MONDAY 15—Mar
Q. Which member of the 500
Home Run Club drew the fewest career bases on balls?
Hint: #1 Elston
Howard was his last roommate before he played for the Cubs.
Hint: #2 He said
about the only thing wrong with doubleheaders was, “You don't get to play three
games.”
A. ERNIE
BANKS [SABR Bio]
- Ans. “Mr. Cub” took a
free pass only 763 times over his 19-year MLB career. Not surprisingly, his lifetime .330 OBP and
.830 OPS are also the lowest among this elite 27-member club.
- #1 Banks
and Howard were roomies in Kansas City.
- #2 Banks was famous for his love of playing the game. His Hall of Fame acceptance speech began with
these words: “We got the setting, sunshine,
fresh air the team behind us, let’s play two!”
Banks clubbed over a fourth of his career 512 HRs (131, 25.6%) during
doubleheaders.
FCR - Morris
Buenemann,
Florissant, Missouri
Incorrect guesses: Rafael Palmeiro, Elston Howard, Mickey Mantle,
Sammy Sosa
THE SIDES OF MARCH 15—Mar
Q. Who
was the first player to earn BBWA Most Valuable Player status after winning a
BBWA Rookie of the Year Award?
Hint: #1 He garnered MVP votes in
each of his first seven seasons in the majors
Hint: #2 He played
himself in a different field of entertainment.
A. JACKIE ROBINSON [SABR Bio]
- Ans. 1 ROY in 1947; NL MVP
un 1949
- #1 MVP votes
every year from his 1947 rookie year through 1953, winning the NL honor in 1949.
- #2 Starred in the eponymously-named film The
Jackie Robinson Story with co-star Ruby
Dee playing his wife Rachel.
FCR - Thomas Howell, Reno
Incorrect
guesses: Fred Lynn, Dustin Pedroia
TUESDAY 16—Mar
Q. Who
was the oldest rookie to debut in the Majors since the end of World War II?
Hint: #1 His only
celluloid contribution was as Sergeant Sutton.
Hint: #2 Only Yaz could
touch him during his farewell game.
A. SATCHEL PAIGE [SABR Bio]
-Ans. The accuracy of Paige’s birthdate has
never been certain because, as he claimed, “A goat.ate the bible with my birth
certificate in it”. Baseball-Reference has
accepted 07-Jul-1906 as his birthday, making him 42 years, 2 days old at
his MLB debut 09-July-1948.
- #1 He played Sgt. Tobe
Sutton in the 1959 western, The Wonderful Country.
- #2 On 25-Sept-1965, Paige’s 3 innings for KCA made him, at 59 years, 2 months and 18 days, the
oldest pitcher ever to play a game in the major leagues. Before the game, he sat in the bullpen in a rocking chair while a nurse rubbed liniment into his
pitching arm for the entire crowd to see. Paige set down each of the first 11 BOS batters except Carl Yastrzemski, who hit a
double.
FCR - Dan DiNardo, Narberth,
Pennsylvania
Incorrect
guesses: Chuck Hostetler, Hoyt Wilhelm
WEDNESDAY 17—Mar
Q. Which
Hall of Famer tutored Maury Wills and Lou Brock on base stealing?
Hint: #1 As a pitcher, his
career ERA of almost 6.00 was a factor in his position switch to the outfield.
Hint: #2 Along with his
reputation for being faster than, um… electricity, he once stole 175 bases in
one season.
Hint: #3 No other Hall of
Famer was born in his native state.
- Ans. Bell pitched for
the St. Louis Stars of the Negro National League 1922-1924. Wills & Brock stole 1,524 major league
bases, even though their starting ages in the majors were 26 & 22 respectively, relatively late by superstar standards.
- #1 His mediocre pitching stats, coupled with legendary foot
speed, prompted manager “Big Bill” Gatewood to develop Bell into a switch-hitter and move him to the outfield. Reputed to have been so fast that Bell could
turn off the light switch and jump into bed before it went dark. (He actually could!) The explanation
for this is given to us by Hall of Famer Buck
Leonard.
- #2 Even if the real number turns out to be only 125, it’s still
very impressive.
