MONDAY — 03-Aug
Q. Who was the only
manager to lead the Mets and the Yankees to league championships?
Hint: He led the
league in an offensive category only once in his nineteen-year MB playing
career and that was not in his MVP season.
Hint: As a child,
he and his friends built a baseball diamond near the city dump.
A. YOGI BERRA [SABR Bio]
- He was the AL
leader in 1950 in at-bats per strikeout by a wide margin w/49.8. In fact he led the majors that year, also by
a wide margin. Won AL MVPs in 1951, 1954 & 1955, in each case by narrow
margins.
- The city dump as
then located, in St. Louis. One of his childhood
friends went on to play in the majors for 9 seasons, Joe Garagiola.
FCR - Jeff Cohen, Wantagh,
New York
Incorrect guesses: Joe
Torre, Casey Stengel, Davey Johnson
TUESDAY — 04-Aug
Q. Who is the
only post-WWII player to collect more RBI than the number of games he played
that season and do it in back-to-back seasons? (100 RBI min.)
Hint: He is the only
American League player to receive four intentional bases-on-balls in a single
game since Roger Maris in 1962.
Hint: He has played
for both the Bisons and the Rhinos.
A. MANNY
RAMIREZ [SABR Bio]
- In 1999, he played in 148 G and had 165* RBI. The following season, he plated 122 in just
118 G. had 169 in 154 Gin 1932 and 163 RBI in 149 G in 1933. (Ted
Williams almost satisfies this 1949-1950, but falls just 3 short of the 100 RBI
minimum in ’50.)
- DET mgr. Phil Garner gave Manny first base on purpose 4 X on
05-Jun-2001 at Fenway in the 8th, 10th,
14th & 16th innings.
It proved a wise strategy in that Manny was stranded on base each time
when the batter(s) behind him ended the inning and the threat. BOS still won the game when teammate Shea Hillenbrand homered in the bottom of the 18th.
- In 2000, he played for the Buffalo Bisons for
5 G in a rehab assignment and in 2013 he played 49 G for the EDA Rhinos of the Chinese Professional Baseball League.
*Highest season RBI
total for any player since Jimmie Foxx had 175 in 1938.
FCR - Daniel Wilson, St. Paul
Incorrect guesses: George Brett, Barry Bonds, Josh Hamilton,
Rocky Colavito, Mark McGwire, Aaron Judge, Ted Williams, Albert Belle, Bobby
Bonds
TUESDAY TWICE — 04-Aug
Q. A career offensive statistical
combination of 300+ home runs, 400+ doubles, 100+ triples and 300+ stolen bases
was achieved by only two players. Which
one was not voted into the Hall of Fame on his first ballot?
Hint: His 6th career leadoff home run
was also the one that placed him in the 300/300 club.
Hint: He played for eight franchises during his
nineteen years in the majors and won Gold Gloves for three different teams.
Hint: He twice led the National League in
triples, ten years apart.
A. STEVE FINLEY [B-R Bio]
- Finley’s numbers: 304 HR, 449 2B, 124 3B & 320 SB. Also in the club? Willie Mays, who had 660 HR, 523 2B, 140
3B & 338 SB. Finley’s 1st
HOF ballot was a disheartening 0.7% in 2013 and so didn’t even qualify for a 2nd
year of voting.
- 300th HR 14-Jun-2006. He was met at home plate by his 13-year-old son Austin after rounding the bases.
- Won a GG for SDP (1995, 96), ARI (1999, 2000, 2004) & LAD (2004). His
other teams were BAL, HOU, LAA, SFG & COL.
FCR - Bill Deane, Cooperstown
Incorrect guesses: Ricky Henderson, Bobby Bonds, Luke Easter, Mike
Trout, Andre Dawson, Kenny Lofton, Tim Raines, Bobby Richardson
WEDNESDAY — 05-Aug
Q. Which former Cincinnati Reds infielder-outfielder
was the first player to accumulate 1,000 at-bats as a designated hitter?
Hint: He played for only two teams in the majors,
but he coached for six.
Hint: His last year as a player was his first as
a coach and with the same team.
- Began DH’ing from the start of the DH in 1973
the year after he was traded to the AL, w/1,426 of his career 2,084 G at DH.
- Played for CIN & KCR, a total of 19
seasons. Coached w/KCR, MON, CIN, PHI, TBD
& STL, a total of 15 years coaching.
He also managed for KCR 1991-1994 & TBD 2001-2002.
- Played with KCR 1973-1987; began coaching with
KCR in 1987.
FCR - Steven Wright, Naperville, Illinois
Incorrect
guesses: Rico Carty, Wayne Krenchicki, Chili
Davis, Lee May, Frank Robinson, Tony Perez, Richie Hebner, Deron Johnson,
Ken Griffey, Sr.
