2024-04-22 Catchers who hit an inside-the-park grand slam in the 20th century

MONDAY  — 22-Apr

Q.  Who was the first manager to lead his team to a one-hundred-win season in his first year as manager?

Hint: #1  He was the first player to win a league Most Valuable Player award with two different American League teams.

Hint: #2  Playing for Connie Mack’s Philadelphia  A’s, he twice hit for the cycle.

A.  MICKEY COCHRANE   [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  In 1933, DET had finished 25 G out of 1^st with a record of 73-79-1, 5^th in the 8-team AL.  Cochrane became DET’s player/manager in 1934 & they won 101 G, the AL pennant & took the WS to 7 G.

-  #1  Cochrane had been AL MVP in 1928 with PHA.  He won again in 1934 as player/manager of DET, having led the league in no offense category at all, but having guided a previously lackluster squad to the pennant.  Five additional Tigers received MVP votes, including, with him, 5 (!) of the top 10 vote getters.

-  #2  Cycles = 22-Jul-1932*, 02-Aug-1933.  *All 4 H were off the same pitcher, WSH’s General Crowder.

FCR -  Bill Rudolph, Collingswood, New Jersey

Incorrect guesses:  Jimmie Foxx, Tris Speaker, Joe Cronin, Frank Robinson, Rogers Hornsby

 

 

TUESDAY  — 23Apr

Q.  Which one-time Expos catcher was the only twentieth-century National League catcher to surpass ten in each of doubles, triples and home runs in one season?

Hint: #1  It was the same year as his first All-Star Game.

Hint: #2  The only time he got any league Most Valuable Player votes, he finished second to a teammate.

Hint: #3  He missed by only one year being teammates with him again in the other league.

A.  TIM McCARVER   [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  In 1966 for STL, McCarver had 19 2B, 13 3B &12 HR.  Played for MON in 1972.

-  #1  ASG in 1966.

-  #2  Was 2^nd in MVP votes in 1967 behind teammate Orlando Cepeda.

-  #  McCarver was a Red Sox catcher 1974-75.  Cepeda had been history’s 2^nd DH, playing for BOS in 1973.

FCR -  Susan Nelson, Moscow, Tennessee

Incorrect guesses:  Gary Carter

 

 

WEDNESDAY  — 24-Apr

Q.  Who, after ten seasons in the majors, went hitless with five strikeouts on the Opening Day of his eleventh season?

Hint: #1  He earned the nickname “Officer” because of how well he dealt with attempted theft.

Hint: #2  Though he only played for one team in the majors, six of his teammates are in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

A.  RON KARKOVICE   [Wiki Bio]

-  Ans.  On 31-May-1996, Karkovice fanned 5 X vs. SEA pitching, 4 swinging & the last one looking.

-  #1  White Sox announcer Hawk Harrelson is the one who came up with “Officer Ron”.

-  #2  Karkovice played all 12 of his MLB seasons for CHW.  He was teammates with Frank Thomas, Tom Seaver, Steve Carlton, Carlton Fisk, Harold Baines & Tim Raines and was managed as a rookie by Tony LaRussa.  He also spent time playing alongside outstanding stars like Sammy Sosa, Albert Bell, Robin Ventura, Charlie Hough, Lance Johnson & Julio Franco.

FCR -  Jeff Papas, White Bear Lake, Minnesota

Incorrect guesses:  Johnny Bench, Ivan Rodriguez, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella

 

 

MIDWEEK BONUS  — 24-Apr

Q.  Who was the Mets’ manager after Casey Stengel?

Hint: #1  He set a record one season for the International League by hitting five grand slams that year.

Hint: #2  He and Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews appear together in an iconic photo taken in Wisconsin.

A.  WES WESTRUM   [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.   NYM 1965, ‘66, ‘67.  Stengel had them 1962-64.  Newly minted Hall of Famer Gil Hodges took over in ’68* and, well…

-  #1  Hit 5 GS for the AAA Jersey City Giants in 1949 before coming up to the majors for good.

-  #2  They, along with umpire Augie Donatelli, grace the cover of the very first issue of Sports Illustrated magazine

*Salty Parker took over NYM at the end of 1967 for 11 of the 12 stints he had as an MLB manager.

