October 14-20, 2013 Hall of Famers who played 135 or more games in their final season

Horsehide Trivia presented this week by guest author Barry Sparks

MONDAY

Q.         The part of what player did actor Thomas Jane play in a 2001 HBO movie?

Hint:     He got his start in professional baseball with a Class D team in Independence, Kansas.

Hint:     He once said, "I guess you could say I'm what this country is all about."

Twint:    Bob Costas and Billy Crystal are two of his most famous fans.

A.         Mickey Mantle (61*; 1949 Independence Yankees)

FCR -    Joe Thompson, Splendora, TX

TUESDAY

Q.         Who was picked off of first base after getting his 3,000^th hit?

Hint:     He once won a batting title on the last day of the season, besting a teammate for the honor.

Hint:     Describing the end of his 21-year career, he said, "I could have played another year, but I would have been playing for the money, and baseball deserves better than that."

Hint:     He had an eleven-year gap between the first and second times he hit for the cycle.

Twint:    He was the first player to win batting titles in three different decades.

Twint:    He is the only player to hit three home runs in a postseason game his team lost.

A.         George Brett (30‑Sep‑1992, picked off by Tim Fortugno; 1976, Brett .333, Hal McRae .332, Rod Carew .331; Cycles 28‑May‑1979, 25‑Jul‑1990; .333 in 1976, .390 in 1980 & .329 in 1990; 3 postseason HR ALCS 06‑Oct‑1978)

FCR -    David Krassin, New York, NY

WEDNESDAY

Q.         Who hit 25 home runs the season after he came out of retirement?

Hint:     He stole 50 bases in one season and slammed 40 homers in another.

Hint:     He is now manager of the team where he made his major league debut.

Twint:    He was the fourth Chicago Cub to have his number retired.

A.         Ryne Sandberg (Retired after 1994 season, returned in 1996; 54 SB in 1985 and 40 HR in 1990; Mgr of the Philadelphia Phillies (debuted with the Phillies 02‑Sep‑1981; Banks (14), Williams (26), Santo (10) and Sandberg (23).

FCR -    John Rickert, Terre Haute, IN

MIDWEEK BONUS

Q.         Who played in 1,103 consecutive games, at the time the second-longest streak in history?

Hint:     His bat "Black Betsy" is on display at the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Museum in Birmingham.

Hint:     Babe Ruth said, "That man was a master of the bat."

Twint:    He struck out two times in a game only twice in his career.

A:         Joe Sewell (Consecutive G 13‑Sep‑1922 to 30‑Apr‑1930, behind only the 1,307-G streak of Everett Scott [Sewell is now 7^th.]; 2‑K Gs 13‑May‑1923 & 26‑May‑1930)

FCR -    Bob Kimball, Washington, DC

THURSDAY

Q.         Who was the first leadoff hitter to lead the league in walks and batting average in the same season?

Hint:     He recorded 500 or more outfield putouts four times.

Hint:     Leo Durocher once said of him, "He's the fastest man I've ever seen running down to first base."

Twint:    He had the most hits of any player in the 1950s.

A.         Richie Ashburn (97 BB and .350 AVG in 1958; 1949 [514], 1951 [538], 1956 [503], 1957 [502]; 1,875 H 1950-59)

FCR -    David Ramsden, Barcelona, SPAIN

FRIDAY

Q.         Who was the first player to go homerless in a season with 500 or more at bats and later hit 30 or more homers?

Hint:     He was the first player to earn $3 million a year.

Hint:     Frank Thomas once said of him, "He never had a bad day.”

Twint:    Before Ichiro Suzuki, he was the last player to lead his league in hits for three consecutive seasons.

A.         Kirby Puckett (0 HR in 557 AB in 1984, 31 HR in 1986; Salary contract signed following the 1989 season; AL H leader 1987-89)

FCR -    David de la Fuente, San Francisco, CA

SATURDAY

Q.         Who made his major league debut one week after graduating from high school?

Hint:     He was the youngest player to hit three home runs in a game.

