Portal:Baseball
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The Baseball Portal
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding team, called the pitcher, throws a ball that a player on the batting team, called the batter, tries to hit with a bat. The objective of the offensive team (batting team) is to hit the ball into the field of play, away from the other team's players, allowing its players to run the bases, having them advance counter-clockwise around four bases to score what are called "runs". The objective of the defensive team (referred to as the fielding team) is to prevent batters from becoming runners, and to prevent runners' advance around the bases. A run is scored when a runner legally advances around the bases in order and touches home plate (the place where the player started as a batter).
The opposing teams switch back and forth between batting and fielding; the batting team's turn to bat is over once the fielding team records three outs. One turn batting for each team constitutes an inning. A game is usually composed of nine innings, and the team with the greater number of runs at the end of the game wins. Most games end after the ninth inning, but if scores are tied at that point, extra innings are usually played. Baseball has no game clock, though some competitions feature pace-of-play regulations such as the pitch clock to shorten game time.
Baseball evolved from older bat-and-ball games already being played in England by the mid-18th century. This game was brought by immigrants to North America, where the modern version developed. Baseball's American origins, as well as its reputation as a source of escapism during troubled points in American history such as the American Civil War and the Great Depression, have led the sport to receive the moniker of "America's Pastime"; since the late 19th century, it has been unofficially recognized as the national sport of the United States, though in modern times is considered less popular than other sports, such as American football. In addition to North America, baseball spread throughout the rest of the Americas and the Asia–Pacific in the 19th and 20th centuries, and is now considered the most popular sport in parts of Central and South America, the Caribbean, and East Asia, particularly in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. (Full article...)
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Morris Berg (March 2, 1902 – May 29, 1972) was an American professional baseball catcher and coach in Major League Baseball who later served as a spy for the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. He played 15 seasons in the major leagues, almost entirely for four American League teams, though he was never more than an average player and was better known for being "the brainiest guy in baseball." Casey Stengel once described Berg as "the strangest man ever to play baseball."
Berg was a graduate of Princeton University and Columbia Law School, spoke several languages, and regularly read ten newspapers a day. His reputation as an intellectual was fueled by his successful appearances as a contestant on the radio quiz show Information Please, in which he answered questions about the etymology of words and names from Greek and Latin, historical events in Europe and the Far East, and ongoing international conferences. (Full article...) -
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Lawrence Winchester Wetherby (January 2, 1908 – March 27, 1994) was an American politician who served as Lieutenant Governor and Governor of Kentucky. He was the first of only two governors in state history born in Jefferson County, despite the fact that Louisville (the county seat) is the state's most populous city. The second governor born in Jefferson County is the incumbent governor, Andy Beshear.
After graduating from the University of Louisville, Wetherby held several minor offices in the Jefferson County judicial system before being elected lieutenant governor in 1947. He was called Kentucky's first "working" lieutenant governor because Governor Earle C. Clements asked him to carry out duties beyond his constitutional responsibility to preside over the state Senate, such as preparing the state budget and attending the Southern Governors Conference. In 1950, Clements resigned to assume a seat in the U.S. Senate, elevating Wetherby to governor. Wetherby won immediate acclaim by calling a special legislative session to increase funding for education and government benefits from the state's budget surplus. In 1951, he won a four-year full term as governor, during which he continued and expanded many of Clements' programs, including increased road construction and industrial diversification. He endorsed the Supreme Court's 1954 desegregation order in the case of Brown v. Board of Education and appointed a biracial commission to oversee the successful integration of the state's schools. As chairman of the Southern Governors Conference in 1954 and 1955, he encouraged other southern governors to accept and implement desegregation. (Full article...) -
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Stanley Frank Musial (/ˈmjuːziəl, -ʒəl/; born Stanislaw Franciszek Musial; November 21, 1920 – January 19, 2013), nicknamed "Stan the Man", was an American baseball outfielder and first baseman. Widely considered to be one of the greatest and most consistent hitters in baseball history, Musial spent 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, from 1941 to 1944 and from 1946 to 1963, before becoming a first-ballot inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969.
Musial was born in Donora, Pennsylvania, where he frequently played baseball informally or in organized settings, and eventually played on the baseball team at Donora High School. Signed to a professional contract by the St. Louis Cardinals as a pitcher in 1938, Musial was converted into an outfielder and made his major league debut in 1941. Noted for his unique batting stance, he quickly established himself as a consistent and productive hitter. In his first full season, 1942, the Cardinals won the World Series. The following year, he led the NL in six different offensive categories and earned his first MVP award. He was also named to the NL All-Star squad for the first time; he appeared in every All-Star game in every subsequent season he played. Musial won his second World Series championship in 1944, then missed the 1945 season while serving in the Navy. After completing his military service, Musial returned to baseball in 1946 and resumed his consistent hitting. That year he earned his second MVP award and third World Series title. His third MVP award came in 1948, when he finished one home run short of winning baseball's Triple Crown. After struggling offensively in 1959, Musial used a personal trainer to help maintain his productivity until he decided to retire in 1963. (Full article...) -
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Stephen Crane (November 1, 1871 – June 5, 1900) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism and Impressionism. He is recognized by modern critics as one of the most innovative writers of his generation.
