A native of Hamtramck, Michigan, Kazanski was a classic slick fielder, slap-hitter, who used the entire field to his advantage. One of the most highly rated schoolboy ballplayers of his time, he was given a reported $100,000 bonus to sign with the Phillies in 1951.\n', ' He spent two and a half seasons in the Philadelphia Minor League system before joining the big club in the 1953 midseason, at nineteen years of age.\n', '

In his majors debut, Kazanski went 3-for-6 and drove in four runs from the top of the order, to lead the Phillies to a 13–2 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Kazanski became the first player since 1920 – the first season runs batted in was recorded as an official statistic – to drive in at least four runs as a shortstop in his major league debut, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He finished the season with a .217 batting average in 95 games.\n', '

In 1954 Kazanski was relegated to backup and platoon infield duties, splitting time with Bobby Morgan and Granny Hamner. He spent most of 1955 at Triple-A. His most productive season came in 1956, when he posted career-highs in games (117), home runs (4), RBI (34) and hits (80), while hitting .211. In that season, he belted a three-run home run (on April 22 ) and an inside-the-park grand slam (on August 8), to provide two of the 19 victories of Phillies pitching ace Robin Roberts. He also started a triple play in the same game as his inside the park grand slam, a feat that would not be duplicated until Ángel Pagán did so on May 19, 2010\n', '

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