Rizzuto Versus Stephens

The New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox share the most bitter rivalry in the American League. Ever since 1918, when the Red Sox dealt Babe Ruth over to the Yankees and failed to win another World Series until 2004 (while the Yanks captured 26 during that span), the teams have hated each other. In the 1940’s and 1950’s, the Yankees almost always edged the Bosox for the pennant. Now both teams had some very talented players in their lineups, but since the Yankees always won, their players generally won comparisons with the Red Sox. The most contested player comparison of this time was the general consensus that the Yankees’ shortstop, Phil Rizzuto, was better than Vern Stephens, that of the Red Sox. 

Phil Rizzuto was the Yankees’ main shortstop from 1941 though 1953, excepting three seasons during World War II. He was a fine defensive shortstop and an okay hitter who had one big, MVP type season (when he captured the Award in 1950). To the surprise of many, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1994. 

Vern Stephens was a contemporary shortstop of Rizzuto’s, active from 1941 through 1955. He was a lot bigger and stronger than Rizzuto was, and consequently hit for a lot more power. Stephens spent the majority of his career with the St. Louis Browns franchise, but is best remembered for his five seasons in Boston. He never received one vote for the Hall of Fame. 

The fact that Rizzuto was inducted and Stephens wasn’t is just ridiculous. Absolutely absurd (see two previous posts, WHY I THINK VERN STEPHENS SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN and Lucky Hall of Famer Number 19 - Phil Rizzuto). 

The main arguments in Rizzuto’s favor are that he was a better shortstop and that he didn’t receive the benefits that playing in Fenway Park have on hitters’ statistics. As for the first point, I will not deny that Rizzuto was a top notch defensive shortstop. In his 13 Big League seasons, he turned 100 or more double plays eight times. He also had a career fielding percentage of .968. The only problem is that Stephens was a very underrated fielder. Stephens had the strongest arm of any shortstop in the league, while Rizzuto had one of the weakest. As a result, Stephens made more assists than Rizzuto did. Rizzuto, on the other hand, was more speedy and nimble than Stephens was, and consequently made more putouts. Stephens also played 322 games at third base, and did well at the hot corner, too. Rizzuto, with his iffy arm and smaller frame, surely could not have played third base in the Majors. That said, I don't think Rizzuto had much of a leg up on Stephens on defense.

As for the second point, it is true that Stephens’s offensive statistics were greatly aided by the effects of Fenway Park for a while. For example, in 1949, Stephens hit more home runs than Rizzuto did in his entire career and additionally drove in 159 runs, the MLB record for a shortstop and as many as Ted Williams drove in that season. However, unlike many others, Stephens was a top hitter if you take away the effects of Fenway. He led the NL in RBI’s in 1944 and in home runs in 1945, despite playing in a relatively pitcher friendly ballpark (Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis). If you double Stephens’s career road statistics, he still comes out a Hall of Famer, while Rizzuto does not. 

Another argument in favor of Rizzuto is that he did a lot of little things right - he was a good bunter, occasionally stole a base, and was very good at hitting behind the runner. Stephens rarely did any of these things. The truth is that Rizzuto, while talented in these departments, wasn’t one of the all time greatest in any one of them. Rizzuto is often hyped as the greatest bunter in history - well, in terms of sacrifices, it is evident that he was not in the same league as Ray Chapman or Eddie Collins, among others. He also stole only 149 bases, and no more than 22 in any one season. While his skills in these departments were valuable, it is easy to believe that he was encouraged to bunt so much because he wasn’t such a good hitter. His career slash line was .273/.351/.355, rather abysmal in terms of power and basically average considered as a whole. Stephens, however, was a great hitter - he slashed .286/.355/.460 for an OPS 15% better than Rizzuto’s, which is a huge difference. If Stephens had been less of a hitter, learned to bunt in desperation, and stuck with it, would that make him a Hall of Famer? Certainly not.

One more thing: Rizzuto took approximately one third of his career plate appearances batting eighth.