Baseball History

[67RedSox]

It was on this date in 1926 that Lou Gehrig swipes home on the front end of a double steal with Babe Ruth as the trailing runner. The Yankee first baseman will steal 102 bases during his career with 15 of the thefts being of home plate. Stealing home is something that you don’t see very often and I was really surprised to see that Gehrig did it 15 times in his career.
Speaking of stealing home brings up another name…Vic Power. Power is the only player in the past 85 years to steal Home twice in one game when he did it in 1958 while playing for the Indians in a game against the Tigers. Power was a 1B who toiled in the AL for 12 years from the mid 1950’s to the mid 1960’s. I wish his career had started and ended 10 years later than it did because I would have got to see him play some. He was one of those sensational players who never really got Star status because he played on teams buried in the depth of the League Standings. He was, though, recognized for his superb glove work as he won 7 consecutive Gold Gloves at 1B from 1958 – 1964 when winning a GG actually meant something. Here’s a story from Jim Mudcat Grant about Power:
"I think Vic (Power) was one of the best-fielding first basemen of all-time. He'd catch balls on one hop, two hops, all sorts of ways. I remember once when he missed a popup over his head, down the right-field line. After the game, he took his glove into the clubhouse and cut it into little bitty pieces. He said he didn't need that glove anymore."

It’s been 30 years but on this date in 1983 in the memorable Pine Tar Game at Yankee Stadium, George Brett hits an apparent 2-run home run off Rich Gossage to give the Royals a 5-4 lead with two outs in the ninth inning. But Yankees manager Billy Martin points out that the pine tar on Brett's bat handle exceeds the seventeen inches allowed in the rules. As a result, Brett is called out for illegally batting the ball, giving New York a 4-3 victory. The Royals immediately protest, and American League President Lee MacPhail overrules his umpires for the first time saying that, while the rules should certainly be rewritten and clarified, the home run will stand and the game will be resumed from that point on August 18.

It was on this date in 1995 that the Rockies defeat Philadelphia by a score of 11-3. Two of the Phillies' runs score on a PH HR by Omar Olivares in the 5th inning. No big deal and hardly worth mentioning except that Olivares was a pitcher and today you don’t often see a pitcher used as a pinch-hitter and even rarer when they do pinch-hit and knock one out.
However, pitchers were among the first pinch-hitters used in 1891 when they were officially allowed. Pitchers were used frequently as pinch hitters by 1900. Later, when pinch hitting became a more common practice, several hurlers led all substitute batsmen in season pinch hitting average up until about 1940. Some pitchers of note like Walter Johnson, Don Newcombe, Red Ruffing and Bob Lemon were frequently used as pinch-hitters. As Baseball became more and more a game of specialists the use of pitchers as pinch-hitters declined. Of late, I can think of Micah Owings, who in his 5 and a bit seasons in the Majors as a pitcher has managed 9 HRs but only one as a pinch-hitter and Carlos Zambrano who clubbed 24 HRs but was absolutely horrible as a pinch-hitter.
The All-Time leader among pitchers with 4 pinch-hit HRs is Gary Peters. Peters was a very good pitcher in the 1960’s, one of the best in the American League where he was ROTY in 1963, a 20 game Winner and also won two ERA Crowns. He was a remarkably good hitter – 19 home runs in his career made him a frequent pinch-hitter.

Feast or famine for Pat Seerey. Six days after hitting four homers in one game, the White Sox outfielder again makes the record book on this date in 1948 becoming the first MLer to strike out seven times in a doubleheader. His career was brief. He had only four seasons where he could be classified as anything close to a regular. In 1944 he had 342 ABs, in 1945 he had 414 ABs, in 1946 he 404 ABs and in 1948 he had 363 ABs. In each of those seasons he led the AL in Strikeouts.

Except for highlight reels none of us saw what is known simply as, “The Catch” …Willie Mays’ unbelievable catch of Vic Wertz’s drive in the 1954 World Series game at the Polo Grounds. As sensational as that catch was it could be argued that it was on this date in 1951 that Willie Mays made an even greater catch:

At cavernous Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Mays, unable to reach across his body to make a catch with his glove of Rocky Nelson's sinking 457-foot blast to deep center, sticks out his bare right hand and grabs the ball on a full gallop to make the incredible final out of the inning. Venerable Branch Rickey, Pittsburgh's general manager, sends a note to the New York dugout during the game to tell the 20-year rookie, "That was the finest catch I have ever seen, and the finest I ever expect to see".

If you listen to Mays himself he's partial to another catch he made in Forbes Field in 1957 :

Forbes Field's vast centerfield expanse provides the setting. His young friend, admirer, protégé and rival, Roberto Clemente was at the plate and hits a ball that seems headed towards a light tower in left center. The New York Times's Roscoe McGowen recounts what happens next: "In the first inning, with two Pirates on base and one out, Roberto Clemente whacked a terrific drive toward the screen surrounding the light tower in left center field, more than 440 feet from home plate. Willie astonished the players, as well as the fans, by leaping high against the screen and making a glove-twisting catch.

The problem with being as great as Mays was is there's just too many highlight plays to be able to pick one over another.

 

[67RedSox]

It was on this date in 1930 at Cleveland’s League Park that the Philadelphia Athletics pull off two triple steals in one game. The double-triple steal takes place the first inning and then again in the fourth as Philadelphia whips the Indians, 14-1. Since 1900 there have been 21 Perfect Games in the Majors and since 1875 there have been 281 No-Hitters (not counting the perfect Games) yet the above-mentioned double-triple steal is the only one in the history of the game. That boggles my little mind. I guess loading the bases and have the runners try to steal is infinitely more difficult to do than retire 27 straight batters.

Speaking of stealing bases Ned Cuthbert, playing for the Philadelphia Keystones in either 1863 or 1865, is documented as the first player to steal a base in a baseball game, although the term stolen base was not used until 1870. For a time in the 19th century, stolen bases were credited when a baserunner reached an extra base on a base hit from another player. For example if a runner on first base reached third base on a single, it would count as a steal. In 1887, Hugh Nicol set a still-standing Major League record with 138 stolen bases, many of which would not have counted under modern rules. Modern steal rules were fully implemented in 1898. Base stealing was popular in the game's early decades, with speedsters such as Ty Cobb and Clyde Milan stealing nearly 100 bases in a season. But the tactic fell into relative disuse after Babe Ruth introduced the era of the home run – in 1955, for example, no one in baseball stole more than 25 bases, and Dom DiMaggio won the AL stolen base title in 1950 with just 15. However, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, base-stealing was brought back to prominence primarily by Luis Aparicio and Maury Wills, who broke Cobb's modern single-season record by stealing 104 bases in 1962. Wills' record was broken in turn by Lou Brock in 1974, and Rickey Henderson in 1982. The stolen base remained a popular tactic through the 1980s, perhaps best exemplified by Vince Coleman and the St. Louis Cardinals, but began to decline again in the 1990s as the frequency of home runs reached unprecedented heights and the steal-friendly artificial turf ballparks began to disappear.

Well, there’s been a few feats other than the double-triple steal happening only once in Baseball annals like Johnny Vander Meer’s back-to-back No-Hitters in 1938. How about the Tampa Rays pulling off a triple play with the bat not touching the ball… Raul Ibanez of the Mariners got called out on strikes. Meanwhile Adrian Beltre was trying to steal second, and was thrown out. While he was getting thrown out, Jose Lopez tried to score from third and got thrown out at home plate.
Here’s one I can’t imagine happening but it did. If it happened once I guess it could happen again but I’m betting it won’t…back-to-back homers by the same two teammates twice in one inning. This was accomplished by Mike Cameron and Bret Boone, Seattle Mariners, May 2, 2002. In the first inning of the Mariners versus White Sox, Cameron and Boone hit back-to-back home runs. Seattle batted around... and, in the same inning, Cameron and Boone went back-to-back again. That is simply crazy.

