After bouncing between the minor leagues and the bigs, Bo Díaz was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in the ’81 off-season. With the departure of All-Star catcher Bob Boone, Bo became the Phillies starting backstop. His game-calling skills helped Phils ace Steve Carlton become the league’s only twenty game winner in 1982. Bo finished the …
For as long as he could remember, Tommy Lasorda, the longest tenured employee with the Dodgers organization, including twenty years as team manager, loved baseball. Growing up in a poor family in Norristown, Pennsylvania, Tommy could never afford to attend to a real Major League baseball game. When he was fifteen, Tommy joined his high …
Chico Ruiz had an unremarkable career. He hit two home runs in his rookie season and never hit another. He played eight seasons in the majors with a lifetime batting average of .240. About average. But, on September 21, 1964, Chico Ruiz became the bane of every baseball fan in Philadelphia. In a scoreless game …
During his two and a half seasons on the Cincinnati Reds, Willard Hershberger primarily served as the back-up catcher for Hall-of-Famer Ernie Lombardi. Though not an everyday player, he had a .316 lifetime batting average and even had two at-bats with an RBI in the 1939 World Series. However, Willard holds a singular, albeit dubious, distinction among ballplayers, …
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A heart ailment forced 53 year-old Barney Doyle into an early retirement. A life long New York Giants fan, he would now be able to attend more games. On Independence Day 1950, Barney went to an early Mass, had a quick breakfast and picked up a friend’s son, Otto Flaig, to make good on a …
This week’s Illustration Friday challenge word is “stir”. Poor Thurman Munson. Despite an array of meritorious accomplishments seven-time All-Star, two-time World Series champion, three-time Gold Glove Winner, 1970 Rookie of the Year and 1976 American League Most Valuable Player the popular catcher and captain of the New York Yankees took a lot of …
This week’s Illustration Friday challenge word is “dip”. Springtime. It’s the time when the skies are clear, the air is fresh and another baseball season begins. After a six-month rest, the Boys of Summer are back on the green fields and dirt basepaths. Dressed in their familiar hometeam colors. Shagging flies. Laying down the perfect …
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Dock Ellis had, if anything, a colorful career with a lifetime win-loss record of 138-119 and a career earned-run average at a respectable 3.46. His career was highlighted by events including famously beaning Reggie Jackson in retaliation for a home run in the 1971 All Star Game. In 1972, Dock was sprayed …
The current Monday Artday challenge is “gratitude”. Curt Flood spent most of his career as a center fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. He led the National League in putouts four times. He won seven consecutive Gold Glove Awards. He also batted over .300 six times, and led the NL in hits in 1964. He retired …
As I watched the 2009 baseball postseason, I thought about my long association with the Philadelphia Phillies. As a kid, I was never a sports fan. My brother and father would park themselves in front of the television and rabidly watch anything that remotely resembled a sporting event. Depending on the time of year, our …
