MONDAY — 30-Sep
Q. Who
owns the highest single-season batting average for any American League shortstop
who ever qualified for a batting title?
Hint: #1
In every year of his twenty-season Hall of Fame career, he played for the
same team.
Hint: #3 He was twice the runner-up on the American
League’s Most Valuable Player ballot.
-
Ans. Appling hit .388
in 1936 for CHW.
-
#1 From 1930-43, 45-50, Appling
played only for the Chicago White Sox.
-
#2 In addition to 1936 batting
title, Appling led the AL w/.328 in 1943.
- #3 In 1936, he was 2nd to Lou Gehrig
for AL MVP; in 1943, 2nd to Yankee pitcher Spud Chandler, both in
the seasons when Appling won his batting titles.
FCR - Gabe
Kinstlinger, Reisterstown, Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Rabbit Maranville, Derek Jeter, Honus Wagner,
Arky Vaughan, Nomar Garciaparra, Luis Aparicio, Cal Ripken, Jr.
IN MEMIORIAM — 30-Sep
Q. Among
National League switch-hitters, who has the most career hits?
Hint: #1
He was the first switch-hitter to win the Roberto Clemente Award.
Hint: #2
He had at least 200 hits in each of ten seasons and never had fewer than
100 in any his twenty-four full years playing.
Hint: #3
He is the only player in Major League history to play more than five
hundred games at each of five different positions.
Hint: #4
His major league total of games played is almost 250 than the second on
that list.
Hint: #5 He is also in first place when only
singles are counted.
Hint: #6
He also has a huge lead over everyone else in outs made.
Hint: #7
He won the Rookie of the Year Award and was named his league’s Most
Valuable Player.
Hint: #8
He was the World Series MVP the year his team broke New England’s heart.
Hint: #9
He was on seventeen All-Star teams and set a record by playing five
different positions in All-Star competition.
Hint: #10
He was both a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger winner.
Hint: #11
He held the career record for reaching base the most times by catcher's
interference.
Hint: #12
He portrayed Ty Cobb in the TV movie "Babe Ruth".
-
Ans. Of course Rose had the most
all-time hits irrespective of handedness:
4,256, all in the NL.
-
#1 In 1976, Rose became the 6th
to win the Clemente
Award. It is given
annually to honor a player for
combining good play with strong work in the community.
-
#2 Rose had 200+ H in 10 years. In 5 of those years, he led the majors. His record of 10 seasons with 200+ hits was matched
by Ichiro Suzuki in 2010.
- #3 He had 939 G at 1B; 628 at 2B; 634 at 3B; 673
in LF; & 589 in RF.
- #4 His total G played is 3,562. Carl Yastrzemski is 2nd in G
played at 3,308.
- #5 Rose had 3,215 singles. 2-place Ty Cobb had 3,053.
- #6 He made 10,328 outs in his career. Hank Aaron lags behind in 2nd
place w/9,136.
- #7 He was overwhelmingly voted NL ROY in
1963. He edged out
Willie Stargell for NL MVP in
1973.
- #8 In 1975 the Red Sox fans gave a mighty cheer
when Carlton Fisk hit a HR in the 12th inning of G 6. However, the Reds, led by Rose won G 7 &
captured the crown.
- #9 As an All-Star, Rose played 1B, 2B, 3B, LF
& RF.
- #10 Rose was
a Gold Glove outfielder in 1969 & 1970.
He won his Silver Slugger for his play at first base.
- #11 On base 29 X for C’s interference. The record is now held by Jacoby Ellsbury who
had 31.
- #12 IMDB “Babe
Ruth”, 1991.
FCR - Damian Begley, New York City
TUESDAY — 01-Oct
Q. Which
Princeton-born Hoosier’s sub-par performance in the World Series may have
delayed his election to the Hall of Fame?
Hint: #1
He was the first player ever to homer for the New York Mets.
Hint: #2
He hit both the last grand slam for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the first Grand
Slam for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
A. GIL HODGES [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. In the 1952 World Series
(NYY 4-3 over BRO), Hodges, by then considered one of the team’s leaders, had
21 AB and exactly 0 hits. Unfortunately,
it seemed to overshadow his otherwise stellar career. Turned
back 20 X by HOF voters (15 by BWAA + 5 by the Veterans Committee),
Hodges was voted in in 2022 by the Golden Days
Era Committee. Hodges was born in
Princeton, Indiana.
