MONDAY —22-Aug
Q. Who
amassed more total bases in major league play than any other player ever?
Hint: #1
He received MVP votes in nineteen consecutive seasons, finishing thirteen
times in the top ten, eight times in the top five and once in the top one.
Hint: #2 In fact, he was so good, he was bad.
- Ans. 6,856
TB in his 23-year career. In 2nd
place at more than 700 behind is Albert Pujols.
- #1 MVP in 1957; MVP votes 1955-1973.
- #2 An
ironic nickname people used to love to use for him was “Bad Henry”.
FCR - Michael
Schneider, Wilmington, Delaware
Incorrect guesses: Babe Ruth, George Brett, Pete Rose, Albert
Pujols, Stan Musial, Ted Williams
TUESDAY —23-Aug
Q. Which Hall of
Fame pitcher admired American League Most Valuable Player Bobby Shantz because both
threw from the left side and were (at the time) of similar height?
Hint: #1 He and
Shantz were the first two pitchers to win Gold Gloves in each league.
Hint: #2 He was the last
active player from the original (20th century) Washington Senators.
- Ans. Shantz measured 5’6” (possibly) and was 1953 AL MVP. Kaat had a rapid growth spurt that had him at
6’4” by the time he finished high school.
- #1 Kaat won GG in the AL 1962-75
& in the NL 1976-77. Shantz won in
the AL 1958-1960 & the NL 1961-64.
Kaat had copied Shantz’s fielding methods since he was young boy.
- #2 Kaat debuted in the majors
w/WSH in 1959 and played his
last game in 1983, then w/STL.
FCR - Barry Lipinski,
Somerset, New Jersey
Incorrect guesses: Whitey
Ford, Darold Knowles, Ralph Terry, Harvey Haddix, Claude Osteen, Billy Pierce
WEDNESDAY —24-Aug
Q. Which
hirsute BLTR Texan was drafted high by the Blue Jays but first played in the
majors in the National League?
Hint: #1
His cherubic sojourn, although highly anticipated, was not strong enough
to prevent a trade.
Hint: #2
One season, he led the majors in complete games, but shared the honor, tied
with seven other pitchers.
A. NOAH SYNDERGAARD [B-R
Bio]
-
Ans. Drafted out of high school in
2010 by TOR and traded to NYM in 2012. 1st
G in MLB was 12‑May‑2015.
-
#1 Was on he Angels early in 2022, and pitched in only 15 G.
-
#2 In 2018, his 2
CG were matched by Jose Berrios, Carlos Carrasco, Mike Foltynewicz,
Corey Kluber, James Paxton, Max Scherzer & Jameson Taillon.
FCR - David
Gordon, Chevy Chase, Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Kerry Wood
MIDWEEK BONUS —25-Aug
Q. Who accounted
for five of the strikeouts in Bob Feller’s eighteen-strikeout game?
Hint: #1
In a game almost exactly six years later, he fared much, much better.
Hint: #2
He played briefly for Toronto at the end of his career.
A. CHET LAABS [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. On 02-Oct-1938, Feller was the 1st
to K 18 in a 9-inning G in the live ball era.
Laabs, in addition to being the 18th K in the 9th,
also struck out in the 2nd, 4th, 6th & 8th
innings.
-
#1 Laabs hit 2 HR on 01-Oct-1944, helping the Browns
defeat the Yankees and secure their only pennant. They were only his 4th & 5th
HR that year.
-
#2 Played for the AAA Toronto
Maple Leafs in 1949 & 1950.
FCR - Paul
Nielsen, Bowie, Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Ken Keltner, Joe DiMaggio
THURSDAY —25-Aug
Q. Which
one-time Seattle closer racked up sixty nine saves in two years before taking a
job as coordinator of player development with another team?
Hint: #1
Despite hundreds of games for six additional major league teams, he
never had a start or save for any other team than the Mariners.
Hint: #2
He is the only player who has ever bumped Hank Aaron out of position.
Hint: #3
His sister is an actress.
A. DAVID AARDSMA [B-R
Bio]
-
Ans. Saves w/SEA = 38 in 2009, 31
in 2010. Now works in the front office
of TOR.
-
#1 Pitched in a total of 205 non-SEA
G for SFG, CHC, CHW, BOS, NYY, NYM & ATL.
-
#2 Henry Aaron was first in any alphabetic
player compendium from 13-Apr-1954 until Aardsma’s debut on 06-Apr-2004.
