2025-03-17 Pitchers with more than one career grand slam

MONDAY  — 17-Mar-2025

Q.  After Walter Johnson, who was the next pitcher to have three thousand career strike outs?

Hint: #1  This Hall of Famer had been afflicted with rickets, asthma and a heart murmur as a child.

Hint: #2  Over a span of three seasons, he led the majors in WAR three times, won two Cy Young Awards, pitched in his third World Series and won the Most Valuable Player Award.

A.  BOB GIBSON  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Johnson ended with 3,509 Ks.  Gibson recorded his 3,000^th career K in the 2^nd inning 17-July-1974, Cesar Geronimo the famous victim.  Gibson retired w/3,117.

-  #1  Gibson's nearly miraculous recoveries from his childhood illnesses &ailments can be attributed to a combination of natural resilience, determination & the care he received from his family—especially his older brother, Josh Gibson (not the Hall of Famer), who played a crucial role in raising him.

-  #2  From 1968 thru 1970, Gibson posted WAR numbers of 11.2, 10.4 & 8.9.  He was the 1968 MVP & the CYA winner in 1968 unanimously & 1970 unanimously minus 1 vote.  He led STL to their 3^rd WS in 5 years & won 2 games there.

FCR -  David Bodemer, Huntsville, Alabama

Incorrect guesses:  Steve Carlton, Gaylord Perry, Mickey Lolich, Christy Mathewson

 

 

TUESDAY  — 18-Mar-2025

Q.  Who is the only pitcher to hit two home runs in the same game he threw a no-hitter?

Hint: #1  He was the first pitcher to retire with five hundred career appearances and not a single career save.

Hint: #2  He was once traded, one-for-one for a future Hall of Famer.

A.  RICK WISE  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  On 23-Jun-1971, Wise became the complete ball player.  He held The Big Red Machine hitless & took Ross Grimsley deep in the 5^th & Clay Carroll deep in the 8^th.

-  #1  506 G = 0 saves

-  #2  On 25-Feb-1972, he was traded by PHI to STL for Steve Carlton.

FCR -  Robert Daugird, Corpus Christi, Texas

Incorrect guesses:  Warren Spahn, Ray Sadecki, Jim Bunning CC Sabathia, Tony Cloninger, Milt Pappas

 

 

WEDNESDAY  — 19-Mar-2025

Q.  Whose American League record of twenty-four consecutive regular-season victorious decisions did National Leaguer Carl Hubbell tie?

Hint: #1  After returning from military service he (not Hubbell) re-invented his pitching style to account for advancing age and accumulating minor injuries.

Hint: #2  His veteran (literally) leadership helped turn a second-division team into a pennant-winner.

Hint: #3  He was a decent-hitting pitcher and even became the first player to hit a home run to center field in the Polo Grounds.

A.  SCHOOLBOY ROWE  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Rowe’s W streak wasn’t quite that since even though he won 16 straight in 1934 & his 1^st 8 in 1935, Rowe dropped his final decision of ‘34.  Sorry for the misleading inaccurate question.

-  #1  Rowe joined :PHI’s rotation and in the vernacular of the day, became a “junkball” pitcher.

-  #2  Rowe’s double digit wins in 1946-48, helped propel the 1950 Phillies’ Whiz Kids to the 1950 NL pennant, showing a previous perennial loser that winning was possible.

-  #3  His HR was in batting practice before a 1933 exhibition game.

FCR -  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Incorrect guesses:  Rube Marquard, Warren Spahn, Jim Busby, Johnny Allen, Walter Johnson, Bob Lemon, Smoky Joe Wood, Stan Coveleski Harry Coveleski, Smoky Joe Wood, Lefty Grove

 

 

MIDWEEK BONUS  — 19-Mar-2025

Q.  Who lost a league Most Valuable Player Award to a teammate even though he had: A.) More first-place MVP vote, B.)  A lower (& league-leading) ERA and C.) A higher (& MLB-leading) WAR?

Hint: #1  No older pitcher ever played for the American League Baltimore Orioles in the twentieth century.

