Baseball: Past and Present

During the 1950s decade Carl Erskine, the right-handed starting pitcher who played his entire career for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers, pitched two of the league’s seven no hitters. Erskine’s gems came on June 19, 1952 against the Chicago Cubs and on May 12, 1956 against the New York Giants. For curious historians, the [...]

Looking back at Bob Feller’s outstanding pitching career, one unresolved question keeps turning over in my mind. In 1954, Feller was an integral part of the Cleveland Indians pitching staff. Anchored by Bob Lemon (23-7, 2.72) Early Wynn (23-11, 2.73), and Mike Garcia (19-8, 2.64), the Indians also had two spot starters that added depth [...]

In 1956, Sport Magazine surveyed all 16 major league managers to find out who they picked as their most reliable clutch hitters. For the most part, the answers were predictable. Casey Stengel chose Yogi Berra; Pinky Higgins, Ted Williams; Bill Rigney, Willie Mays and Fred Hutchinson, Stan Musial. Some responses were surprising. Cincinnati Redlegs’ pilot [...]

I’m pleased to offer the latest article from regular contributor Joe Guzzardi, which offers a look at former minor league baseball club, the Minneapolis Millers. ______________ The 2010 Minnesota Twins came and went from the playoffs so quickly that I didn’t have an opportunity to fit in the blog I wanted to post about its [...]

Here’s the latest article from regular contributor Joe Guzzardi. One thing I like about Joe is that he is unafraid to take on unpopular ideas. We’re kind of kindred spirits in that regard. Here’s an idea that may have been accepted truth 10 years ago but places Joe in a distinct minority now. ________________ Bert [...]

This post was written by Joe Guzzardi, who contributes articles here every Wednesday and Saturday. ________________ During the mid-1950s when the New York Yankees consistently fielded championship-caliber teams, Whitey Ford anchored the pitching staff. But each year, the Yankees would have a hurler pop out from obscurity, pitch effectively for one or two seasons, then [...]

Here is the latest guest post from Joe Guzzardi, a regular Wednesday and Saturday contributor. ______________ Several years after he retired, Mickey Mantle told reporters that his one baseball regret was he played too long. In his final 1968 season, Mantle hit .237. Had Mantle retired in 1967, when his .245 batting average made it [...]

I’m pleased to present this guest post from Joe Guzzardi. I recently announced that I’m asking readers, other baseball writers, and anyone else interested to vote on the 50 best players not in the Hall of Fame. Today, Joe writes about one of the 300 players on the super ballot for this project. My SABR [...]

I’m pleased to present the latest guest post from regular contributor Joe Guzzardi on Dick Groat who, like Dave DeBusschere, Danny Ainge, and a few other people listed below was a baseball player who also played basketball. Or was it the other way around? ____________ During last week’s pre-game analysis of the 2K Coaches vs. [...]

I’m pleased to present this guest post from Joe Guzzardi, who regularly contributes Wednesday and Saturday articles here. Due to technical issues, today’s post is a little later than usual but worth the wait. It highlights Sam Jethroe, a forgotten Negro League great, and Eddie Klepp, who also played in that league– as a white [...]