Bill Veeck And The 1948 Cleveland Indians

Sports Illustrated:

Though Boudreau was all of 30 when the 1948 season began and already in his seventh season as both Cleveland's manager and its best player, it seemed impossible that such a creature would be that year's American League's MVP. Hobbled by gimpy ankles, he was about the slowest runner in the league. At the plate, wrote sportswriter Stanley Frank, "Boudreau resembles a man leaning over a fence to read a neighbor's newspaper while in the act of beating a carpet." Yet he had an unheard-of season for a shortstop: .355 average, 98 walks, 18 home runs and 106 RBIs—all while striking out nine times.
It was a surprise that Boudreau was even wearing an Indians uniform that season. The boy manager had nearly been packed off to the St. Louis Browns the previous October by Cleveland's boy owner, 32-year-old Bill Veeck. A fan rebellion made Veeck back down. "Sure, I tried to trade the guy off," Veeck said. "So Boudreau made up his mind then to prove that I was a jerk. That's just what he did."
He did it not only by playing superbly but also by managing well. He eased the American League's first black player, Larry Doby, into the lineup and the league; used ancient righthander Satchel Paige to maximum effect; and, after the regular season ended in a tie, looked past Bob Feller and Bob Lemon to select Gene Bearden to pitch the playoff game against the Red Sox. Managing doesn't get more intuitive than this: In the biggest game of his career, Boudreau turned to a rookie knuckleballer, on one day's rest, throwing from the left side in Fenway Park.
Like everything else that season, it worked. The Indians beat the Red Sox 8-3 and then overcame the Braves in six games to win the World Series. On the strength of Cleveland's success on the field and at the gate—the Indians drew a then major league record 2.62 million fans that season—Veeck unloaded the club for a tasty profit the next year.

A pretty good deal for Veeck, although 2 years later, he'd be bringing Eddie Gaedel to bat for the St. Louis Browns, wearing uniform number 1/8 on August 19, 1951, 60 years ago today:

Gaedel entered the second half of the doubleheader between the Browns and Detroit Tigers in the bottom of the first inning as a pinch-hitter for leadoff batter Frank Saucier. Immediately, umpire Ed Hurley called for Browns manager Zack Taylor. Veeck and Taylor had had the foresight to have a copy of Gaedel's contract on hand, as well as a copy of the Browns' active roster, which had room for Gaedel's addition.
The contract had been filed late in the day on Friday, August 17. Veeck knew the league office would summarily approve the contract upon receipt, and that it would not be scrutinized until Monday, August 20. Upon reading the contract, Hurley motioned for Gaedel to take his place in the batter's box. (As a result of Gaedel's appearance, all contracts must now be approved by the Commissioner of Baseball before a player can appear in a game.) The change to that day's St. Louis Browns scorecard, listing Gaedel and his uniform number, had gone unnoticed by everyone except Harry Mitauer, a writer for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. The Browns' publicity man shunted Mitauer's inquiry aside.
Gaedel was under strict orders not to attempt to move the bat off his shoulder. When Veeck got the impression that Gaedel might be tempted to swing at a pitch, the owner warned Gaedel that he had taken out a $1 million insurance policy on his life, and that he would be standing on the roof of the stadium with a rifle prepared to kill Gaedel if he even looked like he was going to swing. Veeck had carefully trained Gaedel to assume a tight crouch at the plate; he had measured Gaedel's strike zone in that stance and claimed it was just one and a half inches high. However when Gaedel came to the plate, he abandoned the crouch he had been taught for a pose that Veeck described as "a fair approximation of Joe DiMaggio's classic style," leading Veeck to fear he was going to swing. (In the Thurber story, the midget cannot resist swinging at a 3-0 pitch, grounds out, and the team loses the game).
With Bob Cain on the mound - laughing at the absurdity that he actually had to pitch to Gaedel - and catcher Bob Swift catching on his knees, Gaedel took his stance. The Tigers catcher offered his pitcher a piece of strategy: "Keep it low." Cain delivered four consecutive balls, all high (the first two pitches were legitimate attempts at strikes; the last two were half-speed tosses). Gaedel took his base (stopping twice during his trot to bow to the crowd) and was replaced by pinch-runner Jim Delsing. The 18,369 fans gave Gaedel a standing ovation.

Gaedel later worked for Veeck in Chicago dressed as an alien.