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It was the middle of June, and the Kansas City Monarchs were holding down second place in the Negro National Baseball League. Coming into Kansas City for a five-game series were the Cincinnati Cuban Stars, so named because they had many of the best players from the island in their lineup.1 The Cuban Stars had […]

Coming off two dismal eighth-place finishes, the Chicago Cubs made a fateful trade with the Philadelphia Phillies 10 days into the 1966 season, ostensibly to shore up their outfield. The Cubs exchanged two highly paid yet aging workhorses who had combined for 313 career victories, 34-year-old Larry Jackson and 37-year-old Bob Buhl, for three inexperienced […]

The headline writer for the front page of a daily newspaper is challenged to provide the reader with glimpses of tragedy and joy, victory and defeat, worry and elation, all appropriately befitting the day’s news. When Pittsburgh awoke on the morning of July 26, 1956, the headline spread across the front page of the Pittsburgh […]

As 32,977 patrons filed into PNC Park on Saturday, July 28, 2001, some knew that they were going to be part of a notable day for the Pittsburgh Pirates, but no one expected the real reason why the day would be unforgettable.1 Most knowledgeable fans thought it was because the Pirates were about to play […]

“We just got slaughtered,” muttered St. Louis Cardinals skipper Johnny Keane following his team’s 19-0 drubbing by the Pittsburgh Pirates.1 Not only did the Bucs hand the Redbirds their worst whitewashing in franchise history, they tied a 55-year-old NL record (since broken) for the most lopsided shutout in league history. The Pirates and Cardinals were […]

For Red Sox fans in 2017, watching the team win in a walk-off was beginning to seem almost routine. The Boston team had struggled a little out of the gate but pushed their way from third place in the AL East to second, then took first place the last week in June and held first […]

Australian Chris Oxspring pitched in just five big-league ballgames in September 2005. However, he also performed in Nippon Professional Baseball, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), and the Australian Baseball League (ABL). In addition, the righty represented his homeland in international competition — most notably in the 2004 Summer Olympics. In the semifinal against Japan’s “Dream […]

Three times, Nick Esasky hit 20 or more home runs in the major leagues – in 1985, 1987, and 1989. His peak season came at age 29 with the 1989 Boston Red Sox, when he played first base most of the season and hit 30 homers while driving in 107 runs, leading the ballclub in […]

Right-hander Milo Candini debuted for the Washington Senators in 1943, after toiling in the New York Yankees farm system for six years. Once hailed as the “sensation of the American League,” Candini won his first seven decisions, including five consecutive starts.1 But he was plagued by arm miseries throughout his 20-year professional career, and his quick […]

On July 28, 1994, Texas Rangers left-hander Kenny Rogers had been perfect for eight innings and needed three more outs to make baseball history. A crowd of 46,581 fans was standing and cheering at the brand-new Ballpark in Arlington as Rogers warmed up to face the bottom third of the Angels’ order. Rookie outfielder Rusty […]

The train pulled out of South Station in Boston on February 18, 1911, heading for Los Angeles and the new location for Red Sox spring training (Redondo Beach, California). Several stops were made along the way as the party picked up players from Western League teams as well as returning veteran players. Manager Patsy Donovan […]

In the 1951 St. Louis spring training camp, considerable focus turned to Bobby Tiefenauer as the answer to Philadelphia Phillies reliever Jim Konstanty, a high bar for the 22-year-old rookie to reach. Konstanty was the reigning National League Most Valuable Player, It was hoped that Tiefenauer’s knuckleball could match Konstanty’s success with off-speed sliders and […]

Every life has a moment that reshapes its course, often without warning. For pitcher Jeff Randazzo, that turning point came on a cold Tennessee highway just after 2 a.m. on February 18, 2002. Randazzo – the Minnesota Twins’ fourth-round pick in the 1999 draft – was asleep in the passenger seat of his SUV, bound […]

WHEN THE MARINERS called Bret Boone up from the minor leagues in August of 1992, a new category of baseball players was established: three-generation major leaguers. Boone’s grandfather, Ray Boone, played shortstop for six major-league teams from 1948 through 1960. His father, Bob Boone, had a 19-year career as a catcher between 1972 and 1990.1 […]

Emmett Bowles’ story was once characterized as “the type that leaves the baseball fan choking back salty tears.”1 Indeed, the small-town Oklahoman’s first decade in the game was primarily spent toiling in obscurity as a semipro, accentuated by a failed cup of coffee in the major leagues. He even unsuccessfully resorted to written correspondence with […]

“It exceeded all proportion, It could not be contained, It bloomed round like a dark sunrise, It glistened in the rain. The little boys with crew cuts Or blond locks oh so fair Would look and cheer with wonder At Oscar Gamble’s hair.” —Roy Peter Clark1   Oscar Gamble made his big-league debut in 1969 […]

Mike Kahoe appeared on major league rosters mostly as a catcher for eleven seasons. In that time he played in an unremarkable 410 games and batted a mere .212. Yet his career is forever joined with some of baseball history’s most celebrated individuals, unique events, and folklore. Kahoe’s acquisition by the Chicago Nationals in 1901 […]

Pitcher Mike Prendergast toiled over 600 innings in back-to-back seasons with Peoria in the Illinois-Iowa-Indiana League. He followed that up with a 180-game major-league career. His work ethic earned him the nickname “Iron Mike,” but he would likely be long forgotten had he not been included in the Chicago Cubs-Philadelphia Phillies trade that sent Pete […]

The road to the major leagues can be a long haul for some. Others find it much easier and, of course, thousands never make it at all. Certainly, in all cases the player must have more than a modicum of talent. But there’s another important factor that Steve Biras recognized. When asked how he broke […]

Our younger readers might not realize there was a time when the baseball owners intentionally scheduled doubleheaders and fans could see two games for the price of one. More amazing to 21st century fans is that in those doubleheaders both starting pitchers might toss complete games. On rare occasions a pitcher might even start and […]

Erv Palica, a laconic Californian, was little more than a bit player during the 1947 season, but four years later he was at the epicenter of a midseason controversy that may have cost the Dodgers the 1951 pennant. Palica was born on February 9, 1928, in Lomita, California, a small town west of Long Beach. […]

“The Washington public went enthusiastically, almost insanely, baseball mad” on the day of Hack Eibel’s debut. So wrote the Washington Post.  This happened when “Clark Griffith’s ambitious climbers batted the ‘13’ hoodoo all to pieces.”[1]  It was the 13th of the month of June and the Nationals had 13 hits, adding another win to a 13-game winning […]

A crowd heads toward Braves Field. The ticket and administration building (shown at left) still stands and today serves as the headquarters for the Boston University police. Note the trolley tracks in the foreground, indicating the path of transit vehicles exiting from within the ballpark itself. (NATIONAL BASEBALL HALL OF FAME LIBRARY)   Introduction Braves […]

  High and Inside The Newsletter of the BioProject Committee Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) August 2016 (Special Post-Convention Issue), Volume 1, Number 5 Past newsletters Editor: Stew Thornley From the Director From the Editor Interview with Bob LeMoine Project Profile: Gregory H. Wolf Project Poobahs   From the Director I have just returned […]