Hall of Famer Mel Ott was a staple of the New York Giants’ lineup for two decades. His career spanned from 1926 to 1947 all with the Giants. Ott led the NL six times and one of those years was in 1934.
Along with 35 homers, Ott also led the league with 135 rbis in 1934. Doing the math, he hit a homer every 16.6 at-bats. Missing just one game of the season, he also scored 119 runs batting in the cleanup spot.
Lefty Ott was second in the league in slugging (.591) and third in OBP (.415).
| Split | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1934 Totals | 153 | 671 | 582 | 119 | 190 | 29 | 10 | 35 | 135 | 1 | 85 | 43 | .326 | .415 | .591 |
There is a lot to like about this card unless you are a speed freak (Ott only stole one base in ’34). If you like power, Ott’s your guy.
5’9″ Mel Ott took advantage of the Polo Grounds and this card shows it. He has four extra base hit numbers in 1-4-5-5. I always enjoy a five at 22 especially if he’s batting behind someone like Bill Terry.
Mel Ott could slap hits like the best of them too. He has a 44-7 and a 55-7 as well.
Ott’s 85 base on balls earns him five 14s on his card. The intentional walk stat was not till later in Ott’s career, in 1942. Even late in his career, he ranked in the top ten in that stat. I wonder how often he was given the free pass in his prime.
As I alluded, Ott was no speed demon. He wasn’t slow, mind you. He just wasn’t rated fast and had no steal number, rightly so. He was rated an average OF-2.
This is a timely post as today marks a big anniversary in Ott’s career.
I imagine Ott had a big steak that night!
That ‘34 Giants were a good team. They lost out to the Gashouse gang…
Looking at the stats for that year and using Steve’s Card Computer, there are a couple out exotic one column cards for 2934. Thanks for putting up this one!