St. Louis Cardinals History: All the Cardinal rookies to make the All Star team

Eddie Kazak -1949

1949 was Kazak's rookie season because he only had 22 at-bats in 1948. He played third base for the Cardinals in 1949 and hit .302 with 4 home runs and 38 RBI in the first half earning him a starting spot on the National League All-Star team, the only rookie to be named an All-Star that year.

On July 12, 1949, Kazak batted 7th and played 3B for the NL at Ebbets Field, then the home of the Brooklyn Dodgers. The National Leagues lineup had 6 Hall of Famers including current Cardinal Stan Musial. In the game, Kazak went 2 for 2 at the plate, recording a single off of starter Mel Parnell, and then an RBI single in the 3rd off of Virgil Trucks to give the National League a 5-4 lead. He was then replaced in the following inning with Sid Gordon. The AL won the game 11-7.

Kazak would only play 15 games in the second half of 1949, he finished the season with a .304 average with 6 home runs and 42 RBI. He never found the same success he had in his rookie season, mainly due to injuries that likely can be directed back to an injury sustained in Normandy during World War 2, as he would only play 120 games the rest of his career and hit just .233 in those games.

In 1952, he along with Wally Westlake, was traded to the Reds for Dick Sisler and Virgil Stallcup, less than 2 months after the trade he was out of major league baseball. After his big league career, he would go on to play until his 40s in the Texas League.