Ray Mueller

Nicknamed the “Iron Man,” the remarkably durable Ray Mueller caught an average of 153 games per season between the Pacific Coast League and National League from 1942 to 1944. He set the NL record by catching 233 consecutive games, including all 155 for the 1944 Cincinnati Reds.

Mueller was a backstop for 1,598 total games over 23 professional seasons and spent all or parts of 14 years in the majors from 1935 to 1951. He was among the best defensive catchers of his era, fielding .988 and boasting a 51.9 caught stealing percentage. In 1944, he was an All-Star and received multiple first-place votes for NL MVP. He also received down ballot MVP consideration in 1943 and 1946.

Counting his work as a manager, coach, and scout, Mueller’s professional baseball career spanned more than 40 years, from 1932 to 1973. He was linked to some of baseball’s icons: a teammate of Babe Ruth, a player for manager Casey Stengel, and a coach to Willie Mays.

Ray Coleman Mueller was born on March 8, 1912, in Pittsburg, Kansas. His parents were Otto and Augusta (Archer) Mueller. Otto, originally from Germany, was a railroad engineer. Ray was the youngest of 13 siblings.1 He grew up in Pittsburg, along with his first cousin and future major leaguer Don Gutteridge, who was born about three months after Ray.

Mueller and Gutteridge played together on the Kansas City Southern Railroad’s semipro team in Pittsburg.2 As co-captains of Pittsburg High School’s basketball team, the cousins led the squad to the Southeast Kansas League title and a trip to the state tournament in 1930.3

It was Mueller’s performance for the railroad team that led to his first chance in professional baseball. Andy Rush, a former 1925 Brooklyn Robins pitcher who lived in nearby Chanute, watched him play and recommended him for the Harrisburg Senators of the Class B New York-Pennsylvania League.4 Mueller and Rush became teammates for that Boston Braves’ farm club in 1932 and remained friends, exchanging Christmas cards for decades.5

Harrisburg manager Eddie Onslow thought Mueller lacked the necessary skills to play catcher and wanted to move him to the outfield. But former World Series champion Les Mann and future Hall of Famer Johnny Evers believed the Kansas native had potential and summoned former big-league catcher Hank Gowdy to mentor him.6

“He’s not ready yet,” Evers said. “But Hank Gowdy, who can teach a catcher all he needs to know, will smooth off the rough spots.”7

Mueller played at Harrisburg from 1932 through 1934 and made a big leap forward in his third season, batting .325 in 94 games. He was called up by the Braves but did not enter any games.8

The 23-year-old opened the 1935 season with Boston, becoming teammates with Babe Ruth and Rabbit Maranville, both of whom were playing their final seasons. The Braves were managed by another future Hall of Famer, Bill McKechnie.

Mueller debuted at the top level on May 11. In his fifth game, a 4-2 loss to the New York Giants on May 31, he belted a pitch from Carl Hubbell over the left-field wall in the bottom of the ninth for his first big-league hit.9 As a rookie, Mueller batted .227 with three homers in 42 appearances.

That offseason, Boston (renamed the Bees) traded for All-Star catcher Al López. Mueller was demoted to the Class A1 Southern Association to play for the Knoxville Smokies in 1936.10 There, he emerged as a fan favorite, showing that he boasted a capable bat with some power by hitting .306 with 14 homers and 54 RBIs in just 75 games.

Knoxville Journal columnist Barney Ballard raved, “What this Smoky can’t do in a baseball uniform hasn’t been thought up yet. Mueller would be a whiz, even if he couldn’t hit above .250, but he’s well over the .300 mark and leading the league in home runs. Behind the plate, he’s the man with a thousand eyes and he’ll get you, too, if you don’t watch out. I’ve never seen his equal in the Southern League, when it comes to all-around fielding and batting ability.”11

Mueller’s performance earned him a return to the Bees on July 9. He got into 24 games backing up López and hit .197.

When López was sidelined by an injury for nearly a month in 1937, Mueller seized the opportunity to propel himself into a larger role. In 64 games, he batted .251. On July 21, he hit a walk-off grand slam in the 11th inning of a 5-1 win over the Cardinals. On his way home, he passed his cousin Gutteridge, who was manning third base for St. Louis.12

The 1938 season marked McKechnie’s departure and the introduction of Stengel as Boston’s manager. López missed all of June and most of July, allowing Mueller to emerge as the Bees’ first-string catcher. On June 11, Mueller had – as he put it in a 1973 interview – the “fortune or misfortune” of making the final out of Johnny Vander Meer’s first of two successive no-hitters (the second came four days later against Brooklyn).13 Later, Mueller became Vander Meer’s primary catcher with the Reds in the 1940s. By season’s end, Mueller had appeared in 83 games, batting .237 with four homers.

