2025-12-22 Hall of Famers who died in Michigan

MONDAY  — 22-Dec-2025

Q.  Which player had the longest career spent exclusively with the Detroit Tigers?

Hint: #1  He was the first player to collect his three thousand^th hit as a designated hitter?

Hint: #2  He joined Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and Harmon Killebrew as visiting players who have each hit at least thirty home runs at Fenway Park.

A.  AL KALINE  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Kaline’s 22 major league years were all spent with DET.

-  #1  Hit #3,000:  24-Sep-1974.  Not in his home stadium, but in Baltimore, his hometown, off Dave McNally at Memorial Stadium.

-  #2  Mantle tied Ruth when hit 38 HR at Fenway.  Killebrew hit 37.  Kaline’s 30 put him in this very small club.

FCR -  Eric Morrison, Myerstown, Pennsylvania

Incorrect guesses:  Norm Cash, Miguel Cabrera, Alan Trammell, Charlie Gehringer

 

 

TUESDAY  — 23-Dec-2025

Q.  Who is the most recent American League player to hit sixty doubles in a season?

Hint: #1  Only he and Phil Cavarretta have ever drawn more than two bases-on-balls in a single All-Star game.

Hint: #2  He was the first player to reach base in an All-Star game.

A.  CHARLIE GEHRINGER  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Gehringer hit 60 2B in 1936.   No player in any major league has hit more since.

-  #1  Gehringer walked 3 X in the 1934 ASG in the Polo Grounds.  Cavarretta repeated the feat 10 years later in Pittsburgh.

-  #2  He was the 2^nd batter in the bottom of the 1^st inning in the 1^st ASG & drew a walk.

FCR -  Frank Kaczmarczyk, Indian Land, South Carolina

Incorrect guesses:  Hank Greenberg, Earl Webb, Ted Williams

 

 

WEDNESDAY  — 24-Dec-2025

Q.  Who was the first league MVP winner to suffer the embarrassment of having a teammate of his receive more first place votes?

Hint: #1  He was the first pitcher in the history of his franchise to have his uniform number retired.

Hint: #2  With his final team in the majors, he was on a staff with three other Hall of Fame pitchers.

A.  HAL NEWHOUSER  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  In the 1944 AL MVP vote, DET’s Dizzy Trout—with his MLB-leading 10.9 WAR—got 10 1^st-place votes against Newhouser’s 7.  The final tally was 236 to 232 or 70% for Newhouser & 69% for Trout.  Still, pleased to be 1^st & 2^nd (and not really much of an embarrassment.)

-  #1  Newhouser’s #16 was retired by DET 27-Jul-1997.

-  #2  He finished with CLE 1954-1955, pitching with all-time greats Bob Feller, Early Wynn & Bob Lemon.

FCR -  David Kaiser, Watertown, Massachusetts

Incorrect guesses: 

 

THURSDAY  — 25-Dec-2025

Q.  Which Hall of Famer hit two home runs his first season in the majors, the first while a teenager, the second, the day after he turned twenty?

Hint: #1  He received MVP votes eight times in his seventeen-year career, the first seven in consecutive seasons, four times in the top five.

Hint: #2  He once hit a grand slam and a bases-loaded triple in the same game.

A.  HARRY HEILMANN  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Heilmann was born 03-Aug-1894.  His 1^st HR came on 05-Jul-1914(1)*.  The second one was on 04_-Aug-1914.  *The day after the U.S.A.’s birthday!

-  #1  Season   Awards

1922   -  MVP - 12

1923   -  MVP -   3

1924   -  MVP -   9

1925   -  MVP -    4

1926   -  MVP -   5

1927   -  MVP -   2

1928   -  MVP - 15

1930   -  MVP - 28

-  #2  In a 13-10 victory over NYY on 26-Jul-1928(1), Heilmann tripled in the 1^st inning, homered in the 5^th.

FCR -   Brad Clark, Madison, Wisconsin

Incorrect guesses:  Andruw Jones, Mel Ott, Alan Trammell, Robin Yount Eddie Mathews, Al Kaline

 

 

FRIDAY  — 26-Dec-2025

Q.  Who was the first native of state of Tennessee to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame?

Hint: #1  He ranks just ahead of Aaron Judge and fifth all-time in career slugging percentage.

Hint: #2  He broke into the majors the same year as Lou Gehring and played just one year longer.

A.  TURKEY STEARNES  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Stearnes was born in Nashville 08-May-1901.  He entered the Hall 21 years after his death in 2000.

-  #1  At the end of the 2025 season Judge’s lugging pct is .6153.  Stearnes’s is .6157.

