history | The Baseball Zealot

Al Hrabosky the Mad Hungarian

Bruce Markusen has a very well-researched piece The Hardball Times all about a player I remember from one of my favorite era of baseball, the 70s- Al Hrabosky.

I remember the Mad Hungarian well. What I didn’t know was how he got his nickname:

The unusual routine prompted a nickname from the Cardinals’ front office. The team’s public relations director, Jerry Lovelace, began calling Hrabosky “The Mad Hungarian.” The name, which accurately reflected his heritage, caught on with writers, broadcasters and fans, giving Hrabosky one of the most identifiable alter egos of his time, or any other for that matter.

Just think, the club front office not only approved but capitalized on Hrabosky’s behavior.

No doubt I’ve said this before but I wonder if Al’s stomping around the mound and talking to the ball would be tolerated in today’s world. The 70s were a more colorful time (in more ways than one… you’ve seen the uniforms) and probably a little more tolerant of differences and eccentricities.

Sadly, if Hrabosky tried to pull what he did in 2010, someone would complain, there would be an investigation by an appointed MLB committee and a 50-page policy written up detailing what is acceptable and not acceptable.

Miss you. Al.

80 years ago today: Joe Sewell fans twice

Eighty years ago today, something happened that has occurred only twice ever.

Joe Sewell struck out twice in one game.

Sewell, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977, was famous for his penchant for contact hitting. In 14 seasons and 7132 career at-bats, he fanned only 114 times. In nine straight full-time seasons between 1925 and 1933, he never went into double digits in Ks.

And yet on May 26, 1930 as a member of the Cleveland Indians ballclub, he struck out twice at the hands of White Sox pitcher Pat Caraway. For his part, Caraway wasn’t much of a flamethrower. For his career, he only struck out 2.8 batters per nine innings.

Seeing that it was relatively early in the season, I suppose some wondered if Sewell was losing his touch. Instead, he finished the 1930 season striking out only one more time. That total of three strikeouts was tied for his lowest total in his career.

Sewell had struck out twice in a game earlier in his career in 1923. That year he had the obscene total of 12 strikeouts.

Date	Tm	Opp	Rslt	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	Pos. Summary
1930-05-26 (2)	CLE	CHW	W 5-2	4	4	0	1	1	0	0	1	0	2	0	3B
1923-05-13	CLE	WSH	W 5-2	4	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	1	SS

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 5/26/2010.

Book Review: High Heat by Tim Wendel

This book review is written by guest author CLuke who despite being a White Sox AND a Northwestern Wildcat fan, is a pretty cool guy.

In his new book High Heat: The Secret History of the Fastball and the Improbable Search for the Fastest Pitcher of All Time (2010) author Tim Wendel has gone on a quest for speed. His speed obsession is very specific and as a matter of fact coincides with one of my favorite obsessions- baseball. Tim has traveled on an enjoyable literary journey to find one or in this case the fastest pitcher of all time.

The true baseball fan will recognize the paths that Mr. Wendel will take you down must include such names as Walter Johnson, Bob Feller and of course the Express- Nolan Ryan. What many fans may not expect are hearing names such as Rusie, Dalkowski and yes even Wagner and Zumaya contained in this elite group.

Newer pitchers such as Steven Strasburg and David Price are mentioned as well as sometimes overlooked pitchers like J.R. Richard, Sam McDowell and Pud Galvin (an often forgotten Hall of Famer).

Wendel interviews great fastball pitchers, batters who’ve faced them and other baseball intelligentsia in what is a pleasant celebration and quest for one of the most dangerous elements in the sport of baseball- a horsehide flung at speeds up to and over 100 mph!

One of the more fascinating aspects to Wendel’s book is his comparison of how the speed of a fastball has been measured down through the years.