During Mueller’s time with Boston, he built a friendship with Donald Davidson, who stood just 4’0”. Mueller helped him become a Bees’ mascot and bat boy, which he parlayed into a role with the team’s publicity department. When the franchise moved to Milwaukee in 1953, Davidson became the public relations director. Davidson is credited with giving Henry Aaron the nickname “Hammerin’ Hank.”14

In September 1938, Mueller married Sara Jane Polleck in Boston. The entire Bees team, including Stengel, attended the ceremony.15 The couple had met when Mueller was playing in Harrisburg. Ray and Sara Jane settled in central Pennsylvania, and they had two children. Their union lasted until Sara Jane’s sudden death in 1983 while she and Ray were visiting family in Pittsburg.16

On December 16, 1938, Mueller was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for catcher Al Todd, outfielder Johnny Dickshot, and cash.17

Mueller and the Pirates struggled in 1939. He batted only .233 with two home runs in 86 games, and Pittsburgh finished sixth with a 68-85 record. The disappointing campaign – following 86 wins and second place in the standings the previous year – led to the end of Pie Traynor’s tenure as Pirates manager. In 1940, the Bucs turned to Frankie Frisch. Before the season began, Frisch told reporters that Mueller’s struggles in 1939 may have been because he was given the catcher’s job on a “silver platter.”18 Mueller played only four games with Pittsburgh before he was demoted to the Rochester Red Wings of the Class AA International League. The Associated Press reported the move as being part of a shakeup by Frisch after the Pirates lost nine straight.19 Mueller batted .240 in 91 games for Rochester, and he didn’t return to a major-league field until 1943.

In January 1941, the Pirates optioned him to Rochester without the right of recall during the season.20 In 116 games, Mueller hit .240 again, missing time because of a blood clot in his knee and a hand injury.21 After the season, the Pirates sold his rights to the Sacramento Solons of the Class AA Pacific Coast League (PCL).22

Under Sacramento manager Pepper Martin, Mueller began building his iron man reputation. In 166 games, Mueller batted .297 with 16 home runs to lead the Solons to the 1942 pennant and earn PCL MVP honors.23 Sacramento’s fans thanked him with a watch and a “Ray Mueller Day” at the ballpark.24

“Mueller came about his laurels the hard way. Not only did he perform on the field, exceptionally well, but he was consistency itself,” The Sporting News wrote. “Out of 178 games played by the Sacramento club throughout the season’s schedule, Ray appeared behind the bat in 165 of them and in only one instance did he fail to perform in a complete game. He was used as a pinch-hitter in one contest. The rest of the time he caught nine innings or more, except during nightcaps of double-headers, which are limited to seven innings.”25

Mueller’s stellar season caught the notice of McKechnie, by then the manager of the Cincinnati Reds. In September 1942, Cincinnati purchased Mueller’s rights as insurance against the possible loss of catcher Ray Lamanno to the military in 1943.26

Indeed, Lamanno spent the next three seasons in the service, opening the door for Mueller’s reunion with McKechnie.

“To me, it was a pleasure to come back to Bill, because he treated me more like a son than he did a ballplayer,” Mueller said in 1973. “I would have to say that I owe a lot to Bill McKechnie for what he did for me. He put up with me as an average ballplayer or near average ballplayer, and I just enjoyed playing for him.”27

Aside from a bruised hand that sidelined Mueller for a short stint,28 McKechnie made the 31-year-old the Reds’ everyday catcher. Mueller caught 140 games in 1943, including Cincinnati’s final 62 contests. He batted .260 with eight homers and finished 17th in National League MVP voting.

In February 1944, the Associated Press reported that Mueller had been rejected for military service because of stomach disorders.29 That decision paved the way for the best season of his career.

It was a momentous year for Mueller in many respects. On May 15, he caught all nine innings of Clyde Shoun’s no-hitter as the Reds defeated the Boston Braves, 1-0.30 One walk kept Shoun from a perfect game, and Mueller came within four outs of catching no-hitters on consecutive days. In the first game of a doubleheader on May 14, the Reds’ Bucky Walters had retired the Braves’ first 23 batters before allowing Connie Ryan’s eighth-inning single. Walters finished with a one-hitter, and a 4-0 victory.

