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As of the 2012 season, 26 former Princeton University Tigers had played major-league baseball. Dan Bickham was the first pitcher and arguably the most ardent Tiger supporter among the group. He seldom missed an alumni gathering, especially in the early years when games were played between the alums and the current squad. He was described […]

East Liverpool, Ohio, which bills itself as “The Pottery Capital of the World,” is situated about 40 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. It’s where Pretty Boy Floyd was embalmed and is the boyhood hometown of Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz – and the place of both birth and death of major-league baseball player John Henry […]

The quiet man — a perfect description of Kevin McReynolds. He played with some of the most vocal players in the game during his career and yet rarely made the news like many of his teammates. McReynolds maintained his easygoing, quiet demeanor throughout his playing days, letting his bat and glove do the talking for […]

World War II veteran Dick Kryhoski was a lefty-hitting first baseman for seven years in the majors. The son of Polish immigrants played for five teams, including the final St. Louis Browns club and the first edition of the modern Baltimore Orioles. Richard David Kryhoski was born on March 24, 1925, in Leonia, New Jersey. […]

He could be considered one of the most reluctant, or perhaps contradictory, players to have ever walked on to a ball field. In July 1942 Buddy Rosar wore out his welcome with the New York Yankees after bolting the team to sit for a police department entrance exam (anticipating postcareer employment) and to visit his […]

James Lee “Jimmie” Newberry was a starting pitcher for the Birmingham Black Barons from 1942 to 1950. Most newspapers and historical sources refer to “Jimmy” as the diminutive of Newberry’s first name. However, the best evidence, which includes two autographs, signed “Jimmie Newberry,” is that he preferred to use the variant “Jimmie.”1 Newberry was born […]

Signed to the Boston Red Sox by Frank “Bots” Nekola, the same scout who signed Carl Yastrzemski, outfielder Joe Lahoud faced some stiff competition trying to break into the majors. At the time, his path intersected with those of both Yaz and local Boston favorite Tony Conigliaro. Lahoud came from Danbury, Connecticut, born there on […]

For many people, Steve Rogers is the guy who gave up the game-winning home run to Rick Monday in the 1981 National League Championship Series. However, to think of him for just that one pitch does a disservice to a player who was a five-time All-Star, an ERA leader, and the ace of the excellent […]

East of Puerto Rico lie the isles of Vieques and Culebra. Along with a sprinkling of cays, they are sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands. As of 2018, pitcher Julio Navarro was the only viequense ever to make the majors, largely because the island is an undeveloped place with a population of only about […]

Em Lindbeck’s big-league career spanned only two plate appearances. Although unsuccessful in the major leagues, he achieved success in nearly all other areas of his life. Lindbeck was a high school class president, a decorated multisport collegiate athlete, an all-star minor leaguer, an esteemed professional educator, and a public servant. A series of poor decisions […]

In 1941, the book on 23-year-old Eddie Pellagrini was as a “good field, no hit” shortstop. “[He] may not hit as well as [others] but he’s certainly a fine prospect … ‘Pellagrini is a faster fielder than [most],’” said San Diego Padres player-manager Cedric Durst. It thus came as a surprise five years later when […]

Joseph J. Lannin owned the Boston Red Sox for less than four full years, but in that short span, the team won two world championships in the back-to-back years 1915 and 1916. A native of the Province of Quebec, he came to the United States at a very young age – the story says he […]

President John F. Kennedy was said to have correctly answered a trivia question that had been floating around for years: Who is the only man to ever hit a home run off Sandy Koufax and catch a pass from Y.A. Tittle? The guess was always Alvin Dark. “It’s not quite accurate, however,” Dark always said. […]

Eleanor Callow was more than just the greatest power hitter in All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) history. On top of being the all-time leader in home runs and triples, Callow was perhaps the league’s best all-around position player. A speedy outfielder with a strong throwing arm, Callow ranks in the Top 10 in career […]

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 […]

One year removed from a Class D league, Chicago White Sox right-hander Les Tietje made his major-league debut in the “House that Ruth Built” on September 18, 1933. Unfazed by the taller-than-life figures of the Babe and Lou Gehrig, the 22-year-old outdueled Red Ruffing and defeated the New York Yankees, 4-3. Playing for perennial also-rans, […]

From the moment he started pitching, Steve Kealey wanted to be a starter instead of a reliever. However, once he reached professional baseball, his ability to loosen up quickly made him too valuable not to use him out of the bullpen. Despite not getting his first preference, the 6-foot, 185-pound Kealey crafted a brief yet […]

Long before the term “multitasker” made its way into our language, Paul Des Jardien epitomized the word. While a student at the University of Chicago, his goal was to win twelve letters in varsity competition.i In the fall he was an All-American football player, student, and line coach for his alma mater’s football team. Come […]

On May 1, 1983, the Philadelphia Phillies celebrated their 100th anniversary in baseball. The festivities that day included 93-year-old John Enzmann, the oldest living member of the team. He was invited to toss out the ceremonial “first pitch.” Former Phil Bill Peterman was also on hand to take part in the festivities.1 Peterman was one […]

It would be hard to spend time studying the American League’s first decade without running into the brawny and brawling figure of left fielder Patsy Dougherty. A powerfully built (6’2″, 190 pounds, large for his day) second-generation Irish-American with a moon face and cleft chin, Dougherty was a major contributor to the first two AL […]

Here are the SABR Bookshelf listings for Spring 2017. To get your NEW book listed on The SABR Bookshelf, make sure a review copy is sent to: The SABR Bookshelf, Cronkite School at ASU, 555 N. Central Ave. #416, Phoenix, AZ 85004. An e-book file will also suffice; please send the e-book in PDF, EPUB […]

The St. Louis Cardinals won a World Series championship in 2006, their first season at the new Busch Stadium. (Kevin Ward/Flickr.com. Used by permission: CC BY-SA 2.0.)   Introduction The St. Louis Cardinals have achieved a level of success in Major League Baseball that has been outdone only by the New York Yankees. Through the […]

The fall classic, the world’s championship of baseball, was not yet regarded as an integral part of the national pastime in 1905. While there was a championship series in 1903 between the American League-winning Boston Americans and the National League champion Pittsburgh Pirates, whether this interleague postseason series would become a regular event was far […]

Yankee Stadium was the natural choice to hold the All-Star Game in 1939. The game originated in Chicago in 1933, as an activity adjacent to the city’s Century of Progress World’s Fair. Six years later, New York was home to another World’s Fair, touting “The World of Tomorrow.” Companies like Westinghouse and National Cash Register […]