The ninth surviving child of Methodist parents, Crane began writing at the age of four and had several articles published by 16. Having little interest in university studies though he was active in a fraternity, he left Syracuse University in 1891 to work as a reporter and writer. Crane's first novel was the 1893 Bowery tale Maggie: A Girl of the Streets, generally considered by critics to be the first work of American literary Naturalism. He won international acclaim for his Civil War novel The Red Badge of Courage (1895), considered a masterpiece by different critics and writers. (Full article...) -
Image 5The 2004 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2004 season. The 100th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Boston Red Sox and the National League (NL) champion St. Louis Cardinals; the Red Sox swept the Cardinals in four games. The series was played from October 23 to 27, 2004, at Fenway Park and Busch Memorial Stadium, broadcast on Fox, and watched by an average of just under 25.5 million viewers. The Red Sox's World Series championship was their first since 1918, ending the Curse of the Bambino.
The Cardinals earned their berth into the playoffs by winning the NL Central division title, and had the best win–loss record in the NL. The Red Sox won the AL wild card to earn theirs. The Cardinals reached the World Series by defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in the best-of-five NL Division Series and the Houston Astros in the best-of-seven NL Championship Series. The Red Sox defeated the Anaheim Angels in the AL Division Series. After trailing three games to none to the New York Yankees in the AL Championship Series, the Red Sox came back to win the series, advancing to their first World Series since 1986. The Cardinals made their first appearance in the World Series since 1987. With the New England Patriots winning Super Bowl XXXVIII, the World Series victory made Boston the first city to have Super Bowl and World Series championship teams in the same year (2004) since Pittsburgh in 1979. The Red Sox became the third straight wild card team to win the World Series; the Anaheim Angels won in 2002 and the Florida Marlins won in 2003. (Full article...) -
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Arthur Joseph Houtteman (August 7, 1927 – May 6, 2003) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for 12 seasons in the American League with the Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians and Baltimore Orioles. In 325 career games, Houtteman pitched 1,555 innings and posted a win–loss record of 87–91, with 78 complete games, 14 shutouts, and a 4.14 earned run average (ERA).
Known on the sandlot for his pitching motion, Houtteman was signed by scout Wish Egan in 1945 at 17 years of age. He was recruited by major league teams, and joined a Tigers pitching staff that had lost players to injuries and World War II. After moving between the major and minor leagues over the next few years, he was nearly killed in an automobile accident just before the 1949 season. Houtteman rebounded from his injuries and went on to win 15 games that season and made his only All-Star appearance in the following year. (Full article...) -
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Albert Benjamin "Happy" Chandler Sr. (July 14, 1898 – June 15, 1991) was an American politician from Kentucky. He represented Kentucky in the U.S. Senate and served as its 44th and 49th governor. Aside from his political positions, he also served as the second Commissioner of Baseball from 1945 to 1951 and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. His grandson, Ben Chandler, later served as congressman for Kentucky's Sixth District.
A multi-sport athlete during his college days at Transylvania College, Chandler briefly considered a career in professional baseball before deciding to pursue a law degree. After graduation, he entered politics and was elected as a Democrat to the Kentucky Senate in 1927. Two years later, he was elected lieutenant governor, serving under Governor Ruby Laffoon. Chandler and Laffoon disagreed on the issue of instituting a state sales tax and when Chandler, the presiding officer in the state senate, worked to block the legislation, Laffoon's allies in the General Assembly stripped him of many of his statutory powers. The tax then passed by a narrow margin. Knowing that Laffoon would try to select his own successor at the Democratic nominating convention, Chandler waited until Laffoon left the state—leaving Chandler as acting governor—and called the legislature into session to enact a mandatory primary election bill. The bill passed, and in the ensuing primary, Chandler defeated Laffoon's choice, Thomas Rhea. He then went on to defeat Republican King Swope by the largest margin of victory for a Kentucky gubernatorial race at that time. As governor, Chandler oversaw the repeal of the sales tax, replacing the lost revenue with new excise taxes and the state's first income tax. He also enacted a major reorganization of state government, realizing significant savings for the state. He used these savings to pay off the state debt and improve the state's education and transportation systems. (Full article...) -
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The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the city's association with the music industry, specifically the "Nashville sound", a subgenre of country music which originated in the city in the mid-1950s. The team plays their home games at First Horizon Park, which opened in 2015 on the site of the historic Sulphur Dell ballpark. The Sounds previously played at Herschel Greer Stadium from its opening in 1978 until the end of the 2014 season. They are the oldest active professional sports franchise in Nashville.
