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William Clarence Rotes spent his entire life in his birthplace of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, and made such a name for himself on the baseball diamonds of his hometown that he got a chance to pitch in the National League for two months in 1893. There was nothing remotely unusual about his life, nor did his accomplishments fail […]

The 1994 major-league baseball season came to an abrupt end on August 11 because of a player strike. The strike lasted for 232 days, which meant that the 1994 postseason was not played. This was the first time a major professional sports league did not play a postseason because of labor struggles. Before the strike […]

“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 […]

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) […]

Except for a brief September call-up in 1953, Eddie Phillips spent his entire 11-year pro baseball career in the minor leagues. Yet, during those 2½ weeks with the St. Louis Cardinals, he established a record for most runs scored in the major leagues (four) without a plate appearance or taking a defensive position. His pinch-running […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

It’s an old story. A player comes on the scene, dazzles in his rookie year, and is gone seemingly as fast as he came. Then there’s Jimmie Hall. Hall burst on the scene with a bang with the Minnesota Twins in 1963. Actually, he had 33 of them, which broke Ted Williams’s AL record for […]

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, […]

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 […]

The 1965 World Series moved to Metropolitan Stadium for Game Six. The Los Angeles Dodgers were holding a 3-2 series lead, and Walter Alston’s crew was looking to close out the Twins. Standing in the way of the championship was Minnesota ace Jim “Mudcat” Grant. Claude Osteen took the hill for the Dodgers. Grant, who […]

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 […]

On June 4, 1972, the fans streaming into Dodger Stadium knew in advance they would be witnessing some very special moments on that Sunday afternoon. It was the largest daytime crowd of the season: 43,818 fans.1 Many were there for Old-Timers Day. The scheduled events included: “A Salute to Casey Stengel”; a three-inning old-timers game; […]

When Jamie Moyer was traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Seattle Mariners during the 1996 season, the well-traveled left-hander said, “I know I’m not a number 1 starter, but I can certainly help a team win in a lot of ways.”1 Under Seattle skipper Lou Piniella, the first major-league manager he felt ever […]

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 […]

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 […]

Propelled by rising youngsters and veteran newcomers, the Atlanta Braves emerged from six seasons of woebegone play to challenge for the National League West lead in May 1991. Left-hander Steve Avery, the vanguard of Atlanta’s youth wave at age 21, continued his early-season breakthrough in a 6-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 12 […]

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 […]

When the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Mets met in Game Four of the 1969 World Series, the sports world was watching closely. The Mets had taken the lead in the Series after winning Game Three, 5-0, behind the pitching of Gary Gentry and Nolan Ryan. When the teams took the field on the […]