Jim Rice and the Hall of Fame (Revisited)
Cy’s commentary on a recent article by Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe taking a swipe at "SABR people."
St. Louis Browns Quiz
"First in Booze, First in Shoes, & Last in the American League"
The St. Louis Browns (1902 – 1953)
(presented May 2009)
(Move the mouse over the blank space to see the answer)
| 1. |
The St. Louis Browns opened American League play in 1902. They were previously which franchise?
St. Louis Brown Stockings
Milwaukee Brewers
St. Louis Stars
St. Louis Maroons
|
Milwaukee Brewers |
| 2. |
As part of the "baseball wars" settlement in late 1915, Federal League owners were allowed to purchase AL and NL franchises (the Browns and the Cubs). What were the names of the now-defunct Federal League teams in St. Louis and Chicago? What is the Chicago Federal League Park now called? |
St.L Terriers, Chicago Whales Wrigley Field |
| 3. |
1922 was the Browns’ winning-est year ever. They won 93 games and finished one game behind the Yankees. Which Brownie led in: AL Home Runs (39) and RBI (155) AL Stolen Bases (51) AL Batting Average (.420) AL Strikeouts (pitching) (149) |
Ken Williams George Sisler George Sisler Urban Shocker |
| 4. | This Brownie was baseball’s first "30-30 man" (home runs and steals). | Ken Williams |
| 5. | The Browns had a press conference scheduled for Monday, December 8, 1941 at the AL meetings in Chicago. The attack on Pearl Harbor on Sunday cancelled their plans. What were they going to announce? | The team was to move to Los Angeles in 1942 |
| 6. |
Who was the skipper of the pennant-winning 1944 Browns? |
Luke Sewell |
| 7. | In addition to the city of St. Louis and Sportsman’s Park, the Browns’ and Cardinals’ managers shared something else in common, and it caused some logistical headaches during the 1944 World Series. What was it? | they shared the same apartment |
| 8. |
This Brownie led the AL in RBI in 1944 |
Vern Stephens |
| 9. |
It took two home runs by this Brownie outfielder to clinch the AL pennant on the last day of the 1944 season. Was he: Chet Laabs Don Gutteridge Mike Kreevich Frank Mancuso |
Chet Laabs |
| 10. |
These two pitchers have the distinction of being the only hurlers ever to record World Series wins for the Browns. Who were they (pick two) Denny Galehouse Nelson Potter Jack Kramer Sig Jakucki Boots Hollingsworth Bob Muncrief |
Denny Galehouse Jack Kramer |
| 11. | This Browns player was one of two blacks to break the St. Louis major league color barrier in 1947. He later played in the first all-black major league outfield for the NY Giants, along with Monte Irvin and Willie Mays. | Hank Thompson |
| 12. | This St. Louis native went to high school with my (Monte Cely’s) Mom and was AL Rookie of the Year in 1949 with the Browns. | Roy Sievers |
| 13. |
This Brownie infielder gained much greater fame as a television star. Was he: Chuck Connors Mark Christman Johnny Berardino Chuck Stevens |
Johnny Berardino |
| 14. | The Browns played in the AL for 52 seasons. How many times did they finish in the first division? 8 12 16 18 | 12 |
| 15. | How many times did they finish last? 6 8 10 12 | 10 |
| 16. | Browns’ superstar George Sisler held the modern record for most hits in a season (257). This record was recently broken by Ichiro. What year did Sisler set this record? | 1920 |
| 17. |
In 1921, the Browns’ three outfielders combined for one of the highest composite outfield batting averages in baseball history (.351). Who were they (pick three): Cedric Durst Baby Doll Jacobsen Chick Shorten Ken Williams Jack Tobin Wally Gerber |
Jacobsen Williams Tobin |
| 18. | This Texas League star and Browns pitcher later won the 1958 Cy Young Award. | Bob Turley |
| 19. | For whom did midget Eddie Gaedel pinch-hit? After Gaedel walked, who pinch ran? |
Frank Saucier Jim Delsing |
| 20. | Who was the first Browns player to enter the Hall of Fame? Who was the last? |
George Sisler Satchel Paige or Willard Brown (Paige played the latest for the Browns (1953), W. Brown was inducted the latest in 2006) |
| 21. |
Tie Breaker: What position did each of these Brownies play on the 1944 AL champs? Don Gutteridge Frank Mancuso Mark Christman Mike Kreevich Chet Laabs Vern Stephens George McQuinn Al Zarilla |
Gutteridge-2B, Mancuso-C, Christman-3B, Kreevich-OF, Laabs-OF, Stephens-SS, McQuinn-1B, Zarilla-OF |
Strange Injuries
Strange Injuries
(presented July 2009)
(Move the mouse over the blank space to see the answer)
| 1. | This year Joey Votto, Dontrelle Willis and Khalil Greene were all placed on the DL for this ailment. What malady did they share? |
Anxiety |
||
| 2. | Since the late 1980s, MLB has had the 15 day and 60 day disabled lists. Prior to that, there was the ______ day and the _____ day disabled lists. | 10-day and 21-day | ||
| 3. | As of July 19, 2009, which NL team had the most players on the DL? How many players did they have on the DL? | San Diego Padres – 10 players | ||
| 4. | As of July 19, 2009, which AL team had the most players on the DL? How many players did they have on the DL? | Toronto Blue Jays – 7 players | ||
| 5. |
Match the player with the injury that landed him on the DL.