In the closing days of the 1912 season Baseball magazine convinced the two fastest pitchers at the time Washington’s Walter Johnson and Brooklyn’s Nap Rucker to travel to Bridgeport Connecticut and there at the Remington Arms Company bullet-testing range measure the speed of a fastball for the first time. A tunnel that was intended to be used for testing the speed of bullets was used in an attempt to measure the fastballs of each of the two hurlers. After considerable effort and a consequent loss of speed (per the book quoting Baseball Magazine) Johnson clocked in at 86.6 mph and Rucker only 76 mph. The test probably had some significant flaws however.

Later Bob Feller had to fling a baseball past a speeding motorcycle in attempt to measure the speed of his pitch. Even today with the apparent sophistication of measuring devices Wendel notes that there are discrepancies between radar guns in different stadiums.

All in all an enjoyable book that took me to a few places that I’ve never been before. I particularly enjoyed hearing once again the story of Steve Dalkowski a Baltimore farmhand in the 1960’s who never made it to the big time but may have had the fastest fastball of all. Wendel depicts a fascinating story about Dalkowski and HOF manager Earl Weaver. “In 1962 with Weaver instructing him to throw only his fastball and his slider Dalkowski went on to have his best year ever. In the final 57 innings pitching for Weaver at Elmira, the left hander gave up only one earned run and struck out 110 batters and walked only 21”. He would go to spring training the next year with the Orioles but I’ll leave it for the author to tell the rest of this tale.

I would recommend High Heat as a pleasantly readable and enjoyable romp through the history of the fastball and many of the men who threw it. With this meaty of a topic however, I was a little bit disappointed that the book was only a little over 200 pages and it did seem to be lacking on serious stats for all of the sabermeticians out there.

Still in all this, is a worthwhile read and a nice addition to the library of the true baseball fan.

I’m giving it 3 and a half bats.

You can pick up High Heat: The Secret History of the Fastball and the Improbable Search for the Fastest Pitcher of All Time at any fine book store near you or order it from Amazon. You can also check out the book’s blog site.

As an aside, I was intrigued to learn that Mr. Wendel has written a book on the long forgotten Buffalo Braves of the NBA. This one may also be worth checking out if I can find a copy.

CLuke

How many played SS and catcher in the same season?

My buddy John and I got talking the other day about players who double at two positions that require radically different skillsets. Craig Biggio, for example, was a rarity in that he played catcher AND secondbase, two positions you rarely see paired together. And played them well. Not to mention that he played centerfield as well.

What I wanted to see was how many players in modern day baseball had played at catcher AND shortstop within the same year. My chosen limit was at least 10 games at both positions. Between the the years 1901 and 2009, only seven players fit that description.

Using Baseball Reference’s Play Index, here is the list of players I came up with:

Player	G	Year	Tm	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	BA	OBP	SLG	Pos
Marty Martinez	113	1968	ATL	356	34	82	5	3	0	12	29	28	6	.230	.291	.261	6542
Bobby Bragan	109	1942	PHI	335	17	73	12	2	2	15	20	21	0	.218	.264	.284	*62/45
Bobby Bragan	94	1944	BRO	266	26	71	8	4	0	17	13	14	2	.267	.304	.327	*62/54
Sport McAllister	78	1903	DET	265	31	69	8	2	0	22	10	0	5	.260	.297	.306	*62/953
Dave Roberts	101	1980	TEX	235	27	56	4	0	10	30	13	38	0	.238	.280	.383	562/943
Mike Sandlock	80	1945	BRO	195	21	55	14	2	2	17	18	19	2	.282	.346	.405	*26/45
Ron Slocum	60	1970	SDP	71	8	10	2	2	1	11	8	24	0	.141	.238	.268	265/4

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 1/4/2010.

(The games played were Martinez SS-54 C-14, ‘42 Bragan SS-78 C-22, ‘44 Bragan SS-51 C-35, McAllister SS-46 C-18, Roberts SS-33 C-22, Sandlock SS-22 C-47, Slocum SS-17 C-19).

All seven (well six, as Bobby Bragan is listed twice) seem to be the uber-utility types playing at least four different positions in their particular season. It’s no surprise that none were fantastic hitters (though Roberts did hit 10 HR) but I’m sure their managers found their versatility useful.