Hint:     He once said, "I wasn't meant to be a superstar.  I'm not Mickey Mantle or Willie Mays."

Twint:    He once unsuccessfully tried to convince his manager that he didn't deserve to start in a World Series.

A.         Al Kaline (Debut 25‑Jun‑1953, Southern High School, Baltimore, MD; 3 HR 17‑Apr‑1955 off Johnny Gray, Bob Spicer & Bob Trice @ 20 yrs 3 mos 28 days; Mgr Mayo Smith 1968 WS)

FCR -    Mark Linneman, Sacramento, CA

WEEKEND BONUS

Q.         Who is the only player with 100 pitching victories and 2,000 hits?

Hint:     He received a law degree from Columbia University.

Twint:    He formed the first-ever players union.

Twint:    He was the second pitcher in major league history to toss a perfect game.

A.         John M. Ward (Players’ union 164 W and 2,104 H; Perfecto 17‑Jun‑1880)

FCR -    Mark Kanter, Portsmouth, RI

SUNDAY

Q.         Who holds the career record for inside-the-park home runs?

Hint:     Ty Cobb broke his record for hits in a season.

Hint:     Although his Hall of Fame plaque says he hit over .400 three times, later research wiped out one of his .400 seasons.

Twint:    He made his major league debut as a pitcher, then collected 2,850 hits in his career.

A.         Jesse Burkett (55 IPHR; Cobb's 248 H in 1911 broke Burkett’s record of 240 in 1896; His 1899 batting average was adjusted to a mere .396)

FCR -    Jim McCoy, Melrose, MA

WEEKLY THEME – Theme: Hall of Famers who played 135 or more games in their final season.

Player          Team                     Games

Ashburn       1962 Mets             135

Brett             1993 Royals          145

Burkett         1905 Americans     148

Kaline           1974 Tigers            147

Mantle          1968 Yankees        144

Puckett        1995 Twins            137

Sandberg     1997 Cubs             135

Sewell          1933 Yankees        135

Ward            1894 Giants           138

First Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – No one

Horsehide Trivia blog has the questions and answers from this week as well as from previous weeks:  http://horsehidetrivia.blogspot.com/

Horsehide Trivia home page:  https://sites.google.com/site/tnfotobbpics/home/horsehide-trivia

October 7-13, 2013 Pitchers who wore uniform #00

MONDAY

Q.         What All-Star pitcher threw a complete-game victory to open the 1940 World Series?

Hint:     He became the highest-paid pitcher in the majors the next year, but responded by losing 20 games.

Hint:     He often referred to himself in the third person.

Twint:    He had five separate stints with the American League team based in Washington, DC.

Twint:    He owns the highest ERA (5.08) of any pitcher in a twenty-win season.

A.         Bobo Newsom (G 1 1940 WS; 12-20 in 1941, earning $35,000*; Senators 1935-37, 1942, 1943, 1946-47, 1952; 20-16 for the Browns in 1938 w/.5.08 ERA)

FCR -    David Serota, Kalamazoo, MI

TUESDAY

Q.         Which former Yankee bullpen ace was nicknamed the Gay Reliever?

Hint:     He led the American League in pitching appearances in consecutive seasons and in games-finished for three such.

Hint:     He was voted to the American League All-Star team as a rookie.

Hint:     He comes from the same home town as a famous golfer with an army.

Twint:    He won the inaugural Babe Ruth Award for his performance in the 1949 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers, winning game three of the Series.

A.         Joe Page (55 G in 1948, 60 G in 1949, 44 GF in 1947, 38 GF in 1948 & 48 GF in 1949; AS in 1944; Latrobe, Pennsylvania, Arnold Palmer; BRA voted on by the NYC BBWA)

FCR -    James Shimer, Nottingham, PA

WEDNESDAY

Q.         What Dodger, with an intentionally-obfuscated mandible, is known for his sesquipedalian yet esoteric media interlocutions?

Hint:     He is also a double ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction surgery survivor.

Twint:    He led the National League in saves in 2010.