MIDWEEK BONUS —
05-Aug
Q. Which All-Star and Gold Glove winner is
the only New York Yankee to lead the American League in triples in the
expansion era?
Hint: He is a proud recipient of the Kevin Lawn
Award.
Hint: He is a former Cougar, but did not attend
BYU, Washington State or the University of Houston.
A. BRETT GARDNER [B-R Bio]
- Led AL in triples w/10 in 2013. AS in 2015. GG in 2016.
- The Kevin Lawn Award is given to the best minor
league hitter and pitcher of the previous year in the Yankees’ organization. Gardner won in 2009.
- Played baseball as he attended the College of Charleston.
FCR - Warren Kent, Whitehall, Michigan
Incorrect
guesses: Willie Randolph, Mickey Rivers,
Hank Bauer, Don Mattingly, Bobby Murcer, Bernie Williams, Dave Winfield
THURSDAY — 06-
Aug
Q. Who beat out Bob Horner and Robin
Ventura when he was named NCAA Player of the Century in 1999?
Hint: He still holds the NCAA record for most
home runs and most RBI in single collegiate season.
Hint: His record for strikeouts by an MLB rookie
batter was broken by the Cubs’ Kris Bryant.
A. PETE INCAVIGLIA [B-R Bio]
- Baseball America’s balloting honored Incaviglia based on
(among other things) his college career .398 batting average, 324 RBIs and .915
slugging percentage. His 100 homers are still an NCAA record. He finished with a flourish, hitting 48 HR
& w/143 RBI in 1985 in 75 G for Oklahoma State.
- Incavigilia’s record of 185 K by a qualifying
rookie in 1986 was surpassed by Bryant’s 199 in 2015. Aaron Judge currently holds the record after
he struck out 208 times in 2017 (while he was also setting the since-broken rookie
HR record). All three led the AL in Ks
in the seasons that they set these rookie marks.
FCR - Adrian Fung, Toronto
Incorrect
guesses: Phil Nevin, Jeff Burroughs, Bobby
Bonds, Rafael Palmeiro, Fred Lynn, Barry Bonds, Jason Jennings
FRIDAY — 07-Aug
Q. Who was the last batter to hit a
postseason home run off Cooperstown’s sole unanimously-elected inductee?
Hint: He was one of three .400-hitting college
baseball teammates named All-American.
Hint: Unusual for a non-pitcher, he underwent two
Tommy John Surgeries before reaching the majors.
A. JAY PAYTON [B-R Bio]
- Payton’s 9th inning 3-run HR on 22-Oct-2000 was the final HR postseason
clout surrendered by Mariano Rivera. Payton’s dinger constitutes exactly 50% of
all the postseason HRs Rivera surrendered in his 96 G/141 IP postseason career. The other had been by CLE’s Sandy Alomar, Jr. in G 4 of the 1997 ALDS.
- Payton often batted cleanup and thumped a
robust .434 during the 1994 NCAA baseball season for Georgia Tech University. Fellow MLB
First Round Picks Nomar Garciaparra and Jason Varitek hit .427 and .426
respectively for the Ramblin’ Wreck.
- Besides the two TJS (plus a third elbow scope) done on his right
throwing arm, Payton also had major work done on his left shoulder. These injuries are figured to have delayed
his MLB debut by 4½ years.
FCR - John Michael Pierobon, Fort Lauderdale
Incorrect
guesses: Will Middlebrooks, Will Clark, Robin
Ventura, Lance Berkman, Albert Bell, Pat Burrell
T.G.I. Effects — 07-Aug
Q. Which Baltimore Orioles rookie only
joined his club in mid-May one year, but went on a tear so torrid that he
earned league Rookie of the Month honors in June?
Hint: Although his rookie season was also highly
successful, his bobblehead day scheduled for the next season went on without
him.
Hint: The sound of his last name can give certain
grain farmers great apprehension.
A. NOLAN REIMOLD [B-R
Bio]
- Called up by BAL on 14-May-2009, he quickly earned AL
Rookie Player of the Month for June 2009 after slashing .320/.420/.520 with 5
HR.
- After struggling through the first 29 games of
2010 while hitting only .205, Reimold was demoted to the minors two weeks
before his 26-May-2010 bobblehead day.
- Surname pronounced RYE-mold. Poisonous rye mold is one of the few plant diseases that
can cause direct damage to humans when ingested.
FCR - Tony Nicolo, Norfolk, Virginia
Incorrect guesses: Josh Towers, Brian Reimold, Terry Crowley, Matt
Wieters, Curt Blefary
SATURDAY — 08-Aug
Q. Who was the Most Valuable Player of the
2017 National Baseball Congress World Series, playing for the Kansas Stars, the
first former major leaguer to win the title since 1965?
Hint: In his senior year in high school, he was named
the Texas Player of the Year.
