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It had already been an interesting weekend of baseball in Cleveland for the visiting Boston Red Sox. After opening the 1992 season with two weekday losses in Yankee Stadium, the Red Sox came to Cleveland to play the Indians’ home opener on Saturday afternoon, April 11, and a doubleheader on Sunday, before returning to Boston […]

Roger Craig was settling into retirement when he agreed to become manager of the San Francisco Giants on September 18, 1985. Owner Bob Lurie and new President/General Manager Al Rosen persuaded Craig to return to baseball and help restore a winning culture in the wallowing franchise. The Giants were well on the way to the […]

“If the ball drops, I might have had an inside-the-park [grand-slam] home run. I was just a step away from second base when he [Tommie Agee] caught it.” — Paul Blair after the second of Tommie Agee’s iconic catches.1   On October 12, 1969, the Mets had returned from Baltimore with the World Series tied […]

Only 11 home runs were hit at Cleveland’s League Park in 1906.1 So when John O’Neill launched a long home run on May 5 – the first of the season at the ballpark2 – to give the Chicago White Sox an early lead over the Cleveland Naps, Forest City fans cheered as he rounded the […]

“You know, we just don’t recognize life’s most significant moments while they’re happening. Back then I thought, ‘Well, there’ll be other days.’ I didn’t realize that that was the only day.” — Archibald “Moonlight” Graham (Burt Lancaster), Field of Dreams   After eight years in the minor leagues and numerous injuries, Ron Wright certainly realized […]

Sandy Koufax was on the fringes of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ pitching staff early in the 1960 season, his sixth in the majors. Shaky control and hard luck left him with a 0-4 record and a 5.16 earned-run average entering his May 23 start against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Facing the hot-hitting, rally-prone, championship-bound Pirates, however, […]

Members of the Buck O’Neil/North Florida SABR Chapter gathered in the private room at the Tally Fish House for their monthly meeting on July 20, 2022, in Tallahassee, Florida. In attendance were: Matt Keelean, Chapter President Jim Wolf Rick Swain Brent Kallestad Frank Alarcon Renee Watters Glenn Robertson Matt Hudson Steve Lastowski Members gathered at […]

After three uncharacteristic second-place finishes in 1933, ’34, and ’35, the New York Yankees responded in decisive fashion. Changes were in order, as reported by Dan Daniel in The Sporting News: “Joe McCarthy is making every effort to win this year.”1 Significant personnel moves prior to the start of the1936 season included the signing of […]

Lloyd Pepper Bassett made his name in Negro League baseball as the “Rocking-Chair Catcher.” If calling a game and receiving pitches while sitting in a rocking chair seems like a gimmick, the reason is that it was one. Bassett began his professional career with the New Orleans Crescent Stars, and low attendance led him to […]

The small town of Gridley, California, was established five years after the Civil War. It would become known for its agriculture, eventually becoming the “Kiwi Capital of the United States.” The Northern California community would also be successful in growing such other crops as peaches, plums that would become prunes, rice and walnuts. Gridley became […]

During the years between the ownership of the New York Giants by club founder John B. Day (1883-1890) and the tumultuous stewardship of Andrew Freedman (1895-1902), the franchise was controlled by a group of business-minded men with varying degrees of interest in baseball. Although he never held the title of team president, the unquestioned leader […]

In the sitcom Cheers, guys came in to have a cold one, talk about whatever was going on, and—most emphatically—defend Sam Malone. Malone, played by Ted Danson, was a washed-up pitcher for the Boston Red Sox turned owner and bartender of Cheers. Judging by the stories patrons would tell about his mediocre career, you would […]

Outfielder George Stumpf was a .235 hitter in the major leagues, playing for both Sox teams, albeit in just 260 at-bats in 118 games. In a 19-year minor-league career, Stumpf hit .289 in 8,509 plate appearances. Of German ancestry, Stumpf was born 10 days before Christmas in 1910 – December 15 – in New Orleans. […]

Perhaps the greatest defensive shortstop of his generation, Bobby Wallace was a fair right-handed hitter whose spectacular glove work catapulted him to the Hall of Fame. Wallace began his major league career as a pitcher, where his dazzling fielding soon convinced management to find a position that better suited his unique combination of skills. After […]

The 1914 season was the fourth in a row in which a team with Josh Devore in the outfield went to the World Series. The speedy Devore was a great leadoff man for the Giants championship teams of 1911 and 1912, and played with the pennant winners of 1913 before being traded. He joined the […]

“It’s really a dream come true – the happiest moment of my life. To get a chance to play before my home town.” – Don O’Riley The classic dream of kids who love baseball is that they will be good enough to play professionally and make the major leagues. If that can be done with […]

Few men were employed in organized baseball longer than Cy Slapnicka. His career lasted over 50 years from his days pitching in the bushes in 1906 through his days as a major league general manager until his retirement from scouting for the Cleveland Indians in 1960. Today, he is mainly remembered as the man that […]

“Eddie Morris, chubby little commodore of the Massachusetts Bay Yachting Association, recently had a Bosch radio receiving set installed in his power cruiser by the Motor Parts Company of 106 Brookline Avenue. Eddie is well pleased with the performance of the set, as it enables him to keep in touch with Fred Hoey at the […]

Tom Zachary pitched in the majors from 1918 through 1936, logging 186 victories.1 The Guilford College star — who took part in one of the greatest collegiate pitching duels ever waged — never played a minor league game, a rare occurrence in those days. He picked up three World Series checks and was on the […]

Joe Strong’s journey to the major leagues resembled one of those animated maps in old adventure movies, the sort with lines and arrows madly crisscrossing the world. His 16-year trek took him through seven US cities and five different countries on two continents. When he finally toed the rubber in a major-league game – on […]

“I place a premium on a thinking catcher,” said Gene Mauch, who managed Clay Dalrymple for eight-plus seasons in Philadelphia.1 Mauch and another great tactician, Earl Weaver, both stressed pitching and defense. Thus, while Dalrymple’s hitting declined after his fourth year with the Phillies, his skills behind the plate kept him employed. The Californian handled […]

“It’s a thankless job, this catching business,” sighed Charley Schmidt in 1908.1 The stocky Tiger was not one of the era’s more dexterous backstops, but instead demonstrated an often overlooked physical bravery in helping his team to three memorable American League pennants. Yet, more so than many of his Detroit teammates, Schmidt is better remembered […]

Best known for pitching the meaningless third game of the 1884 World Series, James “Buck” Becannon pitched in 11 regular-season games in the major leagues for the Metropolitan club of the American Association. He also played one game at third base in 1887 for the New York Giants of the National League. James Melvin Becannon […]

Don Cardwell seemed the definition of a journeyman pitcher, but his career intertwined with the stuff of legend. He threw a no-hitter two days after being traded, he grabbed love beads off Ron Swoboda’s neck at the height of the 1960s culture clash, and Cardwell, who always liked to swing the bat, became the back […]