Monday, June 15, 2020

2020-06-08 No-hitters against that year's World Series champions


Q.        Who is the all-time career leader in fewest hits allowed per nine innings pitched?
Hint:     He received a highest Hall of Fame voting percentage in the twentieth century except for that of an old teammate.
Hint:     He was the first player to suit up for all four of the original expansion franchises.
Hint:     In fact, those were the only ones he suited up for.
A.         NOLAN RYAN  [SABR Bio]
-  H/9 IP = 6.5553.  He is also the all-time single-season leader in the same category when in 1972 his H/9 was 5.2606.         
-  Elected to the Hall in 1999 w/98.79% HOF vote.  At the time, only Tom Seaver’s 98.84% was higher. They had been teammates on the Mets 1968-71.
-  Played for:
NYM... 1966, 1968-71...... (NL expansion 1962),
CAL.... 1972-79 ............... (AL expansion 1961 as the Los Angeles Angels),
HOU... 1980-88................ (NL expansion 1962 as the Colt .45s) &
TEX.... 1989-93................ (AL expansion 1961 as the Washington Senators II)..
FCR -  Lincoln Mitchell, New York City
Incorrect guesses:      Addie Joss, Randy Johnson, Gaylord Perry

MONDAY’S BONUS
Q.        What former Bluejay holds the record for the lowest ERA for a season in the expansion era?
Hint:     Not at all bad with a bat, he hit a couple dozen home runs in the majors.
Hint:     He was briefly professional in another sport.
A.         BOB GIBSON  [SABR Bio]
-  Attended Creighton University with other Bluejays.  Threw a nifty 1.12 ERA in 1968.
-  Had 24 career HR.
-  Played basketball for the Harlem Globetrotters.
FCR -  Bill Carle, Lee's Summit, Missouri
Incorrect guesses:  Dave Stieb, Tom Glavine, Mark Hendrickson, David Wells, Mark Eichorn

TUESDAY
Q.        Which Hall of Fame pitcher pitched in more than twenty seasons in the majors and won ERA crowns only in the two seasons he qualified?
Hint:     Although each of those ERA titles was won in a different league, he wore the same uniform colors.
Hint:     At the plate he collected five extra-base in his entire career, eighty percent of them in his first two campaigns.
Hint:     He was the only future Hall of Famer to go an entire season (min 20 AB ) in the American League without collecting a hit.
A.         HOYT WILHELM  [SABR Bio]
-  ERA champ in 1952* for NYG and 1959 for BAL, wearing the black and orange of each franchise.  *Rookie season.
-  HR in his 1st year (1st AB) then 2 2B & a 3B in his sophomore season.
-  In 1965 w/CHW Wilhelm went to the plate with a bat in his hands 22 X.  He only got on 4 X, twice via walks and twice on errors.  Meanwhile, over in the senior circuit, in 1957, Sandy Koufax had gone hitless for a season in which he had over 20 ABs.  He went 0-26, reaching base only once on an error.        
FCR -  Jerry Miller, Liberty Hill, Texas
Incorrect guesses: 

TUESDAY’S BONUS
Q.        Who was the last pitcher to win an Opening Day game for the St. Louis Browns?
Hint:     He twice led the league in shutouts, but with a different team each time.
Hint:     One year he pitched two no-hitters in addition to a one-hitter and still ended that season fourteen games under .500.
A.         VIRGIL TRUCKS  [SABR Bio]
-  Won on O.D. in 1953, the Browns’ last season in St Louis, on 14-Apr, shutting out DET.
-  Threw 6 ShO w/DET in 1949 and 5 ShO w/CHW in 1954.  In ’49 he also led the majors.
-  Record was 5-19 in 1952 with the last-place Tigers.
FCR -  John Haeussler, Hancock, Michigan
Incorrect guesses:  Ned Garver, Bob Turley, Bobo Newsome

WEDNESDAY  -  10-Jun
Q.        Who was the first major league pitcher to throw a second no-hitter?
Hint:     He was also the first to throw a third no-hitter.
Hint:     He once pitched ambidextrously in a game, throwing with either hand.
Hint:     Early in his career, he was called back from monitoring the gate receipts to pitch nine innings in relief of an injured teammate.
A.         LARRY CORCORAN  [BR Bio]
-  No-hitters:  19-Aug-1880 vs. the Boston Red Stockings (now the Atlanta Braves),  then 20-Sep-1882 vs. the Worcester Ruby Legs and finally vs. the Providence Grays on 27-Jun-1884.  His 3rd no-no broke the opposition team’s 10-G winning streak.
-  Ambo G = 10-Jun-1884 in a game between Chicago White Stockings and the Bisons of Buffalo.  He alternated arms, pitching for 4 innings before switching to SS.
-  Tossed 9 in relief of Fred Goldsmith on 23-Aug-1881.
FCR -  Len Levin, Providence
Incorrect guesses:  Cy Young, Walter Johnson, Tony Mullane, John Montgomery Ward, Bob Feller, Carl Erskine

