three consecutive years (1926–28), finishing with a .982 career fielding percentage. Ruel also led American League catchers three times in putouts and assists and twice in range factor and in baserunners caught stealing. He made 23 double plays in 1924, the seventh highest season total for catchers in major league history. His reputation as a defensive stand out is enhanced because of the era in which he played. In the Deadball Era, catchers played a huge defensive role, given the large number of bunts and stolen base attempts, as well as the difficulty of handling the spitball pitchers who dominated pitching staffs. Richard Kendall of the Society for American Baseball Research devised an unscientific study that ranked Ruel as the fifth most dominating fielding catcher in major league history. Post-playing career After retiring as a player, Ruel spent a decade as a coach with the Chicago White Sox from 1935 to 1945. He then became an assistant to Commissioner of Baseball Happy Chandler in . He worked with Chandler for only one year before accepting his only managerial job with the St. Louis Browns, where he led the 1947 team to a dismal 59–95 record, good for the American League cellar. Ruel then coached for the Cleveland Indians from 1948 to 1950, winning another world championship as a coach with the Indians in the 1948 World Series. He was later named as the director of the Detroit Tigers' farm system before taking on the role as the Tigers' general manager from 1954 to 1956. Ruel was one of the few major leaguers to hold a law degree. He earned his degree from Washington University in St. Louis and was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court. Ruel is credited for being the first to label the catcher's protective equipment as the "tools of ignorance". This was a self deprecating reference to the harsh, physical demands of the catcher's position due to the exposure to the errant balls, foul tips and collisions at home plate. He is buried at Alta Mesa Memorial Park in Palo Alto, California. Managerial record References External links Muddy Ruel New York Times Obituary at www.thedeadballera.com Tigers Under New Farm Ruel, by Frank Lewis, Baseball Digest, January 1952 Muddy – But Stylish, by Francis Stann, Baseball Digest, February 1964 How Senators' Strategy Won for Johnson, by Muddy Ruel, Baseball Digest, October 1964 1896 births 1963 deaths