major at UCLA.29 They had met during the 1957 season when Mauriello was playing with the Angels. She and her sister were outside the ballpark in Los Angeles after a game between the Angels and the San Francisco Seals on June 29. Ralph introduced himself to June, and their romance flowered.

In the spring of 1959, Mauriello was assigned to the Dodgers’ farm club at Spokane. He was the Opening Day pitcher but did not factor in the decision as Spokane lost at Phoenix, 6-5. His stay with Spokane was brief. After six appearances, he was 0-2 and had an ERA of 7.20. Clearly, a change of scenery was in order. On May 13 he was sent down to Victoria for the second time in as many years. He got off to a rocky start in Texas, losing his first four decisions, but showed good form in defeating Corpus Christi, 6-1, on June 21. His complete-game outing featured 10 strikeouts. He won four of his last five decisions to bring his record to 4-5 with a 3.31 ERA. Mauriello moved on to the Triple-A Montreal Royals on July 23 after winning his last outing with Victoria, striking out 10 in defeating Amarillo, 3-2. In his first game with the Royals, on July 31, he defeated the Havana Cubans, 6-2, then lost his next three decisions.

“Way back, I always figured it this way: If I stick around in the minors, I’ll get my college degree in the off-season and quit; if I make it to the majors, I’ll go ahead and get my Master’s Degree. I didn’t want to start my career at 35. I felt I had a better future as an engineer starting at 26.” – Ralph Mauriello, August 20, 1961.30

Although still relatively young, having turned 25 during the 1959 season, Mauriello felt that it was time to consider a career change. To move on, he had to complete his education. He completed his college work by staying in school for the entire 1959-1960 school year and getting his bachelor’s degree. He then reported to Montreal for his last season of professional baseball. He went 7-5 for the Royals and called it a career. As a minor-league pitcher, Mauriello had gone 75-68 in eight seasons.

In the offseason, Mauriello took a position with Litton Industries, a major defense contractor. He was with Litton for 30 years and earned his master’s degree from UCLA before starting his own computer design company, Mauriello and Associates. It was a small firm with only six employees, including Mauriello. Ralph and June had the first of their three daughters, Tami, in 1960. They later welcomed Gina and Michelle to the family and, as of October 2021, they have been married for 63 years, with six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

The professional baseball part of his life over, Mauriello turned to other pursuits, principally singing. He had often sung during the time he played ball but in the 1960s, outside of work and taking an occasional turn in the mound in semipro ball, singing became his primary focus. He became a featured soloist for the San Fernando Valley Male Chorus and Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church choir. He performed with community theater productions and was in the chorus for two operas performed by the West Coast Opera company. He also did 30-minute shows for various organizations near his home. He has sung the National Anthem at Los Angeles Lakers basketball games and Los Angeles Kings hockey games. Since 2008, he has performed the anthem at least once a season at Dodger Stadium.

As for those turns on the mound, they continued for many years. In the spring of 1989, at the age of 54 and more than three decades removed from his only big-league win, Mauriello was in uniform for the Outlaws in a Los Angeles area Municipal League.

Sources

In addition to the sources shown in the Notes, the author used Baseball-Reference.com, The Sporting News, and author interviews with Ralph Mauriello on January 8, 2015, and September 29, 2021.

Photo credit: Ralph Mauriello at the Hearst Game, courtesy of Ralph Mauriello.

Notes

1 Frank Finch, “Podres to Duel Cardinals’ Jackson,” Los Angeles Times, September 7, 1958: 3-2.

2 Salvatore Mauriello Obituary, Los Angeles Times, January 11, 1992: B-4.

3 Marjorie Mauriello Baker, “Just Like Nonna Used to Make,” Los Angeles Times, October 10, 2004: L-11.

4 Jean Merl, “Bob Baker 1947-2015: Times Journalist Fulfilled Music Dream,” Los Angeles Times, July 18, 2015: 3-B.

5 Correspondence between author and Ralph Mauriello, March 15, 2021.

6 Mauriello grew to become 6-feet-3 and is listed at 195 pounds.

7 “Hot Shots Win Extra-Innings Pitching Duel,” Van Nuys (California) News, August 8, 1950: Part 2, 3.

8 “Ralph Mauriello Hurls No-Hitter,” North Hollywood Valley Times, May 1, 1951: 6. High School teammate Bert Convy, after a short minor-league career, became an entertainer and was successful, for three decades, as an actor and television game show host. 

9 “City Diamond All-Stars Top Ace CIF Squad by 6-4,” Los Angeles Times, June 28, 1952: Part 2, 10.

10 Los Angeles Herald-Express, August 21, 1952.

11 Jeff Meyers, “Stardust Memories: 31 Years After Failing to Stick with the Dodgers Ralph Mauriello Is Still Pitching – and Pondering What Might Have Been,” Los Angeles Times, April 23, 1989: F-18.

12 “Crowd of 4,392 for Opening Game at Newport News,” Hagerstown (Maryland) Daily Mail, April 24, 1953: 14.

13 Charles Karmosky, “Neal Hurt as Dodgers Cash In on Portsmouth Error for 8-5 Win,” Newport News (Virginia) Daily Press, April 26, 1953: C-1.

14 “Miscue Ruins Sterling Effort for Mauriello,” Newport News Daily Press, May 24, 1953: C-1.

15 Ralph Mauriello, Tales Beyond the Dugout: The Zany Antics of Baseball Players of the Fifties (Los Angeles: Mauriello Publishing, 2017), 28.

16 Bob Terrell, “Mauriello Stops Rock Hill in Asheville Debut, 5 to 3,” Asheville (North Carolina) Citizen, June 21, 1954: 11.

17 “Tourists Defeat Rock Hill Twice; Fessette Gets 19th,” Asheville Citizen, July 27, 1954: 13.

18 Bob Terrell, “Reid and Mauriello Pace Tourists Win,” Asheville Citizen, August 24, 1954: 13.

19 Vernon Butler, “Mobile Rookie Wins in 12, 2 to 1,” Birmingham News, April 16, 1955: 9.

20 “Mauriello, Bears Blank Sports, 8-0,” Birmingham News, September 25, 1955: C-8.

21 Lorin McMullen, “Mauriello Halts Sport Attack, 4-1,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, June 1, 1956: 17.

22 McMullen, “Cats Try Again for Infielder,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, August 20, 1956: 20.

23 Frank Finch, “Angels Score 5-2 Win Over Padres,” Los Angeles Times, June 1, 1957: 2-1.

24 “Angels Win in 9th, 1-0, Over Suds,” Los Angeles Times, June 7, 1957: 4-2.

25 Bob Johnson, “Hurlers Star for Spokane; Twin Bill Divided,” Spokane Chronicle, April 17, 1958: 37.

26 John Lyons, “Mauriello Snaps Corpus Christi Win Streak,” Victoria (Texas) Advocate, June 20, 1958: 8.

27 Richard Dozer, “Dodger Rookies Humble Cubs, 5-1,” Chicago Tribune, September 20, 1958: Section 2, 3.

28 Mauriello, 194.

29 “Franklin Ephebian to Wed Dodger Baseball Player,” (Los Angeles) Eagle Rock Sentinel, October 9, 1958: 6.

30 Jack McCurdy, “Ex-Dodger Goes into Electronics,” Los Angeles Times, August 20, 1961: F-10.