George Shuba facts for kids
Quick facts for kids George Shuba |
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| Outfielder | |||
| Born: December 13, 1924 Youngstown, Ohio |
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| Died: September 29, 2014 (aged 89) Youngstown, Ohio |
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| debut | |||
| July 2, 1948, for the Brooklyn Dodgers | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 25, 1955, for the Brooklyn Dodgers | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .259 | ||
| Home runs | 24 | ||
| Runs batted in | 125 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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George Thomas "Shotgun" Shuba (December 13, 1924 – September 29, 2014) was a baseball player who spent seven seasons with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He played as an outfielder and was a great pinch hitter (a player who bats in place of another). During his career, he played in three World Series and helped his team win the 1955 World Series championship. He was also the first player in the National League to hit a pinch-hit home run in a World Series game.
George Shuba is often remembered for his important role in helping to end the "color barrier" in Major League Baseball. In 1946, while playing for the Montreal Royals, he shook hands with his teammate Jackie Robinson. This happened after Robinson hit a home run. Jackie Robinson later became the first African American player in a major league game since the late 1800s. A famous photo of this moment is called A Handshake for the Century. It shows the first time a Black and white player shook hands in a professional baseball game.
In 1972, Shuba's baseball career was featured in a book called The Boys of Summer by Roger Kahn. This book was a tribute to the Brooklyn Dodgers team of the 1950s. Kahn wrote that Shuba got his nickname, "Shotgun," because he hit the ball so hard and straight, like a shotgun blast.
Contents
Early Life and Baseball Dreams
George Shuba was the youngest of 10 children. His parents were immigrants from Slovakia who settled in Youngstown, Ohio. Youngstown was a city known for making steel and for its love of baseball. George's father didn't really encourage him to play sports.
But George loved baseball from a young age. He often played second base in neighborhood games. When he was 17, in 1943, he tried out for the Brooklyn Dodgers and signed a contract. George later said that an ear injury kept him from joining the U.S. Army during World War II. This allowed him to gain valuable experience playing for minor league teams during the war years.
Becoming a Baseball Star
After signing with the Dodgers, Shuba played for their farm teams in New Orleans and Mobile. He remembered that his father wanted him to work in the steel mills like him. But George kept chasing his dream. He improved his natural swing by practicing for hours. He would tie a rope to the ceiling, make knots where the strike zone would be, and swing his bat at it 600 times a day! This hard work helped him get ready for the major leagues, where his powerful hits earned him the nickname "Shotgun."
The Handshake That Made History
In the mid-1940s, George Shuba joined the Montreal Royals. This team was a major farm team for the Brooklyn Dodgers. It was here that the famous "first interracial handshake" in North American baseball happened.
On April 18, 1946, Jackie Robinson hit his first home run for the Montreal Royals. As Robinson crossed home plate, George Shuba reached out and shook his hand to congratulate him. This simple gesture became a powerful symbol of friendship and equality in baseball.
To honor this moment, a 7-foot statue of the handshake was created. It was placed in Shuba's hometown of Youngstown, Ohio. The statue, called A Handshake for the Century, was unveiled on April 18, 2021. This was exactly 75 years after the handshake happened.
Playing in the Major Leagues
George Shuba made his major league debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers on July 2, 1948. He was a strong hitter, especially as a pinch-hitter. In the 1953 World Series, he hit a pinch-hit home run.
Over his career, Shuba had a batting average of .259. He hit 24 home runs and brought in 125 runs for his team. His best year was 1952, when he batted .305. He hit nine home runs and had 40 RBIs that season. After that year, knee surgery affected his playing.
Shuba played his final game on September 25, 1955. He was part of the seventh and final game of the 1955 World Series. The Dodgers beat the New York Yankees to win their only World Series championship while playing in Brooklyn. The Dodgers later moved to Los Angeles after the 1957 season.
Life After Baseball
After retiring from Major League Baseball in 1955, George Shuba returned to Ohio. He met his future wife, Katherine, and they settled in Austintown. George worked for 25 years in the office of the United States Postal Inspection Service. He and Katherine raised three children.
Even though he was a professional athlete, Shuba stayed connected to his family's roots. He continued to speak some Slovak, the language his father spoke.
Remembering a Legend
George Shuba lived in the Youngstown area until he passed away. He was interviewed by Roger Kahn for The Boys of Summer in the early 1970s. Over the years, Shuba was recognized for his important role in promoting fairness in baseball. He was very proud of the photograph of his handshake with Jackie Robinson. A copy of the photo hung behind his favorite chair at home.
In an interview, Shuba said about Robinson, "To me, Jackie was like all the other guys, a player who came to play." He added that Robinson taught him "a lesson about life that I have never forgotten." In 2007, Shuba wrote a book about his experiences called My Memories as a Brooklyn Dodger.
On September 18, 2007, a baseball field in Youngstown where Shuba played as a child was renamed the George "Shotgun" Shuba Field at Borts Park.
George Shuba died on September 29, 2014, at the age of 89. He was the last living Brooklyn Dodger who played in the final game of the 1955 World Series.
Related Links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- George Shuba - Baseballbiography.com
- Robinson-Shuba Handshake
- George Shuba's Website
