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GEELONG
BASEBALL ASSOCIATION Victoria Australia |
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Strange,
yes. True? Sometimes, yes (as in the stories below). On other occasions,
well, maybe..... Baseball lore continues to offer up many a remarkable, sometimes unbelievable story. It's all part of the rich tapestry of our wonderful game. We will endeavour - from time to time - to cover some of those stories. Should YOU have a "strange but true" baseball story that you would like to submit - or to refer us to, or try to convince us of - then please send us an email. |
Is there ANYTHING this kid can't do?
Mexico pitcher tosses perfect game at LLWS
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa.
(AP, 19 August 2008) — Jesus Sauceda of Matamoros,
Mexico, struck
out all 12 batters in the first perfect game at the Little League World Series
in 29 years on Sunday.
Sauceda needed to pitch only four innings, instead of the usual six, in the
12-0 victory over Emilia, Italy. It was the fifth perfect
game at the Little League World Series and the first since Chao-An Chen of
Taiwan tossed one in 1979.
Sunday's game ended after the top of the fourth inning because of Little
League's 10-run mercy rule.
Sauceda also had a big day at the plate. He went 3-for-3 with six RBIs,
including a grand slam in the third.
THE LONG AND THE SHORT OF BASEBALL GAMES
Baseball supporters may have read or heard news reporting on a remarkable game played on Friday 18 April 2008, between Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres. In a match going for 22 innings, the Rockies scored the go-ahead run to win 2-1 after six hours and sixteen minutes.
Extraordinary is this spectacle may have been, it was not the longest in MLB history. On 1 May 1920, Brooklyn and Boston shared a 1-1 draw after slugging it out for 26 innings. On 11 September 1974, St Louis got past New York 4-3 in a marathon that went for 25 digs. On 5 August 1984, Chicago rolled Milwaukee 7-6 in a more recent 25 innings contest. In all, just the one game has gone for 26 innings, two have gone 25 innings, three have lasted 24 innings, two for 23 and nine have been played out in 22 digs.
So there have been plenty at the "long" end of baseball clashes (including some in Geelong and Melbourne competitions). By contrast, the shortest nine-innings MLB game ever played was on 26 September 1926, when St Louis 6 defeated New York 2 in a game clocked at just 55 minutes! Excite Sports report.Should you have details or recollections of an unusually long, or short, or high-scoring game in your neck of the baseball woods, of a remarkable comeback or of a bizarre individual effort (EG seven trips to the plate for seven strike-outs), please let us know.
ONLY TWO PENNANT-WINNING TEAMS since 1900 in the American or National League led their league in errors and one even won the World Series that season despite the shoddy defense.
The 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates committed 224 errors but still beat out the New York Giants by eight and one-half games for the pennant. In the World Series, the Bucs defeated Hall of Famer Walter Johnson and the Washington Senators, four games to three, and committed two less errors than the American League champions.
In 1965, the Minnesota Twins, who had finished seventh the season before, committed 172 errors but beat out the Chicago White Sox by seven games. In the World Series that year, the Twins committed only five errors but lost in seven games to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had six miscues.
Counting the Federal League, three champions led in errors. Indianapolis led the league in 1914 with a whopping 289 miscues but edged Chicago by one and one-half games.
All three championship teams made up for their poor defense by leading their league in both runs scored and batting average.
When the Philadelphia Phillies won their first National League pennant in 1915, they used only 23 players. That same season, the Philadelphia A's, the defending American League champions, employed 58 players, finishing last with only 43 victories.
One of the most unusual victories by a pitcher happened on July 27, 1930, at Cincinnati. Right-handed rookie Ken Ash, a 28-year-old hurler from West Virginia relieved and made only one pitch.
Chicago first baseman Charlie Grimm hit the pitch into a triple play and Ash was removed for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the inning as the Reds rallied for the winning run in a 6-5 win over the Cubs, making Ash the pitcher of record.
Right-hander Henry Schmidt, a 30-year old Texan starred in the Pacific Coast League in 1902, and was acquired by the Brooklyn Dodgers for the 1903 season. The rookie won 21 games and lost 13 for the fifth-place Dodgers, hurling 29 complete games, including five shoutouts.
After the season, manager Ned Hanlon and the Dodgers were dumfounded when Schmidt announced he wouldn't sign with the club because he wanted to go back to the Coast League. He never pitched again in the major leagues.
On August 2, 1939, Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio completed what was probably the greatest catch he ever made at Yankee Stadium against the Detroit Tigers.
In the ninth inning, with Earl Averill on first, Hank Greenberg hit a tremendous drive to center field. DiMaggio turned and raced back to within two feet of the monuments on the wall, and caught the ball over his shoulder. Averill was near third and would have been doubled up, but shortstop Frank Crosetti's relay hit him in the back.
Forgetting that the Tigers were handing the Yankees a 7-2 defeat, ending rookie Atley Donald's 12-game winning streak with his first big league loss, the crowd gave DiMaggio an ovation that lasted for several minutes and his Yankee teammates swarmed all over him.
In a Pacific Coast League game on August 31, 1938, Dick Ward of the San Diego Padres pitched 13 and two-thirds of hitless innings but missed no-hit glory because it took his mates 16 innings to score.
Ward
beat Ray Prim of the PCL-leading Los Angeles
club, 1-0, but gave up two
singles in the 14th inning, and issued the first of his four walks in
the ninth.
