At the end of the 1947 season, Cronin succeeded Eddie Collins as general manager of the Red Sox and held the post for over 11 years, through mid-January . The Red Sox challenged for the AL pennant in and , finishing second by a single game each season, thanks to Cronin's aggressive trades. In his first off-season, he acquired shortstop Vern Stephens and pitchers Ellis Kinder and Jack Kramer from the St. Louis Browns; all played major roles for the 1948 Red Sox, who finished in a flatfooted tie for the pennant with the Cleveland Indians but lost a one-game tie-breaker. Kinder and Stephens were centerpieces of the Red Sox' 1949–1950 contenders as well. In the former year, they were edged out by the Yankees during the regular season's final weekend; in the latter, they finished third but came within four games of the league-leading Yanks.