Baseball's Perfect Warrior, Stan Musial

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The statue stands down the third base line outside of Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis, Missouri. The statue has an inscription that reads, "Here stands baseball's perfect warrior. Here stands baseball's perfect knight." That was what commissioner Ford Frick’s opinion was about Stan Musial but his opinion was far from the rest of the countries opinion. Musial was not your “ideal” star. He didn’t marry Marilyn Monroe or hit in 56 straight games like Joe DiMaggio. Musial didn’t resemble youth like Willie Mays or tape-measure home runs like Mickey Mantle. Stan the Man instead to be preferred to be known for his coiled, wacky batting stance, his service in the military, never refusing an autograph, and his favorite saying “Whaddya say!” As Bob Costas said, “His excellence was a quiet excellence.” Musial influenced baseball in the 40s through the 60s by being a good citizen to his country, showing humility on and off the field, and being the ideal face of the franchise. (Posnanski, Where Are They Now?, Stan Musial Quotes)

Stan “The Man” Musial embodied the perfect American citizen in every way. Musial has represented the likes of the USO, Boy Scouts, Senior Olympics, President's Council on Physical Fitness, Crippled Children's Society of St. Louis, and many other foundations and charities. Musial was known for treating his fans with the upmost respect. No matter where you were at, you could count on Musial to greet you with his coined phrase, “Whaddya say!”, and if you were lucky you might hear a sweet tune played my Musial himself on his harmonica. No matter whether Musial was out eating dinner with his wife Lil, or just getting out of the ball park Musial was sure to treat you the way you would want to be treated. The Man even...

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...ll's perfect warrior. Here stands baseball's perfect knight." Ford Frick saw in The Man what many people in modern times have completely forgotten. Musial truly is baseball’s perfect warrior and baseball’s perfect knight. Musial influenced baseball in the 40s through the 60s by being a good citizen to his country, showing humility on and off the field, and being the ideal face of the franchise. (Posnanski, Remembering The Man?, Baseball Almanac)

Works Cited

Posnanski, Joe. “Where Are They Now?”. Sports Illustrated Vault 2014. Time Inc. A Time Warner Company. August 02, 2010 Web. March 20, 2014

Posnanski, Joe. “Remembering the Man: Stan Musial Just Wanted to Make People Happy”. Sports On Earth. 2014 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. and USA TODAY Sports. January 20, 2013 Web. March 21, 2014

“Stan Musial Quotes”. Baseball Almanac. Baseball Almanac. March 21, 2014

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