- #3 He
is the only Hall
of Famer
born in the state of Mississippi.
FCR - Glenn
Vasey, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Incorrect
guesses: Max Carey, Pete Reiser
MIDWEEK BONUS 18—Mar
Q. Whose
record for most consecutive wins by a Giants pitcher did Carl Hubbell challenge?
Hint: #1 He was the
winning pitcher in the second All-Star game and remains the only hurler to toss
a complete All-Star
game.
Hint: #2 His wins in both
ends of a doubleheader, clinched a pennant.
A. BILL
FOSTER [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Foster won 26 straight in 1926 while pitching
for CAG of the Negro NL. King Carl posted 24 consecutive victories for the 1936-1937 NYG.
- #1 Representing the West in the first-ever Negro League East-West
ASG in 1933 (just a few months after MLB’s first ASG), Foster went the distance
while facing an East roster that read like a Hall of Fame roll call: Cool Papa
Bell, Oscar Charleston, Biz Mackey, Jud Wilson, Judy Johnson, Andy Cooper,
Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson.
- #2 Foster tossed shutouts in both games of his unprecedented
season-ending performance against fellow HOFer “Bullet” Joe Rogan and the
Kansas City Monarchs on 29-Sept-1926.
FCR - Sarah Grynpas, Toronto
Incorrect
guesses: Carl Hubbell, Smokey, Claude Passeau, Joe
Williams, Pete Alexander, Lefty Grove, Christy Mathewson, Rube Waddell, Rube
Marquard, Mel Harder, Joe McGinnity, Hal Schumacher
THURSDAY 18—Mar
Q. Which
Modern Era pitcher often batted cleanup?
Hint: #1. In his last
appearance at age forty-eight, he collected three hits while beating Bob Feller’s team.
Hint: #2 The Ol’ Perfessor
had one of his pitchers change his style and emulate him (the pitcher, not the
Perfessor).
A. BULLET
ROGAN [B-R Bio]
- Ans. No need for a DH
when Rogan was in the lineup!. He had a
.335 BA, .515 Slg. %, blasted 52 HRs & had 113 SB over his 17-year career
in the Negro Leagues. He actually led
the Negro National League in HR in 1922 with 16.
- #1 Appearing in an early 1940s exhibition game versus the
barnstorming Bob Feller's All Stars, Rogan had three knocks (& stole a
base, for good measure) with a H coming off Feller himself. Feller exclaimed after the game: "I
can’t imagine how good he must have been when he was young."
- #2 Despite standing only 5’7”, weighing just 160 pounds and using
a no-windup delivery, Rogan was considered one of the fastest pitchers in
baseball history. HIs frequent
barnstorming companion Casey Stengel encouraged Don
Larsen to ditch his full wind-up and use
Rogan’s simplified delivery.
FCR - Elliott Frankfother,
Rock Falls, Illinois
Incorrect
guesses: Double Duty Ratcliffe, Satchel Paige, Bobo
Newsom, Casey Stengel, Don Newcombe, George Uhle, John Donaldson, Hilton Smith,
Tommy Byrne, Howard Ehmke
FRIDAY 19—Mar
Q. Who
holds the Negro Leagues record for most career home runs?
Hint: #1 Only Babe Ruth
and Mike Schmidt led their leagues in homers more times.
Hint: #2 Bill James
ranked him as the 25th best player of all time in his Historical
Abstract.
A. TURKEY
STEARNES [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Stearnes with
199 HRs topped Josh Gibson (195), Mules Suttles and Oscar Charleston (191 ea.),
Willie Wells (146), Buck Leonard (103) & John Beckwith (100). These are the only 7 players to reach the 100-career HR plateau in Negro
League competition.
- #1 Stearnes led his Negro Leagues in HRs seven times. Ruth led the AL 12 X & Schmidt led the NL 8
X.
- #2 James ranked Frank Robinson the 24th best player &
Rickey Henderson the 26th. Excellent
company.
FCR - David Girdany, Somerset,
Pennsylvania
Incorrect
guesses: Josh Gibson, Mule Suttles, Judy Johnson,
Buck Leonard, Sandy Koufax, Ron Guidry
THE
BIG DANCE SPECIAL 19—Mar
Q. Who
was regularly reputed to throw the best curveball ever?