Hint: His father is Texas' all-time winningest
high school baseball coach’
Hint: Although he hit fewer than 35 career MLB
HRs, his victims included five Cy Young Award winners.
A. RYAN LANGERHANS [B-R Bio]
- During his senior season in 1998, Langerhans
batted .512, was named to the All-State team, was selected as a Nike
All-American, was selected to play in the 1998 Texas High School All-Star Game
and was named Texas Player of the Year.
- His father is John Langerhans who amassed a 613-200
coaching record over a 28-year career and was inducted into the Texas High
School Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2007.
- 33 total MLB HRs, including one each off CYA
winners Jake Peavy, Johan Santana, Roy Halladay, Rick Porcello and Zack
Greinke.
FCR - Warren Kent, Whitehall, Michigan
Incorrect
guesses: Roger Clemens
WEEKEND BONUS — 08-Aug
Q. Who had his only career multiple-HR
games in back-to-back-to-back contests?
Hint: His father and his high school teammate’s
father were teammates in the majors.
Hint: He and that high school teammate missed
being teammates again in the majors by one season.
Hint: Yet another major leaguer was his teammate,
this time in college.
A. JEFF DaVANON [B-R Bio]
- In 2003, DaVanon clubbed two HRs in each of
three straight games on 01-Jun, 03-Jun & 04-June. This concentrated hot streak tied the AL
record for most homers in three consecutive games, previously set by Tony
Lazzeri, Gus Zernial, Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez.
- Jeff attended Bellaire (TX) HS with Jose Cruz, Jr. Their fathers, Jerry and Jose, Sr., were teammates on the
1975 and 1976 Houston Astros.
- DaVanon and Jim Rushford played together at San Diego State shortly before Tony Gwynn became the
coach there.
FCR - No one
Incorrect
guesses: Barry Bonds, Jack Clark
SUNDAY — 09-Aug
Q. Who homered in his major league debut but died less than 150 days later?
Hint: His team mourned him with light.
Hint: He was sought out by the Canadian national
baseball team to play in the World Baseball Classic.
Hint: At the age of five, he self-coined his
prophetic nickname.
A. OSCAR TAVERAS [B-R Bio]
- First HR
on 31-May-2014. Taveras
and his girlfriend perished in an automobile accident 26-Oct-2014. He was 22.
- The Cardinals used their home stadium lights
to pay tribute to his life.
- Of dual Dominican-Canadian citizenship, the
Canuck joueurs de baseball tried luring Taveras to play for them in the 2013 WBC. The Cardinals nixed that offer, figuring
Taveras would have plenty of other chances to represent Team
Canada…
- According to his father, Oscar started to call
himself "El Fenómeno, at about age five". That’s Spanish for "The
Phenomenon". His father remembered
his young son exclaiming, “I’m going to make you the happiest dad in the world.
I want to be a star. I want to be a major leaguer. I’m the phenomenon. I’m the best!”
FCR - Joe O’Neill, London, ON
Incorrect guesses: Ken Hubbs, Greg Halman, Sixto Lezcano
WEEKLY THEME – Outfielders
over whose heads MLB’s 11 postseason-series-clinching, walk-off home runs were
hit.
Observer Pos Tm HR
by, His Team Event
Berra LF NYY Bill Mazeroski, PIT 1960 WS
G 7
McRae RF KCR Chris Chambliss, NYY 1976
ALCS G 5
Incaviglia LF
PHL Joe Carter, TOR 1993 WS
G 6
Finley CF ARI Todd Pratt, NYM 1999
NLCS G 4
Ramirez LF BOS Aaron Boone, NYY 2003
ALCS G 7
DaVanon LF
LAA David Ortiz, BOS 2004
ALDS G 3
Langerhans LF
ATL Chris Burke, HOU 2005 NLDS
G 4
Payton LF OAK Magglio Ordonez, DET 2006
ALCS G 4
Taveras RF STL Travis Ishikawa, SFG 2014
NLCS G 5
Reimold LF BAL Edwin Encarnacion, TOR 2016 AL WC G
Gardner LF NYY Jose Altuve, HOU 2019
ALCS G 6
First
Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – Preston Salisbury, Starkville, Mississippi
Incorrect theme
guesses:
Monday - Players
who've had cartoon characters named for them
-
Tuesday - All had
19 year careers and all have at least signed contracts with two teams
ostensibly in the same city
Wed. - Players
with 2000+ hits and 1000+ RBIs
Sunday - Players
who put their teams ahead before losing a series-winning homer
- Players
who hit walk off home runs to win a championship.
- Who
was due to start the next inning after famous walk off homers?
If you know
someone who would enjoy receiving Horsehide Trivia, please refer them to this
site:
This week’s quiz archived
here: http://horsehidetriviA. blogspot.com/
Horsehide Trivia encourages independent research.