It was on this date in 1941 that lefty Grove picks up his 300th and last ML victory. Lefty Grove may have been baseball’s greatest all-time pitcher. He was certainly its most dominant. No one matched his nine ERA titles, and his .680 winning percentage (300-141) is the highest among 300 game winners (eighth best overall). After winning 111 games in a minor-league career that delayed his major-league debut until he was 25, Grove led the American League in strikeouts his first seven years, pitched effectively in hitter’s’ parks (Shibe Park, Fenway Park) and starred in three World Series. Few if any pitchers threw tantrums on a par with the 6’3”, 190-pound Lefty, who did everything big. He even led all pitchers by striking out 593 times as a batter. After the 1941 season ended Grove visited with Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey in December to tell him he was retiring. The news was upstaged by the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. Though he suffered reverses in retirement that would have soured many — getting divorced, outliving his only son, needing financial help from baseball — Grove nurtured the kinder, gentler side of his character long suppressed. He outfitted Philadelphia sandlotters, sent two youngsters through college and coached kid teams. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1947, his first year of eligibility.

There are, at present, 65 former ML players who are at least 90 years of age, three of whom, played into the 1960’s…Red Schoendienst, Alvin Dark and one of Baseball’s most colourful characters of all time, Jungle Jim Rivera who went from being born impoverished in Spanish Harlem, to 10 years in an orphanage, to a life sentence in prison, to under Rogers Hornsby wing in both the PCL and then the Majors for 10 seasons, to playing in the ’59 World Series…and he’s still going 50 years later.

 

[67RedSox]

It was on this date in 1918 Brooklyn rookie Henry Heitman completed one of the shortest careers in ML history. Heitman appeared on the mound against the St. Louis Cardinals, gave up four consecutive hits and then left the game, never to play a major league game again.

I see where it was on this date in 1928 that Yankee Outfielder, Bob Meusel, hit for the cycle in a game against the Tigers in Detroit. Hitting for the cycle happens, so far 303 times but this one is worth mentioning for two reasons. First, because it was the 3rd time that Meusel hit for the cycle and to this day he’s the only AL’er to do so and second, it provides an opportunity to talk about one of the best players of the 1920’s that most don’t know because he played on a team with a couple of guys by the name of Ruth and Gehrig who tended to get all the headlines.
A couple of oddities…at least to me… about his hitting for the cycle are the pitchers he did it against. One was HOFer, Walter Johnson. The other two were Jim Sullivan and Charlie Eckert. In the early days of the Majors Leagues, certainly well into the 20th century, the number of players from California was a small minority. Meusel although born in San Jose grew up in the downtown L.A. area and Johnson although born in Kansas also moved to L.A. because the oil fields of Southern California offered his father work and a chance to escape poverty. Two players of such calibre from L.A. squaring off against each other in those days was uncommon. As for Sullivan and Eckert neither won a game in their ML careers.
Meusel played the entire 1920’s with the Yankees. Among HR and RBI totals for the decade he ranks in the Top 5. In fact, in 1925, he led the AL in both HRs and RBIs with 33-138… that was the season Ruth had the ‘bellyache heard round the world’ . His value as an outfielder was outstanding, too. He had one of the best outfield arms ever—in the same class as Roberto Clemente, Carl Furillo and Willie Mays and could whip the ball with lightning-fast speed and laser-beam accuracy, to any base or home plate. Meusel’s throws were usually caught on the fly, rather than on a bounce or two. He developed his arm strength as a kid by constantly throwing stones for long distances. Meusel and Ruth would alternate positions, depending upon the individual ballpark because Ruth wanted to avoid facing the glaring sun. For instance, Ruth played right field in Yankee Stadium, since the sun shone on left field. The situation was reversed at Fenway Park.
His older brother was the Giants’ Emil “Irish” Meusel (of German descent), who four times drove in over 100 runs. One of their greatest thrills was opposing each other in three straight World Series from 1921-23. The brothers had somewhat similar career statistics. For example, they both played eleven years, with one batting .310 and the other .309. They were the first siblings to combine for fifty home runs in the same season (1925). They were also the only brothers who both won RBI titles.
During his career of 10 seasons with the Yankees and a final one with Cincinnati he played with 13 Hall of Fame players some of whom felt he belonged there but he never made it. Unlike modern ballplayers who never need to work a day in their lives unless they want to Meusel found a second career and worked as a security guard at a U.S. Naval Yard for many years after his baseball days were over.

After just mentioning the lack of players from California in the first few decades of the 1900’s I better mention another…Joe DiMaggio who on this date in 1933 sees his 61-game hitting streak come to an end in the PCL game against the Oakland Oaks. The San Francisco Seals' 19-year old outfielder's accomplishment sets a new minor league record, shattering the mark of 49 established by Jack Ness in 1914. For the three seasons 1933-34-35 the Seals’ fans in SF must have had as much fun watching DiMaggio play as the Yankee fans in NY would later have. In those three seasons he hit a mere .361 and had 270 Basehits one year and 259 in another. An added attraction was the ballpark…Seal’s Stadium, after all there were three breweries on the adjoining North West corners of the Stadium, which included Hamm’s, Budweiser and Lucky Lager. In the picture below I believe that would be in the area behind the 1st base side.

https://www.google.ca/search?q=seal...F%2Fwww.hjbrunnier.com%2Fhistory.html;398;203

On this date in 1963, 50 years ago today the Chicago White Sox play in Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium and lose the game, 3-0. The WP was Milt Pappas who would go on in his career to Win over 200 games and become the first pitcher to Win 200 without a 20 Win season. He would also toss a No-Hitter. The LP was Dave DeBusschere who would decide at season’s end he would be better off playing basketball …so he did and it was a wise choice as 20 years later he would enter the Basketball Hall of Fame and later be chosen as one of the 50 Greatest players in NBA history.

During a game at Connie Mack Stadium in 1957 Richie Ashburn of the Philadelphia Phillies hit spectator, Alice Roth, with a foul ball, breaking her nose. As Alice was being carried off the field on a stretcher, Ashburn hit her with another foul ball, breaking a bone in her knee.

 

[67RedSox]

Ken Ash pitched in the Minor Leagues from 1924 to 1940 with a few trips to the Majors… 49 games over four seasons. He compiled a none-too-impressive ML record of 6-8 with a 4.96 ERA, mostly with Cincinnati between 1928 and 1930. Ash's final ML win brought him more recognition than any of his other performances. It was on this date in 1930 with the Reds down by one run in the fifth inning against the Cubs, Ash entered the game with the bases loaded and none out. He delivered only one pitch to Charley Grimm, who hit into a triple play. In the bottom of the inning, Ash was removed for a pinch hitter as the Reds scored three runs and coasted to victory. Ash was credited with the win. Three outs and a victory on one pitch! A Ripley's "Believe It or Not" feature depicted the event in newspapers across the country the following year.

July 27th is a date HOFer Don Sutton likely remembers. It was on this date in 1986 he was part of two 300-game winners facing each other. He hurled six strong innings to outpitch Tom Seaver and give the California Angels a 3-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox. 12 years later on this date in 1998 Sutton is inducted into the Hall of Fame.