Hint: #1 His career WHIP
may have been the best ever too.
Hint: #2. In his tremendous
25-win season, his one loss was actually not his fault.
A. HILTON
SMITH [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Authorities such
as Stan Musial and Johnny Mize said they'd never seen a curveball like Hilton’s. Monte Irvin added, “Smith had one of the
finest curveballs I ever had the displeasure to try and hit. His curveball fell off the table. Sometimes you knew where it would be coming
from, but you still couldn’t hit it because it was that sharp.”
- #1 His career 0.889 WHIP outdistanced fellow Hall of Famer Addie
Joss’ 0.968. (Apply here the standard
Negro League statistical caveats.)
- #2 Smith was clearly the best Negro League pitcher in 1941. He led in wins (25-1; 10-1 in league play),
shutouts, saves & H/9 IP. His lone loss
came in relief after teammate Satchel Paige pitched the 1st 4
innings scorelessly. Smith gave up just
one hit the rest of the way but an error allowed in an unearned run he was
tagged with the L, 1-0.
FCR - Karen Hermele, Denver
Incorrect
guesses: Bert Blyleven, Smokey Joe
Williams, Candy Cummings, Ray Brown, John Donaldson, Satchel Paige, Bill Foster
SATURDAY 20—Mar
Q. Who
was the first black player to homer in the American League?
Hint: #1 The bat, already
missing its knob at the end, was smashed by its owner as soon as
it returned to the dugout.
Hint: #2 He believed that
the team he had left in the Negro Leagues could have easily beaten his team in
the AL.
Hint #3 After less than
a month as a major leaguer, he, to the relief of all concerned, returned to his
old team.
A. WILLARD
BROWN [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Brown hit an inside-the-park HR off Tigers Hall of Famer Hal Newhouser on 13-Aug-1947(2).
It was the only HR of Brown’s MLB career.
- #1 Brown’s St.
Louis Browns teammates very welcoming when
he joined the team were
not welcoming to their first black player,
but it was the bat’s owner, superstitious slugger Jeff
Heath, who though Brown had wasted one of the
homers in the bat and essentially executed the bat.
- #2 The KC Monarchs were the pride of the Negro Leagues, whereas
the St. Louis Browns were perennial AL doormats and second fiddle in their
own city.
- #3 The true circumstances around Brown’s departure didn’t become
clear until decades later.
FCR - Sarah
Grynpas, Toronto
Incorrect
guesses: Hank Thompson, Larry Doby, Vic Power
SPRING SPECIAL 21—Mar
Q. Which
nightlife-loving, left-handed slugger was one of the initial selections to the
Hall of Fame in 1939?
Hint: #1. He lived life so
fast and so large that he died in New York City of an incurable disease at age
44.
Hint: #2 Every component
of his career triple slash line led those of his countrymen.
A. CRISTOBAL
TORRIENTE [SABR Bio]
- Ans. A five-tool
legend in his homeland, Torriente was a charter member of the Cuban
Baseball Hall of Fame’s first class of 1939.
- #1 Torriente was an alcoholic who loved the nightlife, both of
which contributed to his early death from tuberculosis in 1938.
- #2 In the history of the Cuban League, he owned the highest
overall batting mark (.349), reached base at the highest rate (.436) and
outslugged his contemporaries (.486).
FCR - Sarah Grynpas, Toronto
Incorrect
guesses: Babe Ruth, Willie Keeler
SUNDAY 21—Mar
Q. Who
was dubbed “El Diamante Negro”?
Hint: #1 He burst onto
the baseball scene by hurling 25 straight scoreless innings against the same
National League team.
Hint: #2 His surprising
dominance gave rise to intense national pride.
A. JOSE
MENDEZ [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Mendez was
given The Black Diamond moniker based on his superlative Cuban League
pitching stats: career best 2.22 ERA, most career strikeouts and second-most
lifetime victories.
- #1 Mendez completely shut down the barnstorming 1908 Cincinnati
Reds over a three week portion of their winter tour of Cuba. The Reds were the first complete major league
team to compete in Cuba.
