CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Lee Muncy is still a fan of the Indians, but they are no longer his favorite team. The Sam McDowell and Louie Tiant Indians of Muncy’s youth have been replaced by the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
The reason is simple. His son Max helped the Dodgers win their first World Series last month since 1988 in six games over the Tampa Bay Rays.
But things could have worked out differently.
The Indians drafted Max Muncy out of Keller High School in Keller, Texas in 2009. He had already committed to attending Baylor University, which may explain why the Indians waited until the 41st round to take him. Still, many in the Muncy family felt he should have signed with the Indians.
“When he got drafted by the Indians, the whole family thought he should sign and forget college,” said Lee Muncy. “We talked about it quite a bit and seriously considered signing. They never formally made an offer because we were asking for a certain amount of money to forego college. We went back and forth, but never formally got an offer from them.”
Said Brad Grant, Indians director of amateur scouting at the time, “The draft was 50 rounds back then. We took Max late because we liked his bat, but he was committed to Baylor. We took him that late in case something didn’t work out with our top picks, but we signed them all and never made a run at trying to sign him.”
(Editor’s note: Right-hander Alex White and second baseman Jason Kipnis were the Indians first two picks in 2009).
Max Muncy hit 35 homers in each of the 2018 and 2019 seasons for the Dodgers. In the 60-game sprint, he hit 12, while playing first, second and third base. The Indians, however, drafted him as a catcher.
“In high school, Max threw a complete game in the first game of a doubleheader,” said Muncy. "The catcher got hurt and the coach asked Max if he could catch the second game. He went on to catch 16 games that year and the scouts said, ‘It looks like this kid could be a pretty good catcher.’”
Lee Muncy’s family moved from West Virginia to East Cleveland when he was in second grade. He attended Shaw High School and was an outfielder for Cuyahoga Community College before attending Ohio State University where he earned a Masters of Science Degree in Geology and Mineralogy.
“I played baseball on the streets every day growing up,” said Muncy. “We’d play at one place and somebody would come and chase us off the lot. Then we’d go somewhere else.”
He spent a lot of time watching Indians games at Municipal Stadium. One of them turned into the infamous Ten Cent Beer Night riot against Texas on June 4, 1974.
“I always thought it was nickel beer night, but I guess they call it Ten Cent Beer Night,” said Muncy. “I was there that night. I stayed in the stands. I was along the third baseline, not the bleachers, but the next cheapest section.
“I went to a lot of games there. The players I remember were Daddy Wags (Leon Wagner), Jimmy Piersall, Sam McDowell, Gaylord Perry and Louie Tiant.”
The World Series was played at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas this year, a neutral site to keep the coronavirus at bay. It worked out perfect for Lee and Midge Muncy. They live in the Dallas-Fort Worth area after moving to Texas in 1979 as Lee began a career in the oil and gas industry.
“We went to all the games, even the games against the Padres in the NLDS,” said Muncy. “There were only partial crowds, but it was loud. The Dodgers fans travel well. I’d say the crowds were 60% to 70% Dodgers fans.”
The World Series crowds at Globe Life Field were limited to 11,000 per game.
“It was still an exciting World Series,” said Muncy. "It was very stressful for the parents and in-laws. We’d go home every night and we were exhausted. We’d go, “Wow this went on and that went on.' There’s a lot of pressure there.”
The players from the Dodgers and Rays, along with the team’s traveling parties, stayed in a quarantine bubble throughout the postseason.
“Max and his wife (Kelley) were in the bubble,” said Muncy. “We weren’t allowed to make physical contact or get anywhere close to him at all. We had to yell at him when he was behind the dugout.”
The Muncys still have family in the Cleveland area. They held a reunion at the All-Star Game in 2019 at Progressive Field. Max Muncy made the NL team as a replacement for injured Anthony Rendon.
“That was actually pretty cool,” said Muncy. “Because we were family we were able to stay in the same hotel. They have a family room there and met the other families and went to all the festivities. The year before (2018) Max was in the Home Run Derby in Washington. The All-Star Game is always a fun time.”
Oakland drafted Max Muncy out of Baylor in the fifth round in 2012. He made his big league debut on April 25, 2015, but less than two years later was released at the end of spring training in 2017. He went home to Texas and worked out at a local high school with his father.
The Dodgers called him at the end of April and offered him a job at Class AAA Oklahoma City. A year later he was back in the big leagues hitting .263 (104-for-395) with 17 doubles, 35 homers and 79 RBI for a Dodger team headed to the World Series.
In a Father’s Day story in 2019, Max Muncy talked to mlb.com about his father. “I owe my whole career to my dad, really,” he said. "He taught me everything I know. He coached me until high school, and even then he was coaching me on the side. In pro ball, he was always the one watching as many games as he can, whether it was a bad internet feed, looking at film I’d send him.
“When I was released from baseball for a couple months, he was the one that got me back on my feet, reminding me how much I love the game. So, really I owe my entire career to him and without him I wouldn’t be here.”
Lee Muncy said Max learned baseball from the ground up.
“He’s got two older brothers (Derek and Mike) so he was always playing with them,” said Muncy. "He was always at the ballfield, throwing the ball against the wall or having pick-up games with everybody’s little brothers.
“He was always around baseball. I coached him from T-ball on up until high school. I always worked with him on the summer teams and travel teams over the years. He probably played 100 to 150 games a year every year. We played three or four nights a week and weekend tournaments.”
In the midst of all those games, and all those innings, Max Muncy developed his versatility.
“He’s played a lot of baseball,” said Muncy. "So when you get on these really good select teams and you get a kid who is primarily a SS, usually those kids can play anywhere. But if you had a kid that could only play first base, then Max would move to the outfield. If you had a kid who could only play the outfield, he’d move to third base or he’d catch.
“He could play anywhere. Some kids couldn’t so we just put him wherever we needed him -- pitcher, catcher, shortstop, second base, third base, outfield. He played all over the place.”
As for what might have been with the Indians, Muncy said his son made the right decision.
“Going on to college was the right choice,” he said. "The big thing is you get more mature. The minor leagues are rough. You’ve got seven-to-eight guys living in a little place, guys sleeping on the floor, eating peanut butter sandwiches for meals.
“It’s a tough long road. It takes a special kind to do that. If you’re a little more mature, the better off you are.”
A variety of Cleveland Indians face masks available online today. (Fanatics.com)
New Indians face masks for sale: Here’s where you can buy Cleveland Indians-themed face coverings for coronavirus protection, including a single mask ($14.99) and a 3-pack ($24.99). All MLB proceeds donated to charity.
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Lee Muncy, father of Los Angeles Dodger Max Muncy, remembers his Cleveland roots - cleveland.com
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