Established as an expansion team of the Double-A Southern League in 1978, the Sounds led all of Minor League Baseball in attendance in their inaugural season and continued to draw the Southern League's largest crowds in each of their seven years as members. On the field, the team won six consecutive second-half division titles from 1979 to 1984 and won the Southern League championship twice: in 1979 as the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds and again in 1982 as the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. (Full article...) -
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Kenesaw Mountain Landis (/ˈkɛnɪsɔː ˈmaʊntɪn ˈlændɪs/; November 20, 1866 – November 25, 1944) was an American jurist who served as a United States federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death. He is remembered for his resolution of the Black Sox Scandal, in which he expelled eight members of the Chicago White Sox from organized baseball for conspiring to lose the 1919 World Series and repeatedly refused their reinstatement requests. His iron rule over baseball in the near quarter-century of his commissionership is generally credited with restoring public confidence in the game.
Landis was born in Millville, Ohio. Raised in Indiana, he became a lawyer, and then personal secretary to Walter Q. Gresham, the new United States Secretary of State, in 1893. He returned to private practice after Gresham died in office. (Full article...) -
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Ian Michael Chappell (born 26 September 1943) is a former cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. Known as "Chappelli", he is considered as one of the greatest captains the game has seen. He captained Australia between 1971 and 1975 before taking a central role in the breakaway World Series Cricket organisation. Born into a cricketing family—his grandfather and brother also captained Australia—Chappell made a hesitant start to international cricket playing as a right-hand middle-order batsman and spin bowler. He found his niche when promoted to bat at number three. Chappell's blunt verbal manner led to a series of confrontations with opposition players and cricket administrators; the issue of sledging first arose during his tenure as captain, and he was a driving force behind the professionalisation of Australian cricket in the 1970s. He was the captain of the Australian squad which finished as runners-up at the 1975 Cricket World Cup.
John Arlott called him "a cricketer of effect rather than the graces". An animated presence at the batting crease, he constantly adjusted his equipment and clothing, and restlessly tapped his bat on the ground as the bowler ran in. Basing his game on a sound defence learned during many hours of childhood lessons, Chappell employed the drive and square cut to full effect. He had an idiosyncratic method of playing back and across to a ball of full length and driving wide of mid-on, but his trademark shot was the hook, saying "three bouncers an over should be worth 12 runs to me". A specialist slip fielder, he was the fourth player to take one hundred Test catches. (Full article...) -
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Arthur Howey Ross (January 13, 1885 – August 5, 1964) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and executive from 1905 until 1954. Regarded as one of the best defenders of his era by his peers, he was one of the first to skate with the puck up the ice rather than pass it to a forward. He was on Stanley Cup championship teams twice in a playing career that lasted thirteen seasons; in January 1907 with the Kenora Thistles and 1908 with the Montreal Wanderers. Like other players of the time, Ross played for several different teams and leagues, and is noted for his time with the Wanderers while they were members of the National Hockey Association (NHA) and its successor, the National Hockey League (NHL). In 1911, he led one of the first organized player strikes over increased pay. When the Wanderers' home arena burned down in January 1918, the team ceased operations and Ross retired as a player.
After several years as an on-ice official, he was named head coach of the Hamilton Tigers for one season. When the Boston Bruins were formed in 1924, Ross was hired as the first coach and general manager of the team. He later coached the team on three separate occasions until 1945, and stayed as general manager until his retirement in 1954. Ross helped the Bruins finish first place in the league ten times and win the Stanley Cup three times; Ross personally coached the team to two of those victories. After being hired by the Bruins, Ross, along with his wife and two sons, moved to a suburb of Boston, and he became an American citizen in 1938. He died near Boston in 1964. (Full article...) -
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During the 1988 Major League Baseball season, pitcher Orel Hershiser of the Los Angeles Dodgers set the MLB record for consecutive scoreless innings pitched. Over 59 consecutive innings, opposing hitters did not score a run against Hershiser. During the streak, he averted numerous high-risk scoring situations. The streak spanned from the sixth inning of an August 30 game against the Montreal Expos to the 10th inning of a September 28 game against the San Diego Padres. The previous record of 58+2⁄3 innings was set by former Dodger pitcher Don Drysdale in 1968; as the team's radio announcer, Drysdale called Hershiser's streak as he pursued the new record. Pundits have described the streak as among the greatest records in baseball history, with one pundit ranking it among the greatest individual feats in American sports.
