Although he was overshadowed by his contemporary, Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson, Wert earned a reputation as one of the best fielding third basemen in Major League Baseball.[3] He played his final season with the Washington Senators in 1971.[4]
On June 24, 1968, during a game in which Jim Northrup hit two grand slams, Wert was struck in the head by a pitch from Hal Kurtz of the Cleveland Indians.[9] The pitch split Wert's batting helmet.[10] He was carried off on a stretcher, spent two nights in the hospital, missed several games, and "was never the same hitter after that".[11] He had never hit lower than .257 in five prior seasons, but his batting average dropped to a career-low .200 in 1968, as he managed only 107 hits in 536 at bats.[4]
Despite his low average, Wert was selected to the roster of the 1968 American League All Star Team by American League managerDick Williams and doubled off Tom Seaver in the eighth inning, but was stranded in a 1–0 loss.[12] He recorded a ninth inning, game-winning hit on September 17 to clinch the American League pennant.[13][14] Wert also singled in Detroit's final run of the 1968 World Series, driving in Dick Tracewski with two out in the top of the ninth inning in St. Louis, completing the Tigers' comeback to top the defending Series champs, 4–1, winning the series, 4 games to 3.[5][15]
On July 15, 1969, with President Richard Nixon attending the game in Washington, Wert started a triple play on a ground ball hit by Ed Brinkman.[16] On July 9, 1970, Wert was involved in a bizarre play when Dalton Jones hit a fly ball into the upper deck with the bases loaded.[17] What should have been a grand slam ended up being three-RBI single, as Jones passed Wert between first and second base. Jones was called out. Jones later blamed Wert, noting that Wert should have been halfway to second base, prepared to advance if it was a home run, and prepared to return to first if it was caught. Instead, Jones recalled that Wert was returning to first to tag up, and Jones passed Wert one or two steps past first base.[18]
On October 9, 1970, the Tigers traded Wert and Denny McLain to the Washington Senators in an eight-player deal that brought Ed Brinkman, Aurelio Rodríguez, and Joe Coleman to the Tigers.[19] Wert played 20 games for the Senators in 1971.[4] He was batting .050 (two hits in 40 at bats) when he was released on June 24, 1971.[4]
Over nine seasons in the major leagues, Wert played in 1,100 games and had a .242 batting average, 929 hits, 417 runs scored, 389 walks, 366 runs batted in, 129 doubles, and 77 home runs.[4] Wert played 1,043 of his games at third base and collected 914 putouts, 1,987 assists, and 173 double plays.[4]
Death
Wert died at his Strasburg home on August 24, 2024, at the age of 86.[15][20]