-
#1 In NYM’s debut G on 11-Apr-1962, Hodges hit their
first HR off STL’s Lary Jackson in the 4th inning.
-
#2 Grand Slams = 01-Aug-1957 & 23-Aug-1958. The L.A. GSHR was the 14th of his
career and was the NL career record.
FCR - Anthony
Zydlewski, Virginia Beach, Virginia
Incorrect guesses: Duke Snider
TUESDAY TWICE — 01-Oct
Q. Which
All-Star first baseman had a season where he led the league hitting higher than
.350 and led the majors in doubles, yet finished only fifth in that year’s MVP
vote with only one first-place vote?
Hint: #1
Seven years later, he won the batting title again, this time by only .002,
edging that season’s MVP and preventing that player from winning a Triple Crown.
Hint: #2
He was the last player to hit for the cycle for the pre-expansion Washington
Senators (Nationals).
A. MICKEY VERNON [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. In 1946, Vernon hit 52
doubles & .353 BA that landed him 5th in the MVP vote. In fairness, his WAR of 5.7 that season only
ranked him eighth (8th).
-
#1 In 1953, Vernon hit .337171
for WSH, beating former teammate Al Rosen whose .335559 was just .001612 short.
- #2 Vernon
hit for the cycle on 19-May-1946(2) for WSH. Helping them down CHW 7-1.
FCR - Robert
Osman, Great Neck, New York
Incorrect guesses: John Olerud, Pete Runnels, George Kell, Frank
Howard, Tommy Davis
WEDNESDAY — 02-Oct
Q. Whose
fly ball made the twenty-seventh and final out of the first game played at
night at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn?
Hint: #1
He is the only manager to win five hundred games with each of three
different teams in the same league.
Hint: #2
He once said, “I made a game effort to argue but two things were against
me: The umpires and the rules.”
Hint: #3
Both his name and nickname are body parts.
A. LEO DUROCHER [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. On 15-Jun-1938, under the brand new
lights at the Dodgers home ballpark, CIN P Johnny Vander Meer shut
down the home team with his second no-hitter in 5 days. On 11_Jun_1938 in Cincinnati,
Vander Meer had no-hit the Braves.
It’s the only time any pitcher has thrown complete-G no-hitter on
consecutive starts. Durocher’s out was
the one that sealed history for Vander Meer.
-
#1 Durocher led BRO to 738 W, NYG
to 637 & CHC to 535.
- #2 He had other gems too: “If you don’t win, you're going to be fired. If you do win, you’ve only put off the day you’re
going to be fired.” AND “I never questioned the integrity of an
umpire. Their eyesight, yes.” AND this one, about him, “He (Leo
Durocher) had the ability of taking a bad situation and making it immediately
worse.” ~ Branch Rickey.
- #3 He was famous as “The Lip”. (See #1 above.) “Rocher”
in French is the petrous bone , a dense,
pyramid-shaped part of the human skull that protects the inner ear.
FCR - Sarah
Grynpas, Philadelphia
Incorrect guesses: Casey Stengel, Dick Williams, Ernie Lombardi,
Heinie Manush, Harry Kraft, Eddie Stanky
THURSDAY — 03-Oct
Q. Whose
double scored Enos Slaughter from first base in one of baseball’s most famous
games?
Hint: #1
He was the first player to win a National League batting title while
playing for two teams, both in the NL.
Hint: #2
His father, uncle and brother had brief sojourns in the majors, but his
brother was an All-Star multiple times and won a batting title himself, also in
the Senior Circuit.
A. HARRY WALKER [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. In the 1946 WS, in the 8th
inning of the deciding 7th
G, Walker’s double drove in Enos Slaughter from first
with what proved to be the G- &
WS-winning R.
-
#1 Walker began the 1947 season
w/STL but after 10 G, was traded to PHI.
Nonetheless, his .363 average at the end of the year was
the best in the NL or AL.
-
#2 Walker’s brother Dixie, 8 years his senior had an 18 year career
mostly with BRO. They were never teammates,
but their MLB careers overlapped by 3 seasons.
Their father, also named Dixie, was Walter Johnson’s
teammate and roommate w/WSH 1909-1912. Uncle Ernie got to have George Sisler
as a teammate and Branch Rickey as a manager during his 3 years w/SLB.
FCR - Gabe
Kinstlinger, Reisterstown, Maryland
Incorrect guesses: Marty Marion, Dixie Walker, Johnny pesky
FRIDAY — 04-Oct
Q. In
the first World Series New York Yankees won, who was the first player whose
home run accounted for all of the scoring in a single game in World
Series history?