Hint: #2  His first ball was a ball with rolled-up rags and walnuts

A.  DIZZY TROUT  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  The 1944 AL MVP went to future Hall of Famer Hal Newhouser likely because Newhouser’s W total of 29 edged Trout’s 27.  Trout’s 1^st-place MVP votes were 10.0 to Newhouser’s 7.0.  His ERA of 2.12 edged Prince Hal’s 2.22 & Trout’s WAR of 10.9 topped all of professional baseball, notwithstanding Newhouser’s outstanding 8.4.

-  #1  Trout pitched for BAL in 1957 at age 42 & 74 days.

-  #2  He said “I even could throw hard at an early age.  They say I had a hop on my baby rattle.”

FCR -  Mark Pattison, WSHINGTON, D.C.

Incorrect guesses:  Dennis Martinez, Rick Dempsey (Was, in fact, slightly older than Trout.), Hoyt Wilhelm, Jess Orosco

 

 

THURSDAY  — 20-Mar-2025

Q.  Which former Double-Unique credits someone named Sal with denying him a chance at a perfect [0.00] career World Series ERA?

Hint: #1  The career World Series ERA he ended with is even better than that of Christy Mathewson, Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson or Mariano Rivera.

Hint: #2  His final numbers in career Wild Card ERA are (gulp!) even better.

A.  MADISON BUMGARNER  [B-R Bio]

-  Ans.  Salvador Perez scored the only run that Bumgarner ever surrendered in World Series competition by homering off Bumgarner 21-Oct-2014 in the 7^th inning of G 1 of the 2014 WS.  Bumgarner was D-U from 08-Sep-2009 to 07-Aug-2016 when Madison Younginer debuted.

-  #1  Career WS ERAs:

            1.89  for Gibson  in........... 81.0 innings

            0.99  for Rivera  in............ 36.1 innings

            0.97  for Matty  in........... 102.2 innings

            0.95  for Koufax................ 57.0 innings

            0.25  for Bumgarner  in.... 36.0 innings

-  #2     0.00 in 18.0 innings

FCR -  Jason Winston, Riverside, California

Incorrect guesses:  Mike Marshall

 

 

FRIDAY  — 21-Mar-2025

Q.  Who was the first Latin American pitcher to strikeout two hundred batters in a season?

Hint: #1  He was the victorious pitcher of the first major league game played at Wrigley Field.

Hint: #2  He is the only pitcher to lose an Opening Day game for the first and second iterations of the twentieth-century Washington Senators.

A.  CAMILO PASCUAL  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Born in Havana, Cuba, he K’d 200+ 4 years straight, from 1961 trough 1964 and led the AL in that category the 1^st 3 of those years:  221, 206, 202 & 213.

-  #1  Wrigley Field in Los Angeles opened 27-Apr-1961 & was the home of the expansion Los Angeles Angels for that season.

-  #2  OD L for WSH = 1956, 1957.  OD L for WSA = 1968

FCR -  Jason Winston, Riverside, California

Incorrect guesses:  Dolf Luque, Jimmy Lavender, Pedro Ramos, John Rocker

 

 

SATURDAY  — 22-Mar-2025

Q.  Which pitcher got his first major league hit off Pedro Martinez an inning after Martinez had tripled off him?

Hint: #1  His activities off the field eventually led to his release and the cancellation of a huge contract.

Hint: #2  He was twice an All-Star and once finished behind only Pedro Martinez and Greg Maddux for Cy Young Award honors.

A.  DENNY NEAGLE  [B-R Bio]

-  Ans.  Single in the 5^th on 22-May-1994.  Martinez had tripled in the 4^th.

-  #1  For soliciting & consorting with a prostitute, Neagle was released by COL and his $51,000,000 contract, one of the largest at the time.

-  #2  Neagle was an AS in 1995 w/PIT & in 1997 w/ATL.  The 1997 CYA voting had him solidly in he bronze position.

FCR -  Richard Tharp, Gaithersburg, Maryland

Incorrect guesses:  Trevor Bauer, Josh Hamilton, Ugueth Urbina

 

 

 

SUNDAY  — 23-Mar-2025

Q.  Who served as one of the coaches during a notable New York Yankee dynasty?

Hint: #1  No National Leaguer had more runs batted in during a single game between 1949 and 1993.

Hint: #2  He became a cult hero for something he did while he was a Red Sox pitching coach.

A.  TONY CLONINGER  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  He was bullpen & bench coach for NYY during their success 1992-2001.

