Sunday, August 16, 2015

August 10-16, 2015 Teenage pitchers with a winning season

MONDAY
Q.         What Hall of Fame pitcher holds the record for the most home runs surrendered in a season?
Hint:     He surrendered only four fewer the following year, a total that is tied for 3rd all-time.
Hint:     If his middle name were his last name, he’d be first alphabetically in the Hall of Fame.
Hint:     In his rookie season in the bigs, one of his rotation mates won the Cy Young Award.
Twint:    Of the twelve major league players born in his native country, he is the only one to play in an All-Star game.
Twint:    He did it twice, twelve years apart.
A.         BERT BLYLEVEN (Rik Aalbert Blyleven)
- 50 HR in 1986
- 46 in 1987
- 1970 CYA Jim Perry
FCR -    Jim Turner, Tallahassee, FL
Incorrect answers:  Robin Roberts, Don Sutton, Nolan Ryan, Don Drysdale, Phil Niekro, Catfish Hunter

TUESDAY
Q.         Who threw the last no-hitter for the Yankees that wasn’t a perfect game?
Hint:     He walked six batters, including A-Rod twice.
Hint:     The opposing pitcher had been on the Yankees just the season before.
Hint:     He has been on the cover of Sports Illustrated five times, three times by himself.
Twint:    Puig went to his same high school.
A.         DWIGHT GOODEN
- No-no 14-May-1996
- Opposing pitcher Sterling Hitchcock
FCR -    Alex Griffel, Great Neck, NY
Incorrect answers:  Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Hoyt Wilhelm, Javier Vazquez, David Cone, Andy Hawkins, David Wells, Jim Abbot

TUESDAY BONUS
Q.         Who is the only Hall of Famer who has been a featured speaker at three different SABR* international conventions?
Hint:     He was a bit cranky at the last one.
Hint:     Ted Williams called him, “…best pitcher I ever saw during my career”.
*Society for American Baseball Research
Twint:    17@ 17
A.         BOB FELLER
- Spoke at SABR 20, SABR 26 & SABR 38 (1990 in Cleveland, 1996 in Kansas City & 2008 again in Cleveland)
- In 2008 at age 89 waxed emphatic on the glory of the U.S. military
- At the tender age of 17 years old, he struck out seventeen batters in one game 13‑Sep‑1936, the then American League record.
FCR -    John Michael Pierobon, Fort Lauderdale, FL
Incorrect answers:  Virgil Trucks, Allie Reynolds

WEDNESDAY
Q.         What pitching legend was the head coach for the Yale baseball team for nineteen years?
Hint:     In his last year in the majors, he collected 150 hits as a batter.
Hint:     His namesake son had a “cup of coffee” in the majors.
Hint:     "Without a doubt," Ty Cobb opined, "______ was one of the best pitchers I ever faced throughout my entire career."
Twint:    He set an American League record of sixteen straight wins.
Twint:    That record has been tied but not broken.
A.         SMOKY JOE WOOD
FCR -    Jake Hopper, Houston, TX
Incorrect answers:  Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Red Ruffing, George Sisler

MIDWEEK BONUS
Q.         Who was the first native of Minnesota inducted into the Hall of Fame?
Hint:     For nearly half a century, he was the only one.
Hint:     After leading the American League in pitcher’s winning percentage in three of the five previous seasons, he changed leagues.
Hint:     …where he had a 4-16 record!
Hint:     After being out of the majors for over six years, he pitched one last inning, giving up a home run to a namesake of his famous alma mater.
Twint:    He was one of the most athletic of the Athletics.
A.         CHIEF BENDER
- HOF in 1953; Next was Dave Winfield in 2001; Only other is Paul Molitor, 2004
- AL % leader 1910, 1911 & 1914; FL in 1915, 4-16 for BAL
- HR to BOS player Roy Carlyle pitching for CHW 21-Jul-1925.  Bender was an alum of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, same high school Jim Thorpe attended.
FCR -    Michael Campos, Redmond, WA
Incorrect answers:  Don Larsen, Jack Morris

THURSDAY
Q.         Who was the first Houston Astros pitcher to get MVP votes?
Hint:     Though he only got a few votes, he did tie that year with three future Hall of Famers.
Hint:     …not to mention a pitcher from that year’s World Series champs.
Hint:     Alas, he was none of those things, and he never even made an appearance in the postseason as a player.
Twint:    He did, however, manage a team to the only 100-win season in its franchise’s history.
Twint:    With that effort, he was honored as the National League Manager of the Year.
A.         LARRY DIERKER
- 1969 23rd MVP votes
- 6 votes each for
            Juan Marichal,
            Joe Torre,
            Billy Williams and
            the 1969 Mets pitcher Jerry Koosman
- 1998 HOU 102-60, MOY
FCR -    David Girdany, Somerset, PA
Incorrect answers:  J.R. Richard, Turk Farrell, Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott

FRIDAY
Q.         Who received the single 1st place vote that deprived a unanimous Rookie of the Year award to the first man to win the batting crown in his first two (full) seasons?
Hint:     Perhaps ironically, this same ROY was the man to whom he gave up the single most homers to throughout his career.
Hint:     But during their rookie seasons, he gave up none of those home runs, and he held his rival to a 1 for 11 performance at the plate.
Twint:    Elaine Benes dated a fellow high school alumnus of his.
A.         WALLY BUNKER
- 1964 ROY vote, Tony Oliva winning with 19 of 20 1st place votes.
- Bunker gave up 5 HR to Oliva- the most to any player he faced.
- 1964 Oliva only managed an RBI single with no K or BB in 11PA over three games
- Elaine from Seinfeld dated Keith Hernandez who also attended Capuchino HS, San Bruno, CA.
FCR -    Isaac Handy, New York, NY
Incorrect answers:  Rollie Fingers, Gary Peters, Tony Oliva, Mel Stottlemyre, Ichiro Suzuki

SATURDAY
Q.         Who, in his final postseason appearance, got the win in Game 4 the last time the Yankees were swept in a World Series?
Hint:     Out of 7 World Series starts, it was his only victory.
Hint:     He led his team that year in wins, but also led the majors with most homers allowed.
Hint:     He lost out to a future Hall of Fame pitcher for Rookie of the Year despite besting him in strike outs, win-loss%, ERA, and WHIP…
Hint:  …as well as giving up fewer homers, hits and bases on balls.
Twint:    He struck out the first three of the first four batters he ever faced in a major league game.
Twint:    He had the good sense to walk Joe Morgan, but then in the 4th, struck him out too.
A.         GARY NOLAN
- 1976 CIN won 4-0, taking Game 4 7-2
- 1970, 1972 and 1975 WS he went 0-2 in 6 starts.
- won 15 G for CIN in 1976, but also gave up 28 HR to tie Catfish Hunter for most HR yielded.
- 1967 ROY Tom Seaver with Nolan finishing 3rd (Dick Hughes 2nd), despite the statistical achievements of Nolan.
- Debut 15-Apr-1967
FCR -    Frank Workman, Lake Forest Park, WA
Incorrect answers:  Don Gullet, Claude Osteen, Early Wynn, Jack Billingham

WEEKEND BONUS
Q.         Who is the first player to win a Cy Young Award and a Comeback Player of the Year Award in the same season?
Hint:     He was credited with throwing a no-hitter despite giving up a hit.
Twint:    He is the only Giant to win the Cy Young Award in the 20th century.
A.         MIKE McCORMICK
- 12-Jun-1959, got a 5-inn no-no after he gave up a hit in the 6th, but the inning wasn’t completed when rain ended the game.
FCR -    Wayne Strumpfer, Sacramento, CA
Incorrect answers:  Gaylord Perry, Cliff Lee (in 2008, won The CYA & CPY), Johan Santana

SUNDAY
Q.         Who was the first A's pitcher to fashion a single-season winning percentage under .200 (minimum 10 decisions)?
Hint:     He was inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame in 1963.
Hint:     Larry Kopf was traded away because of the "bad influence" he had on this young player.
Hint:     He created and marketed a baseball dice game in 1936.
Twint:    He presided over the Cincinnati-based Ballplayers of Yesterday organization for 15 years.
Twint:    He borrowed his minor league cousin's nickname.
A.         RUBE BRESSLER
- 4-17 [.190] in 1915, but the team was only .297 without him
- Cousin had the same name, Rube Bressler
FCR -    Dave Goss, Wind Gap, PA
Incorrect answers:  Ethan Allen


WEEKLY THEME – Teenage pitchers with a winning season

Player            Year       Age       W -  L        %      Team
Bender           1903       19         17 - 14    .548     PHA
Blyleven         1970       19         10 -  9     .526     MIN
Bressler         1914       19         10 -  4     .714     PHA
Bunker           1964       19         19 -  5     .792     BAL
Dierker           1966       19         10 -  8     .556     HOU
Feller              1938       19         17 - 11    .607     CLE
Gooden          1984       19         17 -  9     .654     NYM
McCormick    1958       19         11 -  8     .579     SFG
Nolan             1967       19         14 -  8     .636     CIN
Wood             1909       19         11 -  7     .611     BOS

First Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – Bill Carle, Lee’s Summit, MO

Incorrect theme guesses:

Tuesday   -  Pitchers with most strikeouts before they turned 21
               -  1000 Ks before 25
               -  Pitcher with tremendous curve balls
               -  Hall of fame pitchers to play for the Cleveland Indians
               -  Pitchers with most wins before age 25
               -  Pitchers who had 100 strikeout seasons while teenagers
               -  Guys who led the league in strikeouts as rookies

Wed        -  No-hit pitchers who won 10 or more games in their teens
               -  200 Ks before age 20" or 240 Ks also works so far

Friday      -  Former speakers at the annual SABR banquet or luncheon

Saturday  -  Won 10 games or more at 19 years old

Sunday    -  Pitchers who made the majors as teenagers


Questions archived here:  http://horsehidetriviA.  blogspot.com/




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