Hint: #1
He played for five teams in the majors and managed four teams, two of
which he both managed and played on.
Hint: #2
He managed for twelve seasons in the minors at three different levels,
winning championships along the way.
Hint: #3
Once when asked about his health, he responded, “I’ve got a startling
clifflike protuberance halfway down the shin.”
A. CASEY STENGEL [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. In G 3 of the 1923 WS, Stengel’s HR off
NYY’s Sad Sam Jones was the game’s only R.
-
#1 Stengel played for BRO (1912-17), PIT (1918-19), PHI (1920-21), NYG (1921-23) & BSN 1924—25). He managed BRO (1934-36), BSN (1938-43), NYY (1949-1960)
& NYM (1962-65)
- #2 Stengel won minor league titles w/Milwaukee
in 1944 (AA) & Oakland in
the PCL (AAA) in 1948.
- #3 … or something. (?) More Stengel quotes.
FCR - Paul
Greenwell, Fort Worth
Incorrect guesses: Leo Durocher, Miller Huggins, Joe Dugan,
Roger Peckingpaw
FRIDAY YET AGAIN — 04-Oct
Q. Which
player hit four home runs in the Southern Association All-Star game in 1955?
Hint: #1
Ike saw him become the first in his franchise’s history to homer thrice
in succession in a single game.
Hint: #2
He replaced a Hall of Famer and was replaced by another Hall of Famer.
-
Ans. On 19-Jul-1955 at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama,
Chattanooga’s Lemon homered 4 X helping his team to a victory over the home
team Barons 10-5.
-
#1 U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower was in the stands on 31-Aug-1956 when WSH outfielder Lemon
hit 3 HR in a row.
-
#2 Lemon was the skipper of the 1968 Washington Senators in
the American League. The manager he
succeeded was Gil Hodges. The manger who replaced him in the 1969 season was none other
than Ted Williams.
FCR - Joe
Haardt, Bethany Beach, Delaware
Incorrect guesses: Roy Sievers, Frank Howard, Frank Robinson, Chico
Carrasquel, Harmon Killebrew, Orlando Cepeda
SATURDAY — 05-Oct
Q. Who
was the first major league manager to win the pennant in each of his first two seasons
in the Live Ball Era?
Hint: #1
He played for the Yankees for eight years and managed the Yankees even
longer. Those seasons did not overlap.
Hint: #2
He passed away within ten days of two other Yankee legends.
A. RALPH HOUK [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. 1961, 1962 Mickey Mantle always thought that the 1961
NYY team was the best ever.
-
#1 Played 8 season for NYY 1947-1954 & won 4 WS rings during
that stretch; With him as their manager, NYY went won 3 straight pennants:
1961-1963. Beginning in 1966, however,
under his continued guidance, they played 8 seasons with no postseason
appearance. Houk went on to manage the Tigers
& Red Sox, but never led either to the postseason.
-
#2 Houk died on 21-Jul-2010. Fan favorite public address announcer Bob
Sheppard had died on 11-Jul & iconic owner George Steinbrenner passed away
two days later, 13-Jul.
FCR - Howard
Johnson, Norman, Oklahoma
Incorrect guesses: Joe Girardi, John McGraw, Bucky Harris,
Miller Huggins, Billy Martin
WEEKEND SPECIAL
— 05-Oct
Q. Who
was the Giants’ first first base coach after the team had moved to the west coast?
Hint: #1
His saliferous nickname came from his first professional job.
Hint: #2 In the
majors, five of his teammates became Hall of Famers.
Hint: #3 His career
as a professional baseball man was long and varied. He played, coached and managed for minor league
teams in two countries. He coached for five
franchises (6 teams) in the majors during a total of seventeen seasons.
A. SALTY PARKER [Mets
Bio]
-
Ans. Parker was the SFG 1st-base
coach in 1958, then their 3rd-base coach 1959-1961.
-
#1 As a boy he worked at a
grocery store where the owner gave him the nickname of Salty for his love of
salted peanuts.
-
#2 In his 11 G in 1936 with standing WS champion
DET, Parker shared the team
bench with Mickey Cochrane, Charlie Gehringer, Goose Goslin, Hank
Greenberg & Al Simmons.
- #3 Parker spent 23 seasons in the minors, including guiding 2 teams
to league championships: Lubbock in 1939 & Shreveport in 1941. In MLB, he coached SFG, CLE, LAA (&
CAL), NYM & HOU.