On this date in 1964 Heinie Manush, a very good Outfielder with a .330 lifetime batting average, was inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame. During his career from 1923-1939 he won a batting crown in 1926, lead the Majors with 241 Basehits in 1928 and lead the AL with 221 Basehits in 1933. A couple of things about Manush winning and losing close Batting Crowns.
Going into the final day of the 1926 season Manush trailed not only Babe Ruth, but teammates Bob Fothergill and Harry Heilmann, in the race. But he pounded out six hits in nine at-bats during a doubleheader to overtake all three and win the Crown. Two years later he and arch-rival Goose Goslin battled for the Batting Crown not only to the final game of the season but to the 9th inning of that final game in which Manush’s Browns were playing Goslin’s Senators. Manush, in his last at bat made an out, giving Goslin a one-point lead. With the game headed into the top of the ninth, Goslin was due to bat. A note came to the dugout from the press box updating Goslin on the batting race reminding him if he batted and made an out he would lose the title. Teammate, Joe Judge, warned him Manush might think he was yellow if a pinch-hitter batted for him. The other players got involved with everyone giving his opinion. Goslin made a decision. He would bat. In no time Goslin was in trouble with two strikes, no balls, and his batting title in jeopardy. He thought of an idea to save his title: if he could make the umpire angry enough to throw him out of the game which would preserve the batting title. And what better umpire was there than Bull Guthrie, who had a short fuse, and was known to be quick to eject a player.

“Why those weren’t even close,” Goslin told Guthrie.

“Listen, wise guy, there’s no such thing as close or not close. It’s either dis or dat,” responded Guthrie.

Goslin responded by acting mad; he yelled, stepped on Guthrie’s big feet, and called him names. Guthrie waited for Goslin to finish before speaking.“OK, are you ready to bat now? You are not going to get thrown out of this ball game no matter what you do, so you might as well get up to the plate. If I wanted to throw you out, I’d throw you to Oshkosh. But you are going to bat, and you better be up there swinging. No bases on balls, do you hear me?”
The next pitch Goslin swung and hit a fly ball to right-center field. Browns right fielder, Beauty McGowan, ran hard reached out with his glove hand but couldn’t get the ball and Goslin won the batting title…by the slimmest of margins, .379 to .378.
One other Manush story happened during the 1933 World Series, the only one he played in. In Game 3 with FDR present Manush was tossed from the game by umpire, Charlie Moran. Here’s how Manush described it… “Moran had every right to chase me when I tell you what I did. I was too smart to lay a hand on Moran when I was arguing the call. But when he bellied up to me and asked me what I wanted to make of it, there was a temptation that was too great. Moran, like the other umps in those days, was wearing a black bow tie, the kind that comes with an elastic band. What I did was grab the tie and let it snap back into Moran’s neck. That’s when he gave it to me.”
Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis, who was at the game, disagreed with the umpire’s decision to kick Manush out, and ruled from then on that no player in the World Series could be thrown out without first getting the commissioner’s almighty permission. That rule must have long ago been revoked.

On this date in 2003 Gary Carter is enshrined in the Hall of Fame and gives what I consider to be as good an induction speech as is possible.

On this date in 1927 Mel Ott hits the first of his 511 Major League HRs. It was an inside-the-park round tripper and would be the only one of his career.

During his 26 year career in the Majors Tommy John made 49 errors in the field. It was on this date in 1988 that he made his last three…all on the same play. John was pitching for the Yankees in the fourth inning of a game against the Brewers. Jim Gantner was on first base when Jeffrey Leonard hit a tapper to the first-base side of the mound that John bobbled for error No. 1. He then threw it past Don Mattingly and down the rightfield line for error No. 2. Dave Winfield retrieved the ball (according to the Newsday account of the game, it first hit the RF ballboy) and threw home in an attempt to nab Gantner. John cut off the throw and fired wildly to the plate for error No. 3. Both runners scored.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGLuJxvBhE8]Tommy John Makes 3 Errors On One Play! "New York Yankees" - YouTube[/ame]

 

[67RedSox]

On May 8, 1984 Harold Baines hit the latest walk-off HR in a ML game…in the 25th inning.

Todd Helton struck out three times in a game this week, so did Wilin Rosario. It’s called a “Hat Trick” when a player does that although the term “Golden Sombrero”…four strikeouts is used more often. Stan Musial played 3026 games over 22 seasons and struck out 3 times in a game…just once.

On June 4 this year the Texas Rangers went into Boston and tried everything to keep the Red Sox off the board but the Red Sox had other ideas and and scored in every inning of the game until the Rangers threw up the white towel and put LF’er David Murphy in to pitch the final inning. After the pitching staff had given up 17 and 18 hits Murphy held the Red Sox scoreless and even struck out a batter in the inning he pitched.

Something I haven’t heard tell of for years is “Ladies Day” at a baseball game. In 1897, the Washington Senators did introduce "Ladies' Day" and claimed they were the first to do so but in fact on June 16, 1883 the New York Gothams (later the NY Giants) who wanted to attract more women to watch baseball games so they could sell more tickets and fill the grandstands declared the game to be - Ladies' Day, and all women were allowed in to the game for free. It wasn't one of those strings-attached offers; you didn't have to pay for one ticket to get one ticket free, for example. That meant that women could go to the game for free either alone or in groups of women, rather than having to be escorted by a man and it did work for about 100 years. The game in 1897 that the Senators declared to be Ladies Day got a bit out of hand. Apparently about 1,000 women went to the game. One of the players, “Win” Mercer, was very popular with women fans, and when he got into an argument with the umpire and was thrown out of the game, many of those women stormed the field. They either chased him all over the field, threatening him with their parasols, as one account would have us believe, or they shoved Carpenter to the ground and ripped away at his his clothing, as another story said. Either way, this extraordinary event is called the Ladies' Day Riot.

Vida Blue, MVP and CY Young Award winner was born on this date in 1949. He was the first pitcher to start an All-Star Game for both the AL and the NL…a feat since duplicated by Roger Clemens, Randy Johnson and Roy Halladay.

Nick Swisher, Wade Boggs, Rick Cerone, Gene Michael and Rocky Colavito all played for the NY Yankees and while wearing the Yankee uniform pitched in a ML game and while pitching in a ML game struck out a batter.

It took 48 years for a Dodger to hit for the cycle in Dodger Stadium. Orlando Hudson turned the trick in season #48. The only ML Park that had to wait longer for one of their own to hit for the cycle was the Old Comisky Park which after opening in 1910 had to wait for Carleton Fisk to do it in 1984.

Sammy Vick’s brief ML career (213 games) ended in 1921 at age 26. He lived for another 65 years knowing that he was the only player who ever pinch-hit for Babe Ruth.

 

[67RedSox]

It was on this date in 2006 that the Mets’ Julio Franco comes in to pinch-run for Carlos Delgado who is hit by a pitch. Julio Franco is 47 years old and becomes the oldest player to ever pinch run. Earlier in the game the Atlanta battery of Tim Hudson and Brian McCann caught Jose Reyes trying to steal 2nd and as he would lead the NL in SB’s that season they likely weren’t too concerned about Franco stealing but that is exactly what he did…shame, shame.

For those of you wondering and I can’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t there have been more MLB players weighing in the 180’s than any other weight class:

180’s - 3,571 players
170’s - 3,250
190’s - 2,816
160’s - 2,181
200’s - 1,880
210’s - 1,070
150’s - 811
220’s - 613
230’s + - 257
140’s - 211
130’’s - 39

Smokey Burgess was a Catcher and Pinch-Hitter extraordinaire who was good enough to be a 6-time All-Star and play 18 seasons in the Majors retiring after the 1967 season. He was the catcher when Harvey Haddix tossed his 12 innings of perfect baseball in 1959 and was the Pirate catcher when they won the WS in 1960. He retired with a record 507 pinch at-bats and only Manny Mota has surpassed his 145 pinch hits. It was on this date in 1955 that he had his career day at the plate hitting 3 HRs (off 3 different pitchers) and driving in 9 runs.

Casey Stengel (7), Joe McCarthy (7), Connie Mack (5), Joe Torre (4) and Walter Alston (4) are the only Managers to Win at least 4 WS Titles. Torre has to make the HOF.

In 2000 Ricky Henderson became the second player to steal a base in four different decades. The first was a Hall of Famer and likely not someone at the top of most people’s list of who it might be…Ted Williams.

