MONDAY —27-Sep-2021
Q. Who won the
pitching Triple Crown in the American League’s inaugural season?
Hint: #1 He
threw the first perfect game of the twentieth century.
Hint: #2 He
won both games of a double header on the last day of his rookie season.
- Ans. In 1901, Young led the new league in Ks w/158
but he led both leagues in W w/33 & ERA w/1.62.
- #1 Perfecto
= 05-May-1904. For reasons unknown,
opposing manager Connie Mack did not pinch hit for pitcher Rube Waddell (career
.161 hitter) in the 9th and Waddell flied out to end the perfect G.
- #2 2 W
= 04-Oct-1890(1) & 04-Oct-1890(2), winning by scores of
5-1 & 7-3.
FCR - Steve Murfin,
Olney, Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Eddie
Plank, Addie Joss, Jack Chesbro, Christy Mathewson
Q. Whose career WAR is higher than any
pitcher eligible, but not in the Hall of Fame? (Roger Clemens excepted)
Hint: #1 Before Randy Johnson, he was the last
National League pitcher to strike out 300 batters in consecutive seasons.
Hint: #2 He has World Series rings with different
franchises.
Hint: #3 The first major league game he ever
attended was Roberto Clemente’s last.
A. CURT SCHILLING [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Schilling’s WAR= 79.5 (Clemens =
138.7). MLB says the range of WAR
for the average HOF player is 50-70.
- #1 1997
= 319 K; 1998 = 300 K, pitching for PHI.
- #2 WS
rings = 2001 ARI; 2004, 2007 = BOS
- #3 First
MLB G = 03-Oct-1972 in Pittsburgh
FCR - Jason Winston, Riverside, California
Incorrect guesses: Mike Scott, J.R. Richard, Sandy Koufax, Shoeless
Joe Jackson, Dwight Gooden
WEDNESDAY —29-Sep
Q. Who is the oldest person to pitch in a World
Series game?
Hint: #1 He went to Hollywood after his time in
the majors.
Hint: #2 He was born in a country whose borders and
name have changed more than once since he was born.
A. JACK QUINN [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Quinn pitched the 7th & 8th
innings of G 3 of the 1930 WS and had turned 47
earlier that season.. His effectiveness
at an advanced age is all the more remarkable considering that he began working
in coal mines at the age of 12, lying about his age to circumvent the law.
- #1 Last
MLB G was 07-Jul-1933. Played
6 G for the Hollywood Stars of the PCL in 1934.
- #2 Born
(probably) in 1883 in Stefurov, Austria-Hungary, now Slovakia
FCR - Len Levin, Providence
Incorrect
guesses: Satchel Paige, Tim Hudson, Howard
Emke
MIDWEEK BONUS —30-Sep
Q. Who won the Cy Young Award one year after his
teammate had won it only to face that then ex-teammate in the first game of the
World Series?
Hint: #1 He finished ahead of three pitchers now in
the Hall of Fame the year he won his Cy Young Award.
Hint: #2 He won his first seven postseason starts.
Hint: #3 His frequent five o’clock shadow helped to
keep him from being mistaken for a high schooler.
- Ans. Lee’s
2008 CYA followed CC Sabathia’s 2007 award.
Sabathia became a Yankee in 2009 and lost to Lee in G 1 of the 2009 WS.
- #1 Finishing
behind him in CYA voting in 2008 were Roy Halladay, Mariano Rivera &
Mike Mussina, among others.
- #2 Lee
was 7–0 in 7 postseason starts for PHI & TEX in 2009 & 2010, including a CG W vs. NYY
in the 2009 WS.
- #3 Babyface/slight beard
FCR - Vince Guerrier, Elyria, Ohio
Incorrect
guesses: Andy Pettitte, Sal Maglie,
Justin Verlander, Catfish Hunter
THURSDAY —30-Sep
Q. Who was the only major league pitcher to win
thirty games in a season in the 1920s?
Hint: #1 He surrendered the hit that broke Ty Cobb’s
record for most hits in a season.
Hint: #2 He and his son both pitched in the World
Series. (Not the same one; that would be
a record!)
- Ans. Record
was 31-12 in 1920.
- #1 Surrendered
hit #249 to future Hall of Famer George Sisler 28-Sep-1920.