On July 6, Mueller established a major-league record by catching his 134th consecutive game. To commemorate the mark, the Reds invited anyone named Mueller to attend the contest for free. About 630 fans claiming to have the name Mueller watched the Reds beat the Brooklyn Dodgers, 10-4, at Crosley Field.31 Mueller thanked the fans by going 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a run scored. He even recorded a stolen base, one of his career-high four that year.

Before the game, Reds coach Jimmie Wilson, who had been a catcher in his playing days, presented Mueller with a $500 War Bond on behalf of Reds management, and a tie clasp from his teammates. After the streak ended, the Reds said the clasp would be engraved with the final number of consecutive games that Mueller caught.32

In The Sporting News, Tom Swope acknowledged that some scoffed at Mueller’s record because it wasn’t achieved in one season – the first 62 games of the streak occurred in 1943 – unlike George Gibson, who caught 133 consecutive games for the 1909 Pittsburgh Pirates. But Swope defended the validity of the new mark by noting that Mueller’s 134 games included 30 doubleheaders, in which he caught two complete games (38 total contests) 19 times.33

Less than a week after he eclipsed Gibson’s record, Mueller represented the National League in the 1944 All-Star Game at Forbes Field.34 He did not bat in the NL’s 7-1 victory, but he caught the ninth inning.

Mueller wound up catching all of Cincinnati’s 155 games, increasing his overall streak to 217 consecutive contests. Philadelphia A’s catcher Frankie Hayes also caught all 155 games in 1944 to set the American League record. (The previous standard was 151, by Ray Schalk in 1920.)

Columnist Fred Lieb recognized the feat achieved by both catchers but gave special consideration to Mueller’s demonstration of longevity. “By virtue of an extra tie game, the pair established the new major league mark at 155 caught in a season. So, while a bow is due to Hayes, an even more sweeping flourish of the fedora is merited by the little Cincinnatian, Mueller with steel springs in his arms, shoulders and legs. Ray actually has a consecutive game catching record of 217, far beyond anything ever heard of in big league ball.”35

The best example of Mueller’s endurance may be a four-day stretch from July 29 through August 1, 1944, when he caught six complete games against the Giants at the Polo Grounds, including successive doubleheaders. Even more impressive, he mustered the strength to hit three home runs during the six-game marathon.

Overall, Mueller enjoyed his best season at the plate and helped the Reds to an 89-65-1 record. He batted .286 with 10 homers and 73 RBIs – all career highs.

Swope promoted Mueller as an MVP candidate. “What makes Mueller’s endurance record even more unusual is the fact that he has missed only 65 of the 1,967 innings of the 217 games, remaining out of parts of only 25 games. He’s going to get plenty of consideration as the BBWAA choice of the National League’s most valuable player. He’s a ‘must’ as one of the candidates for that award.”36

St. Louis Cardinal shortstop Marty Marion won MVP honors with 190 points and seven first-place votes. Mueller received two first-place votes on the 24 ballots cast and finished seventh with 85 points. Walters, whom Mueller helped to compile a 23-8 record for the Reds, tied for fifth.37

Coming off his best season, Mueller learned that he was being inducted into the U.S. Army in early 1945.38 He conducted training in Fort Lewis, Washington, and then worked as a medic at Moore General Hospital in Swannanoa, North Carolina. During Mueller’s absence, Hayes eclipsed his consecutive games streak, eventually stretching his own mark to 312 games before it ended in 1946.39

In August 1945, The Sporting News reported that Mueller had received a military discharge and would return for the 1946 season.40 Citing the GI Bill of Rights, Cincinnati fans pushed for Mueller’s string of consecutive games to be recognized as active, even though he was forced to miss the 1945 season because of the war. Mueller opened 1946 as the Reds’ starting catcher and said he wasn’t concerned about the streak.41

Mueller’s 233rd and final game in succession took place on May 5, when he caught the final inning of a 7-4 win over the Giants.42 McKechnie then rested him for the next three games until Mueller returned to his position behind the plate on May 12 against the Cardinals. Although many sources credit Mueller with catching 233 straight games, the 2021 edition of The Elias Book of Baseball Records indicates just 217. Either way, it remains the NL record.

In a guest column Mueller wrote for the August 19, 1946, edition of the Mount Carmel (Pennsylvania) Item, he called the achievement his “biggest thrill in baseball.”