WEDNESDAY’S BONUS
Q.        Who was the third fourth pitcher to throw a second no-hitter?
Hint:     He held the record for most strikeouts by a Dodger rookie pitcher for more than eleven decades.
Hint:     His major league umpiring career began while he was still a player.
A.         ADONIS TERRY  [BR Bio]
-  No-hitters hurled on 24-July-1886 vs. the St. Louis Browns (Cardinals now) and then 27-May-1888 vs. the Louisville Colonels (franchise dismantled after 1899).  Hall of Famer Pud Galvin had been the second with a brace of no-no’s in 1880 & 84.  Third was Al Atkinson 24-May-1884 & 01-May-1886.
-  K’d 230 in 1884, a Dodger rookie record that stood until the inestimable Hideo Nomo amassed 235 in 1995.
-  He umpired a total of 51 G in parts of 7 years between 1884-1901.  Terry umped 10 times while he was still an active player.
FCR -  David Serota, Kalamazoo
Incorrect guesses:  Pud Galvin, Nap Rucker, Dutch Leonard, Rube Waddell, Burt Hooton, Dazzy Vance

WEDNESDAY’S BONUS WAGNER
Q.        Who is the only native of Wyoming ever to receive a Hall of Fame vote?
Hint:     He is still the only rookie pitcher for his franchise to win twenty games in the modern era.
Hint:     He started more than thirty games for seven consecutive seasons, twice leading the majors in games started.
Hint:     He probably never said, “How shall I pitch thee?”
A.         TOM BROWNING  [SABR Bio]
-  Got 1 HOF vote in 2001
-  In 1985, his record was 20-9 and he finished 2nd to Vince Coleman in ROY voting.
-  30+ GS 1985-91.  Led MLB in 1986 & 1989.
-  Then again, Elizabeth Barrett probably never came to bat.
FCR -  Bob Flynn, Chandler, Arizona
Incorrect guesses:  Dick Ellsworth, Bret Saberhagen, John Montefusco, Bob Grim

THURSDAY  -  11-Jun
Q.        Bert Blyleven was the second pitcher to throw a no-hitter for the Texas Rangers and Nolan Ryan was the third (and fourth).  Who was the first?
Hint:     He could hold eight baseballs in one hand, palm down.
Hint:     While he was still in the minors, his advancement towards the majors was interrupted when he was drafted into the U.S. Army.
Hint:     Sports Illustrated called his younger brother, “…as unlikely a nine-year NBA man as there has ever been.”
A.         JIM BIBBY  [SABR Bio]
-  No-no on 30-Jul-1973 w/13 K.  His opposite number, Vida Blue, also went the full 9.
-  Bibby’s hands were enormous.  (Click here for photo.)
-  He served two years in Viet Nam as a truck driver, particularly dangerous duty during wartime.
-  Brother Henry Bibby played 9 years in the NBA after being on 3 NCAA championship teams at UCLA.  Henry’s son Mike played even longer in The Association.  The quote is from Rick Telander in a 1981 article.
FCR - Steven Cramer, Philadelphia
Incorrect guesses:  Kenny Rogers, Ferguson Jenkins, Gaylord Perry

THURSDAY’S BONUS
Q.        What three-sport Horned Frog had sixteen Hall of Fame teammates in his eight-season major league career?
Hint:     He had double figures in pitching wins for his first seven years in the majors.
Hint:     He led the National League in wild pitches just two years after he had tied for the lead in shutouts.
Hint:     He once went toe-to-toe with the Giants’ Carl Hubbell for sixteen straight scoreless innings.
A.         TEX CARLETON  [SABR Bio]
-  Attended Texas Christian University in Fort Worth where he played football, basketball & baseball for them.  Played with Jim Bottomley, Kiki Cuyler, Dizzy Dean, Leo Durocher, Frankie Frisch, Burleigh Grimes, Jesse Haines, Gabby Hartnett, Billy Herman, Rogers Hornsby, Chuck Klein, Tony Lazzeri, Freddie Lindstrom, Joe Medwick, Pee Wee Reese & Dazzy Vance.
-  10+ W 1932-38
-  His 12 WP in 1938 also led the majors. His 4 SHO in 1936 was good for a seven-way tie for that category’s NL best.
-  He was relieved in the 17th inning on 02-Jul-1933 by future Hall of Famer Jesse Haines who allowed the winning in in the bottom of the 18th.
FCR -  Elliott Frankfother, Rock Falls, Illinois
Incorrect guesses:  Paul Dean, Lee Grissom, Pete Donohue, Bill Hallahan

