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Over the course of three decades in the early 20th century, Robert Joseph Connery was a major-league scout and minor-league player, manager, and owner. He was the closest friend of Hall of Fame manager Miller Huggins, and was Huggins’s scout with both the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees. Best known as the […]

Arthur Soden was like many nineteenth century capitalists: He had a near single-mindedness when it came to the bottom line. He saw baseball as a business, pure and simple, though he did admit later in life that he had a fondness for the game. Controlling costs and expanding revenues were his priorities. The well-being and […]

In February of 2006, Orestes “Minnie” Miñoso was preparing himself for the day he had anticipated for many years. Considered by a significant group of historians, statisticians, and old-time fans to be among the best baseball players not enshrined in the Hall of Fame, Miñoso awaited the voting results of the Committee on African-American Baseball, […]

Often mentioned as one of four knuckleball pitchers on the Washington Senators staff of the mid-1940s, Johnny Niggeling gained the reputation as a baseball nomad long before securing a position with the Cincinnati Reds in 1939. His epic journey spanned nearly two decades, playing in ten different leagues, punctuated with two brief chances in the […]

When many reflect on the 1990s Mariners, often the flashier stars jump to mind: Ken Griffey, Jr., Randy Johnson, Álex Rodríguez. However, few on those teams would disagree that the stalwart of the Mariners was a player who toiled just outside of the spotlight. Known as Gar, El Papa, or Papi, Edgar Martinez was the […]

Days after his graduation from college in June 1915, Rupert Mills was signed by the Newark Peppers of the Federal League. A Newark native and a locally renowned schoolboy athlete, Mills was deemed the potential fan magnet desperately sought by Peppers management. Unhappily, the new recruit proved unequal to the task, batting an anemic .201 […]

To discuss Paul Derringer is to discuss two men-a pitcher with exceptional control of his pitches and general work on the mound and a man with little or no control of himself anywhere else. Derringer (called “Oom Paul” for his 6-foot-3.1/2-inch height and admitted 205 pounds) was a belligerent man who often used his fists […]

In a 16-year career marked by steady production, Todd Zeile was literally all over the place. He was traded five times, released once, and signed five separate free-agent contracts, toiling for 11 different organizations: Cardinals, Cubs, Phillies, Orioles, Dodgers, Marlins, Rangers, Mets, Rockies, Yankees, Expos, and Mets again. Ironically it was Zeile’s very dependability — […]

More than three decades along on a career that was still not half over, Washington Senators pitching coach Sid Hudson had seen his share of hurlers come and go. A mere month into the American League expansion entry’s existence, Hudson’s attention was captured by a 27-year-old Pennsylvania native who, he claimed, “has one of the […]

While baseball history is most often made by winning teams and talented players, there are many less visible people who have had just as profound an impact on the sport. They include Alex Monchak. During his career, he played on 16 baseball teams, managed eight different teams over 13 seasons, coached for four major-league teams […]

Blaine M. Thomas was born in August 1888, in Glendora, California — but no one has yet been able to turn up the date of his birth. His debut is easy to pin down, though. He started the second game of a doubleheader for the Boston Red Sox in St. Louis on August 25, 1911, […]

(The sound of knocking on an office door) “Come in.” “Sir, you asked me keep an eye out for a boy in the ranks who looked like he had the makings of someone you could use around the office; a boy who can be trusted.” “Yes.” “Well, sir, I think I’ve found one. He’s a […]

Dick Siebert seemed destined for a life as a Lutheran minister but instead devoted more than 50 years of his life to the game of baseball. Stuck in the minor leagues as a player, he finally got a chance at the big leagues when Baseball Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis and Philadelphia Athletics owner/manager Connie Mack […]

By his own account, Merv Rettenmund was a “scuffler” more than a ballplayer. He never found his niche as a regular starter with the Baltimore Orioles, but he starred as a super-sub and was a key cog for the Orioles as they won three consecutive American League pennants, from 1969 to 1971. He twice led […]

Hawaiian left-hander Fred Kuhaulua pitched in just eight major-league games, coming in a pair of trials four years apart, with the California Angels in 1977 and the San Diego Padres in 1981. He won his only decision at the top level with San Diego, outdueling Fernando Valenzuela as the season wound down. That was his […]

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, […]

One of the best pitchers of the 1970s, Dock Ellis feared success nearly as much as he feared failure. He both angered and amused. His antics cut across racial and cultural lines, as he challenged old prejudices and “normal” ways of doing things. Ellis pitched a no-hitter in 1970 and the next year led the […]

Boston Braves fans had few reasons to be hopeful as the 1952 season opened at Braves Field on Tuesday, April 15. Only three seasons after winning the 1948 National League pennant, the Braves were coming off a 76-78 record and a fourth-place finish. Also, the American League’s Red Sox were winning the battle of Boston […]

“The game between the Red Stockings and Haymakers this afternoon, on the Boston Grounds,” wrote the Boston Advertiser, “will be perfectly interesting from the fact that it is the first game between professional nines in this city.”1 Those few sentences, buried in a column of “local matters about town,” are a far cry from what […]

Given Satchel Paige’s reputation and talent, his assignment to pitch on Opening Day 1935 should come as no surprise. Unfortunately, racism and Paige’s skin color kept him from displaying his skills for any National League or American League club until 1948. Further, in 1935 a contract dispute was keeping Paige from gracing a roster in […]

Praise rained down on Nolan Ryan of the California Angels following his historic 19-strikeout performance on August 12, 1974, which set an American League record for a nine-inning game and tied the NL/AL record held by Steve Carlton and Tom Seaver.1 “He had great stuff,” declared Boston Red Sox skipper Darrell Johnson, whose team had […]

In 2003 the Boston Red Sox were in the postseason for the first time since 1999. Back then, the New York Yankees had eliminated them in the American League Championship Series, but Red Sox fans were hoping that this time would be different. The ’03 Red Sox, who finished six games behind the Yankees with […]

The 1993 Los Angeles Dodgers didn’t win the World Series, the National League pennant, or the NL West Division. Truth is, they were a .500 ballclub. But after a season-ending 12-1 blitzkrieg of the rival San Francisco Giants leveled their record at 81-81, the Dodgers couldn’t help but celebrate as though they had achieved something […]

Sportsman’s Park was home of the St. Louis Browns from 1902 to 1953. (National Baseball Hall of Fame Library.)   Introduction Achieving on-field success has often proved elusive to owners of the Baltimore Orioles and its predecessor teams, the St. Louis Browns and Milwaukee Brewers. The franchise, dating back to the inception of the American […]