MONDAY —22 May
Q. Which
pitcher has the highest career WAR for any Hall of Famer in the Modern Era who
was born east of the Mississippi River?
Hint: #1
He was the first pitcher to lead the American League in bases on balls
and strikeouts in the same season.
Hint: #2
He is the only Red Sox pitcher to hit a grand
slam in a game he lost.
A. LEFTY GROVE [SABR Bio]
- Ans. WAR
of 113.3, [MD] trailing only Johnson (152.4 [KS]) & Alexander (116.2 [NE]) https://stathead.com/tiny/vZIhun.
- #1 In
his rookie season of 1925 he matched his 116 K w/131 BB.
- #2 Grove
accounted for ⅔ of his team’s runs when he hit George Blaeholder’s pitch over the fence in Shibe Park on
the sunny (I’m guessing) Saturday afternoon of 27-Jul-1935. Three other BOS pitchers have hit grand
slams: Babe Ruth on 20-May-1919, Wes Ferrell on 12-Aug-1936(1) & Ellis Kinder on 06-Aug-1950(1), They, however, were each victorious.
FCR - Jason
Winston, Riverside, California
Incorrect guesses: Babe Ruth, Josh Beckett, Roger Clemens,
Christy Mathewson, Cy Young, John Clarkson, Smokey Joe Wood
TUESDAY —23-May
Q. Which slugger hit
thirty home runs in twelve straight seasons?
(Yes. I know that in some of
those seasons he hit even more!)
Hint: #1 He was the
youngest player ever to play catcher in more than one major league game.
Hint: #2 He retired with
the highest slugging career average for a right-handed batter.
A. JIMMIE FOXX [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Hit 30+ HR 1929-1940. (Only in 1931 did he hit only 30.) Later this mark was bettered by Alex Rodriguez
& Albert Pujols who had 13 straight 30-HR years.
- #1 On 26-May-1925, in his 3rd
major league G, Foxx replaces Bill Lamar (LF) playing C batting 3rd
but did not come to bat. He would not turn 18 until October of that year.
- #2 Foxx’s career
.609 SLG was eclipsed by Mule Suttles’ .620 when MLB finally recognized
the legitimacy of the statistics of the Negro Leagues.
FCR - Sean Moore, Hollis, New Hampshire
Incorrect guesses: Hank
Greenberg, Albert Pujols, Barry Bonds, Johnny Bench, Babe Ruth, Gary Carter
WEDNESDAY — 24-May
Q. Which former
Oakland A’s coach sat on the Board of Directors of the Baltimore Orioles?
Hint: #1 As a player
and by the slimmest of margins, he beat Al Simmons’ record for the most RBI in a
major leaguer’s first ten seasons.
Hint: #2 He led the
majors in triples as a rookie, but he changed his uniform number the next year
and never led again in triples, not even the league.
- Ans. DiMaggio coached the A’s in hitting for
2 seasons, 1968-69. He was on the BAL
board during the ownership period of Edward
Bennett Williams, 1977-88.
- #1 From 1936 through 1948 DiMaggio racked up 1,277 RBI. He missed three
years of play due to military service, 1943-45.
Simmons had 1,276 RBI 1924-1933.
- #2 Had 15 3b in 1936. He even averaged double figures per season,
but never led again. He wore #9 as a
rookie then #5 for the rest of his career.
FCR - Lou Charlip, Rockville, Maryland
Incorrect guesses:
MIDWEEK BONUS — 24-May
Q. Who
was the first player to appear as the designated hitter in a World Series game
for two different teams? (Not in the
same year. That would be a record!)
Hint: #1
He hit the first double in the history of Seattle’s Kingdome.
Hint: #2
He was once thrown out stealing twice in the same inning.
A. DON BAYLOR [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Baylor DH’ed for BOS in the 1986
WS & for MIN in 1987.
-
#1 Doubled in Seattle on 07-Apr-1977, 5th batter. It was also that stadium’s 1st H
of any kind.
-
#2 In the 9th inning
of a tie G on 15-Jun-1974 in Memorial Stadium, playing for BAL,
Baylor was put in to pinch run. He was
thrown out attempting to steal 2nd
base. He was called out, however …
he stayed on 2nd due to an error by future Hall of Fame infielder
Ron Santo. Baylor promptly stole 3rd. Then in a perhaps foolish attempt to put the
Birds ahead, he broke for home & was thrown out again, this time for good. Extra innings ensued. Research found no other parallel instance.