In 1952 Bobby Shantz won 24 games for the Philadelphia Athletics and he won the AL MVP Award. He was a superb fielder and is the only player to win a Gold Glove with 4 different teams.

His name was James E. Bennett. It was the year of 1904 when his spectacular yet bizarre catching apparatus was patented. Bennett’s invention was to replace the catchers glove all together. It was the wave of the future, a big wire cage went over the chest and protected the face with a fence shield. Once the pitched ball passed through the flapped doors they would close immediately, proceed to hit a padded springs against the chest, much like a bed mattress. The ball would then pass through a hole on the bottom where the catcher would grab it and continue with game play. Below Patent #771,247 drawings that show in detail of this great device.

http://annexbaseballblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/catcher-patent-in-1904.png

R.I.P. George "Boomer" Scott

 

[67RedSox]

Happy Birthday to Clint Hurdle who is 56 today. This is year #11 for him managing in the Majors which surpasses his 10 years as a player. He was 8 years and 1159 games calling the shots from the dugout in Colorado.

It was on this date in 2011 the Rockies traded Ubaldo Jimenez to the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later, Joseph Gardner (minors), Matt McBride and Alex White. The Cleveland Indians sent Drew Pomeranz (August 16, 2011) to the Colorado Rockies to complete the trade.

It was on this date in 1890 that the Cleveland Spiders, of the National League, purchased Cy Young from Canton in the Tri-State League for the princely sum of $300.00. Turned out to be a pretty good deal. Most every Baseball fan knows who Cy Young was and that he won 511 in his career. Here’s a few things about him that maybe most fans don’t know:
- His career covered 22 seasons from 1890-1911. In his 19 full seasons he averaged 364 Innings a season and 25 Wins.
- He grew up on a farm in Ohio about 100 miles south of Cleveland. He quit school in Grade 6 to help his father with the farm chores. This was the mid 1870’s and it was about that time that Young and his brothers discovered and fell in love with the game of baseball and if they weren’t doing their chores they were playing baseball, encouraged to do so by their father. He could throw better than he could hit so from an early age throwing was what he practised which probably accounts for the speed he threw with.
- He started the first World Series game ever played (1903 in Boston vs. Pittsburgh Pirates)
- He was the first pitcher to pitch effectively into his 40’s
- He threw the first Perfect Game in AL history
- After a few seasons in the Majors they moved the pitcher’s mound back 5 feet to its current distance of 60’ 6” and it didn’t phase Young as he was able to compensate for the additional distance because of his terrific fastball. Honus Wagner said Young had the best fastball he ever saw. HOFer Cap Anson observed that when the 6'2", 210 lb. Young unleashed his speed, it seemed as if "the ball was shooting down from the hands of a giant."
- It was his fastball that gave rise to his nickname, “Cy” which was short for Cyclone
- As he aged and started to lose a little something on the fastball his control sharpened and he had two different nasty curveballs that more than compensated.
- In an era when ballplayers were often regarded as dissolute, inveterate slackers, Young won praise for his clean living and moderate temperament. He prided himself on his work ethic. He played hard, never baited umpires and believed in rendering faithful service to his employer.
- In retirement, Young returned to his home in Ohio, where he lived out a quiet retirement on his farm, growing potatoes and tending to his sheep, hogs, and chickens. He and his wife lost their only child a few hours after birth leaving a void that was never filled.
- When his wife died in 1934 he sold the farm as he could not bear living there alone. Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1937, Young was formally inducted with the Hall's first class at the Museum's opening in 1939. Despite his frugal habits and status as a baseball legend, however, Young was beset by financial problems late in life. In 1935, he traveled to Augusta, Georgia where he joined a group of baseball veterans looking to make some money during the Great Depression by playing exhibition games. When this venture failed, Young returned to Ohio, where he found work as a clerk in a retail store, and lived with a local couple, John and Ruth Benedum. He was still living with the Benedums when he died on November 4, 1955, at the age of 88. The next year, baseball instituted the pitching award that still bears his name.

Here’s some facts about MLB’s Attendance numbers for 2013:

- The Dodgers, Cardinals and Giants are 1-2-3 in attendance each averaging more than 40,000 per game. The opposite end of the spectrum is covered by the two Florida teams. The Rays and Marlins are averaging only 17,000+
- The Rockies are averaging 34,896 per game good for 9th overall in the Majors. On the road they are the 5th best draw overall at 32,978. The Giants and Dodgers are 1 and 2 proving people want to see NL West teams play.

 

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It was on this date in 1912 that Ty Cobb goes 1-for-4 in Detroit's 4-1 victory over Washington at Navin Field. The Tiger outfielder's single is his 68th hit in 137 at-bats (.535) during July, the most ever collected in a single month by a MLer. Ten years later in 1922 he collects 67 hits in the month of July so he is the record holder plus runner-up. Tris Speaker of the Indians also knocked out 67 hits in a single month as did Billy Hamilton for Philadelphia for the NL mark.
To put a little perspective on this there were two Shortstops I remember from the 1960’s Eddie Brinkman and Dal Maxvill who were both pretty good Shortstops. Maxvill was a Gold Glover, went to the WS four times and won 3 Rings but was a lifetime .217 hitter. Brinkman, also a Gold Glover was a far more valuable player than his .224 lifetime BA might suggest. These guys hold the records for fewest hits in a full season (playing in at least 150 games). In 1965 brinkman collected 82 hits in 154 games and hit all of .185. In 1970 Maxvill collected 80 hits in 152 games hitting .201.
Incidentally, Brinkman played HS baseball with Pete Rose in Cincinnati and their coach when asked to describe Rose said… “he’s a good ballplayer but he’s no Brinkman” and scouts had the same opinion. In St. Louis the Cardinals fans of Maxvill’s era sometimes said that when pitching ace Bob Gibson took the mound Gibson should bat ahead of Maxvill in the lineup, since he was the better hitter. In the 1964 WS Maxvill went 0-22 and in WS play overall he went 7 for 61 for a BA of .115. He did go on to become the GM of the Cardinals for 10 years.

On this date in 1962 the NL rejects Commissioner Ford Frick’s proposal for inter-league play. At least in 1962 common sense prevailed in MLB.

It was on this date in 1932 that Municipal Stadium in Cleveland opened. Feel free to call it Lakefront Stadium or Cleveland Stadium as it answered to all three names. It was the first multi-purpose stadium built as it was also home to the Cleveland Browns and other sporting events like boxing matches. After the 1933 season both players and fans complained about the huge outfield and the lack of HRs so the Indians moved back to their old Park, League Park. In 1936 they started to use Municipal Stadium for Sunday and holiday games and in 1939 for any night games scheduled because League Park did not have lights. Between 1940 and 1946 the Indians made the transition fully back to Municipal Stadium and played there for the next 50 years until Jacobs Field opened. The original baseball playing field was so large that an inner fence was constructed in 1947 to cut down the size of the spacious outfield. Even after it was put in, the distance markers on the bleacher walls remained visible for many years; it was 470 feet from home plate to the bleachers in straightaway center field. No player ever hit a home run into the center field bleachers. Ted Williams hit the only inside-the-park home run of his career at Cleveland Municipal Stadium before the inner fence was installed. According to his own autobiography, Veeck - As in Wreck, Indians owner Bill Veeck would move the fence in or out, varying by as much as 15 feet, depending on how it would favor the Indians, a practice that ended when the American League specifically legislated against moving fences during the course of a given season.

https://www.google.ca/search?q=clev...sofbaseball.com%2Fstore%2Findians.htm;550;340

Joe Adcock played 17 years in the Majors and for most of it he was overshadowed both by his own teammates Hank Aaron and Eddie Mathews and by the other slugging first basemen in the League, like Ted Kluszewski and Gil Hodges. Although he was played out of position, platooned, and frequently injured, Adcock retired as the twentieth most prolific home run hitter of all time and seventh among RH hitters. As well, he was a sure-handed defensive player and retired with the third highest career fielding percentage by a first baseman (.994). He was an integral part of the National League Pennant winning Braves teams in 1957 and 1958, and played a major role in their subsequent World Series appearances those years. After retiring as a player he managed the Cleveland Indians and in the Minors for a couple of years but soon retired to his horse ranch in Louisiana before Alzheimer’s Disease caught up with him. He did have his one day in the sun when no one overshadowed him or moved him out of position. It was on this date in 1959 at Ebbets Field, using a borrowed bat that he hits four home runs in one game a 15-7 victory over the Dodgers.

