Baseball

[W. Gray]

The youngest player ever to play in the major leagues was fifteen-year-old ninth grade pitcher Joe Nuxhall in 1944. He allowed five walks and five runs before relieved. His major league career, however, lasted until 1966.

The oldest player ever to play in a major league game was Satchel Paige, a pitcher for the Kansas City Athletics at age 59 in 1965. He threw three scoreless innings in his only game.

Other older pitchers were Nick Altrock, playing at age 56; Hoyt Wilhelm, 49, Phil Niekro, 48, and Noland Ryan, 46. Roger Clemons is still active at 45.

Hoyt Wilhelm won 124 games as a reliever, which is still a record. Both Wilhelm and Niekro were knuckleballers. A knuckleball is supposed to be difficult to control but once mastered helps with a pitcher's longevity.

The oldest position player was Minnie Minoso, 57, who played in five different decades.

[W. Gray]

The Colorado Rockies last night honored the family of Mike Coolbaugh. Coolbaugh was the first base coach for the Tulsa Drillers killed by a line drive in a July 2007 game with the Arkansas Travelers.

The only major league player killed in a game was Ray Chapman, shortstop for the Cleveland Indians in 1920. He was hit and killed by a pitched ball.

Some folks might remember Herb Score the minor league phenom for the Indianapolis Indians in the early 1950s. He was called up by the Cleveland Indians and became a twenty game major league winner. He was hit in the eye by a line drive in 1957 and although he recovered, he was never able to retain his pitching ability. He became Cleveland's baseball announcer until the late 1990s.

[Diane Amberg]

My goodness Waldo, shouldn't he have immediately become an umpire? They are always accused of being sight impaired.

[W. Gray]

He actually regained 20/20 eyesight but as he pitched he was always wary of being hit again.

He lost his confidence and could not perform like he once could.

[W. Gray]

Most folks probably know by now the umpires stopped the Colorado Rockies-Arizona Diamondbacks National League playoff game last night in Phoenix. The Rockies were called off the field until booing Arizona fans quit throwing bottles and other trash on the field.

These highly disappointed and incensed fans were protesting an umpire's decision that resulted in a called two outs. Additionally, a player who had advanced to third was called back to second. Arizona was suffering an offensive drought at the time, which they never overcame.

An Arizona base runner tried to take out the second baseman with a body block in order to prevent a double play. The umpire called interference and ruled two outs.

At the time, I thought the Arizona tactic was legitimate. When tagging second base for an out, the second baseman has always been fair game and the runner always tries to take him out with spikes flying or by tripping him up, etc., when there is the possibility of a double play. Anything to keep him from throwing to first base.

Apparently, there has been a recent change in rules in order to make the field of play safer.

[Janet Harrington]

And they say baseball is a safe game.  Yeah, right.

[Diane Amberg]

It's a good thing it wasn't our poor Phillies, they might have thrown cheese steaks!

[W. Gray]

I had wanted to watch the World Series from my easy chair here in Centennial. Instead, I watched it from Howard.

As the Rockies were being trounced, I thought back to the glory days of baseball. At one time, the team with the best record in each league went to the World Series. If you were the best in your league that was all there was to it—no playoffs.

However, the second, third, and fourth place teams shared in World Series receipts. Each player and manager on each of these teams got a share of World Series money without even playing. Players in the second place teams received a larger share than third place players. Third place players shares were larger than fourth place. That arrangement was to keep these teams playing at their utmost best in September rather than just giving up when their team was eliminated from winning their league pennant.

There were only eight teams in each league and baseball teams were concentrated in just a few cities. Chicago had, and still has, two teams. Boston had two; Philadelphia had two; and St. Louis had two. New York had three.

Around 1954, Arnold Johnson gained control of the Philadelphia Athletics when Connie Mack died. He moved his new team further west than any team had ever gone before—Kansas City. Fourteen years later, the Athletics moved on to Oakland.

The St Louis Browns moved east becoming the Baltimore Orioles.

The Boston Braves moved to Milwaukee and later to Atlanta.

Brooklyn Dodgers moved to L.A. and the New York Giants moved to San Francisco.

The lowliest of the low, the Washington Senators, moved to Minneapolis.

Introduction of the Boeing 707 had a lot to do with the westward expansion.

Football fans may be interesting in hearing that the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees were once football teams in what is now the NFL.