25 Facts About Ted Kluszewski

Ted Kluszewski played from 1947 through 1961 with four teams in Major League Baseball.

Ted Kluszewski was a four-time National League All-Star who hit at least.

Ted Kluszewski was born of Polish descent in Summit, Illinois, 14 miles west of Comiskey Park in Chicago, where he played with the White Sox in the 1959 and 1960 seasons.

Ted Kluszewski was a star football and baseball player at Argo Community High School.

Ted Kluszewski went on to Indiana University in Bloomington, where he played both sports.

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Team scouts were similarly impressed, but Ted Kluszewski, who was a standout tight end on the Hoosiers football squad, was reluctant to sign a contract because he did not want to jeopardize his collegiate eligibility.

Much to the chagrin of team management, Ted Kluszewski made a bold fashion statement when he cut off both sleeves of his jersey.

In 1947, Ted Kluszewski earned a spot on the Opening Day roster and remained with the Reds in the first month of the season.

Ted Kluszewski recorded his first hit on Sept 23 at Crosley Field, an RBI single off Chicago Cubs starter Hank Wyse in the fifth inning.

Ted Kluszewski was his most dominant from 1953 through 1956 and was named to the National League All-Star roster in each of the four seasons.

Ted Kluszewski drove in more than 100 baserunners each time with a league-high of 141 RBI in the 1954 campaign.

Also in that period, Ted Kluszewski became the first and only player in MLB history to hit 35 or more homers in four seasons in which he had fewer strikeouts than homers.

Ted Kluszewski led National League first basemen in fielding percentage five straight years, a major league record.

Ted Kluszewski had his most dominant season in 1954, when he was the NL Most Valuable Player runner-up.

In 1956, Ted Kluszewski was headed toward a fourth straight 40-home run season, but after a back issue flared up in September, he hit only.

On December 28,1957, Ted Kluszewski was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in return for Dee Fondy in a swap of experienced first basemen.

In 1959, Ted Kluszewski appeared in 60 games for the Pirates before he was traded to the Chicago White Sox, who were in the midst of a tight pennant race.

When Ted Kluszewski arrived in Chicago, the White Sox had a tenuous two-game lead on the Cleveland Indians in the AL pennant race.

Ted Kluszewski hit a pair of home runs against the Kansas City Athletics in the second game of a doubleheader on Sept 7 at Comiskey Park.

Ted Kluszewski triggered a seven-run onslaught two innings later with a towering drive that landed in the lower deck in right field, a three-run homer that knocked Craig out of the game.

Ted Kluszewski continued to be slowed by back and leg problems in the 1961 season, but his last hurrah produced several historic firsts.

One inning later, Ted Kluszewski hit his second homer in as many innings, this one off rookie reliever John Papa with two runners on base.

Ted Kluszewski spent the season as part of a lefty-righty platoon with veteran Steve Bilko at first base.

In 1979, largely because of health reasons, Ted Kluszewski took on a less strenuous role as the Reds minor league hitting instructor.

Ted Kluszewski served in the position until 1986, when a massive heart attack resulted in emergency bypass surgery that prompted him to leave baseball permanently.

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