In 1926 Koenig and Tony Lazzeri became the Yankees’ double play combination. Switch-hitter Koenig batted second. He had a shaky rookie year afield with a league-leading 52 errors during the season and 4 more in the 1926 World Series, one of which opened the door to the Cardinals’ winning rally in Game Seven. He batted .500 in the 1927 Series, and in 1928 again led the AL in errors, but hit a career-high .319. In 1929 Leo Durocher played more games at shortstop than he did, and the following year, Koenig was traded to Detroit, where he played some short, some second, and pitched unsuccessfully. Released to the San Francisco Missions (Pacific Coast League) in 1932, he was called up by the Cubs in August when Billy Jurges was shot, hit .353 in a 33-game dash for the pennant, and was awarded an ungenerous one half Series share. The Cubs’ WS opponents were his old teammates, the Yankees, who reacted hotly to this supposed mistreatment. Some accounts say that Ruth’s “called shot” HR was an indirect result, with Ruth razzing Cubs pitcher Root. With Cincinnati in 1934, old-timers Koenig and Jim Bottomley refused to fly on road trips, taking the train instead.