- #2 Mendez was an unheralded rookie before his shutout streak and
gave a tremendous boost to the confidence of other Cuban players and their fans
that they could compete with the world’s best.
FCR - Jeff Kallman, Sin City
Incorrect
guesses: Martin Dihigo
WEEK'S FINALE 21—Mar
Q. Who
holds virtually every Detroit career pitching record?
Hint: #1 He holds his
league record for career saves.
Hint: #2 A tall, sturdy
southpaw, he attended the same high school as a modern original New York Met.
A. ANDY COOPER [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Pitching for the
Negro National League’s Detroit Stars, Cooper paced the
team in career wins, complete games, shutouts, saves, innings pitched,
strikeouts and ERA.
- #1 Exclusively a starter in his early years, Cooper eventually
also developed into a lethal weapon coming out of the pen. His Negro Leagues
career 29 saves pales in comparison to the totals posted by major leaguers of
the past half century, as the game’s pitcher usage and strategy has evolved.
- #2 The 6’2”, 220 pound Cooper went to Moore High in Waco, Texas,
alma mater of the 1962 Mets’ diminutive (5’10”, 169 lb.) lefty Al
Jackson.
FCR - Steven
Wright, Naperville, Illinois
Incorrect
guesses: John Hiller, Hal Newhouser, Mickey
Lolich
WEEKLY
THEME – All of these MLB Hall of Famers once played for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues.
Player KCM years MLB HOF
Banks....... 1950, 1953--------------------- 1953-71....... 1977
Bell........... 1932...................................................... 1974
Brown....... 1935-1944, 1946-1948------- 1947............ 2006
Cooper...... 1928-1929, 1931-1939............................ 2006
Foster....... 1931...................................................... 1996
Mendez..... 1920-1926.............................................. 2006
Robinson... 1945----------------------------- 1947-56....... 1962
Rogan....... 1920-1930, 1933-1938............................ 1998
Smith........ 1937-1948.............................................. 2001
Stearnes... 1931, 1934, 1938-1940........................... 2000
Torriente... 1926...................................................... 2006
First
Correct Respondent to Identify Theme – Adam Foldes, New York City (after
Paige)
Incorrect
theme guesses:
Monday - Most games without reaching the post season
- Players who were
voted All-Stars at two different positions
- Negro Leagues players who won an MVP in the
majors
- KC Monarchs players who played in the majors
- Players who played in Negro Leagues and later
won MLB MVP awards
- Negro League players who were in a Hollywood
movie
- players who played in negro leagues and later
won MLB MVP awards and were in a Hollywood movie
- Negro Leagues, ROY & MVP
- First Black players from each NL team in HOF
- First Black player from each PRE (1962)
EXPANSION NL team in HOF
- Players born on January 31
Tuesday - Negro Leaguers who had Hall of Fame careers in the majors
- Hall of Famers that played in Negro Leagues
and in integrated MLB
- Major leaguers who played for the Kansas City
Monarchs
- Played for the KC Monarchs
- Kansas City Monarchs who played in the
desegregated bigs
- Former Negro League players who were elected
to the baseball Hall of Fame
- Players who will move up on MLB's all time
records lists because their Negro League statistics will now be included in MLB
totals
- Hall of Famers who debuted after WW2 and
played in the Negro Leagues
- Negro League players in the HOF
- 1st African-Americans in baseball HOF
- Players who played on KC Monarchs
- Hall of Famers who played in both MLB and the
Negro Leagues
- Negro league players who acted in a movie
- Negro League players who also played in the
Major Leagues (prior to this years' canonization of ALL former Negro League
players as "Major Leaguers")
Wed - Negro league players in HOF who were in a movie or had someone else
play them in a movie
- Negro league players in HOF who were in a
movie
- Negro league
players in HOF who had someone else play them in a movie
- Hall-of-Famers who had movie roles
- Negro League MVPs
Thurs - HOF's with cool nicknames
- Negro Leaguers in Cooperstown.
Friday - each played in negro leagues for kansas city monarchs
- each is in mlb hof
- each was either in a movie or his character
was played by someone else in a movie
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