-  #1  Cloninger stood out with his 9 RBI on 03-Jul-1966.

-  #2  While he was BOS pitching coach in 2002, Cloninger was ejected for fighting in a bench-clearing brawl against BAL.  Despite being in his 60s, he took down multiple players & coaches—& became a cult hero for it—particularly among Sawks fans.

FCR -  Walt Cherniak, Woodbine, Maryland

Incorrect guesses:  Don Zimmer, Johnny Sain, Mark Whiten, Walker Cooper

 

 

WEEK’S FINALE  — 23-Mar-2025

Q.  Who is the only pitcher who to throw thirteen or more bases-on-balls in a game more than once?

Hint: #1  Dom DiMaggio; Gil McDougald and Don Kolloway each had the “privilege” of being walked by him four times in a single game.  (Not the same game.  That would be a record!)

Hint: #2  He once famously hit pinch-hitter Nippy Jones in the foot with a pitch.

A.  TOMMY BYRNE  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Amazingly, Byrne did it 3 X:  08-Jun-1949; 22-Aug-1951; 28-Aug-1951.

-  #1  One each in the games above.

-  #2  NYY’S Byrne hit MLN’s Nippy Jones in the foot, prompting the “shoe-shine” HBP in the 10^th inning of game 4 in the 1957 WS.

FCR -  Richard Zamoff, Washington, DC

Incorrect guesses: 

 

 

WEEK’S THEME – Pitchers who hit more than one career grand slam.  Thanks to Ed Baranoski for helping assemble and verify these:

 

Bumgarner      SFO 11-Apr-2014 off COL’s Jorge De La Rosa                        37.2

                        SFO 13-Jul-2014 off ARI’s Matt Stites

 

Byrne              SLB 18-Sep-1951(1) off WSN’s Sid Hudson  11.0

                        CHW 15-May-1953 off NYY’s Ewell Blackwell

 

Cloninger        ATL 03-Jul-1966 off SFO’s Bob Priddy           5.0

                        ATL 03-Jul-1966 off SFO’s Ray Sadecki

 

Gibson             STL 29-Sep-1965 off SFO’s Gaylord Perry    89.1

                        STL 26-Jul-1973 off NYM’s John Strohmayer

 

Neagle             PIT 27-Jun-1995 off CHC’s Jim Bullinger      4.24

                        COL 29-Sep-2001 off MIL’s Jimmy Haynes

 

Pascual            WSH 14-Aug-1960 off NYY’s Bob Turley      40.8

                        MIN 27-Apr-1965 off CLE’s Stan Williams

 

Rowe               PHA 22-Jul-1939(2) off DET’s Nels Potter    42.5

                        PHI 02-May-1934(2) off BSN’s Al Javery

 

Trout               DET 28-Jul-1949 off WSN’s Al Gettel            49.9

                        DET 23-Jun-1950 off NYY’s Tommy Byrne

 

Wise                PHI 28-AUG 1971(2) off SFO’s Don McMahon                        36.3

                        STL 21-Aug-1973 off ATL’s Roric Harrison

 

Worth noting:          1. One each of Byrne’s and Rowe’s were hit when they were pinch-hitting and not pitching in that game

                                2. The only Hall of Famer on the list hit one of his off a Hall of Famer

                                3. Byrne both hit one and surrendered one

                                4. All but Rowe’s took place after WII

                                5. Rowe changed leagues but not cities

 

 

 

First Correct Respondent identifying theme – Bill Deane, Cooperstown (after Trout)

 

 

Incorrect theme guesses:

 

Mon     -  Players who won the MVP Award and homered in the World Series in the same year

            -  Unanimous NL Cy Young award winners

 

Tues    -  Pitchers traded to the Cardinals

-   NL pitchers that have hit a grand slam

-   Former Cardinal pitchers with at least 1,500 career strikeouts

-   1972 Cardinals pitchers

 

Sat       -  Pitchers with winning records in the World Series

 

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

 

Click here => THIS WEEK’s quiz, compete with questions, answers and even the incorrect guesses.

 

Scroll back to see previous Horsehide Trivia posts as far back as 2010.  Quizzes before that may also be available upon request.

 

 

Horsehide Trivia encourages independent research.  ⚾️