MONDAY — 05-Jun
Q. Which
Hall of Famer's 792 doubles are the most in major league history?
Hint: #1
He also tops the career outfield assist list.
Hint: #2
He is the only player to have three 20+ game hitting streaks in one
season.
- Ans. Pete
Rose is next with 746.
- #1 His
449 OF assists are considerably ahead of
Ty Cobbs’ 392.
- #2 30,
20, 20 in 1912. Twenty-one other
players have had two 20+ hit streaks in a season.
FCR - Tom Hannon, Amesbury, Massachusetts
Incorrect guesses: Ty Cobb, Joe Medwick, Stan Musial, Carney Lansford, George Sisler, Tris Speaker
TUESDAY — 06-Jun
Q. Who was the first
major leaguer to hit a home run in twenty-four consecutive seasons?
Hint: #1 He won two batting
titles with batting averages lower than his career average.
Hint: #2 He appeared
in the movie Angels in the Outfield.
- Ans. HRs = 1905-1928. In 1905, 1906, 1919 & 1928 in that streak
he had only 1 for the year. Only Rickey Henderson, with homers in
all 25 of his major league seasons (1979-2003), had a longer streak.
- #1 In 1907 (.350) & 1908 (.324)
Cobb won AL batting titles. In 1907 he
led the majors. Both numbers are
well below his career average of .366.
- #2 Hall of Famers Cobb, Joe DiMaggio & Ralph
Kiner all appeared in the 1951 version of AITO.
FCR - Jim Williams, West Allis, Wisconsin
Incorrect guesses: Carl
Yastrzemski, Rod Carew, Stan Musial, Darryl
Strawberry, Tony Gwynn, Stan Musial, Willie Mays, Jimmy Piersall, Paul Waner,
Carney Lansford
WEDNESDAY — 07-Jun
Q. Who is the only major leaguer to win three
hitting Triple Crowns?
Hint: #1 His defense was so good that a fellow
Hall of Famer once noted, “He was Willie Mays before we knew who Willie Mays was."
Hint: #2 Among the thirteen men depicted in Kansas
City in the Negro
Leagues Baseball Museum’s Field of Legends display of life-size bronze statues,
he is positioned farthest
from home plate.
A. OSCAR CHARLESTON [SABR Bio]
- Ans. Charleston
paced the Negro National League in 1921 with 15 HR, 91 RBI, .433 BA in 77 games
and the Eastern Colored League in both 1924
(15, 63, .405 in 54 G) & 1925
(20, 97, .427 in 71 G). Among all other
major league hitters, only Ted Williams, Rogers Hornsby and Josh Gibson
had two TCs.
- #1 This
observation was made by Buck O’Neil, who was inducted in 2022. Much of Charleston’s early career was spent as
the Negro Leagues’ premier center fielder, but he was a gifted all-around
athlete.
- #2 Stationed
in CF in this display, Charleston is joined by Satchel
Paige (P), Josh Gibson (C), Buck Leonard (1B), Pop Lloyd (2B), Ray Dandridge
(3B), Judy Johnson (SS), Cool Papa Bell (LF), Leon Day (RF),
Martin Dihigo (batter), Bob Motley (umpire), Buck O’Neil (manager) and Rube
Foster (owner/founder).
FCR - Keith Sims, Bloomington,,
Indiana
Incorrect guesses: Cool
Papa Bell, Josh Gibson
MIDWEEK BONUS — 07-Jun
Q. Which
former Cowboy ranks at least twice in four of the Braves’ franchise history
leader board all-time top ten: Seasonal
batting average, on-base percentage, runs and stolen bases?
Hint: #1
Ahead of him on the leader board of career on-base percentage are only
Ted Williams, Babe Ruth & John McGraw.
Hint: #2
Ahead of him for most runs scored in a season is… nobody!
A. BILLY HAMILTON [SABR Bio]
- Ans. BA = 5th (.369
in 1898), 6th (.366 in 1896);
On-base % = 3rd (.480
in 1898), 4th (.478 in 1896), 8th (.461 in
1897) & 10th (.449 in 1900);
Runs = 3rd (153
in 1896) & 4th (152 in 1897); AND
Stolen Bases = 2nd (83
in 1896) & 5th (66 in 1897)
He played for the
Kansas City Cowboys for both the seasons of their existence, 1888 & 1889.
#1 The 3 Hall of Famers career OBP ahead of his .455
are .482,
.474 & .466 respectively.
-
#2 Hamilton scored 198 times in 1894. He
scored MLB-leading numbers 2 additional times and the league once more. The leader among current players is Charlie Blackmon
who scored 137 X for COL in 2017.
FCR - Jason,
Winston, Riverside, California
Incorrect guesses: Deion Sanders, Chipper Jones, Rickey
Henderson, Hugh Duffy
THURSDAY— 08-Jun
Q. Who
was the first pinch hitter in a major league All-Star Game?
Hint: #1
Yellow Horse Morris, Bruce Ogrodowski, Chicken Hawks, Willie McCovey and
he are all buried in the same cemetery.