FCR -  Scott Morissey, Hamilton, Ontario

Incorrect guesses:  Yogi Berra, Gil Hodges, Joe Torre, Joe Frazier

 

 

THURSDAY  — 25-Apr

Q.  Who cost Ralph Garr a home run when he turned to watch the flight of the ball rather than run the bases, allowing Garr to pass him just a few feet past first base?

Hint: #1  He was traded for former AL MVP Dick Allen twice in a six month span.

Hint: #2  He played his last MLB game on the same day Joe Morgan ended his career on the field.  He managed his last game on the day Dwight Evans played his final game.

A.  JIM ESSIAN   [Wiki Bio]

-  Ans.  Base running gaffe:  24-Jun-1977.  The lost by 1 R.

-  #1  On 15-May-1975, ATL sent Essian to CHW to complete an earlier deal 03-Dec-1974.  ATL sent a player to be named later & cash to CHW for Dick Allen.  See “Transactions” here.

-  #2  Milestone dated coincidences:  Teammates Morgan’s & Essian’s last playing date=30-Sep-1984; Essian’s final G=06-Oct-1991 was in Baltimore.  Essian last managed at Wrigley on 06-Oct-1991.

FCR -  Chris Betsch, New Albany, Indiana

Incorrect guesses:  Johnny Oates, Bucky Dent

 

 

FRIDAY — 26-Apr

Q.  Who was the first player to compile 4,000 at-bats in the American League during the designated hitter era without ever once playing DH?

Hint: #1  He was the first catcher to make a straight seal of home in his franchise’s history.

Hint: #2  In high school, this future All-Star earned all-Illinois state honors three times as a hockey goalie and twice as a pitcher and catcher.

A.  DAN WILSON   [Wiki Bio]

-  Ans.  In 1,299 G over 14 years, Wilson had 4,186 G at C, 12 at 1^st base 1 at 3^rd but none at DH.

-  #1  On 01-Aug-1999, Wilson stole home off the not inconsiderable battery of Mike Mussina/Charles Johnson.

-  #2  He mounted an even more impressive resume in college as a Golden Gopher.

FCR -  Steve Riach, Southlake, Texas

Incorrect guesses:  Joe Mauer, Jim Sundberg, John Wathan, Carlton Fisk

 

 

SATURDAY — 27-Apr

Q.  Which rookie helped the Detroit Tigers make it to their first postseason appearance, but was left off the postseason roster?

Hint: #1  The preeminent sports publication of the time published a front-page photo profile describing him as "the rising young catcher of the Brooklyn National League."

Hint: #2  His time in Brooklyn was limited, due partly to a nasty collision at home plate with the runner intent on scoring.

Hint:  #3 Notwithstanding his nickname, he settled his family in Upstate New York

A.  TEX ERWIN   [Wiki Bio]

-  Ans.  Erwin joined DET in 1907, Ty Cobb’s 1^st full season, the year the Tigers won their 1^st AL flag.

-  #1  The quote is from a November 1912 issue of the Sporting Life newspaper.

-  #2  On Flag Day 1914 the Cubs’ Heinie Zimmerman slid into him so hard that the impact broke Erwin‘s arm in two places.

-  #3  He remained active after retirement, even umpiring in the minors in 1916 & 1917.  He worked for a time as a salesman, from 1927, in insurance. He served on the Rochester City Council from 1937 to 1945.

FCR -  Barry Nelson, Guilderland, New York

Incorrect guesses:  Ed Summers, Germany Schaefer 

 

SUNDAY  — 28-Apr

Q.  Who caught the last pre-expansion no-hitter for the Phillies?

Hint: #1  In spite of the many claims to the contrary, he believes that HE was the first catcher to wear shin guards while playing catcher.

Hint: #2  One day, during his third year of major league service, he became a major league umpire.  He had played with his team on Sunday (both games) and he played with them again on the following Saturday, but on Tuesday afternoon in Boston, he worked the plate.

