[EveningStar]

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[EveningStar]

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[morphing libertarian]

saw a few dodger games at the colosseum They jerry rigged the football stadium to accommodate baseball and the left field fence was close. They put up a 42 foot high wire fence and Moon would pop up and the ball would go over the fence for a home run. Those were called moon shots. Some of the line drive hitters couldn’t hit home runs because the ball would hit the wire fence and stay in play.

[EveningStar]

He beat out Ernie Banks and Hank Aaron for NL Rookie of the year honors in 1954.

[Buckeye McFrog]

He was before my time, but my fourth grade reader had a story about him and the life of a major league baseball player. I believe he was with the Cardinals at that time. I had no idea he was still alive. RIP

[Michael.SF.]

The LA Coliseum was an usual configuration for baseball: 200 ft. down the line and a 60 ft. Screen:

Wally Moon was famous for his "Moon Shot", a short high fly ball that would be an out in almost any other park. I saw him there a few times, with my cousin actually getting one of his home run balls. Unfortunately a bigger kid took it from him (we were 9 and 10 at the time).

RIP Mr. Moon

[buckalfa]

Time marches on for the dwindling few boys of summer.

[onedoug]

RIP Wally Moon.

[Chauncey Gardiner]

A great Aggie

[doug from upland]

“Slugger” is perhaps somewhat over the top for someone who had 142 career home runs.

[ought-six]

Oh, man; I grew up in Los Angeles (Westchester), and those Dodgers teams were special. Wally Moon; Don Demeter; Gil Hodges; Duke Snider; Sandy Koufax; Ron Fairley; Jim Gilliam; Carl Furillo; Johnny Podres; et als.

[CaliforniaCraftBeer]

from Dave Frishberg
'Dodger Blue' (1991)

Down through the years the young men came west to play the game in Dodger Blue
Through laughter and tears the young men came west and rose to fame in Dodger Blue
And they stayed and they played and they made a dream come true
So here's to the dream and here's to the team
In Los Angeles Dodger Blue
Wally Moon
Wes Parker
Manny Mota
Norm Larker
McMullen
McDevitt
McDermott
McBean
Doyle Alexander and
Claude Osteen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvHEapQZdZ0

[Fiji Hill]

Back in ‘59, Wally Moon was a hero out here.

[TBP]

Ernie Banks, Gene Conley and Hank Aaron finished behind him for Rookie of the Year in 1954.

In 1961, he was the last player to hit an inside-the-park home run in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Three months later, he was to score the last run ever there.

To make room for him as a promising rookie, the Cardinals traded away a future Hall of Fame outfielder.

Teammate Stan Musial helped him adjust his swing just before his trade to the Dodgers.

Later, he managed the Prince William Yankees in 1987. Giants’ hitting coach (and likely future MLB manager) Nensley (Bam Bam) Meulens was one of his charges. Meulens hit 25 home runs that year.