Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1976
- Class:
- 1949
Alex Grammas spent three seasons with Dan Patty’s Diamond Dawgs, before spending 43 years in professional baseball as a player and coach.
An Alabama native, Grammas arrived in Starkville in 1947. He would prove to be invaluable for the Bulldogs.
In 1948, the third baseman would help bring the first SEC Championship trophy to Starkville. An encore performance in 1949, highlighted by a 400-foot homer by Grammas, would bring a second trophy home for the Bulldogs. Grammas would receive All-Conference Honors both years.
Grammas led the team with 22 RBI and two home runs in the 1949 season. After their SEC Championship victory, the Bulldogs would make their first NCAA tournament appearance. State would win game one of the district III playoffs in North Carolina, before being dealt back-to-back losses to end the season.
After ending his college years on a high note, Grammas signed his first professional contract in 1949. His professional journey got off to a great start in the Chicago White Sox organization. Grammas batted .327 in his first season with the Muskegon Clippers.
Grammas would work his way through the system and was traded multiple times before his major league debut in 1954 with the St. Louis Cardinals. He would make a position change from third base to shortstop. An above-average fielder for the Cardinals, Grammas was not a power hitter. He hit .264, drawing 40 walks with just 29 strikeouts and two homers. He ranked second in the league among shortstops in fielding percentage.
The Cardinals would trade Grammas to the Reds in 1956. During his time in Cincinatti, he would see action at every infield position besides first base. His 1957 season with the Reds would be the only time in his career he batted over .300 in just 99 at-bats.
Grammas would return to St. Louis in 1958, where he would remain for four years. He would hit the final home run of his career in 1960 with a pitch-hit blast that tied the game. He was traded to the Cubs in 1962 and would play 39 games for Chicago before retiring in 1963.
Following his retirement, Grammas immediately transitioned to the coaching side of the sport. His first head coach job was with the Cubs AA affiliate in Fort Worth. He would spend time in many roles in many clubhouses, managing the Milwaukee Brewers for two seasons.
Grammas coaching career is marked by greatness but is most well recognized for his reputation as Sparky Anderson’s right hand man. The pair would win two World Series Championships together. The first in 1975 at the peak of the Reds’ “Big Red Machine” era, and the other in 1984 with the Detroit Tigers. Additionally, Grammas would coach two other World Series teams.
Following his retirement from the professional world, Grammas returned to Birmingham. He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1993.
A versatile player, legendary third base coach and proven winner on the diamond, Grammas is often affiliated with some of the Mississippi State and professional baseball’s greatest of all time.