A.  RED DOOIN   [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  On 01-May-1906, PHI’s Johnny Lush no-hit Brooklyn with Dooin behind the plate.  Jim Bunning’s perfecto in 1964 was the next for PHI.  Coincidentally, Dooin and Bunning both attended Xavier University in Cincinnati.

-  #1  In a 1936 interview in The Sporting News, Dooin claimed he was the 1^st C in the majors to use shin guards & that he wore them under his stockings.  The shin guards, made of rattan, were designed by Mike Murphy, famous University of Pennsylvania athletic trainer.  There are at least four conflicting versions of different people making this claim.

-  #2  Dooin was the home plate umpire in Boston on 26-Jul-1904, a game his Phillies won.

FCR -  John Shiffert, Flourtown, Pennsylvania

Incorrect guesses:  Roger Bresnahan, Andy Seminick, Jerry Donovan, Gus Triandos, Wally Schang

 

 

WEEK’S THEME – Catchers who hit inside-the-park grand slams in the 20^th century.

 

Catcher               Date                 For             Off                                 Career WAR

Dooin........... 01-Oct-1904(2)........ PHI........ PIT’s Charlie Case.............................. 5.2

Erwin............. 28-Jul-1911........... BRO...... CIN’s Art Fromme.............................. 1.5

Cochrane...... 04-Jun-1936.......... DET....... DET’s Stu Flythe............................. 49.7

Westrum..... 02-Aug-1950(1)........ NY......... CHC’s Monk Dubiel............................. 12.6

McCarver..... 09-Jun-1963(2)........ SLN....... NYM’s Larry Bearnarth............. 28.3

Essian........... 10-Jun-1979.......... OAK...... TOR’s Mike Willis............................. 10.9

Karkovice...... 30-Aug-1990.......... CHA...... MIN’s David West............................. 14.6

Wilson........... 03-May-1998......... SEA....... DET’s Frank Castillo................. 13.0    

 

First Correct Respondent identifying theme – Ken Kirk, Corning, New York (After Karkovice)

 

Incorrect theme guesses:

 

Wed     -  World Series winning catchers who caught every game of series and or drove in winning run

 

Sun      -  Catchers whose careers were cut short due to home plate collisions

 

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This site has this week’s quiz compete with incorrect guesses as well.  Scroll back and you’ll find has this week’s quiz complete with incorrect guesses as well.  Scroll back and you’ll find Horsehide Trivia quizzes posted back to 2010. Quizzes before that may also be available upon request.

 

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2024-04-15 American League left-handed pitchers who hit a home run in a World Series game

IN MEMORIAM-MONDAY  — 15-Apr

Q.  Which one-time Baltimore Orioles pitcher was the first American Leaguer to have a hit in the World Series after having none during the regular season that year?

Hint: #1  He threw two no-hitters against National League teams.

Hint: #2  In his first no-hitter, he did not strike out a single batter.

Hint: #3  In his second no-hitter, he scored the game’s only run.

Hint: #4  Teams he was on faced the team that came to be known as “The Big Red Machine” twice with partial success.

Hint: #5  He had the most wins of any Jewish pitcher in baseball history.

A.  KEN HOLTZMAN   [SABR Bio] [Obit in The Times of Israel]

-  Ans.  In 1973, Holtzman was 0 for 1 with a BB as a pinch-hitter on 24-Sep.  In the WS vs. NYM, he hit two 2B, 1 in G #1 & another 2B in G #7, both off Jon Matlack, both victories for OAK.  He pitched for BAL in 1976.

-  #1  Holtzman no-hit CIN on 19-Aug-1969 & no-hit ATL on 03-Jun-1971.

-  #2 & 3  See #1 above

-  #4  Holtzman’s Oakland A’s beat the Cincinnati Reds in the 1972 WS.  Holtzman started the Series & got the W in G1.  He was on the 1976 NYY team who ended OAK’s string of AL pennants at 3, but were blanked by the CIN team that had gained almost legendary status.

-  #5  Had 174 pitching W’s (9 more than Sandy Koufax)

FCR -  Robert Osman, Great Neck, New York

Incorrect guesses:  Mike Cuellar, Steve Stone, Carl Erskine, Tim Stoddard

 

 

IN MEMORIAM, TUESDAY  — 16-Apr (Not part of this week’s theme.)

