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Putting on his Chicago Cubs uniform for the first time, recently acquired pitcher Don Cardwell just wanted to secure his spot in the rotation. He did more than that — he pitched the game of his life. The Cubs were already in disarray a month into the 1960 season. Skipper Charlie Grimm, who had guided […]

In 1977 New York City was a bleak place. It was slowly emerging from near-bankruptcy. Earlier in the summer, widespread looting occurred during a 25-hour blackout. The serial killer known as Son of Sam terrorized residents. However, inside the recently renovated ballpark in the Bronx, the Yankees were in contention to repeat as the American […]

On Halloween night, the New York Yankees stared at a hole they didn’t dare fall into. Few teams have battled back from a three-games-to-one deficit to win the World Series. And of those that did, none ever had to do it against a team with starters as hot as the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Curt Schilling and […]

As a player on the great New York Yankees teams of the 1950s and later as a manager with five different major-league clubs, Billy Martin was known to be brash, bold, and fearless. He played the game hard and made no excuses for the way he handled himself on or off the field. Many people, […]

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 […]

The Brattleboro, Vermont, newspaper read, “The death of Dr. O’Connor removes a capable physician…a man whose warm personality made friends of all his acquaintances, a husband who manifested a strong affection for his wife.”1 Dr. F. H. O’Connor had played briefly in the major leagues, making the comments reminiscent of Minnesota doctor Archibald “Moonlight” Graham, […]

Sometimes nice guys finish first. Chuck Tanner, an eternal optimist who was known as baseball’s Mr. Sunshine, managed the Pittsburgh Pirates to a World Series title in 1979. He won more than 1,350 games as a manager of four teams between 1970 and 1988. Tanner also played for eight years in the majors, with the […]

The Newark Eagles’ May 5, 1946, season-opening game against the Philadelphia Stars, a 2-0 no-hit victory for Eagles pitcher Leon Day, soon spelled opportunity for a multi-talented college player named Oscar Givens. Shortstop Benny Felder made two errors in the game,1 and when the two teams moved from Ruppert Stadium to Delaware’s Wilmington Park the […]