“Catching every day doesn’t bother me, and it was great to know my name would go down in the record books,” he wrote. “I kept adding to my string and wound up catching more than 200 games without relief. It led me to be referred to as one of baseball’s iron men.”43

Despite the streak’s end, Mueller remained a key contributor to the 1946 Reds (he finished 30th in the NL MVP balloting that year). In a 15-3 win over Brooklyn on June 25, he went 4-for-5 with homers in his first two plate appearances. On August 11 against the Cardinals, he helped the Reds match the big-league record (at the time) of homers by three straight hitters; going deep after teammates Grady Hatton and Max West.44 Mueller caught all 19 innings of a scoreless tie with the Dodgers on September 11.

Mueller’s role gradually diminished after Johnny Neun took over the Reds’ managerial duties in 1947. He played just 71 games after opening the season with a knuckle injury.45 Later, he suffered a toe injury that kept him out of the lineup for much of August.46

One noteworthy story from that season took place during the Reds’ extra-inning victory over the Pirates on April 27, when Mueller got into it with Hank Greenberg After Greenberg popped out to Mueller in the 10th, he struck his catcher’s mask with his bat, causing it to bend. When Greenberg grounded out in the 12th, Mueller retaliated by picking up the future Hall of Famer’s bat and beating it into the ground until it cracked.47

Mueller was limited to 14 games in 1948 after suffering a broken and dislocated ankle during an April 28 win over the Chicago Cubs.48 He didn’t return to the lineup until September 1.

Midway through the 1949 season, the Reds traded Mueller to the Giants for All-Star backstop Walker Cooper.49 Mueller batted .243 in 88 games foe two clubs that year. In 1950, Wes Westrum beat him out for the Giants’ primary catcher position.50 On May 17, the 38-year-old Mueller was sold to the Pirates.51 On June 11, he was beaned by Phillies pitcher Bob Miller in the sixth inning. Mueller lost consciousness and was carried off the field on a stretcher.52 Yet he was back in action a week later and finished the year with a .257 batting average in 71 games overall.

After Pittsburgh released Mueller during spring training 1951, he signed with the Boston Braves, the franchise for which he made his big-league debut 16 years before.53 Mueller served as a third-string catcher behind Walker Cooper and Ebba St. Claire, and batted .157 in 28 appearances. Boston released him following the season, ending his tenure in the big leagues.

In 1952, Mueller became player-manager for Sioux City (Iowa) of the Class A Western League. There, he competed against his cousin, Gutteridge, who managed Colorado Springs.54 Mueller skippered Sioux City for two seasons before becoming a player-coach for the Triple-A Minneapolis Millers under manager Bill Rigney in 1954 and 1955.55

When Rigney was hired to lead the New York Giants in 1956, Mueller joined his coaching staff.56 The roster included star center fielder Willie Mays, who turned 25 that May. Mueller resigned following the Giants’ disappointing sixth-place finish.57

Mueller spent 1957 as the bullpen coach for the Chicago Cubs.58 The following year, the Cubs assigned him to manage their Western League affiliate in Pueblo, Colorado.59 In Pueblo, Mueller recommended that the Cubs’ head scout, Ray Hayworth, take a look at outfielder George Altman. The next season, Altman made his big-league debut.60

Stepping back to the Class B Three-I League in 1959, Mueller led the Cubs’ Burlington (Iowa) Bees farm team.61 He then managed the Reading Indians, Cleveland’s Class A Eastern League club in 1960 and 1961 before becoming a full-time scout for that organization.62

Mueller finished the 1966 season as Cleveland’s first base coach after George Strickland became the interim manager in August.63 In 1968, Mueller managed the Indians’ Eastern League affiliate in Waterbury, Connecticut for the final two months of the season.64

He then returned to scouting.65 However, Cleveland let Mueller and five other scouts go as part of a cost-cutting measure at the end of the 1970 season.66 Mueller spent the next three years scouting for the Philadelphia Phillies.67

Following his baseball career, Mueller worked for the Dauphin County (Pennsylvania) Courthouse in Harrisburg as a tipstaff.68

Ray Mueller died on June 29, 1994, at the age of 82. He was survived by his second wife, Ruth Swiler Partner Mueller, and his children from his first marriage, John Mueller and Mary Jane Miller. He is buried in the Harrisburg Cemetery.69

Mueller is a member of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame,70 the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame71 and the Middle Atlantic Major League Baseball Scouts Hall of Fame.72

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Ray Mueller’s daughter, Mary Jane Miller, for her assistance. Thanks also to Rod Nelson of SABR’s Scouts Committee for his input.

The biography was reviewed by Rory Costello and Malcolm Allen and fact-checked by Dan Schoenholz.