I guess the most unusual was Bragan himself who not only did it twice but managed to put in over 20 games at catcher each year in addition to his normal shortstop.

Animated short about Dock Ellis’ drug enhanced no-no

This animated short about Dock Ellis’ no-hitter while he was on LSD definitely has its elements of humor. But creator James Blagden from No Mas, a NY-based repository of sport and cultural art, did his homework, too. Doc Ellis and The LSD No-No was fueled by research done by Blagden.

He scoured interviews done with Dock Ellis a year before he passed away last year. In those interviews, Ellis pretty much a moment-by-moment account of his infamous no-hitter. Apparently, Blagden used much of this info in this animated short.

Oh, Dave Cash is quite the funny in the video, in my opinion.

Crosley Field website

Cluke passed on a link to a pretty neat web site, www.crosley-field.com, all about the Reds’ former stadium.

Scroll on down and you’ll find a treasure trove of great photos of the stadium itself but also some of the greats (and maybe not-so-greats) who played in Crosley. There are also related scanned news clippings and interesting stories.

Great find!

Three Finger Brown born 133 years ago today

Happy Birthday Three Finger Brown!

Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown would have been 133 years old today.

As a kid, I learned a little about baseball history from an old-timers bubble gum baseball cards I bought at the dime store. Of course, Three Finger Brown was one of them. As a Cub fan, I had an affinity for him.

Some interesting (and perhaps lesser-known) facts about Brown.

Made his major league debut at age 26 in 1903.
Brown accumulated 239 wins in his career but also led the league in saves four years in a row (1908-1911, unrecognized at the time of course).
Known primarily as a Cub, Brown did get picked up by the Reds later in his career and even played in the Federal League. In 1916, he was purchased by the Cubs for his last year where he pitched in 12 games.
Broke and held for many years, the record for number of chances handled by a pitcher without an error in 1908 with 108.

Here is his obituary that was in the New York Times when he passed in 1948

Unlikely Postseason Heroes: The baseball players you didn’t expect to make the headlines

In baseball, the postseason is the time for players to shine, to give everything they got. More than likely, it’s the big stars who make the headlines but every so often we see the unlikely hero who steps up and gets the job done during the most important games of the season.

Here are 10 unlikely heroes of the baseball postseason because they are perhaps a little light with the stick, unknown players, or in one case, have no business getting on the field because of injuries.

Ozzie Smith (St Louis Cardinals, 1985 NLCS)

No doubt Ozzie Smith, the defensive whiz and speedster, has had his moments offensively but what happened in the 1985 NLCS must have surprised even the most die-hard Cardinal fan. With 13 career homeruns to name, Ozzie made himself a St Louis folk hero with one swing of the bat.

In Game 5 winner-take-all, the Cards and the Dodgers were locked up in a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the ninth. With one out and righty Tom Niedenfuer on the mound, Ozzie batted left. Not having hit a homerun in his previous 3,009 left-handed at-bats, he did the impossible. He hit a homerun. His four-bagger to right won the game for the Cardinals 3-2 and the series 3-2.

Bucky Dent (New York Yankees, 1978 one-game playoff)

This light hitting but slick fielding shortstop Dent was never known for his bat. His highest batting average was .274 in 1974 and for his career he hit .247. As for power, well, there wasn’t much. In his 12 year career, he hit forty homeruns with a career high of eight in 1977.

But Bucky Dent will always have a special spot in every Yankee fan’s heart for what he did in one-game AL East playoff against the hated Boston Red Sox in 1978. Down 2-0 in the seventh with two runners on, Dent hit a Mike Torrez pitch over the Green Monster to give the Yankees a 3-2 lead and sudden life. The Yankees went on defeat the Red Sox 5-4.

Dent wasn’t done. He batted .417 in the World Series against the Dodgers garnering the World Series MVP award.

