Gordon Stanley "Mickey" Cochrane was an American baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and Detroit Tigers.
Background
Gordon Stanley Cochrane was born on April 6, 1903 in Bridgewater, Massachussets, United States. He was the son of John Cochrane and Sarah Campbell. His father, an Irish immigrant, was a laborer at the time of his birth and later became part owner of a local movie theater.
Education
After graduating from Bridgewater High School in 1921, Cochrane attended Boston University for three years. There the 5-foot-101/2-inch, 180-pounder won ten varsity athletic letters in football, baseball, basketball, and hockey, and was also on the boxing team. He was a star left halfback and kicker for the football team, and once drop-kicked a record forty-eight-yard field goal in a game against Brown University. While at Boston University, Cochrane played semiprofessional baseball during the summer for the Saranac Lake club.
Career
In 1923 he broke into professional baseball as an outfielder with the Dover, team of the Eastern Shore League. Throughout his career Cochrane batted left-handed but threw with his right. In 1924 he was signed by the Portland (Oregon) Beavers of the Pacific Coast League, for whom he played catcher. Later in 1924 the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League purchased the Portland club, partly in order to obtain Cochrane. The following year Cochrane began a long and happy association with Connie Mack, owner and manager of the team. During his nine-year reign as Mack's regular catcher, "Black Mike" (as Cochrane was called because of his fiery, competitive spirit) hit over . 300 in six seasons. He struck out an average of only seventeen times per season. On defense Cochrane's skills were such that he has been described as a "master of the mechanics of catching. " He caught the best pitchers of his era, including Eddie Rommel, Rube Walburg, George Earnshaw, and Lefty Grove. From 1926 through 1930, and again in 1932, he led the league in putouts by a catcher. In 1933, desperate for capital, Mack reluctantly began to dispose of his high-salaried stars. He accepted $100, 000 and a player from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for Cochrane, who immediately was named player-manager of Detroit. The Tigers had not won a pennant since 1909, but Cochrane led them into the World Series in both 1934 and 1935, winning the series in the latter year. His $30, 000 salary was second in the major leagues only to that of Babe Ruth. In 1934 he batted . 320 and again was selected the most valuable player in the league. That year Cochrane caught Schoolboy Rowe's sixteen consecutive victories. Midway through the 1936 season, Cochrane suffered a nervous breakdown. After returning from a rest period at a Wyoming ranch, he led the Tigers in a race that fell just short of the pennant. In 1937, while batting in a game against the New York Yankees, Cochrane was hit in the head by a pitch. His skull was fractured in three places. For several days his life was in danger, and the injury ended his career as a player. He finished with a lifetime batting average of . 320. In the 1938 season he was nonplaying manager until August, when he was replaced by Del Baker. After the outbreak of World War II, Cochrane was commissioned a lieutenant in the physical education branch of the U. S. Navy, where he served under Lieutenant Commander Gene Tunney, the boxer. He saw duty in the South Pacific and also managed the Great Lakes Naval Training Station baseball team, which included many major leaguers. He was discharged as a lieutenant commander in 1945. After the war Cochrane was a partner in a cattle and dude ranch operation at Nye and a partner in an automobile dealership in Billings. In 1949 he rejoined Mack (then in his fifty-second year as a major-league manager) as a coach with the Athletics. The following year he served as general manager in charge of the farm system of the Athletics, but resigned after a few months, when Mack's sons bought out their father's share of the team. Five years later he and Bill Dickey of the New York Yankees were named the best catchers of the half-century by the All-American Board of Baseball. In his last years Cochrane served as a scout and training camp coach for the Yankees (1955), and as a Chicago area scout for the Tigers (1960). He also did some public relations work. He died at Lake Forest. As a catcher Cochrane displayed uncommon durability, playing in 100 or more games for eleven successive seasons. His skill with the bat is emphasized by the fact that he batted third in a lineup composed of excellent hitters that featured two other future Hall of Fame members, Jimmy Foxx and Al Simmons, known for their hitting proficiency. In an era of colorful athletes, Cochrane stood out for his peppery personality and his ability to instill a fighting spirit in his players and teammates.
Achievements
Connections
On March 25, 1924, he married Mary Bohr. They had three children. They had a son, Gordon Stanley Cochrane, Jr. , who was killed in the Netherlands.