Q.  Who said, after a lackluster playing career (career WAR = 2.8) but three pennants and a World Series championship as a manager, “Baseball has been good to me since I quit trying to play it.”?

Hint: #1  He once managed his team to the division’s best overall record yet failed to make the postseason.

Hint: #2  His managing style was so distinctive that the media gave it a cognomen using his name.

Hint: #3 One year, his team had a statistical combination that hadn’t been seen in the majors for more than seven decades.

Hint: #4  His personal stealing success was at odds with his trademark managerial strategy.

Hint: #5  He once gave a special gift to an old enemy.

A.   WHITEY HERZOG  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  [No explanation needed]

-  #1  The 1981 season was interrupted by a 50-day players strike.  When the games resumed in August, the season was split into two halves, with each half’s winner advancing to the playoffs.  This hurt Herzog's STL because they had posted the best winning % in the NL East at .578, but finished 2^nd in both halves, to Philadelphia & Montreal respectively & missed the playoffs entirely.

-  #2  Herzog used spacious Royals Stadium & its artificial turf field to his advantage, employing “Whiteyball”, a strategy that stressed line-drives, speed on the bases, pitching & defense.

-  #3  Herzog’s 1985 STL stole 311 bases & hit merely 87 HRs .  The last team to post the combo of stealing 300 or more bases while hitting fewer than 100 HR in the same season, was the 1912 NYG.  Nor has any team since.

-  #4  Although he stole home as a rookie on 17-June-1956, Herzog was an inefficient base thief.  His 13 career SB came in 31 attempts.

-  #5  For a Cardinals’ off-season team reunion, Herzog invited umpire Don Denkinger, the same Denkinger who may have cost Herzog's 1985 STL team a WS victory.  Denkinger mad a bad call in G 6 that allowed the KCR to rally to win the G & the WS.  After speaking to the banquet crowd & receiving a polite ovation, Denkinger was returning to his seat when Herzog jumped up & said, “Just a minute, Don.  We have something for you.” Denkinger returned to the podium and Herzog handed him a gift containing a Braille watch.  Denkinger good-naturedly accepted & laughed along with the crowd.

FCR -  Cliff Beiser, Kissimmee, Florida

Incorrect guesses:  Billy Martin, Sparky Anderson, John McNamara

 

 

IN MEMORIAM TUESDAY II  — 16-Apr (Also not part of this week’s theme.)

Q.  Whose record for most strikeouts in a World Series game did Sandy Koufax break?

Hint: #1  He had led his league in win/loss percentage the same season of his outstanding World Series game.

Hint: #2  He received Most Valuable Player consideration that year too.

Hint: #3  He was the last surviving player highlighted in the ground-breaking book, “The Boys of Summer” by Roger Kahn.

Hint: #4  He pitched two no-hitters, each in a season where his team won the pennant.

Hint: #5  For some of his voluminous charity work after his career, the Hall of Fame honored him with a special award, one given to only five other recipients.

Hint: #6  After throwing his second career no-hitter, passed on a bottle of champagne offered to him instead celebrating with an orange soda.

A.   CARL ERSKINE  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  In the 3^rd G of the 1953 WS, Erskine struck out 14 Yankees, including Mickey Mantle 4 X.  Koufax had 15 K vs. NYY in G 1 of the 1963 WS.  (Mantle only struck out 2 X that day.)

-  #1  Erskine had a record of 20-6 or .769 to lead the NK in 1953.

-  #2  He placed 9^th in the NL MVP voting in 1953, for the only time in his 12-year career.  Seven Dodgers received MVP votes that year, with teammate Roy Campanella getting the top vote.

-  #3  Kahn, well-respected writer on sports, published his masterpiece in 1972.  After recounting his childhood in Brooklyn & his life as a young reporter on the New York Herald Tribune, the author relates some history of the Brooklyn Dodgers up to their victory in the 1955 World Series.  He then tracks the lives of the players (Clem Labine, George Shuba, Andy Pafko, Joe Black, Preacher Roe, Pee Wee Reese, Carl Furillo, Gil Hodges, Roy Campanella, Duke Snider, Jackie Robinson& Billy Cox a well as Erskine) over the subsequent years as they aged.  The title of the book is taken from a Dylan Thomas poem.

