Don Money, An Outstanding Defender At Third In The Age Of Brooks Robinson

[Michael Trzinski]

Don Money was an excellent fielding, hard-hitting infielder who starred for the Milwaukee Brewers from 1973-1983, collecting four All-Star berths. He ranks fifth overall on the Brewers with a Wins Above Replacement number of 28.4 for his career, seventh with 1,168 hits, and eighth with 215 doubles. The man nicknamed "Brooks" never won a Gold Glove, but with competition like Brooks Robinson and Doug Rader (five-time NL Gold Glover at 3rd base), winning isn't always easy. 

Donald Wayne Money was born in June 1947 in Washington, DC. His family moved to Cherry Hill, New Jersey when Money was an infant. He started playing baseball when he was seven years old and played every year for the next 31 years until he retired at age 37.

Don Money graduated from La Plata High School (Maryland) in 1965 and was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates two weeks after his 18th birthday. The right-handed infielder began his pro career at Salem (Virginia) in the rookie Appalachian League, where he made the All-Star team despite batting only .241 with six home runs. Money enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserves after the season and was on active duty one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer for the next eight years. The following season, Money played for Clinton (Iowa) in the Class-A Midwest League, where he once again struggled with the bat, slashing only .236/.304/.341 in 125 games.

In 1967, Money had arguably his finest minor league season with a slash line of .310/.382/.508 across 545 plate appearances for Raleigh (North Carolina) in the Class-A Carolina League. After lighting up the Florida Winter Instruction League in the offseason with a batting line of .336/.414/.544 and a league-leading six homers, Money was traded shortly before Christmas, along with pitchers Harold Clem, Woodie Fryman, and Bill Laxton to the Philadelphia Phillies for pitcher Jim Bunning.

Money started the 1968 season with the Phillies, and in his first major league game, he doubled off Dodgers pitcher Claude Osteen in the eighth inning for his first big-league hit. In mid-April, after only four games with the Phillies, Money was optioned to Triple-A San Diego in the Pacific Coast League for the remainder of the season, where he batted .303/.353/.430. Other than two brief flings in the Florida winter leagues the next two seasons, Money would never again toil in the minors.

Over the next four seasons, Money was a regular for Philadelphia, playing primarily at third base or shortstop, but he also played left field and second base. In his first full season (1969), he was named the Topps Major League Rookie All-Star shortstop. After hitting .295/.361/.463 in 1970, his batting average fell to .223 in 1971 and .222 in 1972. Money had said that playing numerous positions did not help matters at the plate. With future Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt waiting in the wings, Money was traded on Halloween 1972 with pitcher Bill Champion and infielder John Vukovich to the Milwaukee Brewers for pitchers Jim Lonborg, Ken Brett, Ken Sanders, and Earl Stephenson.

In his first season with the Brewers, Money slashed .284/.347/.401 with 11 bombs and 22 steals, a career high. The following season was almost a carbon copy of 1973, as Money had a batting line of .283/.346/.415 with 15 home runs, earning All-Star Game honors. He also set a major league record with 86 consecutive errorless games at third base and committed only five errors during the season. Despite those numbers, Money was denied the Gold Glove in the American League; Brooks Robinson won it for the 15th straight year. Money’s new nickname became “Brooks.”

After another solid year in 1975, Money again earned All-Star honors from 1976 to 1978. He hit a career-high 25 home runs and 83 RBIs in 1977 and followed up with a nice season in 1978, which would be his last as a full-time player. Money slashed .293/.361/.440 in 137 games. He also clubbed 14 homers and 30 doubles in a solid season.

Injuries plagued the rest of his career, and he never played more than 96 games after 1978. In 1982, he played only 28 games in the field but platooned at designated hitter with southpaw Roy Howell as the Brewers made it to the World Series for the first (and only) time in franchise history. Money went 3-for-13 with a double and an RBI in the seven-game loss to St. Louis in the “Suds Series.”

Money played his final big-league season in 1983 but saw sporadic action, hitting only .149/.221/.219 in 43 games. After the season, he turned down a small contract from Milwaukee and took an offer to play in Japan for the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes. After only 29 games, Money and his family returned home after his Japanese experience was less than memorable.

His major league numbers included 1,720 games, 1,623 hits, 302 doubles, 176 home runs, 729 RBIs, and a career slash line of .261/.328/.406.

After his retirement, he coached for five years at Sacred Heart High School in New Jersey and then managed the Brewers organization at Beloit (1998-2004), Huntsville (2005-2008), and Nashville (2009-2011). He served as a hitting coach and special instructor from 2012-2015.

His grandson Buddy Kennedy has played with Arizona, Detroit, and Philadelphia and is currently in the Phillies organization.

Money was elected to the Brewers ‘Walk of Fame’ in 2005 and the Brewers ‘Wall of Honor’ in 2014.

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[LakeshoreLarry]

Being a long time Brewer fan, I appreciate the article.  Thanks.  I remember being disappointed he didn't win the gold glove the year we went 81 consecutive errorless games.  He was always one of my favorite Brewers.

[Michael Trzinski]

7 hours ago, LakeshoreLarry said:

Being a long time Brewer fan, I appreciate the article.  Thanks.  I remember being disappointed he didn't win the gold glove the year we went 81 consecutive errorless games.  He was always one of my favorite Brewers.

I've been a Brewer fan since 1970, so I am right with you. Money was a great defender and a pretty solid bat, too. I think he was in a lot of fans' Top 10 fave player lists.

[Austin Tatious]

I think he shifted to second base when Bando came over too.