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Mathews remembered Ex-teammates remember Mathews as slugger, scrapper
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Eddie Mathews was a slugger and a scrapper but also a student of the game who worked hard to polish his defensive skills and become one of baseball's best third basemen. That's how his former Milwaukee Braves teammates remember Mathews, who died Sunday in a California hospital at the age of 69. A left-handed batter known for his smooth swing, Mathews hit 512 career homers and helped the Braves reach the World Series twice, beating the New York Yankees in seven games in 1957 -- after Yankees manager Casey Stengel had labeled Milwaukee "Bushville." The Yankees won the series in a rematch the next year that also went the full seven games. Johnny Logan, former Braves shortstop, was saddened at the death of "one of my good teammates, especially my sidekick on the right side, with the combination of hitting and being a good defensive man that tells you have a Hall of Famer."
Logan rates Mathews as one of the all-time best third basemen. "You know he was a home run hitter, and back in the '50s everybody loved home runs, but he worked himself into becoming a great third baseman," Logan said. He recalled how one of the Braves coaches would hit 50 to 100 ground balls at Mathews in spring training. "He'd knock them down with his chest and pick them up," Logan told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "He broke his nose three times fielding balls. He'd work hard for a couple of hours, then we'd go to a bar and have a cold one. Actually, we'd have three or four or five." Logan described Mathews as direct, honest, stubborn and "the kind of teammate you wanted on your side." "He was a tough guy but he didn't know how to start a fight. I started them and he finished them," Logan said. "Eddie was a tough competitor and a tough guy," said left-hander Warren Spahn, one of the other ex-teammates of Mathews interviewed by the Journal Sentinel. "He didn't back down from anybody." "With Eddie, you never worried about anything," said former Braves pitcher Lew Burdette. "If somebody charged the mound when you were pitching, you knew he was going to be there. Eddie used to tell me, 'Let the son of a gun charge you and get the hell out of the way.'" Career home run king Hank Aaron said Mathews had a knack for hitting homers in the clutch, when the Braves needed them most. "He hit so many big home runs for us. He was such a hard worker, and he hated to lose," Aaron said. "This is very sad, but I know Eddie suffered for a long time with all of his health problems. You don't wish that on anyone." "It's a sad day," said baseball commissioner and former Milwaukee Brewers president Bud Selig. "When you saw him play, you knew you were seeing greatness."
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