-  #4  Erskine’s no-hitters were on 19-Jun-1952 vs. CHC & 12-May-1956 vs. NYG.

-  #5  In 2023, the HOF announced that Erskine would be awarded the Buck O'Neil Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to charity & his work towards the Special Olympics.

-  #6  His 2^nd no-no was at home in Ebbets Field and Erskine was conscious of his image with the Brooklyn fans (who affectionately called him “oisk”).

FCR -  Anthony Biats, Willoughby, Ohio

Incorrect guesses:  Bob Gibson, Ralph Branca

 

 

WEDNESDAY  — 17-Apr

Q.  Whose record for most career strikeouts by a left-handed American League pitcher did CC Sabathia break?

Hint: #1  He once picked off Lou Brock and Curt flood in the same inning.

Hint: #2  The only pitcher with more innings pitched in a season in the playoff era was a knuckleballer.

A.   MICKEY LOLICH  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Lolich finished with 2,679 K on his AL team, DET.  Sabathia’s K total in the AL (CLE+NYY) was 2,965.

-  #1  In the 6^th inning of the deciding 7^th G of the 1968 WS, Lolich picked off 2 of the most successful base stealers of their generation.

-  #2  Lolich pitched 376.0 innings in 1971 to lead the majors.  Since then only Wilbur Woods exceeded that total & he did it the very next season with 376⅔ of knuckleball action.

FCR -  Obrey Brown, Tallahassee

Incorrect guesses:  Jim Kaat, Vida Blue, Lefty Grove, Randy Johnson

 

 

THURSDAY  — 18-Apr

Q.  Which one time Montreal Expo pitcher is the only All-Star born in the only U.S. state whose motto is in Spanish?

Hint: #1  [First of all, congratulations on getting through that question!]  He was the first pitcher to face Reggie Jackson in the postseason.

Hint: #2  Of pitchers born in his native state, he is the only one with more than nine hundred innings pitched.

A.  DAVE McNALLY  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  McNally was born in Billings, Montana.  Montana’s state motto is “Oro Y Plata” (“Gold & Silver”

-  #1  McNally was the starter in the 1971 ALCS G played, OAK vs. BAL.  Jackson was the 3^rd batter & the only future HOFer that McNally faced that day, although Rollie Fingers did pitch an inning in relief.  Jackson flied out.

-  #2  McNally pitched 2,730 innings in the majors.  The next closest Montanan is Bob Locker who, although he was in the majors for 10 years, only managed 879 innings.

FCR -  George Alfano, Redlands, California

Incorrect guesses:  Joe Coleman, Dennis Martinez

 

 

FRIDAY  — 19-Apr

Q.  Which one-time Pittsburgh Pirate was the first black pitcher to win twenty games in a season in the American League?

Hint: #1  The year he led the AL in winning percentage, he also led the league in shutouts.

Hint: #2  He was the starting pitcher in the first ever game of a franchise in the 1960s.

A.  MUDCAT GRANT  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Pitching for MIN in 1965, his 10^th year in MLB, Grant’s record was 21-7.  “I didn’t know there was never an African-American pitcher who won 20 games in the American League,” Grant told MLB.com in 2017.  “As the season progressed, I started getting all kinds of mail, and even Howard Cosell called me a couple times when I got to 18 wins.  So, it was really special.”

-  #1  In ’65, Grant’s W % was .759 and he had 6 SHO.  Unfortunately, that same season, he led the majors in HR surrendered with 34.

-  #2  The Montreal Expos opened on the road in 1969, in Shea Stadium.  Grant was MON’s starter and the Expos prevailed 11-10.

FCR -  Chris Betsch, New Albany, Indiana

Incorrect guesses:  Earl Wilson, Doc Ellis, Bob Veale, Bobby Shantz, Luis Tiant, Vida Blue, Don Newcombe, Al McBean

 

 

SATURDAY  — 20-Apr

Q.  Which former Cincinnati Reds pitcher won the most games in a season in the 1920s?

Hint: #1  He was the first World Series pitcher to have a son also pitch in a World Series.