During the streak, the Elias Sports Bureau changed its criteria for the official consecutive scoreless innings record for starting pitchers from including fractional innings in which one or two outs had been recorded to counting only complete scoreless innings. Since the streak was active at the end of the 1988 season, it could have spanned two separate seasons. However, Hershiser yielded a run in his first inning of work in the 1989 season against the Cincinnati Reds, thus ending the streak at 59 consecutive scoreless innings pitched. The streak includes only innings pitched in the regular season, excluding eight scoreless innings Hershiser pitched to start Game 1 of the 1988 National League Championship Series on October 4 (unofficially extending his streak to 67 combined innings). Although he completed the ninth inning in each start, the streak's final game lasted 16 innings, of which he pitched only the first 10. Thus, Hershiser did not match Drysdale's record of six consecutive complete game shutouts. Like Drysdale's streak, the penultimate game of Hershiser's streak was a Dodgers–Giants game that featured a controversial umpire's ruling that saved the streak. (Full article...) -
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Nicholas James Adenhart (August 24, 1986 – April 9, 2009) was an American right-handed baseball starting pitcher who played parts of two seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In just four career games, Adenhart pitched 18 innings and posted a win-loss record of 1–0.
A graduate of Williamsport High School, Adenhart was highly touted as a high school prospect until an injury in his final game required Tommy John surgery. The Angels drafted him in the 14th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft, and began playing in their minor league system after the surgery was a success. He spent three full seasons in the minor leagues before making his major league debut on May 1, 2008. After appearing in three games, Adenhart spent the rest of 2008 in the minor leagues developing his skills, and in 2009 he earned a spot in the Angels' starting rotation. (Full article...) -
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During the 1912 baseball season, center fielder Ty Cobb of the Detroit Tigers was suspended for ten days after entering the spectator stands at New York's Hilltop Park during a game and physically assaulting Claude Lucker, a heckler. At the time, Cobb was among the biggest stars in the major leagues. American League president Ban Johnson suspended Cobb and fined him $50 ($1,600 in 2023).
Cobb had been Lucker's verbal target throughout the four-game series between the Tigers and New York Yankees. Facing a continued stream of insults and questioning about his racial ancestry, Cobb lost his temper in the fourth inning of the fourth game, on May 15, 1912. He raced into the stands, punching and kicking Lucker; Lucker had lost eight fingers in an industrial accident and could not defend himself. Cobb was ejected from the game. Johnson witnessed these events and suspended Cobb indefinitely. Since there were few protections for ballplayers at the time from insults and objects hurled by fans, many took Cobb's side, including his teammates. After defeating the Philadelphia Athletics on May 17, the Detroit players telegraphed Johnson that they would not play again until Cobb was reinstated; Johnson refused to do so. (Full article...) -
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Alfred Manuel Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989), commonly called "Billy", was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of the New York Yankees. First known as a scrappy infielder who made considerable contributions to the championship Yankee teams of the 1950s, he then built a reputation as a manager who would initially make bad teams good, before ultimately being fired amid dysfunction. In each of his stints with the Yankees he managed them to winning records before being fired by team owner George Steinbrenner or resigning under fire, usually amid a well-publicized scandal such as Martin's involvement in an alcohol-fueled fight.
Martin was born in a working-class section of Berkeley, California. His skill as a baseball player gave him a route out of his home town. Signed by the Pacific Coast League Oakland Oaks, Martin learned much from Casey Stengel, the man who would manage him both in Oakland and in New York, and enjoyed a close relationship with Stengel. Martin's spectacular catch of a wind-blown Jackie Robinson popup late in Game Seven of the 1952 World Series saved that series for the Yankees, and he was the hitting star of the 1953 World Series, earning the Most Valuable Player award in the Yankee victory. He missed most of two seasons, 1954 and 1955, after being drafted into the Army, and his abilities never fully returned; the Yankees traded him after a brawl at the Copacabana club in New York during the 1957 season. Martin bitterly resented being traded, and did not speak to Stengel for years, a time during which Martin completed his playing career with various teams. (Full article...)
