(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
An eight-time All-Star, Ted Simmons retired from Major League Baseball in 1988 with the records for both doubles and hits by a catcher. He spent 21 years in the majors, playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers and Atlanta Braves.
The Modern Baseball Era Committee in December 2019 picked Simmons to get inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. He was the only player the committee selected for induction in 2020.
Ted Simmons’ Early Life
Simmons was born on Aug. 9, 1949 in Highland Park, Michigan. His older brothers taught him the fundamentals of the game, as well as how to be a switch hitter (he threw with his right hand, but was a naturally left-handed batter). He eventually emerged as an athletic star in the Detroit area, playing basketball, football and baseball.
The Cardinals ended up selecting him in the first round of the baseball draft after he graduated high school in 1967. As he worked his way up through the minors over the next few years, he got September calls ups with the Cardinals. He had three at-bats in 1968 and 14 in 1969.
Then, in 1970, the Cardinals called him up to play in a platoon with Joe Torre.
Major League Career
In 1970, Simmons struggled both at the plate and as a catcher. He hit only .243 that season. The team brought in Hal Smith, a former All-Star Cardinals catcher, to mentor him. That led to what became his breakout season.
In 1971, playing as the full-time catcher, Simmons hit .304 and drove in 77 runs. He followed that up with an even better campaign in 1972, hitting .303 and driving in 96 runs. He was named to the first of his eight All-Star teams.
He continued to play at an elite level with the Cardinals, a team which was going through one of its longest periods without winning the National League pennant (they’ve won 19). However, he ended up leaving the Cardinals in 1980 through a trade with the Brewers after he refused to switch from catcher to first base.
Latter Part of His Career
Simmons went on to play for the Brewers, reaching the World Series in 1982, where he faced his former team, the Cardinals. The fans at Busch Stadium cheered him every time he came to bat, but Simmons and the Brewers ended up losing the series in seven games.
8 Best World Series of All Time!
He had a good season in 1983, including reaching his 2,000 hit. But his skills rapidly deteriorated in the following years, as often happens with catchers because of the physical wear and tear of the position.
The Brewers traded Simmons to the Braves in 1986, where he played the remainder of his career, coaching the team’s young players. Simmons retired after the 1988 season in which he hit .196 in only 107 at-bats.
He ended his career with a .285 batting average, 2,472 hits, 483 doubles, 248 home runs and 1,389 RBI. He finished among the top 10 players for batting average six times. He now ranks second in hits and doubles for catchers (behind Ivan Rodriguez).
After retirement, Simmons has held many different jobs in baseball. He was a general manager for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1992, but left the job in June 1993 after suffering a heart attack. He has been a bench coach for the Brewers and San Diego Padres and a scout for the Braves. Now 70, he still lives in the St. Louis area.
He was not a great guy. I was Schnucks bat boy for the day on Sept 15th, 1975…I got to go to the dug out and meet so many greats…Lou Brock (went to school with his daughter Wanda), Kenny Rietz, and more. They were AWESOME. Ted had no interest…I was a little league catcher…he and Johnny Bench were my hero’s. Such a disappointment. Dropped him off my “good guy” list that day.