Hint: #2
He pitched for the Yankees the year before Ruth built the famous “house”.
A. LEFTY O’DOUL [SABR Bio]
- Ans. In
the 1933 ASG, MLB’s 1st &
O’Doul’s only, NL manager John McGraw lifted C Jimmy Wilson, putting in O’Doul
to bat. He then did what Wilson had done
in his only PA in the 3rd, he grounded out. Before going out on defense, O’Doul was
replaced by future Hall of Famer Gabby Hartnett. (Hartnett K’ed in his only AB.)
-
#1 These 5 & 15 other former
major leaguers have found their final resting
place in the Cypress Lawn
Memorial Park in Colma, California, just south of San Francisco.
-
#2 O’Doul pitched for NYY in 1922 but only for 16
innings and wasn’t on the WS roster. He
had also thrown for them in 1919 & 1920. In 1923, he pitched for BOS.
FCR - Warren
Kent, Whitehall Michigan
Incorrect guesses: Dolph Camilli
FRIDAY —
09-Jun
Q. Which left-hand hitting Hall of Fame
Detroit center fielder of the 1920s had the third highest batting
average of that decade playing for Motown?
Hint: #1
He had an unusually close relationship with his bats.
Hint: #2
According to a reliable source, he hit more career major league home
runs during his unique era than anyone.
A. TURKEY STEARNS [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Between 1923 and 1929 playing for the Detroit Stars, Stearnes batted .360, just one point lower than Ty Cobb did
between 1920-1926 while playing for the Tigers. However, right-handed-batting right fielder
Harry Heilmann topped them both with his .364 amassed for the Tigers during
1920-1929.
-
#1 Stearnes carried a 34-inch
model to hit for average, & a 35-inch version when swinging for the fences.
These he kept in sturdy violin cases &,
after a particularly difficult game, would sometimes talk to them while lying
in his hotel room’s bed. Teammates would
overhear him thanking his bats for delivering big hits or admonishing them for
popping up. "If I had used
you," one teammate recalls Stearnes saying to a bigger bat, "I would
have hit a home run."
-
#2 Although Negro League records are admittedly incomplete, Baseball-Reference.com’s tabulation of their statistics after MLB recognized them
as major leagues 2020 puts Stearnes’ 187 HRs just ahead of the totals of Mule
Suttles (180) & Josh Gibson (166).
FCR - Jay
Caldwell, St. Petersburg, Florida
Incorrect guesses: Heinie
Manush, Sam Crawford, Ty Cobb, Earl Averill, Joe Jackson
SATURDAY — 10-Jun
Q. Which
Hall of Famer managed and made the last out of a watershed World Series?
Hint: #1
No doubt a colorful manager, he managed the Browns, Reds and others.
Hint: #2
Twenty-one men under his managerial and coaching guidance have been
elected to the Hall of Fame.
Hint: #3
He is the only qualifying position player in the NL to finish seasons
batting over .400 in the twentieth century thrice.
A. ROGERS HORNSBY [SABR Bio]
- Ans. In 1926, Hornsby was player/manager of the St.
Louis Cardinals. They beat NYY 4-3 with the last out of the 7th game
seeing Babe Ruth attempting to steal 2nd base with 2 outs in the
bottom of the 9th. Hornby,
playing 2nd took the throw from C Bob O’Farrell, tagged Ruth well in
time and began to celebrate. No NL team
has won the WS more times than STL, but this was their first.
-
#1 In all he managed 6 major
league teams: STL (2 yrs.), NYG (1), BSN
(1), CHC (3), SLB (6) & CIN (3).
-
#2 Hall of Famers besides himself
that Hornsby managed: Pete Alexander, Richie
Ashburn, Ernie Banks, Jim Bottomley, , Kiki Cuyler, Rick
Ferrell, Burleigh Grimes, Chick Hafey, Jesse Haines, Gabby Hartnett, Gil
Hodges, Travis Jackson, George Kelly, Freddie Lindstrom, Satchell Paige, Edd
Roush, George Sisler, Billy Southworth, Bill
Terry, Billy Williams & Hack Wilson.
He also had these teammates and/or staff on his teams: Dizzy
Dean, Leo Durocher Billy Herman, Miller
Huggins, Mel Ott, Branch Rickey,
Casey Stengel & Bobby Wallace.
-
#3 Hornsby hit .401 in 1922;
.403 in 1925 & .424 in 1924. This last is the highest NL BA in the modern
era.
FCR - Jeff
Fink, Howell, New Jersey
Incorrect guesses: Miller Huggins, George Sisler, Julio Franco, Joe Jackson, Sam Thompson, Satchel Paige
WEEKEND BONUS — 10-Jun
Q. Who
was the first player to collect more RBI than the number of games he played
that season in consecutive seasons? (Min 75 RBI)
Hint: #1
He won seven Triple Crown categories, but never more than two in the
same year.