|
1-D; 2-F; 3-G, 4-A; 5-C; 6-H; 7-B; 8-E | ||
| 6. |
Hall of Famers have spent time the DL, too. Match the player with the injury.
|
1-B; 2-C; 3-D; 4-A | ||
| 7. | This current pitcher avoided a trip to the DL but burned his chest when he tried to iron a shirt – while he was wearing it. | John Smoltz |
World Series Trivia
World Series Trivia
(presented October 2007)
(Move the mouse over the blank space to see the answer)
| 1. | Which current franchises have never won a World Series? |
NL : Colorado, Houston, Milwaukee, San Diego, Washington AL : Seattle, Tampa Bay, Texas |
| 2. | Who was the last pitcher to hit a homerun in the World Series? What year? | Ken Holtzman, A’s, 1974 |
| 3. | Who was the last pitcher to hit a grand slam homerun in the World Series? What year? | Dave McNally, Orioles, 1970 |
| 4. | Which team (and year) hit the most homeruns in a single World Series? | Giants, 2002 (14) |
| 5. | Which team (and year) was the last to win a World Series and not hit any homeruns in the Series? | Reds, 1919 |
| 6. |
Excluding the Cubs (99 seasons) and Indians (58 seasons), which club has gone the longest without winning a World Series? How many seasons? |
Giants, 53 seasons |
| 7. | Which expansion club was the first to win a World Series? What year? | Mets, 1969 |
| 8. |
Which expansion club was the fastest to win a World Series? Which season of existence? What year? |
Diamondbacks, 2001 (4th season) |
| 9. | The Yankees have eight World Series sweeps, (four games to none). Which club has the second most World Series sweeps? How many? What years? | Reds, 2 (1976, 1990) |
| 10. | Name the eight players who have ended the World Series walk-off hit. | Earl McNeely, Senators, 1924 Goose Goslin, Tigers, 1935 Billy Martin, Yankees, 1953 Bill Mazeroski, Pirates, 1960 Gene Larkin, Twins, 1991 Joe Carter, Blue Jays, 1993 Edgar Renteria, Marlins, 1997 Luis Gonzalez, Diamondbacks, 2001 |
| 11. | Which of these players also made the last out of a World Series? | Goose Goslin, Senators, 1925 Edgar Renteria, Cardinals, 2004 |
| 12. | Which pitcher holds the record for most consecutive complete games in World Series play? | Bob Gibson, 8 |
| 13. | Which pitcher holds the record for most consecutive wins in World Series play? | Bob Gibson, 7 |
| 14. | Which hitter holds the World Series career record for most intentional bases on balls? | Barry Bonds, Bernie Williams, 7 |
| 15. | Who completed the only unassisted triple play in World Series play? What year? | Bill Wambsganss, Indians, 1920 |
Famous Hitters/Infamous Pitchers
Who was on the mound for these homeruns?