-  #2  Both were rookies in 1923, but Stearnes had a strong early start.  For Gehrig the beginning was a bit slow, but then … Wally Pipp!

FCR -  Joe  Haardt, Bethany Beach, Delaware

Incorrect guesses:  Al Simmons, Todd Helton, Jimmie Foxx, Hank Greenberg, Bill Terry, Rogers Hornsby, Charlie Gehringer

 

 

SATURDAY  — 27-Dec-2025

Q.  Which All-Star right fielder holds the record for most triples in a season by a right-handed batter in the Modern Era?

Hint: #1  In his career, he recorded one six-hit game, five five-hit games and 31 four-hit games, ten of which were recorded in the same season.

Hint: #2  Some consider him an asterisk that needs to be added to the phrase “Greatest baseball team of all-time”.

A.  KIKI CUYLER  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Cuyler hit 26 3B in 1925 for World Series champions Pirates.

-  #1  Ten of his 4-hit games were all in 1925.

-  #2  In the 1927 WS, the Yankees rolled over the Pirates 4-0 in games and outscored 19-10.  However, Cuyler, who had slugged .435 with an OPS of .829 that year, was held out of the Series.  Had he been allowed to play in the 1927 postseason, might there be fewer superlatives?  You be the judge.

FCR -  Matt Dicker, Chicago

Incorrect guesses:  Bob Meusel, Paul “Big Poison” Warner, Vada Pinson, Vladimir Guerrero, Owen Wilson, Sam Crawford, Roberto Clemente

 

 

SUNDAY  — 28-Dec-2025

Q.  Which Hall of Famer left carpentry at age 24 to pursue a baseball career?

Hint: #1  In his Hall of Fame career, he led the majors in hits once, in doubles twice, in RBI thrice, in home runs twice and in slugging twice.

Hint: #2  He led the league in batting average only once and the season he hit .415, it was only good for third place.

A.  SAM THOMPSON  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  Thompson left the wood shop in 1884 and by 1887 he led the majors in triples and RBI.

-  #1  H=1893 (222); 2B=1890 (41) & 1893 (37); RBI=1887 (166), 1894 (149) & 1895 (165); HR=1889 (20) & 1895 (18); SLG=1894 (.696) & 1895 (.654).

-  #2  He hit .372 in 1887 & .415 in 1894 [the year after the pitching distance was lengthened.]

FCR -  John Rickert, Terre Haute, Indiana

Incorrect guesses:  Sam Crawford, George Sisler

 

 

WEEK’S FINALE  — 28-Dec-2025

Q.  Who was the lightweight boxing champion of North Carolina before the start of his baseball career?

Hint: #1  He was the American League catcher in the premiere All-Star game.

Hint: #2  He was acquired in Tom Yawkey's first trade as Red Sox owner.

A.  RICK FERRELL  [SABR Bio]

-  Ans.  He won 17 straight middleweight bouts before focusing solely on baseball.  Available images are hard to come by.

-  #1  In the 1933 ASG, Ferrell caught all 9 innings with Bill Dickey on the bench.

-  #2  On 09-May-1933, he was traded by SLB with Lloyd Brown to the BOS for Merv Shea & cash.

FCR -  Gabe Kinstlinger, Reisterstown, Maryland

Incorrect guesses: 

 

 

WEEK’S THEME – Hall of Famers who died in Michigan

 

Player                                Died                                  City                                      at Age           HOF        WAR

Thompson..... 07-Nov-1922....... Detroit.................... 62....... 1974...... 44.4

Cuyler............. 11-Feb-1950....... Ann Arbor.............. 51....... 1968...... 48.1

Heilmann........ 09-Jul-1951......... Detroit.................... 56....... 1952...... 72.2

Stearnes......... 04-Sep-1979....... Detroit.................... 78....... 2000...... 49.5

Gehringer....... 21-Jan-1993....... Bloomfield Hills..... 89....... 1949...... 84.8

Ferrell.............. 27-Jul-1995......... Bloomfield Hills..... 89....... 1984...... 30.7

Newhouser..... 10-Nov-1998....... Southfield.............. 77....... 1992...... 62.8

Kaline............ 06-Apr-2020........ Bloomfield Hills..... 85....... 1980...... 92.8

First Correct Respondent identifying theme – Mark Pattison, Washington, DC (after Stearnes) 

Incorrect theme guesses:

 

Tues    -  Hall of Famers from the Tigers

-   Players who played their whole career for the Tigers

 

Wed     -  Tigers HOF lineup by position

 

Fri        -  Hall of Fame players who played baseball in Detroit 

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