Walter Alston, Brooks Robinson and Juan Marichal were inducted into the HOF on this date in 1983. That means it’s been at least 35 years since we last saw them in uniform and there has been 126 inducted since then. If that doesn’t make you feel old …

Mel Harder was a right-handed, starting pitcher and coach in Major League Baseball, who played his entire 20 year career with the Cleveland Indians. After he retired he became Cleveland’s pitching coach and one of the game's most highly regarded pitching coaches from 1949 to 1963. He set franchise records for wins (223), games started (433) and innings pitched (3426-1/3) which were later broken by Bob Feller, and still holds the club record of 582 career games pitched; he was among the American League's career leaders in wins (9th), games (8th) and starts (10th) when he retired. He was also an excellent fielder. He’s the only man in ML history to have both 20-year playing and coaching careers. Something else pretty neat is that he threw the first pitch ever thrown at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in 1932 and the last pitch there, as well, in ceremonies after the final game of the 1993 season before the Indians moved to Jacobs Field. Well enough about how good a pitcher he was. On this date in 1935 he hit 2 HRs in a game against the White Sox. Didn’t help though as he lost the game 6-4. In his 20 year ML career he hit a total of 4 HRs so one-half of his career total came in one game. Coincidently, the pitcher who once hit 9 HRs in a season and 38 in his career (both ML records) also hit 2 HRs that day as Wes Ferrell of the Red Sox used them to beat the Senators.

Finally, of all the MLers who celebrate their birthday on this date I’ll mention one because of the way he played the game…Larry Doyle was born on this date in 1886. "Laughing Larry" Doyle carried an unusually potent bat for a Deadball Era second baseman, but he's even more well-known for his kindly nature and sunny disposition. Popular with his teammates as well as manager John McGraw, Doyle was the Giants field captain for more than five years, filling in for McGraw when he was ejected or serving a suspension. The Giants went to 3 World Series in a row in 1911-12-13 and Doyle was one of the big reasons why. "Doyle is easily the best ball player on the Giants, a hustling, aggressive, McGraw style of player, full of nerve, grit and true courage" , as described by one Baseball writer of the time.

 

[67RedSox]

When the American League started up RH Starting Pitcher, Happy Townsend, jumped from the Philadelphia Phillies to play with the Washington Senators in 1902. He played four seasons in Washington with W-L records of 8-16, 2-11, 5-26 and 7-16 for a total of 22-69. His overall record in the Majors was 34-82 for a W-L % of .293. On the other hand you have Lefty Gomez, a HOFer, with a lifetime W-L % of .649 which ranks him in the Top 30 of All-Time. Here’s how the Baseball Gods treat pitchers like Gomez and Townsend or pitchers on the opposite sides of the track differently. On this date in 1902 Townsend walks 12 batters and loses to the Tigers 13-0. On this date in 1941 Gomez walks 11 batters and shuts out St. Louis 9-0 to set the record for most Walks in a Shutout.

It was on this date in 1945 at the Polo Grounds that Mel Ott hits his 500th career home run off Braves' hurler Johnny Hutchings in the Giants' 9-2 victory over Boston to become the third MLer to accomplish the feat joining Babe Ruth and Jimmie Foxx. Mel Ott's life is a classic rags-to-riches story of a naive, unheralded, teenager from a small Southern town who rose to great heights in New York, the country's largest and most forbidding city at the time. His baseball career could not happen today; no team could carry an inexperienced 17-year-old on a major league roster as an apprentice instead of sending him out for minor-league seasoning. He was turned down as "too small" by the New Orleans Pelicans of the Southern Association, so the 5’7”, 150 pound 16-year-old Mel joined a lumber company's semi-pro team. The owner of the team was friends with NY Giant Manager, John McGraw, and suggested he take a look at Ott. Ott came to NY for a tryout and as soon as McGraw saw him swing a bat he said: "That kid is remarkable. He's like a golfer; his body moves [including the distinctive cocked right leg action just before the pitch], but he keeps his head still with his eyes fixed on the ball. He's got the most natural swing I've seen in years." Then McGraw added, prophetically, "This lad is going to be one of the greatest lefthand hitters the National League has seen." The rest, as they say, is history.
I’m guessing most of us remember that on this date in 1972 Nate Colbert ties one ML record with 5 HRs‚ and sets another with 13 RBI‚ as the Padres take a doubleheader from the Braves 9-0 and 11-7. At age 8‚ on May 2‚ 1954‚ Colbert had been at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis to witness Stan Musial hitting 5 HRs in a doubleheader. Doubleheader or not Colbert had the most productive day any MLer has ever had in the history of the game.

During the 1950’s no one collected more basehits in the AL than HOFer Nellie Fox’s 1,837. During his career he collected 2,663. Another HOFer of the same era, Luis Aparicio collected even more career basehits with 2,677. Neither, at any point in their HOF careers, would be a batter you would want to face if you wanted to avoid giving up a hit. Well with one out in the 9th inning of a game played on this date in 1962 that is what Bill Monbouquette of the Red Sox had to do to preserve a No-Hitter he had going against the White Sox in Chicago. Three straight singles in the 8th inning off of Early Wynn allowed the Red Sox to finally score the game’s first run and take a 1-0 lead into the 9th inning. It wouldn’t be easy for Monbouquette to get his No-Hitter. Sherm Lollar, a very good hitter and 7 time All-Star was first up…Monbouquette struck him out. Next up was Nellie Fox…Fox has the distinction of being the toughest man to strikeout in MLB since WWII. In the 10 seasons leading up to 1962 Fox averaged 704 Plate Appearances per season and struck out on average 13 times a season or once every 52 trips to the plate. Monbouquette gets him to groundout to 3B. That leaves only Aparicio between Monbouquette and his No-Hitter…no problem, he struck him out.

As far as World Series go 92,706 is the largest attendance ever recorded for a single matchup – Game 5 played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 1959. For the first time in Series history, three pitchers combine for a shutout as White Sox starter Bob Shaw, Billy Pierce and Dick Donovan all stop the Dodgers 1–0 in Game 5, which sends the Series back to Chicago. The game's only run scores in the fourth off starter Sandy Koufax, thanks to the already mentioned above Nellie Fox and Sherm Lollar. It takes three pitchers to beat Koufax 1-0.

6,210 is the smallest attendance for a World Series game…another Game 5... this time in 1908 at Bennett Park in Detroit, home of the Tigers. Cub’s hurler Orval Overall became the first, and thus far the only, pitcher in Series history to strike out four batters in one inning (the bottom of the first) in a complete game 2–0 shutout.

In 1957, Frank Zupo, who was nicknamed "Noodles", joined the Baltimore Orioles as a 17 year old with no Minor League experience. He played parts of three seasons . In 1957, together with George Zuverink on two separate occasions formed the only "Z" battery in ML history, the first time coming on July 1, 1957 when Zupo made his big-league debut with a 10th-inning catching appearance against the New York Yankees. There is no truth to the rumour that Zupo failed to stick in the Majors because of his unibrow but for some reason kids would run screaming from the ballpark every time he went on the field.