FCR - John Michael Pierobon, Fort Lauderdale
Incorrect guesses: Reggie Jackson, Nelson Cruz, Roberto Kelly,
Paul Molitor, Gene Tenace, Dave Winfield, Edgar Martinez, Reggie
Sanders
THURSDAY — 25-May
Q. Who was an AA in 1918?
Hint: #1 He
lamented BBs.
Hint: #2 The
last team he ever managed were the CCs.
Hint: #3 His
most famous pitching duo were both DDs.
Hint: #4 He
never made EEs in the post-season.
Hint: #5 The
initials of his full name and nickname are FFF & FF.
Hint: #6 One
of his most memorable teams was the GG.
A. FRANKIE FRISCH [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Assuredly one of Fordham College’s finest
all-around athletes, Frisch was a slashing half-back in football, named a
College All-American his senior
year.
- #1 Derived from his complaints as a manager, one
of his signature lines as a radio broadcaster was, “Oh, those bases on balls!”
- #2. A player-manager for STL, Frisch then
skippered the Pirates & finally the Chicago Cubs.
- #3. The only WS champion team Frisch skippered
were led in 1934 by the pitching brothers Dizzy & Daffy Dean.
- #4 Frisch is the only non-Yankee to appear in 50
pre-Expansion
Era WS games
in history. Over those pressure-packed
games, the slick-fielding Frisch never committed more than one error in any
single one of them.
- #5 Christened Frank Francis Frisch, his nickname was The Fordham Flash.
- #6 His rough-and-tumble 1934 World Champion
Cardinals were The Gashouse
Gang.
FCR - Eric
Savage Short Hills, New Jersey
Incorrect guesses: Branch Rickey, Fat Freddie Fitzsimmons, Fats Fothergill, Ferris
Fain, Ford Frick, Casey Stengel
FRIDAY — 26-May
Q. Which
backstop won a Most Valuable Player Award before and after the baseball writers
took over the voting process?
Hint: #1
A Hall of Fame umpire called him, “…a shortstop with shin-guards and a
chest protector.”
Hint: #2
In college, he boxed and played football and the saxophone.
-
Ans. Won MVP in 1928 w/PHA & in 1934 w/pennant-winner DET. Lou
Gehrig (1927 and 1936) is the only other player to be so honored.
- #1 Umpire Billy Evans (HOF 1973) was the
author of that assessment. Few people,
then or now, disagree with him.
-
#2 Cochrane played the most major
league games (1,482) of anyone who
attended Boston University. His
career G played total is exactly half of all of the other BU alumni’s G combined.
FCR - Terry Sloope, Cartersville, Georgia
Incorrect guesses: Roy Campanella, Ernie Lombardi
SATURDAY — 26-May
Q. Whose
record for the most hits in a player’s first five full seasons did Ichiro
Suzuki break?
Hint: #1
He was the first player to hit a home run in the All-Star game and in
the World Series during the same season.
Hint: #2
His beaning inspired Larry McPhail to investigate the use of batting
helmets.
A. JOE
MEDWICK [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Medwick had 1,064 from 1933 thru
1937. From 2001-05, Ichiro had 1,130.
-
#1 Hit a HR off Lefty Gomez in the 1st
inning of the 1934 ASG (his 1st) then again in the 1934 WS (also his
1st) in G 1.
-
#2 Medwick was hit in the head with a pitch on 18-June-1940. Helmets came into use on gradually
well before it was a requirement. It was not until December
1970 that MLB
enforced strictly mandatory use of the batting helmet for all batters. Veteran players, however, were allowed some
discretion. Some researchers credit
Roger Bresnahan for using a
protective headpiece as early as 1908.
FCR - Mark
DeLodovico, Rockville, Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Lou Gehrig, George Sisler, Dizzy Dean, Pete Reiser, Joe
DiMaggio, Yogi Berra
SUNDAY — 28-May
Q. Who holds
the National League’s single-season record for most bases on balls by a third
baseman?
Hint: #1
He was once one of two ejectees in the same at bat.
Hint: #2 He was the second third baseman to have 100
RBI in six seasons in the majors.
A. BOB ELLIOTT [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Elliott ambled his way to
first on free passes 131 times in 1948. It is more than 40 walks more than his next
highest total and is the only official black ink on his stat page.
-
#1 Elliott was ejected by umpire Augie
Donatelli for arguing a strike call during a 7th inning at-bat
against the Cardinals at Sportsman's Park on 23-Aug-1952. Teammate Bobby Hofman was sent up to complete
Elliott's at-bat, but after Hofman took exception to the single pitch he saw
get called for strike three, he too was given the thumb by Donatelli.
