Al Lopez held the career mark for games caught as a catcher for four decades. This 'Hall of Famer' caught an amazing 1918 games. In his first full season, 1930, he batted .309 for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He played in the 1934 All-Star game and the next year was traded to the Boston Bees (Braves). Lopez led NL catchers in fielding four times and in 1941, he played 114 games without a passed ball. His 12 seasons of catching over 100 games ranks 2nd only to Johnny Bench's 13 in the 1900s.

Al Lopez was rated, "a catcher's catcher; with his good glove, strong throwing arm and his ability to handle pitchers with his soothing personality". He retired from playing in 1947 and became the Cleveland Indians' manager in 1951. Lopez's knowledge and gentle personality brought instant success to the Indians.

He piloted the 'Tribe' to an AL record 111 wins in 1954 only to lose to the N.Y. Giants. This team featured one of the greatest pitching staffs in baseball; with Bob Lemon, Mike Garcia, Early Wynn and relievers Don Mossi and Ray Narleski. The next two season, Lopez guided the Indians to two straight 2nd place finishes.

In 1957, Al Lopez became the Chicago White Sox manager. His success with the "Go Go White Sox" brought them the pennant in 1959; their first pennant since 1919. In the 1959 Eorld Series the Dodgers bested the White Sox 4 games to 2  win the title. Lopez's managerial record was 1,400 wins and 1,004 loses; the third best of all-time. Only one of his teams finished below second place; the 1960 White Sox were third. After he retired in 1965, Mr. Al Lopez could be seen in the seating section of the Comiskey Park grandstands and always found time to autograph fans scorecards. In his great 'Hall of Fame' career, Al Lopez batted .261 in 5916 at bats, lined 206 Doubles and only struckout 538 times. baseballhistorian.com Baseball History