Google Image Result for http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/attachments/ootp-mods-rosters-photos-quick-starts/249031d1333003436-gambo-t_wil1-photopack-frank-zupo-baltimore-orioles.jpg

 

[67RedSox]

It was on this date in 1907 that Senators' rookie, Walter Johnson, makes his ML debut losing to the Tigers, 3-2. Ty Cobb gets the first hit off of the future Hall of Famer with a bunt single. The Senators would stay a poor to middling team for most of Johnson’s career but through no fault of his. In the 10 seasons 1910-1919 he would average 26 Wins a season and in only one of those years would his ERA rise above 2.00. Finally, in his 18th and 19th seasons they did win the Pennant and advance to the World Series.

A dark day in the history of the grand old game happened on this date in 1921. Despite a jury acquitting the eight White Sox players accused of throwing the 1919 World Series the next day, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis will say the overwhelming evidence clearly shows the Black Sox fixed the games with gamblers and all involved will be banned from playing professional baseball again. I think the timing is rather appropriate as today Bud Selig is dealing with suspensions for a number of players including Alex Rodriguez. Of course, the difference is that Selig pretends he’s doing something in the best interests of Baseball while Landis actually did something. Judge Landis, if alive, would likely ban Selig for life in the best interests of the game.

It was on this date in 1979 that Thurman Munson perishes when the twin jet private plane he is piloting crashes 1,000’ short of the runway in Canton, Ohio. His two passengers are unscathed but cannot extradite Munson, who had broken his neck, before the planes catches fire.

Lloyd Merriman was no Ted Williams but was good enough to be both a ML Outfielder and a U.S. Naval pilot in WWII and the Korean War where he flew 87 missions in a Grumman F9F Panther jet fighter one of the United States Navy's first successful carrier-based jet fighters. The Panther was the most widely used U.S. Navy jet fighter of the Korean War. Merriman was born on this date in 1924. He played in the Cincinnati outfield in 1949-50-51 but missed the next two seasons in Korea. He played again briefly upon his return in 1954 and 1955 and then faded away to the insurance business and to raise horses. Most Baseball fans wouldn’t know him but guys like this should always be remembered.

Huston Street was born on this date in 1983 and in the 9 years he has spent in the Majors has been one of the most consistent Closers in the game averaging about 25 Saves a year. His time in Colorado had its ups and downs but the $37,835,625.00 he has earned to date has no doubt helped him through some of those downs.

It was on this date in 1959 that Willie McCovey hits the first of his 521 ML Homeruns. In the late 1960’s he might have been the most feared hitter in the game. He didn’t hit moon shots he hit screaming line drives. If a 1st Baseman ever got nailed by one of McCovey’s line drives it wouldn’t prevent the ball from leaving the park, it would just take the 1st Baseman along and deposit him in the right-field stands. McCovey particularly enjoyed his battles with Don Drysdale of the arch-rival Dodgers. During the years 1959 through 1962, McCovey hit .500 (16-for-32) with five homers off the pitcher. Drysdale won 25 games in 1962, and captured the Cy Young Award, yet McCovey was still 7-for-10 against him. On August 11 at Candlestick, McCovey beat Drysdale with a titanic three-run pinch-hit home run that brought the home crowd roaring to its feet. “Drysdale threw it,” recalled Giants broadcaster Russ Hodges, “and it was just gone. I don’t think anybody really knows where or when it landed.” (Drysdale slowly started to figure McCovey out, but still allowed 12 home runs and a .336 average to his nemesis.) His career,not in years but in productivity, was shortened by injuries—he had bad feet and arthritic knees and hips that caused him considerable pain and made him mainly a part-time hobbled player for the last 10 years of his career. Add to that a number of back operations and as a result he has spent most of the past 10 years confined to a wheelchair.

Back-to-back HRs is not an uncommon event. Happens a lot but these back-to back are rare. Twice in MLB history have two brothers hit back-to-back home runs. This year on April 23, 2013, brothers BJ Upton and Justin Upton hit back-to-back home runs. The first time was on September 15, 1938, when Lloyd Waner and Paul Waner performed the feat. Another notable pair of back-to-back home runs occurred on September 14, 1990, when Ken Griffey, Sr. and Ken Griffey, Jr. hit back-to-back home runs, off Kirk McCaskill, the only father-and-son duo to do so in Major League history. Now that’s amazing.

 

[67RedSox]

Billy Hamilton, Hall of Fame Class of 1961, has something in common with two guys whose names easily roll off the tongue of any Baseball fan…George Gore and Harry Stovey but more about that later. For now, it was on this date in 1888 that Billy Hamilton stole his first base in the Majors. Some, perhaps many, will ask who is Billy Hamilton and that would be fair given his career in the Majors ended more than a century ago. He was the Ty Cobb, the Max Carey, the Lou Brock or the Ricky Henderson of his era. He stole bases like no one else ever had. He wasn’t a one dimensional player though. He was an excellent hitter (lifetime BA is .344) and very good outfielder. As for what he has in common with George Gore, who incidentally is the only player from the beautiful State of Maine to win a Batting Crown, and Harry Stovey, the first MLer to hit 100 HRs, is they are the only three players in ML history to score more Runs than Games Played in their career. Regardless of era a hitter is a hitter, a pitcher is a pitcher and a run scorer is a run scorer. Hamilton numbers were 1,697 Runs – 1,594 Games Played, Gore was 1,327 - 1,310 and Stovey was 1492 – 1486.

Long Tom Hughes mixed a happy-go-lucky lifestyle with a Chicago-tough pitching moxie. Tall for his time at 6'1", he stayed at about 175 pounds throughout his career. A heavy smoker and drinker, he took no particular care of his body, yet managed to stay in the major leagues until nearly age 35, and in the semi-pro ranks past age 40. Hughes loved being on the mound, at the center of the game. He had an outstanding drop curveball, a good change of pace that helped his fastball, and a rubber arm. Well on this date in 1906 Hughes got tired of waiting for his Washington Senator teammates to score so he became the first pitcher to win a 1-0 extra-inning game with his own Home Run when he homers in the 10th inning to defeat the St. Louis Browns.

Satchel Paige at the age of 42 years and 2 days makes his first ML Start on this date in 1948. It’s one future HORér against another…Paige vs. Early Wynn. Paige goes 7 innings to lead the Indians to a 5-3 victory over the Washington Senators.

So, you’re a Cincinnati Reds fan and go to their game at Riverfront Stadium on this date in 1989. They’re playing the Houston Astros who are 10.5 Games ahead of them in the standings. The first inning ends and the score is Cincinnati 14-0. In the 1st inning the Reds score 14 runs and in the process set ML records for collecting the most hits in one inning (16) and have the most players collect at least 2 basehits (7). The question is, and you only need answer in your head,…at what point in the game do you leave. If 4thefences reads this Post there is no need to answer the question as your answer has already been recorded – why, when the game is over, of course.

It was on this date in 1995…making his first start for the Rockies since being acquired from the Mets, Brett Saberhagen gives up 13 hits and walks 3 batters, but gets the win in the team's 9-4 win over the Dodgers. The sellout crowd gives their new hurler an enthusiastic standing ovation when he departs the game with one out in the seventh inning.

It was on this date in 1894 that Harry Heilmann was born. He’s a HOFer with a lifetime BA of .342, 4 time AL Batting Champion and one of the few players to hit .400 in a season. In 1921 Heilmann battled his playing-manager, Ty Cobb, in a neck-and-neck race for the American League batting title, eventually outlasting his tutor with a .394 average. Cobb finished at .389. “When he beat Ty Cobb out for the batting championship Ty didn’t really talk with him again,” daughter-in-law Marguerite Heilmann said. “He was kind of irrational about it and wasn’t really dad’s cup of tea.”
He retired after playing briefly in 1932 and in 1933, Heilmann launched the second half of his career in baseball. He became the radio broadcaster for the Tigers, where he remained for seventeen years. He was the first former player to ever become a play-by-play broadcaster.