-
#3 His sister, Amanda
Aardsma, was also a contestant
in the Miss Teen America contest.
FCR - Len
Levin, Providence
Incorrect guesses: Bill Caudill, Jerry DiPoto
FRIDAY —26-Aug
Q. Which
Cape Cod League alum now guides the efforts of a certain reptilian squad in the
Big 12 Conference?
Hint: #1
Due to his tendency to rely on the sinker in his pitching repertoire,
his strikeouts per nine innings one year ranked third to last in the majors and
was the lowest mark in Oakland Athletics history for a starting pitcher.
Hint: #2
He appears appropriately well-bred.
A. KIRK SAARLOOS [Wiki Bio]
-
Ans. In 1999, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Cotuit
Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League considered the top
such league. He is today the baseball
coach at Texas‑Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas.
They are the Horned Frogs.
-
#1 In 2005, Saarloos had a record
of K/IP of 2.99. The MLB leader that
season was the Cubs’ Mark Pryor at 10.15.
The best mark this century was Shane Bieber’s 14.20 in 2020.
-
#2 The Saarloos Wolfdog is a
recently achieved breed of canine recognized in Europe, a combination of German
Shepherd & European Grey Wolf. Read
more here.
FCR - Evan
Thompson, Mesa
Incorrect guesses: Barry Zito
T.G.I.F.SPECIAL —26-Aug
Q. Which
pitcher’s last game in organized baseball happened to be the longest game in
professional baseball history?
Hint: #1
He passed away just last month.
Hint: #2
He won one hundred percent of his decisions in his rookie season.
A. WIN REMMERSWAAL [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. In a G that began on
18-Apr-1981, the AAA Pawtucket Red Sox & Rochester Red Wings played 33 innings, w/8:25 playing time.
-
#1 Died in 27-Jul-2022 in his
native Netherlands.
-
#2 1-0 in 1979 for BOS.
FCR - Mike
Caragliano, Flushing, New York
Incorrect guesses:
SATURDAY —27-Aug
Q. Which
major league All-Star pitcher lost forty-six games in his first four
professional seasons?
Hint: #1
He had an unwanted interregnum halfway through his career
Hint: #2
He played for five major league teams, three times under Hall of Fame
managers.
-
Ans. In 1972 thru 1975 on A &
AAA teams, his record was 0-10, 12-15, 17-8 & 8-13 in the farm system of
BOS.
-
#1 He suffered an elbow injury
that kept him off the mound from 17-Jul-1982 until 18-Jun-1984. Tommy John surgery allowed him 7 more years in
MLB.
-
#2 He pitched for BOS, CAL, BAL, NYM
& LAD. HOF Mgrs = Earl Weaver, Frank
Robinson & Tommy Lasorda.
FCR - Jake
Ironside, Asbury, Iowa
Incorrect guesses: Sid Hudson, Tommy John
SATURDAY EXTRA —27-Aug
Q. Which
light-hitting infielder, with one swing of the bat, hit a home run that was his
team’s new stadium’s first…
a.) …walk-off home run;
b.) …inside-the-park
home run; and
c.) …extra-inning home
run ?
Hint: #1 Less than
four months earlier, he had hit the stadium’ first triple.
Hint: #2 The
following season, he never quite reached the Mendoza Line.
A. PAUL SCHAAL [SABR Bio]
- Ans. His ITP, etc. HR = 02-Aug-1966 established firsts for
Anaheim
Stadium.
- #1 3B = 20-Apr-1966 off CHW’s Joe Horlen.
- #2 He hit .188 in 1967 for CAL. The Mendoza
Line is .200.
FCR - Patrick Ray, Paradise
Valley, Arizona
Incorrect guesses: Yamid
Haad, John van der Waal, Denny Doyle, Darrel Chaney, Mark Belanger. Felix Fermin,
Fred Patek, Ron Hanson, Mario Mendoza
WEEKEND BONUS —27-Aug
Q. Who was the first
player to reach ten career home runs in fewer than eighty career at-bats?
Hint: #1 Had a
chance to be the American League Rookie of the Year, but for a charismatic
catcher who captured the award in unanimous fashion.
Hint: #2 Most people
have forgotten his eight home runs with the Tigers.
A. KEVIN
MAAS [B-R
Bio]
- Ans. 10 HR in 77 AB in 1990 w/NYY.
- #1 Maas was 2nd in 1990 AL ROY
voting behind CLE’s Sandy Alomar, Jr.