Twint:    He secured the saves title in a win on the final day of the season, giving his team the division title.

Twint:    The team they beat that day would have won the division and their team’s closer would have led in saves if the game had gone the other way.

A.         Brian Wilson (Beard, beard; UCL a/k/a Tommy John surgery in 2003 & 2011; Pivotal game 03‑Oct‑2013.  The other reliever was Heath Bell of the Padres.)

FCR -    Walt Cherniak, Woodbine, MD

IN MEMORIAM

Q.         Whose baseball card from the 1952 Topps set was almost always in the worst shape?

Hint:     One in mint condition once sold at auction for over $80,000.

Hint:     He was the starting right fielder for the Braves for their first-ever home game in Milwaukee.

Hint:     Minor League Los Angeles Angels President Pants Rowland once said he’d stake his reputation on him.

Hint:     It was over his head in left field that Bobby Thomson’s famous home run flew.

Hint:     He was born in Wisconsin, but both his parents were born in Czechoslovakia.

Twint:    He played in four World Series for three different teams.

Twint:    He lost his starting outfield job on the Braves to Hank Aaron.

A.         Andy Pafko (His card was #1 in the set and so was usually placed on top and took the most abuse.  Typical card; County Stadium debut 14‑Apr‑1953; Played on the 1943 Angels; B. 21‑Feb‑1921 in Boyceville, WI; Played in WS with 1945 Cubs, 1952 Dodgers & 1957-58 Braves. [Pafko’s death leaves Lennie Merullo as the only living person who has played in the World Series in a Chicago Cubs uniform.])

FCR -    Johnny Palmer, Los Angeles, CA

FRIDAY

Q.         Whom did Tony Gwynn name as the pitcher he least liked to face on account of his nasty sinker and pin-point location control?

Hint:     His father was a teammate of Stan Musial’s.

Twint:    People often mention him in the same breath with Carlos May.

A.         Omar Olivares (Ed Olivares played with the 1960 & 1961 Cardinals; May’s uniform revealed his birthday 17-May-1948 and Olivares’ uniform #00 bore, in a sense, his initials)

FCR -    Ray Luurs, Blaine, MN

SATURDAY

Q.         What pitcher was credited with the first Red Sox victory of the historic 2004 American League Championship Series?

Hint:     Despite this, he would not pitch in the 2004 World Series though he got a ring.

Hint:     In fact, the 1.1 innings pitched for the Game Four win was the last appearance of his eleven-year major league career.

Twint:    He received a large ovation when he appeared for Opening Day 2005 to claim his ring.

Twint:    He was also allowed to carry the 2007 World Series trophy on Opening Day 2008.

A.         Curt Leskanic (Game 4 extra innings BOS victory that started their comeback from a 3-G ALCS deficit on 17‑Oct‑2004; OD 2005; OD 2008)

FCR -    Alex Poterack, Providence, RI

SUNDAY

Q.         Who is the only pitcher other than Greg Maddux to beat the Giants in the League Division Series and then lose to them in the League Championship Series?

Hint:     He pitched the top of the 12^th and 13^th innings to earn the win for the Mets in Game 3 of their 2000 National League Division Series.

Hint:     In the top of the 13^th, with men on first and second, he got Barry Bonds to pop out to end the inning.

Hint:     In the bottom of the 13^th, Benny Agbayani ended the game with a solo walk off home run.

Hint:     It was the only post-season win of his twelve-season major league career.

Twint:    After the 2001season with the Mets, he appeared in the 2002 post season with the Cardinals and lost the fourth game of the National League Championship Series by giving up a two-run home run to series MVP Benito Santiago.

A.         Rick White (Game 3 2000 NLDS G07‑Oct‑2000, Game 4 2002 NLCS 13‑Oct‑2002; Maddux’ L 04-Oct-1989, W 05-Oct-2002)

FCR -    John Michael Pierobon, Ft., Lauderdale  FL

WEEKLY THEME – Pitchers who wore uniform #00

Pitcher         Team            (Years)

Leskanic       Brewers        (00, 01)

Newsom       Senators      (43, 46, 47)

Olivares        Cardinals      (93)

                    Phillies         (95)

Page            Pirates         (54)

White           Indians         (04)

                    Pirates         (05)

                    Reds            (06)

                    Phillies         (06)

Wilson          Dodgers       (13)

*Reports differ.  Some have him at $32,500 that year.

First Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – Steve Schwartz, Chico, CA

Horsehide Trivia blog has the questions and answers from this week as well as from previous weeks:  http://horsehidetrivia.blogspot.com/

Horsehide Trivia home page:  https://sites.google.com/site/tnfotobbpics/home/horsehide-trivia

September 30-October 6, 2013 Outfielder winners of the Willie Mac Award

MONDAY

Q.        To whom should Lasorda not have let Niedenfuer pitch?

Hint:     His bankruptcy in 1992 was a public embarrassment, but he successfully righted his situation.

Hint:     He twice exceeded 130 bases-on-balls in a season.

Twint:   He led the National League in GW RBI in 1980.

Twint:   1977 through 1983, he was double-digits outfield assists every year but one.

A.         Jack Clark (Homered w/ 1^st base open in the 9^th inning of the G 6 of the 1985 NLCS;

FCR -   Jeff Fink, Howell, NJ

TUESDAY

Q.        What former Astros All-Star has been called “…a mechanical disaster.”?

Hint:     His diving outfield catch help secured Tim Lincecum’s no-hitter.

Hint:     Making an equally heroic play would have been the 27^th out of a perfect game for another teammate.

Hint:     He was drafted just ahead of Dustin Pedroia.

Twint:   He recently signed a $90M contract extension.

A.         Hunter Pence (AS 2009, 2011, Awkwardness quote [He’s not above self parody:  Video]; Lincecum no-no 13‑Jul‑2013; Near no-no by Yusmeiro Petit 06‑Sep‑2013; 2^nd round of the 2004 MLB June Amateur Draft; Contract extension)

FCR -   Herb Whalley, Houston, TX

WEDNESDAY

Q.        Who played in the postseason with five different teams in six different seasons, but never with a team that won even a single series in those years?

Hint:     He was one of the sixteen players with forty home runs in 1996.

Hint:     He has the Silver Slugger Award in each league.

Twint:   Though not a likely Hall of Famer himself, he was teammates with Carlton Fisk, Wade Boggs and Roberto Alomar.

Twint:   His hometown was the site of a famous battle.

A.         Ellis Burks (1988 ALCS w/BOS, 1990 ALCS w/BOS, 1993 ALCS w/CHW, 1995 NLDS w/COL, 2000 NLDS w/SFG, 2001 ALDS w/CLE, Battle of Vicksburg)

FCR -   Dayton Headlee, Omaha, NE

MIDWEEK BONUS

Q.        After Willie Mays in 1960, who was the next Giants batter to hit more than ten triples in a season?

Hint:     He was also the last 20^th century Tigers batter with more than ten triples in a season.

Twint:   He did not appear in the field or at bat until his 10^th major league game.

A.         Larry Herndon (11 3b for 1980 SFN; 13 3b for 1982 DET; PR 04-, 07-, 08-, 09-, 11- [1], 13- [1], 17- [2], 18- & 19-Sep-1974)

FCR -   Mark Camps, Albany, CA

THURSDAY

Q.        Who ended Vince Coleman’s six-year run as National League stolen base leader?

Hint:     He is one of four major league alumni of Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University.

Twint:   Among those he ranks second in major league G, AB, R, H, HR & SB.

A.         Marquis Grissom (76 SB in 1990 [Coleman was in 7^th place with 37]; other FAMU alumni: Coleman, Andre Dawson & Hal McRae)

FCR -   Makoto Ozawa, Scarsdale, NY

FRIDAY

Q.        Who was the last batter at Candlestick Park?

Hint:     Earlier in the game he became the last Giants batter to hit a home run there.