FRIDAY  -  12-Jun
Q.        Who once pitched a no-hitter in the second game of a double header after throwing the last two innings of the opener?
Hint:     They were equally hitless and earned him a save (even though saves didn’t officially exist for more than a half century in the future).
Hint:     No pitcher in American League history has lost more games in a single season.
Hint:     He received a nice salary increase when he went to the Highlanders.
A.         BOB GROOM  [SABR Bio]
-  No-no 06-May-1917 (2), 1st G = 06-May-1917 (1)
-  “Save” became defined and official as of the 1969 season.
-  He tied Happy Townsend’s 1904 mark when he went down to defeat 26 times in 1909.
-  In both 1905 and 1906 he pitcher for the Springfield (Missouri) Highlanders for $150 per month.  This unexpected 250% raise over his previous salary of $60 per month came despite his posting a 8-26 record in 1904 in the Missouri Valley League.
FCR -  Caleb Oser, Madison, Wisconsin
Incorrect guesses:  Joe McGinnity, Cy Young, Fred Glade, Jack Chesbro, Bullet Joe Bush, Bill Dinneen, Double Duty Radcliffe, Jack Quinn, Vic Willis

SATURDAY  -  13-Jun
Q.        Who was the last qualifying pitcher to lead the American League in earned run average for a team based in Washington, DC?
Hint:     He once missed having a perfect game, the only flaw was his own error on a throw to first, allowing his opponents their sole base runner.
Hint:     On another occasion he became the fourth of the five pitchers to have their no-hitters broken up by a lone Cesar Tovar hit.
A.         DICK BOSMAN  [SABR Bio]
-  Bosman’s career-best 2.19 for the Ted Williams-managed WSA was the best in the league.  He was the only Junior Circuit hurler to place among the top five ERAs in the majors that year.  The NL’ers in that 5 were all headed to the Hall of Fame: Juan Marichal/SFG (2.10), Steve Carlton/STL (2.17), Bob Gibson/STL (2.18) and Tom Seaver/NYM (2.21).
-  After 11 straight outs to open the game on 19-Jul-1974, Bosman cleanly fielded a checked-swing roller between the mound and 3B.  He turned and threw quickly to 1B, but his throw skipped off the end of 1st baseman Tom McCraw’s glove and the runner ended up at second.  Bosman was charged with an error.  He later said, “I had enough time, but since I’d had to go a long way to get the ball, I thought I had to hurry.  My throw just sailed away from McCraw.”  Then 16 straight outs followed for the no-hitter, making Bosman the only pitcher in MLB history to miss a perfect game due solely to his own fielding error.  (On 20-July-1970, Bill Singer/LAD pitched a no-hitter that was marred only by his own two fielding miscues and two hit batsmen.)
-  In an utterly unimaginable defying of the odds, Venezuela’s uniquely versatile and ultra-durable Cesar Tovar had the lone hit five different times, ruining no-hitters for Barry Moore on 30-Apr-1967, Dave McNally on 15-May-1969, Mike Cuellar on 10-Aug-1969, Bosman on 14-Aug-1970 and finally Catfish Hunter on 31-May-1975.  Somebody above my pay grade would have to calculate the odds of that happening.
FCR -  Mark Pattison, Washington, DC
Incorrect guesses:  Dick Donovan, Camilo Pascual, Joe Coleman

FLAG DAY BONUS
Q.        What BRTL hurler with South Pacific heritage, for the first complete game of his career, no-hit a team that hadn’t been no-hit in 25 years?
Hint:     He was once traded for a future World Series MVP.
Hint:     He shares an alma mater with Larry Bird.
Hint:     He was born in Valparaiso but says he has never been to Chile.
A.         SEAN MANAEA  [BR Bio]
-  No-hit BOS on 21-Apr-2018.  Sawks had been last no-hit on 22-Apr-1993 by SEA’s Chris Bosio.  Missed 25 years by one day!  Manaea’s father was born in American Samoa  then moved to Hawaii.  Following a stint in Viet Nam, he moved to Indiana where Sean was born.
-  Traded w/Aaron Brooks by KCR to OAK for Ben Zobrist 28-Jul-2015
-  Attended Indiana State University in Terre Haute.
-  Born in the city of Valparaiso, Indiana pop. 25,000 (Valparaiso, Chile pop. 300,000)
FCR -  Caleb Oser, Madison, Wisconsin
Incorrect guesses:  Kevin Brown, Sid Fernandez 