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Image 2The NL champion New York Giants baseball team, 1913. Fred Merkle, sixth in line, had committed a baserunning gaffe in a crucial 1908 game that became famous as Merkle's Boner. (from History of baseball)
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Image 3By the 1860s Civil War, baseball (bottom) had overtaken its fellow bat-and-ball sport cricket (top) in popularity within the United States. (from History of baseball)
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Image 4The strike zone, which determines the outcome of most pitches, varies in vertical length depending on the batter's typical height while swinging. (from Baseball rules)
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Image 5Diagram of a baseball field Diamond may refer to the square area defined by the four bases or to the entire playing field. The dimensions given are for professional and professional-style games. Children often play on smaller fields. (from Baseball)
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Image 6In May 2010, the Philadelphia Phillies' Roy Halladay pitched the 20th major league perfect game. That October, he pitched only the second no-hitter in MLB postseason history. (from History of baseball)
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Image 7A New York Yankees batter (Andruw Jones) and a Boston Red Sox catcher at Fenway Park (from Baseball)
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Image 9Cover of Official Base Ball Rules, 1921 edition, used by the American League and National League (from Baseball rules)
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Image 11An Afghan girl playing baseball in August 2002 (from Baseball)
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Image 13Pick-off attempt on runner (in red) at first base (from Baseball rules)
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Image 14A well-worn baseball (from Baseball)
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Image 15A game from the Cantigas de Santa Maria, c. 1280, involving tossing a ball, hitting it with a stick and competing with others to catch it (from History of baseball)
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Image 16Cy Young—the holder of many major league career marks, including wins and innings pitched, as well as losses—in 1908. MLB's annual awards for the best pitcher in each league are named for Young. (from Baseball)
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Image 172013 World Baseball Classic championship match between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, March 20, 2013 (from Baseball)
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Image 18Pitchers are generally substituted during mound visits (team gatherings at the pitcher's mound). (from Baseball rules)
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Image 19Japanese-Americans spectating a World War II-era game while in an internment camp. America's ties to immigrants and to Japan have been deeply shaped by a shared baseball heritage. (from History of baseball)
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Image 22Jackie Robinson in 1945, with the era's Kansas City Royals, a barnstorming squad associated with the Negro American League's Kansas City Monarchs (from History of baseball)
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Image 23Two players on the baseball team of Tokyo, Japan's Waseda University in 1921 (from Baseball)
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Image 24Sadaharu Oh managing the Japan national team in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Playing for the Central League's Yomiuri Giants (1959–80), Oh set the professional world record for home runs with 868. (from History of baseball)
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Image 25Pesäpallo, a Finnish variation of baseball, was invented by Lauri "Tahko" Pihkala in the 1920s, and after that, it has changed with the times and grown in popularity. Picture of Pesäpallo match in 1958 in Jyväskylä, Finland. (from Baseball)
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Image 26Defensive positions on a baseball field, with abbreviations and scorekeeper's position numbers (not uniform numbers) (from Baseball)
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Image 27Baseball games sometimes end in a walk-off home run, with the batting team usually gathering at home plate to celebrate the scoring of the winning run(s). (from Baseball rules)
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Image 28A first baseman receives a pickoff throw, as the runner dives back to first base. (from Baseball)
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Image 29A pitcher handing off the ball after being taken out of the game during a mound meeting. (from Baseball)
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Image 30A batter follows through after swinging at a pitched ball. (from Baseball rules)
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Image 32Rickey Henderson—the major leagues' all-time leader in runs and stolen bases—stealing third base in a 1988 game (from Baseball)
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Image 33The standard fielding positions (from Baseball rules)
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Image 34The American Tobacco Company's line of baseball cards featured shortstop Honus Wagner of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1909 to 1911. In 2007, the card shown here sold for $2.8 million. (from Baseball)
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Image 36A runner sliding into home plate and scoring. (from Baseball)
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Image 38Baserunners generally stand a short distance away from their base between pitches, preparing themselves to either go back or steal the next base. (from Baseball rules)
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Image 39Sadaharu Oh managing the Japan national team in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Playing for the Central League's Yomiuri Giants (1959–80), Oh set the professional world record for home runs. (from Baseball)
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Image 40The strike zone determines the result of most pitches, and varies in vertical length for each batter. (from Baseball)
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Image 41Jackie Robinson in 1945, with the era's Kansas City Royals, a barnstorming squad associated with the Negro American League's Kansas City Monarchs (from Baseball)
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Image 421906 World Series, infielders playing "in" for the expected bunt and the possible play at the plate with the bases loaded (from Baseball rules)
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Image 43Alexander Cartwright, father of modern baseball (from History of baseball)
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Image 44Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox. The Green Monster is visible beyond the playing field on the left. (from Baseball)
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Image 45The typical motion of a right-handed pitcher (from Baseball rules)
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John Milton Warhop (July 4, 1884 – October 4, 1960) was an American baseball pitcher who played eight seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1908 to 1915 for the New York Highlanders / Yankees.
Considered by baseball insiders and historians as an unlucky pitcher, Warhop had a career 69–92 win–loss record, but with a 3.12 earned run average while playing for mostly second division Highlanders/Yankees teams. Of his 92 losses, the Yankees did not score a run in 23, and he holds the MLB record for losing the most 1–0 games with five in 1914. In 1915, Warhop allowed Babe Ruth's first two career home runs. He was released after the 1915 season and played a number of seasons in minor league baseball and semi-professional teams until his late 40s or early 50s. (Full article...) -
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Edgar Martínez (born January 2, 1963), nicknamed "Gar" and "Papi", is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player who is currently the hitting coach for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB as a designated hitter and third baseman for Seattle from 1987 to 2004. He served as the Mariners' hitting coach from 2015 to 2018, and currently in 2024. He has also been a hitting advisor with the Mariners from 2019 through 2024.