Hint: #2  He surrendered a hit that broke a famous record of Ty Cobb’s.

A.  JIM BAGBY   [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Bagby’s record in 1920 was 31-12.  Bagby broke in with CIN in 1912.

-  #1  Bagby, Sr. pitched in the 1920 WS for CLE.  His son, Jim Bagby, Jr. pitched for BOS in the 1946 Fall Classic.  The Stottlemyres and Borbons later matched this mark.

-  #2  Ty Cobb rang up 248 H for DET in his MVP season, 1911.  However, on 28-Sep-1920, SLB’s George Sisler got his 249^th of the year off Bagby.  Sisler finished with 257, a mark that stood until Ichiro Suzuki got 262 H in 2004 for SEA.

FCR -  Mike Sparks, Sarasota

Incorrect guesses:  Waite Hoyt, Dolph Luque, Dazzy Vance, Eppa Rixey, Burleigh Grimes

 

 

SUNDAY  — 21-Apr

Q.  Which pitcher’s performance in the regular season helped his team reach the World Series for the first time in two decades?

Hint: #1  Unfortunately, although his manager trusted him to be the starting pitcher for the World Series, he came up against one of history’s best postseason hurlers in both games one and four.

Hint: #2  He led the majors in winning percentage the year before he made his first All-Star team.

A.  JOSE SANTIAGO  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Santiago’s record in 1967 for BOS was 12-4 or .750.  The Red Sox hadn’t been in the WS since 1946.

-  #1  Santiago was the G1 & G4 starting pitcher.  Bad for him and them, the starter on the other team was one Bob Gibson.

-  #2  See answer #1 above.  ASG in 1968, his only one.  He did not see action.

FCR -  Richard Klee, North Hollywood, California

Incorrect guesses:  Bob Feller, Jim O’Toole Bob Gibson, Bucky Walters, Mel Queen, Jim Lonborg, Denny McLain, Jim Konstanty, Joey Jay

 

 

 

 

WEEK’S THEME – American League pitchers who hit a home run in a World Series game

 

Pitcher            WS/G                          Off                        Career WAR

Bagby............. 1920/5............ BRO’s Burleigh Grimes....... 30.8

Grant.............. 1965/6............ LAD’s Howie Reed.............. 21.1

Holtzman........ 1974/4............ LAD’s Andy Messersmith.... 27.3

Lolich.............. 1968/2............ STL’s Nelson Briles............. 48.0

McNally.......... 1969/5............ NYM’s Jerry Koosman......... 25.5

....................... 1970/3............ CIN’s Wayne Granger,

Santiago......... 1967/1............ STL’s Bib Gibson................... 4.1

 

First Correct Respondent identifying theme – John Michael Pierobon, Ft. Lauderdale (after Grant)

 

 

Incorrect theme guesses:

 

Wed     -  Most innings pitched in a single World Series

 

Thur     -  Pitchers who homered in post-season

            -  Pitchers who hit home runs in World Series their team won

            -  Pitchers who hit home runs in a World Series game where they were the winning pitcher of that game

 

Sat       -  Pitchers who hit a home run in a World Series game they won

-   AL pitchers with at least 2 home runs in one world series

-   AL pitchers with at least 2 RBI in one world series

-   all had multi-RBI World Series games in which they homered and were the starting and or winning pitcher

-   Pitchers with multiple RBI and a home run in a World Series game

-   Pitchers 3 RBI in a World Series game

-   Pitchers whose first World Series/Postseason hit was a home run

 

If you know someone who would enjoy receiving daily Horsehide Trivia questions, they need only drop an email message to horsehidetrivi@aol.com.

 

This site has this week’s quiz compete with incorrect guesses as well.  Scroll back and you’ll find has this week’s quiz complete with incorrect guesses as well.  Scroll back and you’ll find Horsehide Trivia quizzes posted back to 2010. Quizzes before that may also be available upon request.

 

Horsehide Trivia encourages independent research.  ⚾️