- #2 Bagby,
pitched G 2 & G 5 in the 1920 WS. Jim
Bagby, Jr. pitched in G 4 in the 1946 WS.
FCR - Steven Wright, Naperville, Illinois
Incorrect
guesses: Smoky Joe Wood, Lefty Grove,
Pete Alexander, Dizzy Dean
FRIDAY —01-Oct
Q. Which Oklahoma native star pitcher was the first
to face his Ontario native brother pitcher in a major league game?
Hint: #1 He was the only National League pitcher to
walk twice in an inning as a batter.
Hint: #2 Baseball savant Bill James is a distant
relative of the Barnes brothers.
A. JESSE BARNES [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Jesse
was born in Perkins, OK in 1892; his brother Virgil Barnes, was born in
Ontario, Kansas. They were the opposing pitchers
on 03-May-1927 when Jesse’s Robins beat the hosting NYG. The
Barnes brothers would match up several more times during their careers. (Also
unique to that 1st contest, brother Virgil was relieved by another
pitcher named Virgil, the 113th most common men’s
name in the 1920’s according to the U.S. Census Bureau.)
- #1 BB
X2 = 02-Oct-1917.
- #2 James
reveals his kinship with the Barnes brothers in his book, The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, p. 95.
FCR - Joe O’Neill, London, Ontario
Incorrect
guesses: Dizzy Dean
NOTE: Correct question and answer here should have been Joe Batchelder. Barnes did not play in the game where Ernie Padgett turned the UTP.
SATURDAY —02-Oct
Q. Who is the only pitcher to surrender the 3,000th
hits of a player with the same last name?
Hint: #1 He is often mistaken for a nearly contemporary
position player with a similar name.
Hint: #2 In his one season with the Red Sox, he led
the American League in wild pitches and led the majors in most bases on
balls. They didn’t keep him for the
following season.
A. RIP COLLINS [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Gave
up Hall of Famer Eddie Collins’ 3,000th H on 03-Jun-1925.
- #1 Rip
Collins played in the majors 1920-1931. Ripper Collins played 1931-1941.
- #2 In 1922,
Collins had 7 WP and 103 BB. Not long after the WS, BOS traded him w/Del Pratt to DET for Danny Clark, Howard Ehmke, Babe
Herman, Carl Holling & $25,000.
FCR - Thomas Howell, Reno
Incorrect
guesses: Tim Wakefield, Dale Murray,
Stan Williams
WEEK’S NOT-QUITE FINALE —XX-Mmm
Q. Whose unusual uniform number made the most
sense?
Hint: #1 His father won an MVP while leading the
league in home runs, RBI and OPS.
Hint: #2 In twelve seasons, he pitched for eight
major league teams and played with eleven future Hall of Famers.
A. OMAR OLIVARES [Wiki]
- Ans. He
wore uniform # 00 (…or was it OO?) pitching for STL & PHI. None of
the first or last names of the 20 MLB players who wore “00” began with “O” except
Olivares.
- #1 Ed Olivares paced the 1960 Class B Carolina League with 35 HR, 125 RBI &
an OPS of 1.022. His banner season earned him a September call-up with
the parent Cardinals where he went 0-for-5 while striking out in all of his
first three MLB games.
- #2 In
MLB 1990-2001, Olivares played for STL, OAK, ANA, DET, COL, PIT, PHI &
SEA. Among those he played with in the
majors were Hall of Famers Ozzie Smith, Lee Smith, Joe Torre, Red Schoendienst,
Larry Walker, Alan Trammell, Ken Griffey, Jr., Randy Johnson, Edgar Martinez, Rod
Carew and Tim Raines.
FCR - Warren Kent, Whitehall, Michigan
Incorrect
guesses: Eddie Gaedel, Bill Voiselle, Darren
Oliver
MONDAY
—04-Oct
(Unfortunately
mis-labeled as Sunday)
Q. Which pitcher surrendered six home runs in
a single season to his Hall of Fame cousin?
Hint: #1 He racked up the highest single-game ERA
for a World Series seventh game.
Hint: #2 Earlier that season, he had to be removed
from the game when he cut his hand on some glass while wiping off the bench in
the dugout.