(presented March 2009)
(Move the mouse over the blank space to see the answer)
| 1. | Babe Ruth’s first, 1915 |
Jack Warhop, New York |
| 2. | Babe Ruth’s 60th, 1927 | Tom Zachary, Washington |
| 3. | Babe Ruth’s World Series "called shot," 1932 | Charlie Root, Chicago Cubs |
| 4. | Babe Ruth’s 714th, 1935 | Guy Bush, Pittsburgh |
| 5. | Joe Carter’s World Series winner, 1993 | Mitch Williams, Philadelphia |
| 6. |
Bill Mazeroski’s World Series winner, 1960 |
Ralph Terry, New York |
| 7. | Hank Aaron’s 714th, 1974 | Jack Billingham, Cincinnati |
| 8. |
Hank Aaron’s 715th, 1974 |
Al Downing, Los Angeles |
| 9. | Hank Aaron’s 755th, 1976 | Dick Drago, California |
| 10. | Bobby Thompson’s "shot heard ’round the world", 1951 | Ralph Branca, Brooklyn |
| 11. | Roger Maris’ 61st, 1961 | Tracy Stallard, Boston |
| 12. | Mark McGwire’s 62nd, 1998 | Steve Trachsel, Chicago |
| 13. | Dave Henderson’s ALCS Game 5, go-ahead, 1986 | Donnie Moore, California |
| 14. | Carlton Fisk’s World Series Game 6 winner, 1975 | Pat Darcy, Cincinnati |
| 15. | Kirk Gibson’s World Series Game 1 winner, 1988 | Dennis Eckersley, Oakland |
| 16. | Barry Bonds’ 71st, 2001 | Chan Ho Park, Los Angeles |
| 17. | Barry Bonds’ 756th, 2007 | Michael Bacsik, Washington |
| 18. | Barry Bonds’ 762nd, 2007 | Ubaldo Jiminez, Colorado |
| 19. | Bucky Dent’s AL East playoff go-ahead, 1978 | Mike Torrez, Boston |
| 20. | Ted Williams, All-Star game winner, 1941 | Claude Passeau, Chicago Cubs |
| 21. | Ted Williams, final at-bat, 1960 | Jack Fisher, Baltimore |
| 22. | Fred Lynn’s All-Star grand slam, 1983 | Atlee Hammaker, San Francisco |
| 23. | Chris Chambliss, ALCS winner, 1976 | Mark Littell, Kansas City |
| 24. | Reggie Jackson’s three HRs in World Series Game 6, 1977 | Burt Hooten, Elias Sosa, Charlie Hough, Los Angeles |
| 25. | Reggie Jackson’s All-Star HR off Tiger Stadium roof, 1971 | Dock Ellis, Pittsburgh |
| 26. | George Brett’s "pine tar" homerun, 1983 | Goose Gossage, New York |
| 27. | Ozzie Smith’s NLCS Game 5 winner, 1985 | Tom Niedenfuer, Los Angeles |
| 28. | Kirby Puckett’s World Series Game 6 winner, 1991 | Charlie Liebrandt, Atlanta |
| 29. | Aaron Boone’s ALCS winner, 2003 | Tim Wakefield, Boston |
Hornsby Chapter August Meeting
The August 2009 monthly meeting of the Hornsby Chapter will be held at the downtown location of the Third Base sports bar, 1717 West Sixth Street, Austin, on Tuesday, August 25 starting at 6:00 p.m.
Dan Walsh will present a trivia quiz.
Five Best Books on Baseball as Business
The August 1, 2009 edition of the Wall Street Journal listed the "Five Best" books that excel as portraits of baseball as a business. The list was compiled by Richard J. Tofel, an author and investigative journalist. His "Five Best" are:
As They See ‘Em, by Bruce Weber, Scribner, 2009
Past Time, by Jules Tygiel, Oxford, 2000
Moneyball, by Michael Lewis, Norton, 2003
My Fifty Years in Baseball, by Ed Barrow, Coward-McCann, 1951
The Lords of the Realm, by John Helyar, Villard, 1994
SABR National Convention Report
The following is a SABR Convention report from SABR Hornsby Chapter member Gary McIntosh, who is attending the convention in Washington, D.C.
FRIDAY JULY 31:
I sat in on part of the Negro Leagues Committee to hear what they are doing. Great committee that is very active. Spent some time talking to Pedro Sierra, a former Negro League player from the Detroit Stars…we spent a chunk of time talking about his relationship with one of my favorites, Orestes Minnie Minoso
Then I listened to the presentation by Lee Lowenfish of Rickey Being Rickey: Branch Rickey’s 1948 Wilberforce Speech at all black Wilberforce Univ in Ohio, in which Rickey lashed out at some of the other owners about things that were happening after he had brought in Jackie Robinson. It was a good history lesson in how things transpired from the owners vs the writers of the times.
