history | The Baseball Zealot

Digital archive of Baseball Magazine definitely a treat

I found a wealth of historical baseball knowledge in LA84 Foundation’s archives. They have digitized much of Baseball Magazine’s contents from the early 1900’s. I’ve spent a good hour just reading and browsing the material and it’s fantastic! Even the advertisements are great!

You can get a list of articles from 1908, 1909, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1917, and 1918 (click on each year and it will take you to their individual year’s archive). All articles are in pdf format.

I have some favorites already. There’s a preview of the 1912 Giants-Red Sox World Series. Then there’s The Art of Big League Trading by none other than John McGraw.

And no magazine is complete without ads and Jake Stahl is hawking Ide Silver Collars in the 1912 archives (“Your Collar is the “High-Light” of Your Dress”).

What I found amazing is that baseball media back in the early 1900’s was not so much different than it is now. As I said, I saw previews for important postseason series. There was an article comparing stats on all the NL secondbasemen in the league. Who’s whos, interviews, retrospectives, everything you would see in a pre-season baseball mag or maybe even say, a baseball blog.

I guess the technology has certainly changed but the tried, true formulas of good sports journalism has remained strikingly similar.

Anyway, this is indeed, a treasure trove, especially for those who love old baseball history.

25 things we miss

I enjoyed reading through Sports Illustrated’s list of 25 Things We Miss in Baseball.

There’s no reason to expect any of the listed 25 will ever come back nor for the most part, should they… we live in a different world (#11- Fans Running Out onto the Field, #9- Wimpy Middle Infielders)

But I get it. Some of the listed are products of baseball when it was a sport in age of more innocence. And if wasn’t innocent, we didn’t know it.

I still would like to hear organ music (#13) at a ballpark and quality mustaches (#7) would certainly bring some character to the game (Rollie Fingers, anyone?)

(link via Circling the Bases)

A retro look: Making a lot out of nothing

Take a look at this 1999 box score between the White Sox and the Devil Rays and tell me if you see anything odd.

Give up?

Look at Frank Thomas’ line:

2 runs scored, 2 rbis, and 0 at-bats.

He’s the only player in the last 55 years to score at least 2 runs AND drive in at least 2 runs without registering an at bat in one game. He did so on the basis of three walks and a sacrifice fly.

With the score 10-0, Jerry Manuel pinch hit for him with Brian Simmons (who?) in the 8th inning. James Baldwin got the win for those scoring at home.

Incidentally, 1999 was the year the White Sox placed second in the Central Division based on their whopping 75-86 record.

Speedsters with low OBP

sicampy

Let’s take a look at stolen bases and on base percentage.

Here are the players with the lowest OBP with at least 50 stolen bases in a single season.

OBP SB

1 Bert Campaneris .278 52 1972 2 Vince Coleman .285 50 1994 3 Omar Moreno .292 60 1982 4 Miguel Dilone .294 50 1978 5 Omar Moreno .295 53 1977 6 Bert Campaneris .297 55 1967 7 Jose Reyes .300 60 2005 8 Mookie Wilson .300 54 1983 9 Vince Coleman .301 107 1986 10 Bert Campaneris .302 62 1969

This list is rife of leadoff men (I’m going on memory but I’m pretty sure they all led off for their respective teams) but still couldn’t get the job done when came to getting on base.

They say you can’t steal first base but from a stat point of view, what these guys was pretty amazing (if not self-serving, see #9). These men got on base some 30% of the time (plus errors etc) yet still managed to steal an ungodly amount of bases.

If you think Bert Campaneris is over-represented in this list, check out the full list. Campy comes up #11, too.

No, you can’t steal first base but when these guy DID get on, you could be pretty sure you had a man on second by the next batter.

Sunday baseball: the history of blue laws

I was searching around Google the other day and sorta got off track on what I was REALLY looking for as I’m prone do. The advantage of that is I tend to learn a lot. This time I picked up on the topic of blue laws and how they affected the sport of baseball. Man, how things have changed!

