BASEBALL
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Yesterday I mentioned an upcoming July trip to Chicago to see the Cubs and the White Sox play. In a couple of weeks, Sue and I will be heading to Wichita to catch the Twins AA Farm Team, the Wichita Wind Surge (and maybe the Kansas City Royals on the way back). I have been… Read more
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On May 17th, 1979, with the wind really blowing out at Wrigley, the Phillies defeat the Cubs in a wild ten-inning slugfest 23-22. Dave Kingman had three home runs and six RBI for the Cubs while teammate Bill Buckner had a grand slam and seven RBI. Mike Schmidt’s two home runs included the game-winner in the tenth inning. The eleven home… Read more
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On May 14th, 1961, Chuck Hinton played his first Major League game. I share a last name with 4 players who played in the Major Leagues: Charles “Chuck” Hinton was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina on May 3, 1934. He played outfield for Washington and then Cleveland. His best season was 1962 when he… Read more
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On May 13th, 1965, future Hall of Fame pitcher Jim “Catfish” Hunter pitched in his first Major League game for the then, Kansas City Athletics. I have read in a few places over the years that by some sabrmetrics Catfish Hunter does not really belong in the Hall of Fame. That is, of course, cow… Read more
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On May 10th, 1967, Hank Aaron hit the only inside the park homer of his career. In the 8th inning with Jim Bunning pitching, Aaron hit a drive to deep centerfield and beat the relay home. So for those scoring at home, of his 755 home runs, only this one did not clear the fence. The… Read more
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On May 7th, 1960, Dodger legend Carl Furillo played his last Major League game. He went 1 for 1 vs. the Phillies. Carl Furillo came up as a rookie with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1946. This was a year before Jackie Robinson joined the Dodgers to break the Color Barrier. Having been born in a… Read more
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On May 6th, 1953, Bobo Holloman of the St. Louis Browns pitched a 6-0 no-hitter against the Philadelphia Athletics in his first major league start. He never pitched another complete game in the majors. Born Alva Lee Holoman, “Bobo” Holloman was the first rookie in MLB history to throw a no-hitter in his first start. Only… Read more
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On May 4th, 1982, Twins rookie outfielder Jim Eisenreich (Pride of St. Cloud), who suffers from the nervous disorder Tourette’s Syndrome, is forced to remove himself from a 5-3 loss to the Red Sox when he is taunted mercilessly by bleacher fans and his violent twitching becomes uncontrollable. Eisenreich, hitting .310 after making the jump from… Read more
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On May 3rd, 1986, Cubs third baseman Ron Cey hit his 300th and 301st home runs and Chicago scores four times in the top of the ninth to beat San Francisco 6-5. Ron Cey played for three teams that are close to my heart: He also played for one team that I have always been ambivalent about:… Read more
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“If somebody came up and hit .450, stole 100 bases, and performed a miracle in the field everyday I’d still look you in the eye and say Willie was better. He could do the five things you have to do to be a superstar: hit, hit with power, run, throw and field. And he had… Read more
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