Early Career
Walker first attracted attention when he batted .401 for Class B Greenville of the South Atlantic League in 1930. That year, at age 17, Walker was obtained by the Yankees for a then-record USD$25,000. Although he lacked smoothness, Walker was such an outstanding prospect that the organization envisioned him as Babe Ruth's successor after batting .350 in the International League. Basically a pull hitter with some power, he was also a fast runner and a competent outfielder with a fine throwing arm. Nevertheless, in his 1931 rookie season he crashed into a fence and suffered a shoulder injury that impaired his throwing. The injury was corrected with a surgery and he was out in 1932 but the injury recurred a year later after a slide into second base. His first full season came in 1933 when he hit 15 home runs in 328 at-bats, and batted .274. But the following season, injuries limited Walker to 17 games and 17 at-bats, and he batted only .118. In 1935, the Yankees sent Walker to the minor leagues. In May 1936, Walker's past injuries and the arrival of the Yankees' new star, Joe DiMaggio, prompted manager Joe McCarthy to trade Walker to the White Sox despite his .350 average. In total, Walker played only 131 games for the Yankees in a span of six years.
With the White Sox, Walker hit .302 and tied for the American League lead in triples in 1937, but re-injured the damaged shoulder so badly that he needed surgery again. That December, he was traded to the Detroit Tigers in a multi-player deal. He continued to hit more than .300 with the Tigers before ripping cartilage in a knee in 1939. Despite his consistently high batting average, it seemed injuries were going to prematurely end his career. Placed on waivers, Walker was obtained by the Dodgers on July 24, 1939 when they were in need of outfielders. Although Walker played regularly in the Brooklyn outfield for the rest of 1939, he batted only .280 with no power. Still, manager Leo Durocher, another Yankee discard, liked Walker's stroke and penciled him in as a regular in 1940.
Read more about this topic: Dixie Walker
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