First, let’s start with a general definition of blue laws for the whippersnappers out there who aren’t familiar with the concept of blue laws.

Straight from Wikipedia:

A blue law is a type of law, typically found in the United States, designed to enforce religious standards, particularly the observance of Sunday as a day of worship or rest, and a restriction on Sunday shopping. Most have been repealed, have been declared unconstitutional, or are simply unenforced, although prohibitions on the sale of alcoholic beverages, and occasionally almost all commerce, on Sundays are still enforced in many areas. Blue laws often prohibit an activity only during certain hours and there are usually exceptions to the prohibition of commerce, like grocery and drug stores. In some places blue laws may be enforced due to religious principles, but others are retained as a matter of tradition or out of convenience

As to blue laws’ relevance to baseball, there were many cases where they were enforced to stop games on Sunday. It has been reported that as of 1906, five times that games took place on Sunday and the players or managers were arrested for violating the local code.

What were the particular reasons? The Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society web site has a very extensive article on “The Fight for Sunday Baseball in Philadelphia” (very well worth the read for those interested in the topic). According the article, legislators in the state assembly passed a law way back in 1794 was an Act for the prevention of vice and immorality, and of unlawful gaming, and to restrain disorderly sports and dissipation” on the Lord’s Day.

This law and more strict ones that were to follow influenced those who enforced these what were to be more commonly known as the “blue laws”.

Philadelphia is a good case study for the blue laws and how they affected the sport of baseball. According to PAHS, it wasn’t until 1934 when a legal game of baseball was played on Sunday. The other pro ballclubs were a little more lenient.

Professional Ballclub Cities and the Year Sunday Baseball was Legal

Chicago	1902
Cincinnati	1902
St Louis	1902
Cleveland	1918
Detroit	1918
New York	1918
Washington	1918
Boston	1929
Baltimore	1932
Philadelphia	1934

Professional ballclubs (and those in the East) weren’t the only ones who were affected by blue laws. While not widely publicized, it took its toll on minor leagues as well. The Nebraska Minor League website also has a good article detailing the history of playing games on Sunday. By the early 1900s, Nebraskan teams were being arrested for playing on the Sabbath. Some were playing knowing full well they were going to be arrested.

In 1903, a decision went to the Nebraska state supreme court. The court affirmed the earlier decision that made Sunday illegal.

Bit by bit through the mid 20th century, the blue laws were taken off the books. It wouldn’t surprise me though if some laws were still lingering on today, forgotten and just not being enforced.

Just something to think about as you’re about to sit down to watch some Sunday Baseball.

PS I found this humorous. There’s a vintage baseball team called the Winona Blue Laws. Clever.

Disco Sucks!

Thirty years ago a promotion at a major league baseball game went wrong, it went really wrong. Mike Veeck, son of White Sox owner at the time, Bill Veeck, the P.T. Barnum of promotions was in charge of promotions for the White Sox. Thirty years later, this promotion lives on, Disco Demolition was the brain child of 25 year old Loop disk jockey Steve Dahl & Mike Veeck. The Loop was a rock station in Chicago and disco, popular in some circles, was despised by rockers. Thus the promotion, bring a disco record to Comiskey Park, get in for a buck, and all of the disco records would be blown up by Dahl between games of a scheduled doubleheader between the White Sox and the Tigers.

Mike Veeck believed there would be a few fans, perhaps 1,000, who would take advantage of the promotion, and enjoy a cheap night out at the ole ballpark. He had no idea he would be remembered for coming up with the worst promotion in the history of the game, this coming from the son of a guy who batted a midget, Eddie Gaedel, in a major league game. Thousands of pot smoking disco haters showed up for the explosion between games, they couldn’t have cared less about baseball. There wasn’t enough security to handle the crowd, which soon overtook the ballpark.

They demolished the playing field, along with a few disco records, making the playing field unplayable for the second game, which was forfeited by the White Sox to the Tigers. Even the ever popular broadcaster Harry Caray and the infamous owner Bill Veeck’s pleas couldn’t get through to the stoner fans, who’d overtaken the field. As a young White Sox fan, I remember hoping the second game would be played, how embarrassing to lose a game by forfeit.

