Van Mungo
From SABR Encyclopedia
| Van Mungo | |
| Van Lingle Mungo | |
 | |
| Bat/Throw: | R/R |
|---|---|
| Height: | 6' 2" |
| Weight: | 185 |
| Born: | 1911-6-8 at Pageland, SC (US) |
| Died: | 1985-2-12 at Pageland, SC (US) |
| Interred: | First Baptist Church Cemetery in Pageland, SC (US) |
| More info | |
| Statistics: | Retrosheet |
|---|---|
| SABR Searches: | Pictures of Van Mungo | width:90% height:65% scrolling:auto | Pictures}} · Bibliography |
In the mid-1930s Mungo was considered to have the talent of contemporaries Dizzy Dean and Carl Hubbell. However he missed connections, possibly because he landed with the free-wheeling,hard-drinking, fun-loving Brooklyn Dodgers as a 21 year-old. His debut on 9/7/31,was sensational with a three hitter against the Boston Braves and struck out 12 winning the games 2-0 and knocked in both runs with a single and a triple. He won two more games that fall losing 1 and had a 2.32 ERA.
In his first full year he was 13-11 with Brooklyn, then in the next four seasons he won 16 and 18 games twice. All this with a losing Dodger team. What made matters worse he was constantly upset with his teammates ineptitude. He was a wild and mean, high kicking fireballer with a fierce temper. He was known as a drinker and was involved in some bizarre off-the-field incidents.When the Dodgers trained in Havana in the spring of 1941 he had to be smuggled out of Cuba to escape the machete-welding husband of a nightclub dancer with whom he'd been caught in bed. He only pitched two innings with Brooklyn in 1941 and was sent to Montreal. He won three games, lost 1 and played the outfield and pinched hit. Montreal won the International playoffs but en route to the Junior World Series, Van got into a fracas with officials of the Montreal club and was traded to Minneapolis.