Martínez grew up in Dorado, Puerto Rico. Not highly regarded as a prospect, he signed with the Mariners as a free agent in 1982, and was given a small signing bonus. He made his major league debut in 1987, but did not establish himself as a full-time player until 1990, at age 27. In the 1995 American League Division Series, he hit "The Double", which won the series and increased public support for Mariners baseball as they attempted to fund a new stadium. He continued to play until 2004, when injuries forced him to retire. (Full article...) -
Image 3Jesse Roy Levan (July 15, 1926 – November 30, 1998) was an American professional baseball player. In a 14-season pro career, he appeared in Major League Baseball in 1947 with the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League and in 1954 and 1955 with the American League's Washington Senators. He was officially listed as standing 6 feet (180 cm) and weighing 172 pounds (78 kg). In 25 career major league games, Levan had a .286 batting average with a home run and five runs batted in (RBI).
Levan originally signed with the Phillies organization in 1944, then served in World War II after one season. He returned in 1947 and spent two games on the major league roster before returning to the minor leagues, where he won multiple minor league batting titles. He bounced around in various minor league organizations until 1954, when the Washington Senators picked him up. Levan spent the next two seasons with Washington before spending four years with the Chattanooga Lookouts. While in Chattanooga, Levan became the last person banned by baseball's governing organizations for conspiring to fix games, which ended his professional career. (Full article...) -
Image 4Julie Croteau (born December 4, 1970) is an American former college and professional baseball player. She is recognized as the first woman to regularly play men's National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) baseball, as well as the first woman to coach men's NCAA Division I baseball and one of the first women to play in a Major League Baseball-sanctioned league.
Croteau attended Osbourn Park High School in Manassas, Virginia, where she and her parents filed a sex discrimination lawsuit against the school to play baseball on the men's team, which she lost. In college, Croteau, a first basewoman, had a .222 batting average her freshman year as the St. Mary's Seahawks finished with a 1–20–1 win–loss–tie record. In 1994, she played for the all-women Colorado Silver Bullets in their inaugural season, where she batted .078 against semi-professional male competition; after the year, she played for the Maui Stingrays of the Hawaii Winter Baseball league. Her baseball glove and photo are on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. As of 2022[update], Croteau was on the staff of Stanford University. (Full article...) -
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Steven Jakob Matz (born May 29, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays. Matz was born and raised on Long Island and played baseball for Ward Melville High School in East Setauket, New York. The Mets drafted him directly out of high school in the second round of the 2009 MLB draft, with the 72nd overall selection.
The start of Matz's professional career was delayed two years due to Tommy John surgery needed for a tear in the ulnar collateral ligament of his throwing elbow. Matz made his professional debut in 2012 and spent three years in the Mets' minor leagues, helping lead the Savannah Sand Gnats and Binghamton Mets to championships. He was named the Mets' Organizational Pitcher of the Year in 2014. He made his MLB debut on June 28, 2015, breaking several hitting records in his first start. (Full article...) -
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Kristopher Lee Bryant (born January 4, 1992), nicknamed "KB", is an American professional baseball third baseman and outfielder for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants. Prior to playing professionally, Bryant attended the University of San Diego, where he played college baseball for the Toreros.
Bryant starred in baseball for Bonanza High School. In college, he was named an All-American in 2012 and 2013, and won the Dick Howser Trophy and Golden Spikes Award in 2013. The Cubs selected him with the second overall selection in the 2013 MLB draft, and he quickly became one of the top prospects in baseball, winning the USA Today Minor League Player of the Year Award and Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year Award in 2014. (Full article...) -
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Ned Franklin Garver (December 25, 1925 – February 26, 2017) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a right-handed pitcher for the St. Louis Browns (1948–1952), the Detroit Tigers (1952–1956), the Kansas City Athletics (1957–1960), and the Los Angeles Angels (1961). Garver and Irv Young are the only pitchers in the modern era of baseball (since 1901) to win 20 or more games for a team that lost 100 games.
A native of Ney, Ohio, Garver grew up rooting for the Tigers. Signed by the Browns in 1944, he reached the major leagues with the team in 1948. Poor run support contributed to his tying for the American League (AL) lead with 17 losses in 1949. However, in 1951, he posted a 20–12 record for the ballclub, during a season in which the Browns had a 52–102 record. Casey Stengel picked him to start the All-Star Game that year. (Full article...) -
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Victor Aldridge (October 25, 1893 – April 17, 1973), nicknamed "the Hoosier Schoolmaster", was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Giants, and was known to be an excellent curveball pitcher. Before his playing career he was a schoolmaster, hence his nickname. His most significant actions as a player occurred during the 1925 World Series, where Aldridge completed and won games two and five, only to have the most disastrous first inning in the seventh game of the World Series ever. After his retirement from baseball, he served as a state senator in the Indiana General Assembly. Aldridge is a member of the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame, inducted in 2007. (Full article...) -
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Kyle Rodney Kendrick (born August 26, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Colorado Rockies, and Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Kendrick was born in Houston, Texas but attended high school in Mount Vernon, Washington. While growing up, he was greatly influenced by his father, from whom he developed his composure when pitching. Upon graduation, Kendrick turned down a scholarship to play college football, instead signing a contract to begin his pro baseball career with the Phillies. After a slow ascent through Minor League Baseball (MiLB), he made his MLB debut in 2007, and was a member of the starting rotation of the 2008 World Series Championship team. (Full article...) -
Image 10Henry Gorham Crisp (December 10, 1896 – January 23, 1970) was an American football, basketball, baseball and track coach and college athletics administrator. In spite of an accident when he was 13 years old that resulted in the loss of his right hand, Crisp went on to letter in football, basketball and track at both Hampden–Sydney College and Virginia Tech – then known primarily as VPI.