It isn’t often that you think of a ML pitcher and think first of not his pitching but his hitting or lack thereof. For me Bob Buhl is one of those guys. Now, as a pitcher, he was very solid and played with the Milwaukee Braves, Chicago Cubs, and Philadelphia Phillies. A native of Saginaw, Michigan, in a 15-year career Buhl posted a 166–132 record with 1,288 strikeouts and a 3.55 ERA in 2,587 innings. He pitched 111 complete games and compiled 20 shutouts. The Dodgers hated him. In their NL Pennant winning season of 1956 Buhl beat them 8 times en route to an 18-Win season. He repeated as an 18-game Winner the following year, helping the Braves capture NL pennants in both 1957 and 1958 as the third starter behind Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette. In 1959, Buhl won 15 games and led the National League with four shutouts. His most productive season came in 1960, when he finished with a 16–9 record, a 3.09 ERA and an All-Star berth. That’s all very well and good but above everything else I remember his 1962 season when he went 0-70 at the plate with the Cubs, the worst single-season batting performance in ML history.

 

[Silas]

RS67..........you seem to be the only person posting any more. As pleased as I am with the Dodger turn around, I do feel badly for you fine and devoted Rockies fans. Injuries have been the team's undoing. That's always tough to deal with.

Meanwhile, your anecdotes are as wonderful as ever. It is hard to imagine that 30 years ago Alston and Marichal were inducted into the HOF (I wonder if they discussed the Roseboro incident?)

It does make me feel older thinking of the years I watched these men go about their business.

 

[67RedSox]

Hi Silas...sorry but my computer was down which prevented me from posting yesterday's history blurb and a response. I'm not technically inclined so it took a while to fix the bug and then only with assistance. Fortunately, it's up now and I should have time to tweak my Fantasy Team for this week so I can try to stay competitive in our battle for supremacy in the "Veterans Division" with you and smf52. Hastings I'm sure can't go back as far as us.

Yes, this Board has been about as quiet as Game 2 of the 1966 WS at Dodger Stadium (sorry, but in that 15 year stretch from 1959 - 1974 it's about the only occasion I can get a World Series dig in. I think, come the off-season, when there's no other forum to communicate (unless CBS brings their Boards back) it may pick up again.

Incidentally, that Game 2 of the 1966 World Series was the last time we saw Koufax pitch...a mere 47 years ago .

 

[Silas]

Yes, that was a quiet, and painful one, for Dodgers fans and sad to realize that Sandy Koufax was done. Clayton Kershaw is a little reminder of Koufax, but Sandy was truly the best I ever saw.

 

[67RedSox]

Something I didn’t know is that Cooperstown has something called The Honor Rolls of Baseball. Shows I’ve never been to Cooperstown I guess. The Honor Rolls feature the names of significant non-players in four areas. This second-tier list, after the first-tier HOFers, consisted of 5 managers, 11 umpires, 11 executives and 12 sportswriters. These contributors were not designated as official Hall of Fame members, so plaques on the wall were not authorized, as they were reserved only for those outstanding players, along with certain pioneers of the game. The Honor Roll recognition was not meant to be a final destination for anyone in the categories of writers, umpires, managers and executive. The committee was clear that any of the men named to the Honor Rolls would be eligible for full admission into the Hall in the future. So having said that there’s a guy by the name of Tim Hurst on the Honor Rolls but I’m at a bit of a loss to quite figure why he’s there. In 1909 he was banished from the game and in 1946 he’s selected for the Honor Rolls. In an August game in 1909 umpire, Tim Hurst, instigates a riot by spitting at Athletics 2B Eddie Collins who questioned a call. This incident leads to Hurst’s banishment from the game two weeks later. Hurst (1865-1915) worked as an umpire and Manager in Major League Baseball and as a boxing referee in championship fights. His umpiring career lasted 16 seasons from 1891 to 1909. For one season, in 1898, he became the on-field manager of the St. Louis Browns, and the team had a record of 39–111 in 154 games. After his season of managing the Browns, he returned to his umpiring career. From 1891 through 1904 he umpired in the National League, then finished his career in the American League. Noted for his pugnacious and combative style, Hurst was suspended on several occasions for refusing to report player misconduct to his League office, insisting instead that he ought to be allowed to settle matters with players personally, often engaging them in fights after the game was over. Banished and the selected for the Honor Rolls…there might be hope yet for Shoeless Joe.

In 1932 Bill Dickey, a HOFer to be, was fined $1,000 and suspended until Carl Reynolds, the player whose jaw he broke in two places a month before was ready to play again for the Senators. He missed 31 games. If they could dole out punishment like this 80 years ago why can’t they do it now…not only Baseball but other sports as well. Are you listening Carlos Quentin?

It was 20 years ago yesterday that Robin Ventura made the ill-fated decision to charge the mound after Nolan Ryan hits him with a fastball. Getting hit once is bad enough but then six more times…ouch!

When Jake Beckley gained election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971, 53 years after his death, most baseball fans had no idea who he was. I imagine the same fact holds true today…who is Jake Beckley? He’s the busiest 1B to ever play the game. He retired in 1907 and still holds the record for most chances and putouts at that position. He kept his impressive mustache long after all but a handful of players had relinquished theirs; at the time of his retirement he was one of only three men in the Majors who still sported facial hair. He also displayed several other idiosyncrasies. Beckley yelled "Chickazoola!" to rattle opposing pitchers when he was on a batting tear, and he perfected the unusual (and now-illegal) practice of bunting with the handle of his bat. As the pitch approached the plate, Jake flipped the bat around in his hands and tapped the ball with the handle. Casey Stengel was a teenager when he saw the maneuver performed. "I showed our players," said Stengel 50 years later, when he was managing the Yankees, "and they say it's the silliest thing they ever saw, which it probably is but [Beckley] done it." Jake also loved pulling the hidden-ball trick and tried it on every new player who came into the league. Sometimes he hid the ball in his clothing or under his arm, and other times he hid it under the base sack and waited for the unsuspecting player to wander off first. He came up just shy of 3,000 Basehits when his career ended.

On the afternoon of Friday, August 5, 1921, Harold Arlin sat down in a box seat behind home plate to watch the Pirates defeat the Phillies, 8-5. He wasn't there just to watch, though; he was also there to tell fans beyond the ballpark what he was seeing. When he opened his mouth to speak into the telephone he was holding, Arlin changed the way Americans would enjoy baseball, and indeed, every other sport, forever when he made the first-ever broadcast of a ML game. I may be old school but I still find something magical about listening to a baseball game on the radio. Arlin was also the first to broadcast a college football game as well. Salute!

It was on this date in 1969 that Willie Stargell becomes the first player to hit a Home Run completely out of Dodger Stadium clearing the right field pavilion. The blast was measured at 507 feet, making it the longest home run ever hit in there.

There’s a couple of things I remember about Cliff Johnson and the word terrifying describes both. First, his face…some may say ugly, I say terrifying. He would have been ideal casting as a heavy in the movies. He was also the most terrifying pinch-hitter I remember. I would have hated to be the pitcher facing him in that situation. It was on this date in 1984 that Johnson hits his 19th career pinch-hit home run breaking a ML record shared with Jerry Lynch.

On this date in 2001 the Indians tie a ML record (the Tigers‚ June 18‚ 1911 and the Athletics June 15‚ 1925) by overcoming a 12-run deficit to shock the Mariners‚ 15-14. Cleveland‚ which trailed 12-0 and 14-2‚ scores 3 runs in the 7th inning‚ 4 in the 8th‚ and 5 in the 9th to become the 1st team in 76 years to come back from a 12-run hole.

