'Mad dash' epitomized Slaughter

His name was romantic, a moniker that captured the essence of the game, that fit a ballplayer like his favorite mitt. His "mad dash" home in Game 7 of the 1946 World Series was poetic, among the most dramatic moments the sport has known.

Enos "Country" Slaughter, the hustling Hall of Famer who tangled with Jackie Robinson the year after his World Series heroics, died yesterday in Durham, N.C., at age 86. He died at Duke University Medical Center after a series of illnesses.

Slaughter was born in Roxboro, N.C., and lived there on a 150-acre farm until his death. But his legend and a good portion of his heart resided in St. Louis, where he spent the first 13 years of his career as a Cardinal.

"He was one of the great hustlers of baseball," Hall of Fame teammate Stan Musial said.

In many ways, Enos Bradsher Slaughter captured and reflected the times in which he played. He was raised on a tobacco farm, the third of six children in the family. Slaughter often credited his powerful, accurate throwing arm to his habit of hunting rabbits as a boy by throwing rocks at them.

Slaughter is best remembered for his dash home with the winning run for the Cardinals against the Boston Red Sox in the eighth inning of Game 7 of the 1946 Series.

With the score tied at 3-3, Slaughter ran through a stop sign at third base and scored from first on Harry Walker's single.

"He outran that ball the last 10 yards," Musial said. "He just outran it."

But Slaughter felt the moment overshadowed his otherwise fine career.

He played in 10 consecutive All-Star games, batting .391 and leading the National League with 130 runs batted in in 1946. Slaughter had 2,383 hits and batted .300 in 19 seasons.

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.

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

National League president Ford Frick stepped in, threatening harsh action against the players. Slaughter vehemently denied involvement in such a plan and disputed charges of racism. But in August 1947, he spiked Robinson in a play at first base, later saying it was unintentional.

Fact is, Slaughter was renowned, if not disliked by opposing players, for his aggressive base running. Robinson wasn't the first player Slaughter spiked, or the last.

Former teammate Dick Schofield once described Slaughter as "a grouch, but that's the way he always was to everyone.

"He was from the old school, the type who sharpened his spikes before a game," Schofield said. "He was tough for anyone to get along with."

In 1985, after frustrating years of coming up short in the regular voting, Slaughter was chosen by the veterans committee and inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Upon hearing of the honor, Slaughter said, "Life is complete."