Detroit the Unconquerable: The 1935 World Champion Tigers

It had taken three and a half decades, but the Detroit Tigers were finally crowned the best team in baseball in 1935. Coming on the heels of their hugely disappointing loss in the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals the year before, the Tigers emerged victorious in a thrilling six-game October showdown against a talented Chicago Cubs team.

It was Detroit's first World Series championship. For a city suffering from the Great Depression, it couldn't have come at a better time.

The team was led by player-manager Mickey Cochrane, and featured an offense fueled by Hank Greenberg, Charlie Gehringer, and Goose Goslin (dubber the "G-Men"). On the mound were Lynwood Thomas "Schoolboy" Rowe, Tommy Bridges, Elden Auker, and General Crowder. With 93 victories that summer, the Tigers outpaced the New York Yankees by three games, taking their fifth American League title in club history.

To commemorate the 80th anniversary of this great team, the Society for American Baseball Research is proud to present the 1935 Detroit Tigers in all their glory. With contributions from over 35 members of the SABR BioProject, this book is a delightful account of one of the most significant teams in sports history.

"Navin Field was packed, and when we won Detroit really came alive. As a team we were like a bunch of brothers. Hank, Charlie, Billy, Goose, Schoolboy, Tommy...all of them. I think of those guys often. It was a wonderful time of my life." -Elden Auker

Contents:
Introduction by Scott Ferkovich
Sleeping Giant: Detroit in the 1930s by Gary Gillette
The Babe’s Loss Was Detroit’s Gain: The Cochrane Trade by John Milner
The 1935 Season in Review by Greg Erion
THE OWNER: Frank Navin by Marc Okkonen & David Jones
THE PLAYERS
Elden Auker by Robert H. Schaefer
Tommy Bridges by Rob Neyer
Flea Clifton by Kent Ailsworth
Mickey Cochrane by Charles Bevis
General Crowder by Gregory H. Wolf
Carl Fischer by Jeff Bower
Pete Fox by Gerald Nechal
Charlie Gehringer by Ruth Sadler
Goose Goslin by Cort Vitty
Hank Greenberg by Scott Ferkovich
Clyde Hatter by Frank Schaffer
Ray Hayworth by Chuck Ailsworth
Chief Hogsett by Rory Costello
Roxie Lawson by Alan Cohen
Firpo Marberry by Mark Armour
Chet Morgan by Greg Erion
Marv Owen by Mark Armour
Frank Reiber by Gregg Omoth
Billy Rogell by Raymond Buzenski
Schoolboy Rowe by Gregory H. Wolf
Heinie Schuble by Rodney Johnson
Hugh Shelley by Scott Dominiak
Vic Sorrell by Gregory H. Wolf
Joe Sullivan by Gregory H. Wolf
Gee Walker by David Raglin
Hub Walker by Gregory H. Wolf
Jo-Jo White by Kent Ailsworth
THE COACHES
Del Baker by Rob Neyer
Cy Perkins by C. Paul Rogers III
The Corner of Michigan and Trumbull by Scott Ferkovich
By the Numbers by Dan Fields
“Good Afternoon, Boys and Girls”: The Tigers on the Radio in 1935 by Matthew Bohn
A Mechanical Man, a Hammer, a Goose, and Black Mike: The 1935 Tigers in the Hall of Fame by Doug Lehman
July 8, 1935: American League All-Stars 4, National League All-Stars 1 by Chuck Ailsworth
Detroit: “City of Champions” by Larry & Rob Hilliard
World Series Opponents:The 1935 Chicago Cubs by Gregory H. Wolf
“I Thought I Never Would Get There”: The 1935 World Series by Scott Ferkovich

SABR is the Society for American Baseball Research, a group of over 6,000 enthusiasts about the game of baseball whose research interests range from the game's history to statistical analysis, records, cultural impact, and more. The BioProject is a SABR effort to research, write, and publish biographies of every player--and every person--ever connected with organized baseball. Anyone with a love of baseball can join SABR and become a part of these efforts.