A. VIC ALDRIDGE [SABR Bio]
- Ans. High Pockets Kelly took Aldridge deep with 6 of the 16 HRs
he hit in 1923. No batter had ever hit
that many off one pitcher in one year.
- #1 In
G 7 of the 1925 WS, Aldridge surrendered 4 ER in ⅓ IP for an ERA of 108.0.
- #2 Cut
his hand 02-Jul-1925. Tom Sheehan took
his place on the mound and took the W.
FCR - No one
Incorrect guesses: James Shields, Elden Auker, Joaquin Andujar, Grover
Cleveland Alexander, George Stone, Hank Borowy, Ken Brett, Firpo Marberry
IN MEMORIAM —05-Oct
Q. What Paris-born centenarian played for eight
major league teams (seven franchises) but never played any position other than
first base?
Hint: #1 He played for every original American
League team except the Red Sox.
Hint: #2 His autobiography was aptly titled, “Lucky
Me”.
Hint: #3 He is the only player to have a major
league season with more than fifteen home runs, but only one double.
Hint: #4 Joe Torre, broke his record for most double
plays grounded into in a single game.
Hint: #5 He was the first White Sox player to hit a
home run over the right field grandstand in Comiskey Park.
Hint: #6 Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver gave him
much of the credit for his managerial success.
Hint: #7 He had exactly one hit in the majors before
three years of military service interrupted his career start.
A. EDDIE ROBINSON [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Born in Paris, Texas 15-Dec-1920. Played 1,126 G all at first base. He had a total of 1,315 G in MLB, the extra
191 as a pinch-hitter or pinch-runner.
As he passed away today, he was the oldest living former major leaguer.
- #1 Played
for CLE, WSH, CHW, PHA, NYY, KCA, DET & BAL.
- #2 Full
title was “Lucky Me: My Sixty-Five Years in Baseball”.
- #3 In
1955, Robinson hit 16 HR for NYY but only 1 2B.
- #4 On 30-May-1955(2), he hit into 3 double
plays. Torre set the record that still
stands of 4 GIDP in 1 G: 21-Jul-1975.
Robinson was tied w/16 other players when he did it. More than 100 players have done it since. (Today’s better gloves?)
- #5 Long
HR = 25-Apr-1951(1) off SLB’s Al Widmar. Read SABR’s account of the HR.
- #6 Robinson
was a front office executive for BAL’s and saw leadership potential in Weaver
who had played at every level of organized baseball except the majors. “Eddie took me under his wing and showed me…
how a major leaguer should act.”
- #7 Robinson
played 8 G for CLE in 1942 and then spent 1943-45 in the U.S. Navy. He then played exactly 8 G in the 1st
season back but hit .400 and showed he was ready to contribute as a regular.
FCR - Dave Wise, Hyde Park, New York
Incorrect guesses:
TUESDAY —05-Oct
Q. Which pitcher had no sooner dropped to his
knees to celebrate his team’s World Series championship when he was tackled and
brought all the way to the ground by the team’s equally exuberant first
baseman?
Hint: #1 In his first start as a rookie, he gave up
two hits and no earned runs.
Hint: #2 He was drafted by the Giants and Astros but
played his last game in the majors with the Nats.
A. BRAD LIDGE [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Scroll
down to “Euphoria”
- #1 In
his only career start, 18-Sep-2002, he pitched 3 innings and struck out 4 but
didn’t figure in the decision, a win.
- #2 Drafted
by SFG in the 42nd round of the 1995 MLB June
Amateur Draft from high school in Colorado & then by HOU in the 1st round (17th) of
the 1998 Draft. Last season in the Bigs
was spent w/WSN in 2012.
FCR - Russ Walsh, Morrisville, Pennsylvania
Incorrect guesses: Jonathan Papelbon, Wade Davis
WEDNESDAY —06-Oct
Q. Which Cardinals’ scout carefully followed
Ted Williams during the final days of the 1946 season the better to defend
against him in the upcoming World Series?
Hint: #1 He was a coach for the Cardinals during a
time when they finished below second place only once.
Hint: #2 He was the winning pitcher in the
highest-scoring game in major league history.
