Nickname of the Week: Stan 'The Man' Musial

Baseball has a long history of hilarious, appropriate and irreverent nicknames. During the offseason, we'll be exploring the best of these monikers on a weekly basis. This week, we take a look at and remember Stan "The Man" Musial.

Simply put, Stan was the man.

Three MVPs, 20 All-Star games, three World Series rings and, most notably, 22 seasons all spent with the Cardinals.

Musial first signed with the Cardinals in 1938, passing up a basketball scholarship from the University of Pittsburgh. He was an exceptional pitcher, compiling an 18-5 record with a 2.62 ERA (and a .311 batting average) while playing for the Redbirds' Class D team in Daytona Beach in 1940.

The Pennsylvania native injured his shoulder that same season and wasn't used on the mound again. But that was fine because Stan could, you know, hit. 

Musial started off his big league career with a late-season callup in 1941 and hit .426 in 12 games. The Man went on to lead the league in batting average seven different times and in hits six times, finishing his career with a .331 lifetime average. Ty Cobb called him as perfect as ballplayers come. Catcher Joe Garagiola said "He could've hit .300 with a fountain pen."

St. Louis Post-Dispatch writer Bob Broeg coined Musial's nickname after opposing (yes, opposing) fans were chanting "Here comes the man!" when the batting champ stepped up to the dish.

Stan also served in the military in 1945, was married to his wife Lillian for almost 72 years and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1969. Sadly, Musial passed away on Saturday at the age of 92.

So, we remember Stan this weekend and admire his love for the game, for the fans and for his country -- all things that truly loved him back. And if that doesn't make you "The Man," I'm not sure what does.