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WILLIAM 'DUMMY' HOY
Washington Nationals 1888-89, 92-93 Buffalo Bisons (PL) 1890 St. Louis Browns (AA) 1891 Cincinnati Reds 1894-97, 1902 Louisville Colonels 1898-99 Chicago White Sox 1901 |
Every baseball fan is familiar with the
hand signals that umpires
use for ball, strike, safe, out and so on. Few, however, realise that
these signs came
about because of William "Dummy" Hoy. Hoy, a deaf-mute who
played in the late 19th and early 20th centuries also happens to be one
of the
finest all-around players not in the Hall of Fame.
William Ellsworth Hoy was born on May 23, 1862 in Cincinnati,
OH.
At the age of 2, he was stricken with spinal meningitis, which left him
almost
completely deaf. As a result, his speaking skills never fully
developed.
Despite the handicap, Hoy was both bright and
athletic. He decided to
pursue a career in baseball after getting four hits against a
professional
pitcher while playing with his hometown amateur team.
In 1885, Hoy was offered a tryout as catcher by the Milwaukee
Brewers of the
Northwestern League. When the Brewers offered him just $60 a
month for
his services, Hoy took it as an insult. Instead of signing,
he left for Oshkosh who had an
opening in their outfield.
Oshkosh was
impressed enough to offer him $85 monthly to play
centerfield. When the
Brewers caught word of this they sent a representative to match the
offer. When Hoy was handed their revised offer, he grabbed a
pad and
pencil and quickly wrote, "I wouldn't play for you for a million a
month!"
It soon became apparent that Hoy was a natural in the
field. His strong
arm and speed allowed him to play a shallow centerfield. At
the plate,
however, it was a different story. Pitchers realised they
could
quick-pitch Hoy when he glanced back at the umpire to see whether the
previous
pitch was a ball or strike. As a result, he hit just .219 in
1885.
Before the 1886 season Hoy worked out a system in which the
third base coach
would signal to him what the previous pitch had been. Hoy
gained his
revenge on the pitchers that season by tearing up the league with a
.367
average.
Soon the umpires saw the value in hand signals. They would
not only let the
other players on the field know what was going on, but also the
fans.
Soon an early form of the signs that are used today were used in parks
all
around the country.
By 1888, Hoy was ready for the big leagues and was signed by
the National
League's Washington Senators. In his rookie season, he
established
himself as one of the top lead-off hitters in baseball. He
led the NL in
steals with 82, scored 77 runs, hit .274, and finished fifth in the
league with
a .374 on-base-percentage.
On June 19, 1889, Hoy etched his name into the record books
when he became the
first player to throw out three players at the plate in one
game.
Following that season, he jumped to Buffalo
of the newly formed Players League. Hoy played well there,
scoring 107
runs and hitting .298, but the league folded after one year.
From there, Hoy headed to St. Louis,
where he played with the American Association's St. Louis
Browns. While
he spent just one season in St. Louis,
Hoy did make an impression by leading the league with 119 walks and
scoring 136
runs.
Hoy returned to Washington
in 1892, and played two more solid seasons there before being sold to
the
Cincinnati Reds prior to the 1894 season. Playing in his
hometown, Hoy
was extremely popular with the fans, who admired his hustling style of
play. In
four seasons with the Reds, his longest stint with one team, Hoy hit
.299,
.277, .298, and .292, while stealing 27, 50, 50, and 37 bases.
Before the 1898 season, Hoy was dealt to the lowly Louisville
Colonels.
While he played his best baseball there, hitting over .300 both years,
the
Colonels struggled and disbanded after the 1899 season.
After sitting out the 1900 season, the 38-year-old signed
with the Chicago
White Sox of the new American League. On May 1, 1901, Hoy hit
the first
grand slam in the league's history. He is one of only 29 men
who played
in four major leagues (National League, Players League, American
Association,
and American League).
After hitting .294 and leading the new league with 86 walks,
Hoy jumped back to
the Reds for one final major league season. On May 16, 1902,
Hoy stepped
into the batter's box against the New York Giants Luther "Dummy"
Taylor, who was also a deaf-mute. It remains the only time in
history
that two deaf players have faced each other. The colorful Taylor and
Hoy struck up a friendship that
lasted well beyond their playing days.
The season ended early for Hoy, who was hitting .290, when he
was released on
August 7. At age 42, he decided to head out west and play
with Los Angeles of the
Pacific Coast League (a high minor league) in 1903. The
veteran stole 42
bases that year, and played in all 211 of the team's games.
He retired
following the season.
In his major league career, Hoy hit .287 with 2,044 hits,
1,426 runs, and 594
stolen bases in 1,796 games. He also posted a stellar .386
career
on-base-percentage.
Following his playing days, Hoy returned to the Cincinnati
area and became a successful dairy
farmer. In 1924, he sold the farm and took a management
position with the
Goodyear Tyre Company.
In 1951, Hoy became the first inductee of the American
Athletic Association of
the Deaf's Hall of Fame. At the 1961 World Series, he was
chosen to throw
out the first pitch of Game 3 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati.
That honor ended up being a
last hurrah for Hoy. Shortly after he was hospitalized.
On December 15, 1961, in Cincinnati,
Williams Ellsworth "Dummy" Hoy suffered a stroke and died. He
was just over sixth months shy of his 100th birthday.
David Zingler
STRANGE ARCHIVE