Hint:     He and teammate F.P. Santangelo were collectively nicknamed “The Fighting Hydrants” due to their stature and fiery competitiveness.

Twint:   He was named in the Mitchell Report and admitted to using steroids a few years later.

A.         Marvin Benard (grounded out 30-Sep-1999; given the nickname by Giants announcers Duane Kuiper and MIke Krukow [Armando Rios was the third member of The Fighting Hydrants.]; admitted to using steroids after knee surgery in 2002)

FCR -   Brian Wood, Pacific Grove, CA

SATURDAY

Q.        Whose 10.37 100-meter dash time is second only to Deion Sanders’ among major league players?

Hint:     He had the most extra-base hits and the only stolen base for the Giants in the 2010 World Series.

Hint:     He suffers from ADHD and is currently a spokesperson advocating for others with the disability.

Twint:   He was born in New Jersey but raised in Puerto Rico.

A.         Andres Torres (Sanders ran the 100 in 10.26; 4 2B, 1 HR, 1 SB in 2010 WS)

FCR -   Rich Klein, Plano, TX

SUNDAY

Q.        Who was the last player to wear #25 for the Giants before Barry Bonds?

Hint:     In 1987 he and Paul Molitor became the first Brewers teammates steal 30 bases in the same season.

Twint:   He was the only Brewer other than Molitor to steal 30 bases in a season during the 1980s.

A.         Mike Felder (wore #25 1991-92, Bonds started wearing it in 1993; 34 SB, Molitor 41 SB in 1987)

FCR -   Damian Begley, New York, NY

WEEKLY THEME – Outfielder winners of the Willie Mac Award

Year        Player          Position

1999       Benard        Center fielder

2000       Burks           Right fielder

1980       Clark            Right fielder

1992       Felder         Center fielder

2003       Grissom       Center fielder

1981       Herndon      Left fielder

2013       Pence          Right fielder

2010       Torres         Center fielder

First Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – Joe Ullian, Santa Barbara (after the Burks Question)

Horsehide Trivia blog has the questions and answers from this week as well as from previous weeks:  http://horsehidetrivia.blogspot.com/

Horsehide Trivia home page:  https://sites.google.com/site/tnfotobbpics/home/horsehide-trivia

September 23-29, 2013 The only men to play more than 163 games in a season (regular season)

MONDAY/TUESDAY

Q.         Who won the National League Rookie of the Year Award the year the last season the National League had only eight teams.

Hint:     Joe Torre finished behind him in the voting.

Twint:    He finished second to Johnny Bench in National League MVP voting both times Bench won the award.

A.         Billy Williams (ROY 1961; 218 MVP votes to Bench’s 326 in 1970 and 211 to Bench’s 263 in 1972)

FCR -    Mark Kanter, Portsmouth, RI

WEDNESDAY

Q.         Whose death in 2010 was the final element needed for his election to the Hall of Fame?

Hint:     He was the only one of ten candidates elected to the Hall by its Golden Era Ballot Committee in the Committee's first-ever vote.

Hint:     He missed being unanimous by one vote, a far better showing than his previous high of 43.1%.

Hint:     An All-Star nine times, he never experienced postseason play.

Twint:    He was cremated and his ashes scattered on ground at Wrigley Field.

A.         Ron Santo (Died 02-Dec-2010)

FCR -    David Krassin, New York, NY

THURSDAY

Q.         Who spent more than eight seasons in the minors before reaching the majors, but then was the league MVP in his third full season?

Hint:     He was the first manager to face his son in a major league game.

Twint:    He was the first batter to appear in a game for the Montreal Expos.

A.         Maury Wills (Minors 1951-59; Father/son G 24‑Jun‑1980; MTL G 08‑Apr‑1969)

FCR -    Mark Jones, Birmingham, AL

FRIDAY

Q.         Who was the second player in Major League Baseball history to play all nine positions in a nine inning game?

Hint:     Coincidentally, the first batter he faced was the first player in baseball history to accomplish the same feat.

Hint:     He was the starting pitcher for that game, giving up no hits, a walk, a balk, no runs and had a strike out to his credit.