It was on this date in 1938 that Fred ‘Cactus’ Johnson goes 9 innings and gives up 9 hits in beating the Cleveland Indians, 9-2. It’s his 3rd ML Win as a pitcher and first since 1923, yes 15 years. He would win 5 ML games in his career a few less than the 252 he won in the Minor Leagues.

They made them tough in the old days. Leftfielder Zack Wheat who spent 18 of his 19 ML seasons playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers connects for his final Dodger HR, on this date in 1926, but collapses near 2B as his injured leg gives out. The future Hall of Famer refuses a pinch runner and‚ after several minutes‚ limps around to home plate. But even after years of hitting .300, it was Wheat's stylish defense that won him the most admirers. "What Lajoie was to infielders, Zach Wheat is to outfielders, the finest mechanical craftsman of them all," Baseball Magazine crowed in 1917. "Wheat is the easiest, most graceful of outfielders with no close rivals." An extremely fast runner, Zack was as close to a five-tool player as anyone during the Deadball Era. His only weaknesses was his poor base-stealing ability.

 

[67RedSox]

It was on this date in 2001 that the Red Sox catcher, Scott Hatteberg, performs the ultimate baseball opposite in consecutive at bats. With 2 men the 4th inning and the Sox ahead of the Rangers, 4-2‚ he lines into a triple play. Two innings later‚ after the Rangers score 5 to go ahead‚ he hits a grand slam to put Boston in the lead to stay. That bat should be in Cooperstown.

It was on this date in 1999 that Tony Gwynn records the 3,000th hit of his career in a game against the Expos. The Padres defeat the Expos‚ 12-10 and Gwynn goes 4-for-5 to lead the Padres to victory.

It was a big day in Boston on this date in 1989 when the Boston Red Sox retire Carl Yastrzemski’s uniform #8.

On this date in 1973, 40 years ago, Roberto Clemente and Warren Spahn head the list of new inductees at Cooperstown. Clemente is the first Latin-born player to achieve membership at Cooperstown. The plaque for Spahn‚ the winningest lefty of all time‚ will credit him with 2,853 strikeouts; the correct total is 2,583. The incorrect plaque will stay up for decades.

On this date in 1967 against the Chicago White Sox‚ Brooks Robinson of the Orioles hits into the 4th triple play of his career for a ML mark. It happens in the 5th inning going Boyer (3B) to Buford (2B) to McCraw (1B). What I find amazing about this is that I had no idea that Ken Boyer played for the White Sox. Stuff like that just blows my little mind because Ken Boyer wasn’t just another player. Ron Santo’s election to the HOF means that Boyer has a chance despite less than 5% of Baseball writers thought him worthy.

It was on this date in 1961 that Maury Wills, after 1,167 Major League At Bats, hits his first career HR.

It was on this date in 1890 that Cy Young, making his ML debut, is credited with the win when the Cleveland Spiders beat the Colts in Chicago's West Side Park, 8-1. The 1st of 511 he’ll pick up over his 22-year career, or, an average of 23 Wins each and every season.

Clem Labine was born on this date in 1926. Saying it as simply as possible he was the Dodger’s bullpen through all of the 1950’s in Brooklyn and in Los Angeles.

 

[Silas]

Ken Boyer was my all time favorite player and, in my "prejudiced" opinion, was as good a NL third baseman as there was during the late 1950's through the mid-1960's. He didn't have great speed, though he stole a few bases in his younger days, but he was a steady fielder and could hit.

I can't say Boyer deserves to be in the HOF, but it wouldn't hurt my feelings to see him make it. He would be a worthy addition.

 

[67RedSox]

I'm all for Ken Boyer being in the HOF...he deserves to be there.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hn_aMHrAG_w]Ken Boyer Highlight Video - YouTube[/ame]

How often does a team strand 2 runners on base in an inning? It must happen in just about every game. How often does a team strand 2 runners on base in every inning of a 9 inning game? How about just once. It was on this date in 1943 that the Giants did it in their 9-6 loss to the Phillies at the Polo Grounds. They lost 98 games that year and I will guess missing scoring opportunities was one of the reasons why.

It was on this date in 2005 that 40,239 came out to Shea Stadium to watch the Cubs play the Mets. It’s Zambrano vs. Zambrano. Victor for the Mets and Carlos for the Cubs. Victor wins, Carlos loses. The odd thing, other than it’s very unusual for starting pitchers to have the same last name, is that both pitchers were shooting for their 43rd ML Win. It was only the second occasion where the two starting pitchers had the same last name and same number of career Wins.

"Let me start by telling you this: I have never used steroids, period. I don't know how to say it any more clearly than that. Never." That was a quote from Rafael Palmeiro on March 17, 2005 at a Congressional hearing on steroids in Baseball. We all heard it. On August 1st of the same year he was suspended by MLB for steroid use. It was on this date in 2005 that Palmeiro left the Orioles never to play again in the Majors.

Yesterday I mentioned Tony Gwynn collected his 3,000 basehit on that date in 1999. It was on this date in 1999, one day after Gwynn, that Wade Boggs collects his 3,000 basehit.

On this date in 1992 The 1-2-3 leading hitters in the NL are:

John Kruk - .341
Andy van Slyke - .331
Gary Sheffield - .329

Coincidentally, the 1-2-3 leading hitters in the AL, Edgar Martinez, Kirby Puckett and Shane Mack are also hitting .341, .331 and .329.
Also, the final Batting Crown standings in the NL would be in reverse order of the above with Sheffield winning, Van Slyke runner-up and Kruk third. Martinez wins in the AL with Puckett still second and Mack fifth.

Boston's Jimmy "Foxy Grandpa" Bannon becomes the first player to hit grand slams in consecutive games on this date in 1894. Bannon was all of 5’5” and 160 lbs.

It was on this date in 2002 after piloting the club to a 45-45 record as the interim skipper, Clint Hurdle is given a two-year contract extension by the Rockies. The club's former hitting coach replaced Buddy Bell, who was fired April 26.

Mike Trout was born on this date in 1991. Hard to believe he’s as accomplished as he is. If he keeps going as he has he’ll have 500 Hits while still 22.

It’s also Don Larsen’s birthday today, he of the WS Perfect Game fame. was born on this date in 1929, 84 years young today.

 

[BigDDude]

Here are a few more items, hopefully you do not mind.


1907 Senators' hurler Walter Johnson wins his first major league game beating the Indians, 7-2. The 'Big Train' will tally 417 victories during his 21-year career.

1962 The 29-81 Mets are mathematically eliminated from in finishing first place with their 7-5 loss to Los Angeles in Chavez Ravine. After the game, New York manager Casey Stengel calls a meeting and jokes with his players that they can loosen up and relax now that they are out of the pennant race, which they promptly do, winning just eleven more games during the last two months of the season.

1987 Bill Mazeroski's uniform jersey #9 is officially retired from active service by the Pirates. The 1960 World Series hero joins Billy Meyer (1), Willie Stargell (8), Pie Traynor (20), Roberto Clemente (21), Honus Wagner (33), and Danny Murtaugh (40) to be honored by Pittsburgh in this manner.

2004 In less than a masterful performance, Greg Maddux pitches five innings to register his 300th victory when the Cubs beat the Giants, 8-4. The 38-year-old is the 22nd pitcher to reach the plateau and many believe may the last to reach this coveted milestone.

Also, about the Zambrano Bowl in 2005, here are a few more factoids

The two Venezuelan pitchers, who are not related, also wear the same number (38), enter the game with same number of career wins (41), play for teams which started the series with the same record (54-54), as well being both switch hitters and throwing right-handed.

 

[67RedSox]

BigDDude...great info on the Zambrano game. As for Billy Meyer, I have to admit it's a name I don't know but if he's good enough to have his number retired I have to know more about him.