A. TONY KAUFMANN [WIKI Bio]
- Ans. Kaufman and Ken Penner went to BOS games in September 1946 to help STL management decide on which kind of shift would
work best against Williams. Their
advance work may have contributed to Williams’ batting (& slugging) a
meager .200 in that WS, as Series w/5 HOF.
Kaufmann was a STL scout 1942-46 & 1950-61.
- #1 Coached
STL 1947-50.
- #2 On 25-Aug-1922, pitching for CHC, he threw the 1st
innings of a G that ended 26-23.
FCR - Adam Foldes, New York City
Incorrect guesses:
THURSDAY —07-Oct
Q. Which lefty was a teammate of Fernando
Rodney on different teams, in different countries, a decade apart?
Hint:
#1 In his rookie season, he tied for
the highest winning percentage on his team.
Hint: #2 That year
he tied for second in the league in that category.
Hint: #3 He only faced one batter in his final major
league win.
A. HORACIO RAMIREZ [Wiki Bio]
- Ans. 2011 Angels & 2021 Toros [Bulls] de Tijuana
- #1 .750,
[12-4] record, tied with Russ Ortiz [21-7] and Jung Bong [6-2].
- #2 Placed
behind Jason Schmidt [.773], tied with Joe Nathan, Mark Prior & Ortiz
- #3 Struck
out Endy Chavez on 18-Aug-2011, his only career 1-batter W.
FCR - Warren Kent, Whitehall, Michigan
Incorrect guesses: Jonathan Papelbon
FRIDAY —08-Oct
Q. Of the two Towson University alumni who pitched
500 innings in the majors, only Jim Palmer never surrendered a grand slam. Who was the other pitcher?
Hint: #2 The
next season he was the only pitcher to win 10 games for his team, yet ended the
year with a losing record.
Hint: #3 During
a brief minor league assignment, he pitched a combined no-hitter.
A. CHRIS
NABHOLZ [B-R Bio]
- Ans. Nabholz watched 3 MLB grand slams from his
position on the mound. Another Towson alum, Hall of Famer Jim Palmer, famously never
gave up a HR with the bases loaded in his almost 4,000 IP for BAL 1965-84.
- #1 NL POM September 1991. He had a better record that month than the AL
winner, Roger Clemens.
- #2 He
was 11-12 record for MON in 1992 w/an amazing 6 Ws in his final 6 GS. In fact, the Expos were 8-0 in his final 8 GS
that September. His ERA for the month
was 2.15.
- #3 Combined
no-no w/Bruce Walton on 24-May-1993 for the Ottawa Lynx vs. Richmond Braves, one of only five games he pitched for
Ottawa. 1st no-hitter in Lynx
history.
FCR - Steve Newton, New Castle, Delaware
Incorrect guesses: Lou Sleator, Jordan Zimmerman, Pedro Ramos
SATURDAY —09-Oct
Q. Before Rafael Novoa in 1990, who was the
last pitcher from Villanova University to make the majors?
Hint: #1 He was part of the trade that returned Luis
Aparicio to the White Sox.
Hint: #2 In the last game of his rookie season, he
earned his only career save, although the save would not become an official
statistic until the year after his major league career ended.
Hint: #3 His son played in the majors for nine
seasons.
A. BRUCE
HOWARD [B-R Bio]
- Ans. At Villanova 1960-62 & in the majors
1963-68.
- #1 Traded
with Don Buford
& Roger
Nelson to BAL for Aparicio,
Russ
Snyder & John Matias.
- #2 1
SV for 1963
CHW, on 28-Sep
- #3 Son
David
Howard played 1991-99
FCR - Johnny Murray, Taylors, South Carolina
Incorrect guesses: Frank Kreutzer, Clyde Wright, Steve Huntz,
Roger Nelson
SUNDAY —10-Oct
Q. Which Rockies pitcher, after suffering a
career ending arm injury, created his company, Demand Command and became a
motivational speaker?
Hint: #1 He is a former Hoosier.
Hint: #2 After no longer pitching professionally, he
pitched for the independent Gary SouthShore RailCats.
A. ZACH
McCLELLAN [Wiki
Bio]
- Ans. Here is the company’s website.
- #1 Attended
Indiana University.
