Reiser was some thirty years removed from the time when he was full of nothing but extraordinary promise with the Brooklyn Dodgers, taking home a batting championship in 1941 at the age of 22 while also leading the league in runs, doubles, triples slugging and total bases.
That season got him a second place finish in the National League MVP race, with teammate Dolph Camilli taking home top honors and another teammate, pitcher Whit Wyatt finishing third.
Reiser arguably had the better season, but we all know how award voting leaves us wondering how decisions are made.
Nevertheless, Reiser was on his way to super-stardom until injuries, World War II, and his own recklessness on the field dramatically cut short his career.
After his amazing 1941 season he came back to have another great year in 1942, hitting .310 while leading the league with 20 stolen bases, making his second straight All-Star team.
The war had him serving military time from 1943-1945, and his first season back in 1946 was another solid year when he again topped the league with 34 stolen bases while hitting .277.
However he was already prone to making all-out attempts in the outfield that led him to serious injuries, having him taken off the field on a stretcher eleven times because of crashing into the outfield wall.
On one occasion he was temporarily paralyzed, on another he lost consciousness, and on yet another he fractured his skull.
Leo Durocher, who was Reiser's first major league manager and brought him onto his coaching staff with the Chicago Cubs, reflected many years later that in terms of talent, skill and potential, there was only one other player comparable to Reiser: Willie Mays.
He also said, "Pete had more power than Willie—left-handed and right-handed both. He had everything but luck."
With all of that he did manage to stick around the Majors until 1952, settling for a ten-year career that was full of such promise in the beginning but ended up with partial seasons playing for the Dodgers, Boston Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates and Cleveland Indians the last five years of his career.
By the time he retired in 1952 at the age of only 33, he finished with a career .295 average, with three All-Star nods and three top-10 MVP finishes.