Al Weis (New York Mets, 1969 World Series)

Among everyone on this list, Al Weis provides the widest disparity between his performance in the regular season and in the postseason. In his 10 year career, Al Weis was a .219 hitter with only seven homeruns. For the 1969 Amazin’ Mets, his average was even worse at .215.

But man, something change in him when it was time to face the Baltimore Orioles in the World Series. For the Series, Weis not only hit .455 (5 for 11) but also hit a key homerun in the final game. His at-bat total may seem a bit low for 5 games but that’s because he also led the Mets in walks with four.

Donn Clendenon won Series MVP rightfully so (he hit .357 with three homeruns) but no one can dispute Weis’ contribution in the ‘69 series.

Kirk Gibson (Los Angeles Dodgers, 1988 World Series)

Rather odd that an regular season MVP would be chosen as an “unlikely” hero. But it fits. Gibson won the 1988 MVP award on the measure of his leadership of the Dodgers plus his good (but maybe not great) stats (.290, 25 HR). But by the postseason came around, the full season had taken its toll on Gibby’s knees and he was in no shape to play.

The Dodger’s opponents were the feared Oakland A’s who had among others, Dennis Eckersley who had one of best seasons a reliever ever had.

Do I need to go on? We’ve all seen it. Bottom of the 12th. Gibson vs. Eckersley. Gibby practically limping to the plate on two hobbled knees. And the look of pure victory on his face and the fist pumping as he rounds the bases. And the ecstatic Tommy Lasorda jumping up and down.

The Dodgers won that game, of course. That was the only at-bat Gibson would have all series. I’ve talked to Dodger fans who tell me that even though it was only Game One, they knew the Series was won by LA right then and there.

Jim Sundberg (Kansas City Royals, 1985 ALCS)

This defensive stalwart behind the plate wasn’t known for his offense prowess. Sundberg was a mainstay behind the plate for the Rangers for 12 years (and one season for Milwaukee) but he never hit the postseason for them. Once he got to KC in 1985, he got his Championship ring. And in the 1985 ALCS when the Royals took on the Toronto Blue Jays, he made a difference.

In the seventh and deciding game, Sunny practically won the game on his own. He went 2 for 4 with a triple and four rbis to clinch the Series and take the Royals to the World Series.

Jim Lindeman (St Louis Cardinals, 1987 NLCS)

Probably the least known player on this list, Jim Lindeman was a highly touted St Louis Cardinal prospect who came up in 1986. He managed to stick around for nine seasons but only accumulated 736 at-bats and 21 homers in his entire career. That doesn’t matter to Cardinals fans though. He had his moment in the sun in the NLCS in 1987 against the San Francisco Giants.

In Game 3 of the series, Lindeman came up to bat in the seventh inning down 4-3 with runners on second and third. Lindy hit a homerun to right-center and drove in three runs to make it 6-4. The Cards ending up beating the Giants 6-5 and defeated the Giants in the NLCS 4-3.

Billl Mazeroski (Pittsburgh Pirates, 1960 World Series)

Bill Mazeroski falls into same category as Bucky Dent. Light-hitting, good fielding middle infielder. Ok, maybe that’s not fair. For his time, Maz may have provided more offense than first glance might suggest. He hit .260 for his career in a pitching-rich era. Also, Maz did manage to hit 138 homers in his career.

The 1960 World Series pitted the big bully, the empire, the dynasty, the New York Yankees against the upstart, underdog Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s only appropriate that it end the way it did.

Any baseball buff knows about and has seen photos of Maz’ homerun off Yankee Bob Turley to win the the 1960 World Series. After all these years, it’s still the only walk-off homerun that has won a World Series.

It’s been rated as one of the most exciting moments in baseball history.

Billy Hatcher (Cincinnati Reds, 1990 World Series)

Billy Hatcher was one of those outfielders from the 80s and 90s that produced just enough to stick around for 12 seasons. He batted .264 for his career with 54 homeruns.