FCR - Vince
Gennaro, Purchase, New York
Incorrect guesses:
SUNDAY — 06 Oct
Q. Which
former player was able to become part owner of the Red Sox?
Hint: #1
He didn’t get his first hit until his fourth season in the majors.
Hint: #2
He attended the same university as did Al Rosen and David Eckstein.
A. HAYWOOD SULLIVAN [SABR
Bio]
-
Ans. After only a brief career
playing for BOS and KCA, he joined a group that bought the Red Sox when owner
Tom Yawkey died. Sullivan parlayed a
$200,000 investment into some $12,000,000 when his shares were bought out. Details available here.
-
#1 Sullivan had an impressive
college career, but joined a BOS team that didn’t really have a spot for him,
but he had joined them as a “Bonus Baby”. He hit his 1st HR on 17-May-1960.
-
#2 Sullivan is an alumnus of the University of
Florida he was the starting QB for the football team in 1950 & 1951, as well as a standout catcher for coach Dave Fuller's baseball team in 1951 & 1952.
FCR - Michael
Shea, Dublin, Ireland
Incorrect guesses:
WEEK’S FINALE — 06 Oct
Q. Whose
first loss as a manager in the majors came when a former NFL halfback hit a twelfth
inning grand slam off a rookie future doctor pitcher ending a scoreless tie
with the tie-breaking run scored by a future Hall of Famer?
Hint: #1
He had played for the NBA’s Knicks after being drafted by the NFL’s L.A.
Rams.
Hint: #2
He just missed by two years being managed in Shreveport by Salty Parker.
A. MEL McGAHA [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. McGaha’s 1st L
was his 2nd G = 11-Apr-1962. The batter was former San Francisco
49er Carroll Hardy. The pitcher was Ron Taylor, future doctor & team M.D. for the Toronto Blue
Jays. The 1st of the 4 R was scored by Carl Yastrzemski who had tripled to
open the inning.
-
#1 McGaha played pro basketball
w/NYK in the 1948-49
season. A University of
Arkansas graduate, he signed with the L.A. Rams in 1948 as a two-way football
player, but never reported.
-
#2 Parker’s last season with
Shreveport was 1951. McGaha joined the team in 1953.
FCR - Randall
Chandler, Germantown, Tennessee
Incorrect guesses: Ross Baumgarten
WEEK’S THEME – Modern Era managers whose
teams finished in 10th place
Manager Team
Year Record* Games back
Appling............ 1967 KCA................ 62-99................. 29.5
Durocher.......... 1966 CHC............... 59-103................ 36.0
Hodges............. 1963 WSA............... 56-106................ 48.5
Houk................ 1966 NYY.............. 70-89-1................ 26.5
Lemon.............. 1968 WSA................ 65-96................. 37.5
McGaha........... 1964 KCA............. 17-105-1............... 42.0
Parker.............. 1967 NYM.............. 61-101................ 40.5
Stengel............. 1962 NYM.............. 40-120................ 60.5
Stengel............. 1963 NYM.............. 51-111................. 48.0
Stengel............. 1964 NYM............ 53-109-1............... 40.0
Sullivan............ 1965 KCA............... 59-103................ 43.0
Vernon............. 1962 WSA............. 60-101-1............... 35.5
Walker............. 1968 HOU................ 72-90................. 25.0
N.B. Since 1968, positions have been in Division & no
team has been able finish worse than 7th.
*Record for the team’s
whole season whether or not additional managers were involved before the end of
the year.
First
Correct Respondent identifying theme – Bill Carle, Lee’s Summit,
Missouri
Incorrect
theme guesses:
Mon - Most Games Played with no World Series Appearances
Tues - Hall of Famers who also managed
Thur - Decent players who became managers
Sun - All were managers of a last place team
- They all server in a
war, played or were stationed at a place with fort in the name and saw action
- Players who have played
and managed in the World Series
- Managers of last place teams in the 1960s
If you know
someone who would enjoy receiving daily Horsehide Trivia questions, they need
only drop an email request to horsehidetrivia@aol.com.
Click here
=> THIS WEEK’s quiz, compete with
questions, answers and even the incorrect guesses.
Scroll back
to see previous Horsehide Trivia posts as far back as 2010. Quizzes before that may also be available
upon request.
Horsehide
Trivia encourages independent research. ⚾️
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70281894/148156940.0.jpg){kind=link}
No comments:
Post a Comment