-
#2 Elliott matched Pie Traynor’s
mark with 100+ RBI in 1943-1945, 1947-1948 & 1950. Traynor actually did Elliott 1 better with 7
such seasons.
FCR - Mike
Sparks, Sarasota
Incorrect guesses: Eddie Mathews, Pie Traynor, Mike Schmidt, Jeff
Bagwell, Home Run Baker, Chipper Jones, Ron Santo, Ken Boyer
WEEKEND BONUS — 27-May
Q. Who
is the sole senior circuit slugger in history to record three seasons of four
hundred total bases each?
Hint: #1
His assists one year are still the most ever in a single season by an
outfielder in the Modern Era.
Hint: #2
No National Leaguer has ever had
more extra base hits in a single season.
A. CHUCK KLEIN [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Klein had 445
TB in 1930 [4th highest all time]; 420 in 1932; & 405 in 1929
(Hornsby had 409 that year.)
-
#1 Including leading the majors in 1930 in R, 2B
& TB, Klein had 44 OF assists. No one else in the 20th or 21st
centuries has had even 40.
-
#2 His NL mark of 107 XBH in 1930
was tied by Barry Bonds in 2001. The
left-handed hitting Klein’s home park in 1930 was Baker Bowl, which featured a cozy
right field with a 60’ high tin fence only 281 feet down the
line & barely 300' to the power alley.
Those
dimensions helped Klein set records both offensively & defensively. Few question, however, the Hall of Fame
worthiness of this super star.
FCR - Terry Sloope, Cartersville, Georgia
Incorrect guesses: Stan Musial, Ron Santo, Willie Mays, Larry Walker
WEEK’S FINALE — 28-May
Q. Who
beat out a fellow St. Louis player for an equally-appropriate nickname?
Hint: #1
Among White Sox managers since the Black Sox scandal, he has posted the
highest career winning percentage.
Hint: #2
Shohei Ohtani broke one of his long-standing records, but probably wishes
he hadn't.
A. MARTY MARION [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Marion played for both the
St. Louis Cardinals and Browns for 13 seasons and was dubbed “Mr. Shortstop”
for his fielding prowess. Ozzie Smith,
he of 15 remarkable seasons with the Cardinals had to settle for “The Wizard of
Oz”.
-
#1 With a record of 179-138 over 2+ seasons
(1954-56), Marion’s W-L% of .565 ranks behind only Fielder Jones (.592 /
1904-1908), Clark Griffith (.581 / 1901-1902) and Pants Rowland (.578 /
1915-1918).
-
#2 In 1944, Marion posted the
lowest batting average (.267) among position-player MVPs during their winning
year until Ohtani hit just .257 in his 2021 MVP season.
FCR - Richard Tharp, Gaithersburg,
Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Al Lopez
WEEK’S THEME – First
BBWAA MVP at each position
Pos MVP Year Team Yr WAR WAR
P – Grove.......... 1931 AL......... PHA............ 10.0.. 106.8
1B- Foxx........... 1932 AL......... PHA............ 10.4.... 93.0
CF- DiMaggio.... 1939 AL......... NYY.............. 8.3.... 79.1
DH- Baylor........ 1979 AL......... CAL.............. 3.7.... 73.8
2B- Frisch.......... 1931 NL.......... STL............... 4.0.... 71.8
C – Cochrane..... 1934 AL......... DET.............. 4.5.... 55.4
LF- Medwick...... 1937 NL.......... STL............... 8.4.... 54.4
3b- Elliott.......... 1947 NL......... BSN.............. 9.3.... 50.9
RF- Klein.......... 1932 NL.......... PHI............... 7.5.... 46.7
SS- Marion........ 1944 NL.......... STL............... 4.6.... 31.9
First
Correct Respondent identifying theme – Sarah Grynpas, Toronto (after
DiMaggio)
Incorrect theme
guesses:
Mon - Pitchers with multiple immaculate innings
- Pitchers
with 100 wins for two franchises
Tues - Hall of Famers on the 1928 A's
- All players played for both Athletics and Red
Sox franchises
- All Triple crown winners for every team from
Philadelphia
Wed - First AL MVP (BBWAA era) for each position
Wed - Hall of
Famers in the starting lineup for Ted Williams' first game (BOS vs NYY, April
20, 1939)
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