Hint:     The future Hall of Famer he struck out led the league in strike-outs that year (at the plate, not from the mound).

Twint:    He is the most recent player to lead the league in both doubles and triples in the same year.

A.         Cesar Tovar (22-Sep-1968; Faced lead-off batter Bert Campaneris who had played all 9 08-Sep-1965; Reggie Jackson led the majors in 1968 with 171 K; 36 2b, 13 3b in 1970)

FCR -    Richard Tharp, Gaithersburg, MD

SATURDAY

Q.         Who led the National League in caught stealing the year after his 70 stolen bases led the league?

Hint:     That year he had over 650 at-bats without hitting a home run, a feat equaled only four other times in major league history.

Hint:     His 70 stolen bases were the most by a Pittsburgh player since Billy Sunday had 71 in 1888.

Twint:    His trade to Canada signaled the final days of his career in the majors.

A.         Frank Taveras (25 CS 1978; 654 AB; Finished with the Expos, batting .161)

FCR -    Richard Tharp, Gaithersburg, MD

IN MEMORIAM

Q.         Who was the Tigers’ first-ever designated hitter?

Hint:     His first major league home run came a decade earlier, in his first at-bat, in a pinch-hitting role.

Hint:     He was the only Tigers to hit .300 in the year of the pitcher.

Hint:     Until tied this year by Jason Giambi, he held the record of twice pinch hitting walk‑off home runs in the same season.

Hint:     On 11‑Aug of that year, he had game-winning, walk-off hints in both ends of a double header.

Hint:     He hit .450 as a pinch-hitter that year, with an on-base percentage .542.

Hint:     He was one nine Tigers who were teammates a major league record ten years in a row.

Twint:    As a teenager, he was convicted on a charge of breaking and entering and served time in the same prison in Ohio when the movie Shawshank Redemption was later filmed.

Twint:    He served as a mentor to Ron LeFlore, who also spent some time in prison before making it in baseball.

Twint:    As the Tigers hitting coach, he helped transform Lou Whitaker and Alan Trammell from slap hitters into power hitters.

A.         Gates Brown (DH 07‑Apr‑1973; Debut HR 19‑Jun‑1963; Hit .370 in 1968 [No other Tiger with more than 3 AB hit over .300.]; PH, Walk-off HRs 11‑Apr‑1968 & 11‑Aug‑1968 [1]; Walk-off H 11‑Aug‑1968 [2], Giambi’s 2 PH W-O HRs 29‑Jul‑2103 & 24‑Sep‑2013; 9 Teammates 1964-73: Cash , Freehan, Horton, Kaline, Lolich, McAuliffe, Northrup & Stanley)

FCR -    David Krassin, New York, NY

SUNDAY

Q.         What Puerto Rican native was the Giants shortstop the year their third baseman made his only All-Star appearance?

Hint:     Few people know he played for the Senators.

Hint:     He hit .324 in eleven games in two World Series, taking home the trophy once.

Twint:    He was a teammate of Hall of Famers Steve Carlton, Roberto Clemente and Willie Mays.

A.         Jose Pagan (Jim Davenport AS in 1962; 1962 WS, 1971 WS; San Juan, Puerto Rico Senators)

FCR -    Rich Klein, Plano, TX

WEEKLY THEME – The only men to play more than 163 games in a season (regular season)

Pagan       164     1962        Regular season plus three-game playoff

Santo        164     1965        Regular season plus two ties replayed

Taveras     164     1979        Regular season plus two ties replayed

Tovar        164     1967        Regular season plus two ties replayed

Williams    164     1965        Regular season plus two ties replayed

Wills          165     1962        Regular season plus three-game playoff

First Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – Jeff Bergida, Albany, NY (after the Wills Q.)

Horsehide Trivia blog has the questions and answers from this week as well as from previous weeks:  http://horsehidetrivia.blogspot.com/

Horsehide Trivia home page:  https://sites.google.com/site/tnfotobbpics/home/horsehide-trivia