Washington DC Baseball

[GeoPoto]

Player #155D: John T. "Rocky" Stone. Outfielder with the Washington Senators in 1934-1938. 1,391 hits and 77 home runs in 11 MLB seasons. His career OBP was .376. he debuted with the Detroit Tigers in 1928-1933. His most productive season may have been 1932 with Detroit as he posted a .361 OBP with 106 runs scored and 109 RBIs in 643 plate appearances. His best season in Washington was 1936 as he posted a .421 OBP with 95 runs scored and 90 RBIs in 500 plate appearances.

Back to Stone's SABR biography: . . . Early in 1938, despite his physical deterioration and lackluster play (his manager, Bucky Harris, unfairly diagnosed Stone's malady as "Tennessee hookworm", a euphemism for a lazy streak that Harris saw as common among Southern ballplayers), teammates still voted him Most Valuable Team Member for the month of May. The club was in Detroit when Johnny’s mysterious lingering ailment prompted Harris to order a hospital examination on June 19. Test results revealed a sinus infection and severe bronchial attack, initiating an order by Harris to send Stone back to Washington.

A series of tests at Georgetown Hospital revealed the Washington outfielder was suffering from tuberculosis, a highly infectious disease primarily spread through coughing and sneezing. The disease seriously affected a patient’s lungs and in an era prior to the introduction of antibiotics, tuberculosis was very difficult to treat and ultimately claimed the lives of many victims. Restoring Johnny’s body back to health would be a long and tedious process.

The Sporting News reported that, upon hearing of Stone’s diagnosis, “Clark Griffith whirred into action. Griff didn’t want his star outfielder, or members of his family, to worry about finances or how to pay for Johnny’s care. The next day, to Johnny’s hospital room was delivered his salary check for the remainder of the season. Arrangements for treatment at Saranac (New York) were also made by Mr. Griffith.”

Stone wrote to clubhouse manager Frankie Baxter, “Be sure to save my uniform. Maybe a lot of people don’t think I’ll never wear it again, but I’ll climb into it in Orlando and I think I’ll be ready.” Griffith and Harris were less optimistic. “We can’t figure much on Stone, but if he comes around he will be more than welcome.”

Reports from Saranac indicated Stone benefitted greatly from the healthy atmosphere. Doctors called him, “the best patient we ever had, with remarkable recuperative powers and he’ll beat this lung infection 100 per cent.” After hearing the story of Johnny’s inside-the-park home-run back in May, a physician shook his head and remarked: “Only a man with tremendous courage could have kept playing the way he has.”

Stone wrote to Griffith from Saranac describing how he “benefitted from the atmosphere and passed his lung tests and emerged triumphant from an operation,” adding he gained weight and looked forward to the start of spring training. . Despite speculation that Stone might return to the game in time for the 1939 season, it was further determined that although considered to be recovered, he’d risk further illness subjecting himself to the rigors of professional baseball. “Stoney” regrettably announced his retirement.

Stone and his family were residing at the tuberculosis sanatorium in Asheville, North Carolina, when plans for a day in his honor were announced. The event would be held at Griffith Stadium on September 17, 1939; fittingly, the Detroit Tigers would be in town as the visiting team. Initially, Johnny was told to bypass the rigors of the trip, but doctors later relented and allowed him to travel from North Carolina back to D.C.

A special section of the stadium was designated to accommodate Stone’s family, friends and admirers. Funds were raised to purchase a trophy and plans were made to fill a cash purse for the popular former outfielder. Proceeds from the fundraiser were expected to be sufficient enough to pay off the mortgage on the family farm back home in Tennessee.