Sources

All statistics and box scores were taken from Baseball-reference.com, except where otherwise indicated.

Ancestry.com was consulted for U.S. Census information, military records, and birth, marriage and death records.

Notes

1 Telephone interviews, Mary Jane Miller with Mark Schremmer, February 28, 2022, and July 9, 2022 (hereafter Mary Jane Miller interviews).

2 Don Gutteridge with Ronnie Joyner and Bill Bozman, Don Gutteridge in Words & Pictures (Don Gutteridge & Pepperpot Productions, 2002): 9.

3 “S.E.K. Trophy Presented in Chapel Friday,” Booster, Pittsburg (Kansas) High School, March 20, 1930: 1.

4 The New York-Pennsylvania League was reclassified as Class A prior to the 1933 season. “Mueller Stars in Professional Baseball,” Booster, Pittsburg High School, May 6, 1932: 4.

5 Lee Allen, “Cooperstown Corner,” The Sporting News, May 10, 1969: 6.

6 Al Clark, “The Sports Shop,” Harrisburg (Pennsylvania) Telegraph, March 25, 1938: 22.

7 Clark, “The Sports Shop.”

8 “Ray Mueller Returns to Harrisburg Senator Squad,” Evening News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), June 29, 1934: 19.

9 “Sport Chatter,” Flinchburg (Massachusetts) Sentinel, June 1, 1935: 8.

10 “Bees Send New Catcher to Smoky Club,” Knoxville (Tennessee) Journal, April 16, 1936: 12.

11 Barney Ballard, “In the Press Box,” Knoxville Journal, July 4, 1936: 7.

12 “Bees Show the Way,” Associated Press (Emporia (Kansas) Gazette), July 22, 1937: 7.

13 Ray Mueller, interview with Kit Crissey, February 7, 1973.

14 Red Thisted, “Don Davidson, Braves’ Publicity Purveyor, Started as Knotholer,” The Sporting News, Jan. 19, 1955: 2.

15 “Mueller, Bees’ Catcher, Weds Steelton Fiancee in Boston,” Harrisburg Telegraph, September 29, 1938: 1.

16 Mary Jane Miller interviews.

17 Charles J. Doyle. “Pie Keeps Pitching, Gets New Catcher,” The Sporting News, December 22, 1938: 10.

18 Charles J. Doyle. “Frisch to Put Bucs on Job Merit Basis,” The Sporting News, Nov. 2, 1939: 8.

19 “Pirates Drop Johnny Gee, Ray Mueller,” Associated Press (Altoona (Pennsylvania) Tribune), May 10, 1940: 18.

20 “Bucs Option Ray Mueller,” Associated Press, (Altoona Tribune), January 31, 1941: 16.

21 Al C. Weber, “Rochester Throws Out Chest Over Chuckers,” The Sporting News, June 12, 1941: 8.

22 “Talent at Premium in Players Market,” The Sporting News, December 11, 1941: 3. Mueller played for Rochester, a Cardinals affiliate, in 1940 and 1941 but was still owned by the Pirates. He effectively was on loan to the Cardinal organization. The December 11, 1941 article says Pittsburgh sold Catcher Ray Mueller to Sacramento, Pacific Coast League. A November 26, 1942, article from The Sporting News said the Reds purchased Mueller from Sacramento. The Cardinals are never mentioned.

23 Steve George, “Mueller Catches Up with Valuable Title on Coast,” The Sporting News, November 12, 1942: 2.

24 “Fan Talk,” Evening News, September 7, 1942: 7.

25 George, “Mueller Catches Up with Valuable Title on Coast.”

26 “Ray Mueller Purchased,” Associated Press, (Harrisburg Telegraph), September 17, 1942: 19.

27 Ray Mueller interview with Kit Crissey.

28 “In Harness,” Associated Press, (Parsons (Kansas) Sun), June 10, 1943: 8.

29 “Ray Mueller, Cincinnati Catcher, Rejected by Army,” Associated Press (Williamsport (Pennsylvania) Sun-Gazette), February 26, 1944: 2.