But boy, the Reds were sure happy to have him around for the 1990 World Series against the Oakland Athletics. Hatcher just caught fire. So much so that he broke many offensive records for a four game World Series. Batting second in the lineup, Hatcher hit four doubles, four doubles and a triple in 12 at-bats. Nine for Twelve!!

With Hatcher’s bat, Cincinnati went on to sweep the A’s,

Jim Beattie (New York Yankees, 1978 World Series)

I remember when Jim Beattie came up. Oh how he was going to be the next Ron Guidry! George Steinbrenner pinned his hopes on him and when he went 9-15 his first two years with the Yanks, he was little “disappointed”.

But Beattie came to the 1978 postseason prepared. He won his game against KC, pitching 5 1/3 innings. And in the World Series against the Dodgers, he really showed his stuff. In the fifth game, he pitched a complete game win allowing just two runs to give the Yankees a 3-2 series edge.

I’m sure the Boss’ private opinion didn’t change but outwardly he was glad of Beattie performance.

David Eckstein (Anaheim Angels, 2002 World Series and St Louis Cardinals, 2006 World Series)

At 5’6”, shortstop David Eckstein has had the adjective “scrappy” placed before his name on scouting reports more than anyone. And it’s probably deserved. With his ability, comes some ability to win.

This postseason look comes in two parts. In 2002, David Eckstein was part of the Anaheim Angels World Championship team. Eck batted .310 in the World Series with six runs scored. All told he compiled 20 hits in the postseason in 2002.

But it was in 2006 when Eckstein was recognized for his postseason work. Then playing for the St Cardinals who were taking on the Detroit Tigers, Eckstein actually started out 1 for 11 in the first couple of games.

Then he caught fire. In the final three games, he went 7 for 11 and in Game 4 went 4 for 5 with 3 doubles. For his performance, Eck was named World Series MVP for the Cardinals who defeated the Tigers 4 games to 1.

Honorable Mention: Scott Brosius (1998 WS), Jose Vizcaino (2000 WS), Wayne Garrett (1969 NLCS and 1973 WS)

Who am I missing?

Tilly Walker’s place in baseball history

On this day in 1887, Tilly Walker was born. Unless you’re a devoted baseball historian, Walker is pretty much an unknown as baseball players go.

Coming to the bigs in 1911, he was a journeyman outfielder playing for the Senators, Browns and Red Sox before finding a more permanent home with the Philadelphia Athletics where he played for six years between the years of 1918-1923. He was a solid hitter for his era, ranking up there among the leaders in extra-base hits, slugging and yes, even homeruns.

His homerun numbers during his career weren’t Ruthian by any means. He ranked 3rd in the American League in 1914 with a grand total of six. As time went by, his total grew getting up into the double-digits even reaching as high as 37 in 1922.

But Tilly Walker has one major distinction, perhaps fodder for a trivia question. In 1918 while playing for the Philadelphia Athletics, he tied Babe Ruth for the AL lead in homeruns with 11. He was the last person to lead the league in that category before the Babe Ruth era. Ruth then continued his dominance of baseball by leading the AL in homers 10 of the next 12 seasons (the exceptions? In 1922 when Ken Williams had his career year for the Browns and 1925 when Ruth had his famous “Bellyache Heard ‘Round the World” aka gonorrhea).

If you look over Walker’s stats, you’ll note that those 11 homeruns he hit in 1918 is only time he ever led his league in any category.

Walker ended his career with 118 career homeruns which probably doesn’t seem like a lot. But considering that the career leader at the time of his retirement had 238 and that was Babe Ruth, he probably ranked pretty high.

Tilly Walker has obviously passed on (in 1959) in his home state of Tennessee. But he does have a place in baseball history. Happy Birthday, Tilly Walker!

Know the 3000 K pitchers? Take the quiz

Courtesy of Sporcle.com, can you name all pitchers with 3000 career strikeouts?

Sporcle’s cool quiz interface gives you a time limit but does allow you to keep guessing till you get it right.

(I’ll give you one hint: one last name is a two-for-one)

Ironically, it was the current ones that I had the hardest time with.