Snuffy Stirnweiss

Who was Snuffy Stirnweiss?

George Henry "Snuffy" Stirnweiss was an American second baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1943 through 1952, Stirnweiss played for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Browns and Cleveland Indians. He batted and threw right-handed.

In a 10-season career, Stirnweiss was a .268 hitter with 29 home runs and 281 RBI in 1028 games played.

A native of New York City, Stirnweiss was an All-American halfback at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After graduating in 1940, he was drafted by the Chicago Cardinals of the National Football League. Nevertheless, he cast his lot with baseball and signed with the New York Yankees organization, starting his major league career with the Yankees in 1943. Stirnweiss was exempt from military service due to chronic ulcers.

Stirnweiss was in three World Series and appeared in the All-Star Game in 1945 and 1946. He won the American League batting title in 1945 with a .309 average. On the final day of the season, he trailed Tony Cuccinello, whose final game had been rained out. After Stirnweiss singled in his first two at-bats, word came from the press box that he was ahead of Cuccinello and should sit out the rest of the game. He refused to do so, but then went out his next two times up. In the final inning, he singled. Without the additional 1-for-3, he would not have beaten Cuccinello. However, this fact was never discussed in the press.