Roy Campanella
Baseball
Local
Played 10 seasons as a C for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1948-57)
Previously played nine seasons in the Negro Leagues (1937-42, 1944-45)
One of the best defensive catchers of his era with a rifle arm and an expert at handling pitchers
One of the pioneers in breaking baseball’s color barrier
Batted over .300, hit over 30 HR, and had over 100 RBI in each of his 3 MVP seasons
Set record for HR by a catcher with 40 in 1953 which stood for 43 years
His career was cut short by an auto accident that left him paralyzed (1958)
Career stats with the Dodgers: .276 AVG, 627 R, 1161 H, 242 HR, 856 RBI, .500 SL%
Career fielding stats: .988 F%, 7155, 6520 PO, 550 A, 82 DP
8 consecutive NL All-Star selection (1949-56)
2 times finished in the NL Top 5 in batting (1951, 1955)
3 times finished in the NL Top 5 in HR (1950-51, 1953)
1 time led the NL in RBI (1953)
2 times finished in the NL Top 5 in Slugging %
2 times led the NL in Fielding % at C (1952, 1957)
6 times led the NL in Putouts at C (1949-51, 1953, 1955-56)
2 times led the NL in Assists at C (1949, 1951)
2 times led the NL in Double Plays at C (1948, 1951)
Current rank on Dodgers Career Leaders:
- 4th in HR [242]
- 8th in RBI [856]
- 9th in SL % [.500]
Current rank amongst Dodgers Catchers
- 3rd in Total Chances [7155]
- 3rd in Putouts [6520]
- 6th in Assists [550]
- 5th in Double Plays [82]
3 time NL MVP (1951, 1953, 1955)
5 time NL Champion with the Dodgers (1949, 1952-53, 1955-56)
Member of the World Series Champion Dodgers (1955)
His uniform #39 was retired by the Dodgers (6/9/72)
Ranked 50th on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players (1999)
Nominee for the MLB All-Century Team (1999)
Inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame (1969)