After completing his collegiate career, Crisp began his long coaching career at the University of Alabama. There he served as the head basketball coach (1924–1942, 1945–1946), baseball coach (1928), track coach (1921–1927), as a line coach with the football team (1921–1941, 1945, 1950–1957) and as athletic director (1930–1940, 1954–1957). Crisp also served as an assistant and interim head coach with the Miami Seahawks (1946) and as a line coach at Tulane (1947–1949). (Full article...) -
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Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. (born August 24, 1960), nicknamed "the Iron Man", is an American former baseball shortstop and third baseman who played his entire 21-season career in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1981–2001). One of his position's most productive offensive players, Ripken compiled 3,184 hits, 431 home runs, and 1,695 runs batted in during his career, and he won two Gold Glove Awards for his defense. He was a 19-time All-Star and was twice named American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP), in 1983 and 1991.
Ripken holds the record for consecutive games played (2,632), having surpassed Lou Gehrig's streak of 2,130 which had stood for 56 years and which many deemed was unbreakable. (Full article...) -
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Guillermo Reynoso Mota (born July 25, 1973) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his career, he pitched for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, Cleveland Indians, New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers and San Francisco Giants. Mota is 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) tall and weighs 240 pounds (110 kg). He throws and bats right-handed. He throws three pitches: a fastball, a slider and a circle changeup.
Mota was originally signed by the New York Mets in 1990 as an infielder. After several years in their organization, he was drafted by the Montreal Expos in the Rule 5 draft in 1996 and converted into a pitcher in 1997. Mota had a 2.96 ERA in 1999, his rookie season, but he struggled in his next two seasons and was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers prior to 2002. His struggles continued in his first year with the Dodgers, but Mota had a career year in 2003, as he had a 6–3 record with a 1.97 ERA in 76 games. He became the setup man to closer Éric Gagné in 2004, but was traded to the Florida Marlins midseason. Mota started 2005 as their closer, but Todd Jones took over the role when Mota got hurt in April. Following the year, Mota was traded to the Boston Red Sox. (Full article...) -
Image 13Louis Henry Saban (October 13, 1921 – March 29, 2009) was an American football player and coach. He played for Indiana University in college and as a professional for the Cleveland Browns of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) between 1946 and 1949. Saban then began a long coaching career. After numerous jobs at the college level, he became the first coach of the Boston Patriots in the American Football League (AFL) in 1960. He joined the Buffalo Bills two years later, and led the team to consecutive AFL championships in 1964 and 1965. Saban was the first head coach to win multiple AFL championships, with only Hank Stram passing him. After serving briefly as head coach at the University of Maryland, he was hired as head coach of the Denver Broncos in 1967, where he remained for five years. Saban returned to the Bills—by then in the National Football League (NFL) following the AFL–NFL merger—from 1972 to 1976, reaching the playoffs once but failing to bring Buffalo another championship.
Following his departure from Buffalo, Saban returned to college coaching. He coached teams including the University of Miami, Army, University of Central Florida and Peru State College. He also coached at the high school level and for two Arena Football League teams. Saban switched jobs frequently and developed a reputation as an itinerant. At Central Florida, he was nicknamed Lou "two point two" Saban because he typically stayed in a coaching job for about 2.2 years. Saban initially dismissed this characterization, but came to accept it later in life. He held 21 coaching jobs during his 50-year career (lasting an average of 2.38 years for each job), which ended with a job at Chowan University in North Carolina between 2001 and 2002. Saban's combined record as a coach in the AFL and NFL was 95–99–7. His college football record was 94–99–4. Saban suffered from heart problems and had a fall in his home that required hospitalization in 2009. He died in March of that year. (Full article...) -
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Eric John Hosmer (born October 24, 1989) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago Cubs.
A highly touted prospect coming out of American Heritage High School in Florida, Hosmer was described as a "left-handed hitter with raw power" by scouts. The Royals selected him with third overall pick in the 2008 MLB draft, and he received a $6 million signing bonus. He advanced in Minor League Baseball before debuting in MLB during the 2011 season. He finished third in the Rookie of the Year balloting after the 2011 season after hitting .293 with 19 home runs in 128 games. Hosmer won consecutive Gold Glove Awards from 2013 through 2015 and again in 2017, when he also won the Silver Slugger Award. He was the MVP of the 2016 MLB All-Star Game, and was a member of the 2015 World Series champion Royals. (Full article...) -
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Christopher Lyn Davis (born March 17, 1986), nicknamed "Crush Davis", is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers and Baltimore Orioles. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. While primarily a first baseman throughout his career, Davis also spent time at designated hitter, third baseman, and outfielder.