30 Tom Swope, “Clyde Shoun Sails to Fame on Navy Reprieve,” The Sporting News, May 25, 1944: 2.

31 Tom Swope, “Mueller – Iron Man in Iron Mask,” The Sporting News, July 13, 1944: 5

32 Swope, “Mueller – Iron Man in Iron Mask.”

33 Swope, “Mueller – Iron Man in Iron Mask.”

34 Fred Lieb, “Americans Outclassed in All Lines,” The Sporting News, July 20, 1944: 6.

35 Fred Lieb, “Hats Off,” The Sporting News, October 5, 1944: 29.

36 Tom Swope, “Iron-Man Mueller Catches 1,902 of 1,967 Innings in 217 Games,” The Sporting News, Oct. 19, 1944: 6.

37 Art Flynn, “Marty Marion Wins Scribes’ NL Award,” The Sporting News, November 23, 1944: 1.

38 Tom Swope, “Camp-Opening Guess of Reds Shrinks to 17,” The Sporting News, March 15, 1945: 16.

39 Tom Swope, “Max’ Whacks Bolster Cincy,” The Sporting News, April 25, 1946: 10.

40 Fred Lieb, “Redbirds Richest in Returning Stars,” The Sporting News, August 30, 1945: 6.

41 “Cite GI Bill of Rights to Extend Mueller String,” The Sporting News, January 3, 1946: 4.

42 Tom Swope, “Swope Takes His Hat Off to Mr. Hatton,” The Sporting News, May 9, 1946: 8.

43 Ray Mueller, “My Big Thrill,” Mount Carmel (Pennsylvania) Item, August 19, 1946: 8.

44 “Mark for Successive Homers Tied,” The Sporting News, January 1, 1947: 14.

45 “Mueller Sidelined,” The Sporting News, April 9, 1947: 11.

46 “Major League Flashes,” The Sporting News, August 27, 1947: 20.

47 “Hank Tees Off on Mask, but Catcher Gets Even,” The Sporting News, May 7, 1947: 1.

48 Tom Swope, “Thin Man Mystery Story – Has Blackwell Lost Zip?” The Sporting News, May 12, 1948: 8.

49 “Catchers Trade Uniforms,” The Sporting News, June 22, 1949: 9.

50 Ken Smith, “Home Fans Greet Giants With ‘Howdy, Strangers,’” The Sporting News, April 19, 1950: 8.

51 Dan Daniel, “Many Players Pack Bags When Clubs Trim to 25,” The Sporting News, May 24, 1950: 2.

52 “Pitcher Bob Miller Kayoes Catcher Mueller of Pirates,” The Sporting News, June 21, 1950: 5.

53 Les Biederman, “Kiner Finding First Base a Hot Corner, But Keeps Plugging,” The Sporting News, March 28, 1951: 9.

54 “Columbus Business in Brief,” The Sporting News, December 12, 1951: 16.

55 “Millers Await Backstop Help,” The Sporting News, March 24, 1954: 29.

56 Oscar Ruhl, “From the Ruhl Book,” The Sporting News, November 9, 1955: 13.

57 Joe King, “Schoendienst Deal on Fire? Giants Silent,” The Sporting News, October 31, 1956: 16.

58 “Ray Mueller Named Cubs’ Coach; to Handle Bull Pen,” The Sporting News, November 14, 1956: 7.

59 Ed Prell, “Holland’s Overhaul Shown by Cub List,” The Sporting News, January 29, 1958: 27.

60 Edgar Munzel, “Cubs’ Fortunes Soar on Clouts by Skyscraper George Altman,” The Sporting News, September 30, 1959: 35.

61 “Caught on the Fly,” The Sporting News, April 1, 1959: 26.

62 “Lipon to Pilot Charleston, New Eastern League Entry,” The Sporting News, January 17, 1962: 24.

63 “Ray Mueller, Ex-backstop, Takes Tribe Coaching Post,” The Sporting News, September 3, 1966: 13.

64 “Cavarretta Quits Helm,” The Sporting News, July 6, 1968: 41.

65 John W. Smith, “Reading Upsets Pennant-Winner in E.L. Playoff,” The Sporting News, September 21, 1968: 35.

66 Russell Schneider, “Six Scouts Released – Tribe’s Economy Kick,” The Sporting News, October 31, 1970: 53.

67 Russell Schneider, “Fuller Retiring – Fed Up with Bench,” The Sporting News, January 23, 1971: 34.

68 Mary Jane Miller interviews.

69 Mike Bullock, “Baseball Veteran Ray Mueller dies,” “Mueller, 82, Dies; Sunday Patriot News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania), July 1, 1994: D1.

70 Russell Schneider, “Tribe Dickering for Allen, Shudders at Hefty Price,” The Sporting News, Nov. 30, 1968: 44.

71 “Joe Slobko goes into Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame,” Kansas.com, January 26, 2017.

72 Bullock, “Baseball Veteran Ray Mueller Dies.”