- #2 Hit 8 HR with the Hanshin
Tigers of the Japan Central League in 1996.
FCR - Michael
Schneider, Wilmington, Delaware
Incorrect guesses: Mule Haas, Aristides Aquino, Derek Shelton, George
Scott, Shane Spencer
SUNDAY —28-Aug
Q. Which lefty
hurler had ninety-nine appearances with the Dodgers over three seasons with
zero starts and zero saves, but started twenty-three games his next season with
them?
Hint: #1 One season,
playing for two National League teams, he led the majors in pitching losses.
Hint: #2 On one day,
at the beginning of the millennium, he and three other pitchers native to his
home country, started and won major league games on the same day.
- Ans. From his rookie season, 1993, & on thru
1995, Daal pitched 59 innings over 99 G w/0 GS & only 17 GF. Back with LAD in 2002, he started 23 times &
got a W-L record of 11-9.
- #1 In 2000, Daal lost 10 w/ARI, was traded to PHI,
lost 9 more for a record that year of 4-19.
- #2 On 15-Aug-2001, Daal, throwing for PHI, beat MIL. LAD’s
Giovanni Carrara beat MON; TOR’s Kelvim Escobar beat OAK; & SEA’s Freddy Garcia beat BOS.
FCR - Damian Begley,
New York City
Incorrect guesses: Chris
Perez, Aaron Ledesma, Ricky Ledee
SUNDAY BONUS —28-Aug
Q. Who struck out
the most batters in any game for the Brewers when they were an American League
team?
Hint: #1 Before
coming professional baseball, he had agreed to pitch for Clemson University.
Hint: #2 He was
assigned his nickname the day he was born.
A. MOOSE HAAS [SABR Bio]
- Ans. He K’ed 14 Yankees on 12-Apr-1978, including Reggie Jackson 4 X.
- #1 He had even signed a letter of intent.
- #2 Haas’s father assumed he’d surpass the 6’0”
he grew to.
FCR - Jeff Fink, Howell,
New Jersey
Incorrect guesses: Mike
Caldwell, Teddy Higuera, Pete Vukovich, CC Sabathia, Ricky Bones,
Steve Woodard, Henry Porter
WEEK’S FINALE —28-Aug
Q. Which BLTR Iowan broke a team batting record
of Moises Alou’s on his way to the majors?
Hint: #1 He was honored with a bobblehead for his eager
work in one major league stop.
Hint: #2 Because of how well he handled young players in
their minor-league farm system, the Pittsburgh Pirates honored him as the Coach
of the Year in their organization.
A. KORY
DeHAAN [SABR
Bio]
- Ans. DeHaan
hit .314 in 1998
for the Class A Augusta Green Jackets of the South Atlantic League. Alou had held the record
of.313 for a decade.
- #1 His
bobblehead
(back)
was made when he was on the Beavers when they were in Portland.
- #2 Morse
specifically, it was the work did while managing the 2016
Rookie-level Bristol (TN) Pirates of the Appalachian League.
FCR - Joe Cohen, Holden, Massachusetts
Incorrect guesses: Lloyd McClendon
WEEKLY THEME – Select
players whose last name contains “aa”.
In most cases, these players owe their pleonastic orthographic
configuration to their Dutch heritage.
[Go ahead—click every one of ‘em.]
Player WAR
Aaron......................... 143.0
Aase............................. 15.0
DeHaan.......................... 0.0
Kaat............................. 50.5
Haas............................. 17.3
Syndergaard................. 16.6
Schaal........................... 14.7
Laabs........................... 10.8
Daal................................ 8.7
Aardsma......................... 1.8
Maas.............................. 1.5
Saarloos.......................... 1.1
Remmerswaal................. 0.1
First
Correct Respondent identifying theme – Stuart Shapiro, Highland Park, New
Jersey (After Kaat)
Incorrect theme
guesses:
Tues - Players
with double vowels in name
- Hall
of Famers who played World Series games in Milwaukee
- Ballplayers
who played in both of the last 2 all star games in one year
Wed - Players
who played for the same franchise in different cities
Thurs - Pitchers
who hit multiple home runs in a game
- Double
A pitchers who have won a major league game
If you know
someone who would enjoy receiving daily Horsehide Trivia questions, Have them
start by clicking here.
This week’s quiz archived
here: http://horsehidetriviA. blogspot.com/
Horsehide Trivia encourages
independent research.
