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Hall of Famer Slaughter, beloved for hustle, dies

DURHAM, N.C. -- Enos "Country" Slaughter, the hustling Hall of Famer who made a "Mad Dash" home to win the 1946 World Series, then tangled with Jackie Robinson the next year, died Monday at age 86.

Mr. Slaughter had been in the intensive-care unit of Duke University Medical Center after colon surgery July 25 and an operation to repair perforated stomach ulcers July 29. He was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma in June.

He batted .300 in 19 seasons and played in five World Series. He spent his first 13 seasons with the Cardinals.

"He was one of the great hustlers of baseball," Hall of Fame teammate Stan Musial said Monday. "He loved baseball. He always ran hard and played hard."

He began his energetic style when he was in the minors in 1936 in Columbus, Ga., after manager Eddie Dyer caught him walking off the field and confronted him.

"(He) said, "Son, if you're tired, I'll get somebody else,' " Mr. Slaughter recalled in 1994. "From that day on, I ran from spot to spot."

Pete Rose, who became known as "Charlie Hustle" in the 1960s for his hard-nosed play, copied Mr. Slaughter's habit of running to first base on a walk.

Mr. Slaughter is best remembered for his Mad Dash from first base that scored the winner for the Cardinals against the Boston Red Sox in the eighth inning of Game 7 of the 1946 Series.

With the score tied at 3, Mr. Slaughter opened the bottom of the eighth with a single. Two outs later, he still was on first. With Harry Walker batting, Mr. Slaughter took off for second on what he said was nothing more than an attempted steal.

Walker hit the ball over short and into centerfield. With Mr. Slaughter steaming around second, Leon Culberson fielded the ball. Third-base coach Mike Gonzalez tried to stop Mr. Slaughter as Culberson relayed to shortstop Johnny Pesky, but Mr. Slaughter ran right past.

Pesky held the ball for an instant, then hurried his throw to catcher Roy Partee. Mr. Slaughter slid past for the deciding run.

"On that particular play, he outran that ball the last 10 yards," Musial said. "He just outran it. It was an exciting play and won the Series for us."

The Mad Dash is commemorated outside Busch Stadium in St. Louis by a bronze statue depicting Mr. Slaughter sliding home.

Enos Bradsher Slaughter was born April 27, 1916, in Roxboro, N.C.

He joined the Cardinals in 1938 and, except for missing three years to serve in World War II, stayed in St. Louis until being traded to the Yankees in 1954.

With his flat, level swing, he became known as an outstanding clutch hitter. He played in 10 consecutive All-Star Games, batting .391, and he led the National League with 130 RBIs in 1946.

Mr. Slaughter had 2,383 hits, including 169 homers, and 1,304 RBIs in 2,380 games in his career.

He retired in 1959 and became eligible for the Hall of Fame in 1964, but was not elected until 1985, a wait that dismayed him.

"I think with my record, I deserved to be in there at least 10 to 15 years before I went in," he said in 1994. "A lot of guys went through that era, but I hit better than they did."

One widely held belief was that he was kept out because of his part in the Cardinals' attempted strike in 1947, when Robinson became the first African-American player in the major leagues.

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