SUNDAY  -  14-Jun
Q.        Whose wild pitch in the ninth inning of the deciding game of a league championship series gave the pennant to his opponents?
Hint:     Three years after paying to watch an opener, he was getting paid to watch an opener in the same stadium.
Hint:     In the 61-year history of Forbes Field, a no-hitter was never recorded there.  He came the closest on Flag Day one year.
A.         BOB MOOSE  [SABR Bio]
-  WP to Hal McRae in G 5 of the 1972 NLCS allowed George Foster to score putting CIN into the WS and dethroning his own team from the status won the previous fall.
-  Moose, who had grown up just a half-hour’s drive from Forbes Field, completed a promise he made a friend while watching PIT’s Opening Day game in 1965.  Moose explained, “Our high school principal said anybody could be excused from classes if we had tickets for the PIT opener.  I quickly bought two and treated my best friend.”  Moose told his buddy that afternoon that one day he’d be wearing a Pirates uniform — which he did as a late September call-up in 1967 and as a member of PIT’s Opening Day bullpen in 1968.
-  On 14-June-1968, 20-year old rookie Moose went 7⅔ innings for PIT before surrendering a hit to HOU’s Julio Gotay.
FCR -  John Martick, Knoxville
Incorrect guesses:  Mitch Williams, Steve Blass, Harvey Haddix

WEEK’S FINALE
Q.        Who walked the most times in a season where he did not get a hit?
Hint:     From wee Keeler.
Hint:     Rumors that his reading material is backwards are specious and unfounded.
A.         ERNIE KOOB  [SABR Bio]
-  0-41, 15 BB in 1916
-  Born in Keeler Township, Michigan pop. +- 1,000 at the time
-  You know.. “=> koob”
FCR -  Elliott Frankfother, Rock Falls, Illinois
Incorrect guesses: 


WEEKLY THEME – Pitchers who no-hit the World Series Champions of that same season

Pitcher                   No-Hitter Date             WS Champs                              Story
Ryan..................... 26-Sep-1981................ Los Angeles Dodgers................ 83.6
Gibson.................. 14-Aug-1971............... Pittsburgh Pirates....................... 81.7
Wilhelm................ 02-Sep-1958................ New York Yankees..................... 49.7
Trucks................... 25-Aug-1952............... New York Yankees...................... 42.3
Terry..................... 24-Jul-1886................ St. Louis Browns........................... 29.6
Corcoran............... 27-Jun-1884............... Providence Grays. .......................27.4
Browning.............. 16-Sep-1988................. Los Angeles Dodgers................. 19.5
Bibby.................... 30-Jul-1973................... Oakland Athletics....................... 18.6
Carleton................ 30-Apr-1940................ Cincinnati Reds........................... 15.5
Groom................... 06-May-1917............... Chicago White Sox..................... 15.3
Bosman................. 19-Jul-1974................. Oakland Athletics ........................11.4
Manaea................. 21-Apr-2018................ Boston Red Sox............................ 8.5
Moose................... 20-Sep-1969................ New York Mets.............................. 7.5
Koob..................... 05-May-1917............... Chicago White Sox......................... 3.6



First Correct Respondent to Identify ThemeDan Massey, Lancaster, Pennsylvania (after Trucks)


Incorrect theme guesses:

Monday  -  Pitchers with either over 5,000 strikeouts or under 5
               -  Bad ass men who pitched in WS in 60s
               -  Hall of Fame righthanders
               -  Members of the 3,000 strikeout club
               -  Hall of Fame righthanders who have led the league in H/9

Tuesday -  Right-handed Hall of Fame starting pitchers with over 85.5% of the vote
               -  HOF righthanders who (at one time or another) wore uniforms numbered in the 30s
               -  For the week’s theme: Pitchers who won a 1-0 no-hitter where the only run came on a home run.
               -  Pitchers who won a 1-0 no-hitter
               -  Pitchers who won no-hitters where all the runs came on home runs.
               -  Oldest pitchers to pitch a no hitter
               -  Pitchers who have pitched No Hitters against teams that will win the pennant that season

Wed           Threw late season no-hitter” since these guys all tossed a no-no in Aug or Sept
               -  Pitchers who lost a no hitter
               -  Pitchers who threw two or more no-hitters

Thursday-  Pitchers who had losing records in seasons in which they threw a no-hitter.
               -  Theme is pitchers who threw no-hitters and pitched for one of the expansion teams.



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/






No comments:

Post a Comment