Maje McDonnell

By John Brazer

“I went from welfare to Mayfair”

If you ever get the pleasure of meeting Maje McDonnell, chances are that you’ll hear a one-liner like the one mentioned above. And, you’ll never meet a more genuine, sweet, and engaging character as Robert “Maje” McDonnell.

Maje grew up in the Kensington/Port Richmond neighborhood of Philadelphia. From the very beginning, he had one dream…to play for the hometown Philadelphia Phillies. Every day as a kid, Maje could be seen on the sandlot with his bat and ball looking for a pickup game of baseball. If he couldn’t rally enough people for a baseball game, he would switch to the hardcourt to play hoops. Small in stature, he was called “the little Major Leaguer” since he told his dream to anyone who would listen. The name “Maje” affectionately stuck and has continued over eighty years later.

“I was a low ball hitter and a highball drinker”

As a senior in high school, Maje played against Villanova’s freshman baseball and basketball teams and led his high school to victories against each team, earning him an athletic scholarship to Villanova the next year. After his sophomore year at Villanova in 1943, he was taken out of school to fight in World War II.

Maje was stationed at Camp Barton Stacy in England in 1944 ready to participate in “Operation Overlord.” As a member of the 95th Infantry Division, 379th Regiment, he landed on Omaha Beach several days after D-Day. Being the third infantry division to hit the beach, Maje and his fellow soldiers witnessed carnage that remains with him to this day. “The smell of death was horrible,” McDonnell remembers. “Coming across the English Channel, we could smell the stench of death two miles out to sea. Terrible.” Maje earned a Bronze Star for finding and stabilizing two soldiers on the beach who were barely living. He would go on to fight battles in Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes, Alsace, and Central Europe, earning five Battle Stars and a Purple Heart. One of the best stories that Maje likes to tell is the time when he got a three-day pass in Paris. Trying to shake off the horror of war, he took over a bar located on the second floor of a building. After entertaining the locals and fellow soldiers with jokes and baseball stories, he told the bartender that the drinks were on him for the entire bar. After celebrating for half an hour, Maje sneaked out the bathroom window and jumped to the ground, leaving the bartender high and dry. “Being in war, you figured you would be killed the next day, anyhow,” recalls McDonnell. “They’re probably still looking for me!”

“My nationality is half scotch, half soda”

Maje got back to the States and resumed his dual playing career at Villanova. In his senior year, he pitched against the Phillies and struck out seven in a 7-6 loss. Jocko Collins, a scout with the Phillies, watched that game and recommended the Villanova captain to the organization.

Although Maje was a highly talented pitcher with a very good curve ball, Jocko recognized his “people skills” and his unconditional love for the game of baseball. Shortly thereafter, Maje joined the Phillies coaching staff in 1948. The highlight of his coaching career came in 1950 when the Phillies beat the Dodgers to clinch the pennant on the last day of the season. Although the Phils lost to the New York Yankees in four games, Phillies fans have a special place in their hearts for the “Whiz Kids,” led by Richie Ashburn and Robin Roberts. Maje became so close to Robin that the two would often walk from the ballpark back to the hotel dissecting the game that just took place. The two remain great friends to this day and stay in touch on a regular basis. Another player on that team was a pitcher named Russ Meyer, “The Mad Monk.” Meyer was an extremely large pitcher with an equally large temper. After watching Meyer give up his fourth home run ball of the game, Manager Eddie Sawyer yelled at Maje to take Meyer out of the game. Normally, the manager would be the guy to take a pitcher out, but Sawyer was so disgusted with Meyer’s performance that he sent the affable Maje to do his dirty work. Trying to look as stern as possible in his 5-foot-6 frame, Maje marched to the mound and said, “Monk, give me the ball!” Meyer yelled, “Maje, you can stick that ball up your &*%$!” Armed with a lightning quick wit, Maje yelled back, “Well, it’s a lot safer up there than where you’re putting it!”

“I went to the dentist today to find out what I should do about my yellow teeth. He said wear a brown tie!”

In the late ’50s/early ’60s, Maje left the Phillies to be the head baseball coach at Chestnut Hill Academy. The school won two Interact championships during his tenure. In 1972, Bill Giles saw one of his games and asked him if he would like to rejoin the Phillies organization in the Community Relations Department. For over 40 years, Maje has lent his instructional expertise to Phillies’ tryout camps and Rookie Leagues, entertained the Phantasy Campers in Clearwater, guided kids on tours of the ballpark, and has made countless numbers of speaking engagements at area schools, hospitals, retirement communities, and rotary clubs throughout the tri-state area. In 2002, he was awarded the Rich Ashburn Special Achievement Award, presented each year to a member of the Phillies’ organization who demonstrates the same loyalty, dedication and passion for the game of baseball as the award’s namesake.

“You go your way and I’ll go with you!”

Maje McDonnell is a beacon of light amongst men of the “greatest generation.” Along with his numerous military awards, he also has four World Series rings (1950, 1980, 1983, and 1993). In 1984, he was inducted into the Villanova Hall of Fame for excellence in basketball and baseball. In recent years, Maje was voted into the Northeast High School Hall of Fame and the Philadelphia Chapter of the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. Yet, if you asked Maje about his greatest accomplishment, he would say being married for 61 years to his sweetheart, Millie, and raising three wonderful daughters. “Millie is the finest person that I could have ever met in my entire life. I thank God for her,” observes McDonnell. Ten years into their marriage, Millie asked Maje whether he liked baseball more than her. He jokingly replied, “Yeah, but I like you better than hockey and basketball!”

“I’m so old, I knew the Dead Sea when it was sick!”

If Frank Capra were alive today and looking for inspiration for his next film, Maje would be the perfect subject. He has certainly had a “wonderful life.” Sir Edmund Hillary, the first person to ever reach the summit of Mt. Everest, once said, “You don’t have to be a fantastic hero to do certain things. You can be just an ordinary chap, sufficiently motivated to reach challenging goals.” Well, Maje is an extraordinary chap who has exceeded the ambitious goals set at a very young age. And, to the countless people that he has touched in his life, he is an American hero.

(John Brazer works for the Phillies. He willingly agreed to write this story in response to a request from the A’s Society for a biographic sketch of Philadelphia baseball icon Maje McDonnell.)