Then we had a 90 minute panel discussion led by George Michael with Frank Howard and Rick Dempsey. What an entertaining 90 minutes. These three guys had us all in stitches, and gave a really good perspective on playing in the late 50s and 60s for Howard, and playing for Earl Weaver and for Cal Ripken Sr for Dempsey. Well worth the time spent. Dempsey told of his minor league managing career, and how he was told by Peter Angelos that he was the manager of the Orioles, only to be told two days later that they were hiring Lee Mazzilli, and that Angelos had made that decision based on the 15 people in the front office who worked for him and how they thought he was too dumb for the job. Of course recently, a few years later, Dempsey got to sit down with Angelos again to discuss the Orioles manager job, and he told Angelos that he wasn’t sure who was too dumb, but apparently whomever had decided on the last 4 Birds managers would be in the running.
Big Frank Howard was a real treat. He talked of his days with Koufax, Drysdale and the Dodgers, and his trade to Washington; of the days in Washington and how well he was treated for those 7 years. He talked of how the Nationals have some major missing chinks in the armor now, and it’s primarily the depth to compete and pitching.
George Michael is the nationally syndicated sports show host, who was in the movies Tin Cup and Silence of the Lambs. Very entertaining guy, who isn’t afraid to ask the tough questions
I also attended a meeting of the Dead Ball Era committee to see what they were involved in. And then The Green and the Blue: the Irish-American Umpire. Very entertaining. As was a presentation by Ray Zardetto of Once and For All, Who’s on First? Fun presentation, with some of the history of how it was done and why.
Then it was time to load the buses for the trip to Camden Yards for the Orioles-Red Sox game. 5 Homers last night and the last one by Jacoby Ellsbury gave Boston what it needed for a 6-5 win over the Birds. The young Orioles team though, swings the bat. They hit two of the homers and gave Boston all it could take in the slugfest. Several hundred of us went to the game, and as usual, Red Sox fans were everywhere. Attendance was over 44,000 last night.
Today more good presentations. And at 10 EDT there will be a GAFL game in the lobby. For those who don’t remember, I am the manager of the GAFL Houston Astros. GAFL is a league based on Statis Pro baseball and players for each franchise who played at least 5 years for the franchise. We are in the middle of our season (which will take 4 years to play out) and today the Astros are hosting the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals. Roy Oswalt vs Bryn Smith.
My Astros are a great pitching, poor offensive team so far. Jeff Bagwell is 2nd in the NL in home runs with 8 but hit his first in a month in the last game. Joe Morgan has stolen 19 bases in 21 attempts for Houston. Oswalt is 7-2 with an ERA around 2.10. It’s a fun look back at the history of these teams, and the team I’m playing today is led by Vlad Guerrero, Tim Raines, Larry Walker et al. Astros are currently 2nd in the NL West, 1 game ahead of the Cincinnati Reds, but trailing the best team in the NL, LA Dodgers who have a lineup of Duke Snider, Babe Herman, Zack Wheat, Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Gil Hodges, Maury WIlls and others, and a pitching staff of Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Whit Wyatt, Kevin Brown and Jeff Pfeffer. What makes this staff so dominant is that guys like Pfeffer and Brown especially can dominate. Only their years with LA count for their LA cards in the game, so Brown’s is especially good. One of the best pitchers in the league. Pfeffer had 23 and 25 win years for LA, and he competes pretty well too.
THURSDAY, JULY 30:
Lots of good stuff about the Washington Nationals so far
Yesterday’s solid presentations included:
Forfeit: the Final Game of the Washington Senators by Rick Schabowski, (when the fans took over the game with 2 outs in the 9th and the Sens up 8-6 in the last game under the Bob Short regime before the move to Texas)
Senators’ Hitting Streaks by Steve Krevisky (the 31 game streak by Sam Rice for the world champ Senators that helped drive them to the 1924 pennant; and the 33 game streak by Heinie Manush for the last championship team of the Senators in 1933)
The Big Train vs the Big Bambino: an analysis of Walter Johnson vs Babe Ruth as pitching opponents and hitting opponents, by Eric Weiss
Pull Up a Chair: Vin Scully’s Niche in Baseball History, by Curt Smith
Closers, Setup Men and LOOGYs: the Evolution of the Moddern Bullpen by Mike Emeigh
And one of the poster sessions: Rethinking Bill James’ Pythagorean Expectations by Susan Ballentine, a 12th grader using multiple regression models to use stats from both sides to predict outcomes; where James’ approach uses Runs Scored and Runs Allowed from various data, she manages to use the mathematical models to interact with each other….
