awe. Carey noted that Kessinger would regularly go to his right, toward left field, spear the ground ball and then, demonstrating a unique agility, reverse while in the air as he whipped the ball toward first base. "Do you think it might be because Don was a great basketball player?" asked Caray. Without hesitation, Jenkins responded, "In the past five games he's made many great plays to his right. Don has this play down pat." Kessinger had another good season in 1970, producing a .266 batting average while scoring 100 runs. He led the entire league in assists for the third consecutive year and claimed his second Gold Glove Award. On June 17, 1971 he went 6-for-6, becoming the first Cubs with a six hit game in nearly 34 years. He continued to be one of the cornerstones of the Cubs' infield, earning three more All-Star berths in 1971, 1972 and 1974. In October 1975, after 11 seasons with the Cubs, Kessinger was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals—for pitcher Mike Garman and infielder Bobby Hrapmann. He was the last remaining Cub from the 1969 season when they almost won the pennant. The 33-year-old Kessinger still played well in St. Louis, ending the season with a .320 on-base percentage and was second in the league in range factor. In August 1977, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox—for pitcher Steve Staniland—who were seeking to bolster their infield strength. The White Sox held a "Don Kessinger Night" on September 8, 1978, where 31,000 Chicago baseball fans (said to consist, in Baseball Digest, of nearly equal numbers of Sox and Cubs fans) thanked #11 for his years of service at shortstop. On October 19, 1978, White Sox President Bill Veeck named Kessinger to be the team's player-manager (the last in AL history). He was managing at Comiskey Park on July 12, 1979 when the infamous "Disco Demolition Night" took place, and wisely locked his players in the locker room between games, avoiding the near-riot. With the White Sox languishing in 5th place in the standings, Kessinger resigned on August 2, 1979 and was replaced by Tony La Russa. Managerial record Career statistics In a 16-year major league career, Kessinger played in 2,078 games, accumulating 1,931 hits in 7,651 at bats for a .252 career batting average along with 14 home runs, 527 runs batted in and an on-base percentage of .314.