Search Results

In the annals of baseball dating back to when it first became a game played by professionals, historians and fans alike always tend to remember the walk-off home runs that ended a World Series; examples of this include Bill Mazeroski off Ralph Terry at Forbes Field to win the 1960 World Series for Pittsburgh1 or […]

When Rafael Palmeiro retired, he joined Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Eddie Murray as the only players to accumulate more than 3,000 hits and 500 home runs. A Hall of Fame-caliber career it was.1 But, with all Palmeiro accomplished, he is best known for wagging his finger at Congress as he denied ever having used […]

Arthur Rhodes forged a 20-year major-league career by establishing himself as a reliable left-handed reliever for nine franchises. He is the career leader (as of 2020) in holds since it became an official statistic in 1999, with a total of 231. Rhodes overcame family tragedy to become one of the oldest first-time All-Stars at the […]

When Bowie Kuhn was named the fifth Commissioner of Baseball in early 1969, he was touted by owners as the man needed to modernize and strengthen the game of baseball, which was declining in popularity as pro football’s increased. It was a time, Daniel Okrent noted, when professional baseball was fighting for survival.1 Kuhn, a […]

Debuting as a September call-up for the Chicago Cubs in 1939, 22-year-old southpaw Vern Olsen tossed four shutouts in a span of eight starts in 1940 en route to leading all NL rookies with 13 victories. A dependable starter and reliever on weak Cubs teams, Olsen averaged 10 wins and 166 innings per season (1940-1942) […]

Bill McCool was once one of the most promising pitchers in baseball – a teenager with a fastball that was often too much for major leaguers to handle. But bad luck and injuries derailed his career before he turned 25. William John McCool was born on July 14, 1944, to Carl and Dolores McCool. He […]

  “Braves Win! Braves Win! Braves Win! Braves Win! … Braves Win!!” That call still gives fans of the Atlanta Braves goosebumps.1 That’s how Skip Caray ended his description of the play that sent the 1992 Braves to their second consecutive World Series. He repeated his signature “Braves Win!” line a few times more than […]

“He’s the best I have.”1 So said Cardinals manager Red Schoendienst when asked about Reggie Cleveland being traded to the Red Sox in December 1973. High praise, especially considering the Cardinals staff still included Bob Gibson. Boston GM Dick O’Connell called Cleveland “one of the best pitchers around.”2 In the winter of 1973, it was […]

There are numerous examples of young ballplayers with great potential whose careers may have been ruined due to mismanagement by team owners or other circumstances. In the 1950s, the opportunity for bonus babies to gain experience in the minor leagues was delayed because the rules required them to stay on major-league rosters. At other times, […]

His big brother in college was Martin Luther King Jr. Somehow, it’s appropriate to begin with that fact when discussing Donn Clendenon. During his college years at Morehouse College, one of the most pivotal players in Mets history was mentored by the greatest and most pivotal African American of the 20th century. The big brother […]

Paul Hines was a 19th-century all-around star who played in the big leagues from 1872 through 1891. He was a fine hitter, compiling a .302 lifetime mark with an impressive 2,133 hits in just 1,658 games. The latter two totals were third all-time at that point in big-league history, behind only Cap Anson and Jim […]

Left-handed pitcher and sometime outfielder Patsy Flaherty pitched in nine major-league seasons spanning the years 1899 to 1911, compiling a record of 67 wins and 84 losses.i He was the most famous of the early practitioners of the no-wind-up, “quick pitch” delivery in which he returned the ball to the catcher as soon as he […]

A competent multi-position defender, a swift and daring baserunner, and a natural team leader, Jimmy Manning1 should have enjoyed a lengthy 19th century major league career. However, a soft bat – Manning was one of the game’s early switch-hitters but under-productive from either side against top-flight pitching – confined him to a five-season turn in […]

This slender sidearm righty appeared in just two big-league games, in 1950. Nonetheless his career is more significant than it appears. “Limonar” – so called for the country town where he learned to play ball – was one of the icons of Cuban amateur baseball in its most glorious, romantic, and competitive era, the early […]

Right-hander Ray Scarborough pitched for the Senators, White Sox, Red Sox, Yankees, and Tigers during his 10 years in the major leagues. His longest stretch was with the Washington Senators, pitching in seven of those seasons, from 1942 into 1950. He was 80-85 for his career, with a lifetime 4.13 earned run average. Scarborough’s best […]

Although he had far from the best year of his career in 1948, Connie Ryan was a valuable utility infielder for the Boston Braves that season — primarily backing up incumbent Eddie Stanky (and later his replacement, Sibby Sisti) at second base. Ryan was an intense competitor as well as an occasional sparkplug for the […]

Baseball fans generally remember players who are involved in some of game’s most famous events. The same can be assumed of players who are the first to accomplish a particular feat in the game. However, George Hall was both a central figure in one of major-league baseball’s earliest scandals and the first major-league player to […]

Decisively beating the visiting New York Yankees, 14-1, on April 10, 2018, the Boston Red Sox won their ninth consecutive game, giving them a 9-1 season record, the best 10-game start in franchise history. They had lost on Opening Day to the Tampa Bay Rays, 6-4, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, then won the […]

It is not uncommon for a major-league club to change managers in the middle of a trying season, but when the Cleveland Indians parted ways with Jeff Torborg in July 1979, it was more than a simple change in the dugout.1 The decision closed the book on a nearly monthlong drama on the shores of […]

Going into the 1982 season, Seattle Mariners starter Glenn Abbott elected to re-sign with the five-year-old expansion club, even though the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets offered him higher salaries than he would receive from Seattle’s three-year deal.1 So, when Abbott reported elbow soreness early in spring training, the club wanted to protect its […]

Who is the most valuable to a ball club – a star pitcher of the Walter Johnson type, a great infielder of the Napoleon Lajoie brand or a sensational outfielder of the Ty Cobb variety?1   At the outset of the 1911 season, Ty Cobb was considered one of the top players in baseball, coming […]

In the 1880s, the Educational Home for Boys in Philadelphia was a boarding school housing about 100 Native Americans from the Chippewa, Mohawk, and Sioux tribes.1 They learned to read, write, and speak English; obtained skills needed in farming and carpentry; and received religious and music education. “For after taking away the lands and hunting-grounds […]

Max Kepler drilled a four-seam fastball to deep left-center field. Aaron Hicks took off from his spot in center. Hicks had nearly 75 feet to travel in the 3.6 seconds it took the drive to travel 376 feet. No one — not the players, coaches, fans, writers, broadcasters, viewers, bloggers, or game officials — knew […]

“I know it’s happening, but I can’t believe it,” said a fan in the stands in a hushed voice, trying to suspend disbelief.1 “Thirty-nine years and here we are at last,” marveled longtime Chicago columnist Mike Royko.2 It was the opening game of the best-of-five National League Championship Series, and the first postseason game at […]