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Elburt Fletcher was an 18-year-old minor leaguer when he shared a spring training dugout with Babe Ruth. “He still had that marvelous swing, and what a follow-through, just beautiful, like a great golfer. But he was forty years old. He couldn’t run, he could hardly bend down for a ball, and of course he couldn’t […]

In the 1940s Red Barber was solidly entrenched as the Brooklyn Dodgers’ lead broadcaster. But he was not the team’s lone play-by-play man. The “Old Redhead” was ably assisted by Connie Desmond, whose delivery befitted the era in that it was unhurried, calming, and wholly agreeable. Decades after Desmond last described a game in Brooklyn, […]

The Mike Ivie story is so illogical it was once called the strangest in baseball history.1 A young catcher picked first in the 1970 MLB draft and hailed as “the next Johnny Bench” failed to realize his potential because he wouldn’t try. Consequently, neither Ivie nor anyone else would ever know whether he truly had […]

Beginning in 1888 and for the next five summers, right-hander Huyler Westervelt was a pitching standout on various amateur baseball teams in the greater New York City area. As a result, he attracted a number of offers from major league clubs but did not accept one until he signed with the New York Giants in […]

Considering that his professional career almost ended before it started, Joe Sambito made the most of his opportunity. His future in the game teetered several times, but for a period of five years, 1977-1981, the left-hander from Long Island, New York, with a good fastball and a nasty slider was arguably one of the best […]

Every little boy wants to follow in his big brother’s footsteps, especially when it comes to sports. One of Gary Rajsich’s three older brothers, lefty pitcher Dave Rajsich, made it to the big leagues for parts of three seasons (1978-80). In the end, Gary outdid Dave, playing one full season in the majors and parts […]

Charles Augustus Nichols was born into a large family on September 14, 1869 in Madison, Wisconsin.  His father was a butcher there for many years and briefly served as an alderman.  For a few years before Charles was born, his half-brothers James and John were regulars for Madison’s Capital Citys club, which was connected to […]

When he got his shot at major-league baseball, speedy outfielder Jeff McNeely did very well indeed, batting .297 in 21 games. His on-base percentage was .409 and he stole six bases. That call-up came late in the 1993 season; the 23-year-old was then in his fifth year as a pro. Yet he never made it […]

Spin rate and rotation are buzz words of 21st century pitching, but they were just as important in the 19th century. Left-hander Toad Ramsey, who began his career in 1885, was renowned for the motion on his drop ball. “Toad Ramsey, beyond all doubt, had a patented drop ball rotating faster than any other, and this […]

There are fewer third basemen in the Hall of Fame than players from any other position. One who hasn’t made it is Stan Hack, who held down the post for 16 years with the Chicago Cubs, from 1932 through 1947. Yet Bill James ranks him the ninth best all time at the position, well ahead […]

It was Boston’s eighth trade since the end of the 1965 season. In 1964 Billy Herman, about to become the Red Sox manager, had vowed, “If I am ever made manager of this team and we have a losing club, I promise you one thing: We’ll lose with new faces.”1 Herman lived up to his […]

The first thing one might note in glancing at the major-league baseball record of left-handed pitcher Tom Borland is that his career line was 0-4, with a 6.75 earned run average. Was it a burden he bore for the rest of his life? Regardless of anything else, he accomplished something that tens of millions only […]

George Pfister spent 56 years in Organized Baseball. However, he played just once in the majors, with the 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers. It came on September 27, in the second to last game of the NL pennant-winners’ season. Pfister, then 23 years old, came in for the last five innings – but there was just one […]

Jim Landis had a memorable stint with the Go-Go White Sox of the late 1950s, and is considered to be one of the best defensive center fielders in big-league history. He also played with the Kansas City Athletics, Cleveland Indians, Houston Astros, and Detroit Tigers before finishing his career with a short but memorable stint […]

John Edward Kennedy was born in Chicago on May 29, 1941, the 24th birthday of future President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. John Edward came to the major leagues with the Washington Senators during John Fitzgerald’s administration. A love letter to baseball’s Kennedy from his fiancée once was sent to the White House (where that type of […]

Doc Newton was a left-handed hurler with a reputation as a fast worker who kept “the ball going over the plate at a livelier clip than any other pitcher in the business.”1 He used a crossfire delivery and featured “good curves and wonderful speed” when at his peak.2 Plagued with control problems and an inability to adequately […]

James Edward Rice was born on Sunday, March 8, 1953, in Anderson, South Carolina, to Roger and Julia Rice. Residents of the town say that even as a lanky teenager, “Ed,” as he was – and remains – known to his friends, showed promise. He led his 1969 American Legion team to the state finals. […]

“In the morning he won a bride . . . and then proceeded to win the ball game, with a couple of home runs, much to the delight of the bride who sat in the stands and cheered his efforts.”1 On the morning of June 19, 1914, Vella Chloa Glasman, an accomplished 22-year-old singer living […]

Fred Claire wasn’t a politician. However, like many politicians, the erstwhile executive vice president of the Los Angeles Dodgers said one thing when he was talking about Pedro Martínez in 1992, ended up doing the opposite, and regretted his action. “I won’t trade Pedro Martínez, I don’t care who they offer,” said Claire.1 Well, he […]

Reggie Jackson had not returned in years, but it made no difference. Decades after being one of the few Black minor leaguers on the 1967 Birmingham A’s, he could still recall how segregationists would point and refuse him service. He could still recite the taunts: “The n****r can’t stay here”; “The n****r can’t eat here.”1 […]

It was a night like no other. A night to say farewell to an old friend. A night full of memories. A night that would go down in history. And so it was, on September 21, 2008, that more than 54,000 people showed up for the final game to be played at the old ballpark […]

Some baseball records may never be broken: Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak, Rickey Henderson’s 1,406 career stolen bases, the career triples mark of 309 by Sam Crawford, Cal Ripken Jr.’s 2,632 straight games played, and Cy Young’s 511 career wins are frequently cited examples. Another record some considered unassailable was the consecutive scoreless innings mark […]

It all boiled down to one game. The Boston unbelievables had once again come back from adversity, and in the process had defied all odds and logic. The preseason 100-1 long-shot Red Sox had swept the Minnesota Twins in the final weekend showdown and won the American League pennant. They came back from a three […]

Thirteen years before Yankee Stadium opened, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Deacon Phillippe hit a second inning inside-the-park grand slam in Forbes Field during a 14-1 rout of the Brooklyn Superbas.1 Phillippe remained the only pitcher to achieve the feat until 55 years later, when right-hander Mel Stottlemyre lined Bill Monbouquette’s first pitch between Red Sox left […]