Many others but these were some of the ones I heard yesterday
Red Sox at Orioles tonight–Camden Yards trip
By the way, this 12th grader is from Richmond VA, and is a winner of numerous academic honors in science and math, and has worked this summer in a NASA/NIA Summer Residential Mentorship in Engineering at NASA in Hampton, VA. She earned varsity letters in six sports in HS so far (softball, soccer, field hockey, basketball, indoor and outdoor track). She has been on the Western Pennsylvania Ski Race Team for 8 years and won the NASTAR national ski racing championship at Park City UT when she was 12. That same year she finished 2nd in the regional Punt, Pass and Kick Competition. After graduation next spring she plans to study applied mathematics at Cal Tech, Stanford or MIT….quite impressive.
Publications
This page lists recent publications by SABR Rogers Hornsby Chapter members. Articles in SABR Journals and books authored by chapter members are included.
SABR Journals are gradually being digitized. Those that are currently avaiable are at the following link: http://research.sabr.org/journals/archive
In the meantime, as Casey Stengel was fond of saying, "You can look it up!"
2010
"Memories of Minor-League Traveler", Norman Macht, SABR 40, The National Pastime, 2010
2009
"Washington in 1887", Norman Macht, SABR 39, The National Pastime, 2009
"Washington Nicknames", Norman Macht, The National Pastime
"Does Baseball Deserve This Black Eye? A Dissent from the Universal Casting of Shame and Blame on Kenesaw Mountain Landis for Baseball’s Failure to Sign Black Players Before 1946", Norman Macht, Baseball Research Journal – Summer 2009
2008
Change Up – An Oral History of 8 Key Events that Shaped Modern Baseball, Burke, Fornatale, with Jim Baker, Rodale
"Bullpen Cy Young Awards – When and Why Do Relievers Win It?", Monte Cely, Baseball Research Journal Vol. 37
2007
"Stolen Victories – Daring Dashes That Send the Fans Home Happy", Jan Larson, Baseball Research Journal Vol. 36
Connie Mack and the Early Years of Baseball, Norman Macht, University of Nebraska Press
"The Night Elrod Pitched" and "Johnny Vander Meer on Pete Rose", Norman Macht, National Pastime Vol. 27
2006
"Salary Arbitration: Burden or Benefit?", Bill Gilbert, Baseball Research Journal Vol. 35
"Are Balanced Teams More Successful?", Cyril Morong, BRJ Vol. 35
"The Cy Young Award, Individual or Team Recognition?", Monte Cely, BRJ Vol. 35
"Browns Play Pete Gray", Jim Baker in Rob Neyer’s Big Book of Baseball Blunders, Fireside
2005
Baseball in the Lone Star State, the Texas League’s Greatest Hits, Tom Kayser and D. King, Trinity University Press
"Has Greg Maddux Employed the "Bagwell Gambit" in His Career?’, Cyril Morong, Baseball Research Journal Vol. 34
2004
"Historical Trends in Home-Field Advantage", Cyril Morong, Baseball Research Journal Vol. 32
2003
"RBI, Opportunities, and Power Hitting", Cyril Morong, Baseball Research Journal Vol. 31
1999
"Bibb Falk: The Player Who Filled the Shoes of Shoeless Joe Jackson", Charles Kaufman, National Pastime
Spring Training in Marlin, Texas
Texas was a frequent spring training destination in the early decades of the 20th Century. While San Antonio was the most popular location for the major-leaguers, Marlin in central Texas hosted five different teams over the period of 1904-1923. The New York Giants were long-term tenants at Marlin, and their operation at Emerson Park is generally credited with being the first “permanent” major league spring training facility.
Click on the link below to download a powerpoint presentation about spring training in Marlin, Texas. This document was originally presented at the January, 2009 SABR Rogers Hornsby Chapter Winter Meeting at Texas State University.
NOTE – the powerpoint is about 10MB in size, so it may take a little while to download.