- #2 After
not pitching professionally in 2009, he pitched in 4 G for the Gary SouthShore RailCats in 2010
FCR - Steven Wright, Naperville, Illinois
Incorrect guesses: John Thomson
WEEK’S FINALE —10-Oct
Q. Who is the only 19th century
pitcher to post a sub-.300 W-L Percentage (minimum 100 decisions)?
Hint: #1 Nicknamed for his pioneering style, his sobriquet
did not prove properly prescient.
Hint: #2 The first home run he surrendered in the
majors was to the first professional baseballist born west of the
Mississippi River.
A. FREDERICK “Tricky”
NICHOLS [B-R Bio]
- Ans. Compiled a woeful .277 W-L% on his career
record of 28-73 compiled over 6 Big League seasons.
- #1 Dubbed
“Tricky” as one of the first practitioners of changing speeds, he only fanned fewer
than 2 batters
per 9 IP over his career.
- #2 Montrose,
Iowa native Cal McVey the youngest professional baseball player when he
joined the renowned 1869
Cincinnati Red Stockings at age 19, took Tricky deep on 02‑Jul‑1875. The
Third Dickson Baseball Dictionary defines “baseballist” as a historic word identifying,
“One who plays or is in some way closely associated with the game of baseball.”
FCR - Joe O’Neill, London, ON
Incorrect guesses: The Only Nolan, Candy Cummings, Tommy Bond, Phenomenal
Smith, Jim Hughey, Calvin McVey
WEEKLY THEME – Pitchers
who benefitted directly from an unassisted triple play
Pitcher Fielder Date Team Opp Batter
Aldridge.......... Glenn Wright................. 07-May-1925.......... PIT........ STL....... Jim
Bottomley
Bagby............. Bill Wambsganss........... 10-Oct-1920*.......... CLE....... BRO...... Clarence
Mitchell
Barnes***............ Ernie Padgett.................. 06-Oct-1923........... BSN....... PHI........ Walter
Holke
Collins............ Johnny Neun................ 31-May-1927**......... DET....... CLE....... Homer
Summa
Howard........... Ron Hansen.................. 30-Jul-1968........... WAS...... CLE....... Joe
Azcue
Kaufmann....... Jimmy Cooney............. 30-May-1927(1)......... CHC...... PIT........ Paul Waner
Lee................. Asdrubal Cabrera.......... 12-May-2008(2)......... CLE....... TOR...... Lyle Overbay
Lidge............... Eric Bruntlett................ 23-Aug-2009**......... PHI........ NYM...... Jeff
Francoeur
McClellan....... Troy Tulowitzki............. 29-Apr-2007........... COL....... ATL....... Chipper
Jones
Nabholz.......... John Valentin................ 08-Jul-1994........... BOS...... SEA....... Marc
Newfield
Nichols........... Paul
Hines................... 08-May-1878......... PRO...... BSN....... Jack Burdock
Olivares.......... Randy Velarde............... 29-May-2000.......... OAK...... NYY....... Shane
Spencer
Quinn............. George Burns................. 14-Sep-1923........... BOS...... CLE....... Frank
Brower
Ramirez.......... Rafael Furcal............... 10-Aug-2003.......... ATL....... STL....... Woody
Williams
Schilling.......... Mickey Morandini.......... 20-Sep-1992........... PHI........ PIT........ Jeff
King
Young............. Neal Ball....................... 19-Jul-1909(1).......... CLE....... BOS...... Amby McConnell
*World Series G 5
**Game-ending play
***Correct question and answer here should have been Joe Batchelder. Barnes did not play in the game where Ernie Padgett turned the UTP.
First
Correct Respondent identifying theme – Jason Hammon, Arlington, Texas (1st
of 8 who submitted the correct theme.)
Incorrect theme
guesses:
Monday - Three
or more complete games in a World Series
Tuesday - Won the
second game of World Series where the Red Sox won
- Anything
to do with a Red Sox World Series
- Players
it would be the least pleasant to spend time locked in a room with
- Pitchers
with over 2,500 career K's and less than 1,000 career walks
- Players
whose middle names are names of cities in Texas
- Former
Cleveland spiders
Sunday - Last
name of players who have pitched for the Red Sox
Sundayb - College
players with degrees in business who went on to pitch in a multi-player
no-hitter.
- Pitchers
whose last names are also the last names of generals?
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