What do you remember about Disco Demolition Night?

Historic Ballparks and what happened to them

I’m fan about old baseball stadiums. Reading about their history, viewing what little photographs we have of them.

Chris Epting has put together a cool slideshow video of old photographs of historic baseball stadiums in their heyday and then comparing them with current photographs of the locations of where once stood. Sort of like VH1’s Where are they Now? but more depressing.

Sappy, sentimental, but poignant too for us amateur baseball historians.

Epting is the author of Roadside Baseball: The Locations of America’s Baseball Landmarks which I haven’t read yet but it is on my “to-get” list.

Breakdown of #1 picks in the First-Year Player Draft

Monday: Picked first in the first.

In one week, the 2009 First-Year Player Draft will take place. This year, the Washington Nationals will have the top the top pick.

How ‘bout some interesting facts/trivia about the very top picks in the 44 year history of the major league rookie draft?

Breakdown of High School/College?

Since Rick Monday was picked #1 by the A’s in 1965, 24 top picks were drafted out of high school and 20 were drafted out of college. That’s more coming out of the hallowed halls of learning than I thought, quite honestly.

Arizona State University had some good mojo going as far as the top pick goes. They are the only institution (high school or university) that has the honor of more than one #1 pick… and they have three! Monday, Floyd Bannister, who went to the Astros in 1976 and Bob Horner who got picked by Atlanta two years later all came from ASU.

Who are the only #1 picks that never made the majors?

LHP Brien Taylor picked by the Yanks in 1991 and Steve Chilcott who was chosen by the Mets in 1966 (the second year of the draft) never made it to the bigs. I’m giving Tim Beckham and Matthew Bush (2006 and 2004 picks respectively) a mulligan here. Let’s give them a chance.

Which #1 pick has played the most in the majors?

Whether you’re judging on games or at-bats, 1977 pick Harold Baines wins on both counts with 2830 games and 9908 at-bats. Ken Griffey comes in at a close second (2559 games, 9446 at-bats).

Among pitchers, Seattle’s first round pick in 1981, Mike Moore pitched in 450 major league games and won 161 games.

What position was picked the most as the top pick?

Not surprisingly, pitchers were high on the list,

C- 5
1B- 4
SS- 10
3B- 4
OF- 9
P- 13 (4 lefties, 9 righties)

Interestingly, no players were drafted as secondbasemen. Keep in mind that these figures are the positions they were drafted at not necessarily where they ended up playing. B.J. Surhoff at short? Hah!

Which teams had the most first picks since 1965?

No, it’s not the Rays (who had four). The San Diego Padres and New York Mets tied for this honor with five apiece.

How many top picks eventually became major league All-Stars?

Among the 44 first picks to date, twenty have appeared in a major league All-Star game. At this point, no first pick has gotten in the Hall of Fame but for my money, Ken Griffey Jr and Chipper Jones both have a good chance to make it. (update- Arod too, if voters forget about the PED thing).

Odd Black Mountain University Magnet

Solve this mystery for me. I found this refrigerator magnet (actually two of them) in my son’s room when cleaning his room with him. I have no idea where we got them.

With two bats crossed and a smiling bear in the middle, the text of it says:

Lady Bruins

1954

Black Mountain University

Fossil Conf. AAA Winter League

After a web search, the only possible result that matched was a Black Mountain College that was founded 1933 near Asheville, North Carolina. The school closed in 1957.

I couldn’t find anything on a Fossil Conf Winter League.

Keep in mind that it could either baseball or softball (I’m thinking softball).

Odd mystery and even odder that it would show up in my kid’s room.

Interesting Baseball Facts

speaker Tris Speaker hit more doubles than any other player in Major League history (792). Whose career record did he break?
A. Nap Lajoie (657).

Walter Johnson pitched 369 innings in 1916 without surrendering a home run!

I got these facts from my Chicago White Sox tear-off calendar.