Hint: #2
He also won titles in stolen bases, triples, doubles, hits, SLG, OBP,
OPS, OPS+ & total bases, to name a few seven times placed in the MLB’s top ten
leaders for seasonal WAR.
A. ED DELAHANTY [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. In 1893, he played 114 G
& had 131 RBI & followed that up with 146 RBI
in 132 G in 1894, both playing for PHI.
-
#1 Use this for his otherworldly stats: Ed Delahanty or this Ed Delahanty
- #2 "
FCR - Ken Kirk, Corning, New York
Incorrect guesses: George
Brett , Ken Williams, Nap
Lajoie, Joe DiMaggio, Barry Bonds
SUNDAY — 11-Jun
Q. Who was the last Black Sox hitter to
twice hit over .400 in a season?
Hint: #1
He is the only Hall of
Famer born on Leap Day.
Hint: #2
He is the oldest player to
hit a home run in a major-league game.
A. JUD WILSON [SABR Bio]
-
Ans. Stroked .422 in 1927 for the BBS & NLG & .404 in 1929 for BBS.
-
#1 Wilson was born on 29-Feb-1896 per official 1900 U.S. Census
data. Meaning that the date engraved on
both his plaque at the Hall of Fame & on his tombstone (28-Feb-1894) was erroneous.
-
#2 Julio Franco had previously held this distinction when he
went swimming pool on Randy Johnson on 04-May-2007 at 48 years 251 days old.
However, when MLB recognized Negro League statistics in 2020, Wilson
became the record holder based on the homer he hit at Yankee Stadium on 23-Sept-1945(1) at 49 years 206 days old.
FCR - Bill
Suphan, Scottsdale
Incorrect guesses: Eddie
Collins,
WEEK’S
FINALE — 11-Jun
Q. Which famous slugger was too embarrassed to
meet with Ty Cobb?
Hint:
#1 He formed special relationships with three notable gals.
Hint:
#2 His wife’s autograph has been, at
times, highly sought.
Hint: #3 His middle
name of Walker is known to very few.
A. JOE
JACKSON
[SABR Bio]
- Ans. Sometime
following WWII, Cobb visited Jackson in
Jackson’s hometown & the story goes that Jackson was so ashamed for having
been on the Black Sox that he didn’t say anything to Cobb until addressed him
by name. Read the heartwarming story here.
- #1 Jackson became so closely attached to
his favorite baseball bats that he gave them names. His dearest he called “Black
Betsy"— a hefty ~40 ounces -- but he was also
sweet on "Blond
Betsy" and “Caroliny".
- #2 Jackson was illiterate, unable to
neither read nor write. Jackson's inability to sign many autographs resulted in his wife signing
items for the slugger. As a result, any autographed item said to be
signed by Jackson comes with the risk that it actually wasn't signed by the
ballplayer. However, in 2021, an authenticated
Joe Jackson-signed photograph from 1911
sold at auction for $1.47 million, which is the most ever paid for a signed sports photograph. It is the only known
Jackson-signed photo of himself in existence.
- #3 More people know Jackson by his
pseudonym “Shoeless Joe”, but the name given to him at birth was Joseph Walker Jackson.
FCR - Art Mugalian, Minneapolis
Incorrect
guesses: Roberto Clemente, Joe DiMaggio,
Barry Bonds, Ralph Kiner, Leo Durocher
WEEK’S THEME – Top Ten qualifying
players in career batting averages.
# Name AVG PA Yrs WAR Rank*
2. Charleston..... .365........ 3,885.......... 18............ 48.1........... 8
1. Cobb.............. .366...... 13,103.......... 24.......... 151.5........... 1
8. Delahanty...... .346........ 8,402.......... 16............ 69.6........... 4
10. Hamilton....... .344........ 6,283.......... 14............ 63.2........... 5
3. Hornsby........ .358........ 9,481.......... 23.......... 127.1........... 3
4. Jackson....... .356........ 5,697.......... 13............ 62.2........... 6
6. O'Doul........... .349........ 3,660.......... 11............ 25.6......... 10
9. Speaker......... .345........ 10,15.......... 22.......... 134.9........... 2
7. Stearnes......... .348........ 4,279.......... 18............ 49.5........... 6
5. Wilson........... .350........ 3,563.......... 21............ 33.4........... 9
*WAR rank on this list
Note: Ted Williams missed making this list by the
margin of one hit: Hamilton = .344421;
Williams = .344407.
First
Correct Respondent identifying theme – Warren Kent, Whitehall, Michigan
(after Hornsby)
Incorrect theme
guesses:
Tues - Most games played in center field (2,000 or more
games)
Wed - HOF outfielders with lifetime batting average
>.333 and 200 Stolen bases
- HOF center fielders who also pitched in a game
- HOFers who primarily played CF
- Top 10 Highest
lifetime Batting Averages for Left handed hitting Center Fielders
- Most seasons hitting >.300 for Left handed
hitting Center Fielders
Thur - Top 10 lifetime
Batting Average leaders for Left handed hitters
- Top Left handed lifetime batting average
leaders in the Hall of Fame
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