Davis attended Navarro Junior College and was selected by the Rangers in the fifth round of the 2006 MLB draft. He ascended quickly through the Rangers' minor league system, getting named their Minor League Player of the Year in 2007. He was called up in the middle of 2008 and had a strong start to his major league career. He was the Rangers' starting first baseman for 92 games in 2009 and hit 21 home runs, but a low batting average and his tendency to strike out left the Rangers dissatisfied with him. Because of this, the Rangers sent Davis back and forth between the minors and the majors over the next two years and left him off their playoff roster in 2010. On July 30, 2011, they traded him to the Orioles. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) - load new batch
- ... that baseball statistician Bob Ferguson claimed that he became the owner of the London Majors "by accident"?
- ... that Cody Bellinger made a motion capture appearance in Assassin's Creed Valhalla as the Viking Otta Sluggasson, with Bellinger's own baseball bat serving as Sluggasson's weapon?
- ... that Major League Baseball pitcher Charlie Gray was billed as his team's pitcher "of six fingers and six toed fame" and called "a freak" by the Sporting Life?
- ... that baseball umpire Cece Carlucci made the umpiring equipment used in The Natural?
- ... that the 1999 video game Interplay Sports Baseball Edition 2000 used a public-address announcer while its rivals were switching to two commentators as featured on real MLB game broadcasts?
- ... that the only run scored by John Gamble was a game-winner?
- ... that Julie Croteau is credited as being the first woman to play National Collegiate Athletic Association men's college baseball?
- ... that Major League Baseball set a single-day record with $1.4 billion in new player contracts the day before the 2021 lockout was set to begin?
Quotes
Two-thirds of the Earth is covered by water. The other third is covered by Garry Maddox.
— Ralph Kiner, broadcaster for the New York Mets
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The Boston Red Sox are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Boston, Massachusetts. From 1912 to the present, the Red Sox have played in Fenway Park. The "Red Sox" name originates from the iconic uniform feature. They are sometimes nicknamed the "BoSox", a combination of "Boston" and "Sox" (as opposed to the "ChiSox"), the "Crimson Hose", and "the Olde Towne Team". Most fans simply refer to them as the Sox.
One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Boston in 1901. They were a dominant team in the early 20th century, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first World Series in 1903. They won four more championships by 1918, and then went into one of the longest championship droughts in baseball history. Many attributed the phenomenon to the "Curse of the Bambino" said to have been caused by the trade of Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees in 1920. The drought was ended and the "curse" reversed in 2004, when the team won their sixth World Series championship. Championships in 2007 and 2013 followed. Every home game from May 15, 2003, through April 10, 2013, was sold out—a span of 820 games over nearly ten years. The team most recently won the World Series in 2018, the ninth championship in franchise history. (Full article...) -
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In baseball, a run batted in (RBI) is awarded to a batter for each runner who scores as a result of the batter's action, including a hit, fielder's choice, sacrifice fly, sacrifice bunt, catcher's interference, or a walk or hit by pitch with the bases loaded. A batter is also awarded an RBI for scoring himself upon hitting a home run. Sixteen players have batted in at least 10 runs in a single Major League Baseball (MLB) game to date, the most recent being Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 19, 2024. No player has accomplished the feat more than once in his career and no player has ever recorded more than 12 RBIs in a game. Wilbert Robinson was the first player to record at least 10 RBIs in a single game, driving in 11 runs for the Baltimore Orioles against the St. Louis Browns on June 10, 1892.
As of 2024[update], every team that has had a player achieve the milestone has won the game in which it occurred. These games have resulted in other single-game MLB records being set due to the prodigious offensive performance. Robinson, for example, also amassed seven hits in that same game, setting a new major league record that has since been tied by only one other player. Mark Whiten hit four home runs to complement his 12 RBIs for the St. Louis Cardinals on September 7, 1993, tying the single-game records in both categories. By attaining both milestones, he became one of only two players to hit four home runs and drive in 10 or more runs in the same game, with Scooter Gennett being the other. Tony Lazzeri, Rudy York, and Nomar Garciaparra hit two grand slams during their 10 RBI game, equaling the record for most grand slams in one game. Norm Zauchin has the fewest career RBIs among players who have 10 RBIs in one game with 159, while Alex Rodriguez, with 2,086, drove in more runs than any other player in this group and hit the third most in major league history. (Full article...) -
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The Los Angeles Angels are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in Anaheim, California. They play in the American League (AL) West division. Since the institution of Major League Baseball's Rule 4 Draft in 1965, the Angels have selected 62 players in the first round. Officially known as the "First-Year Player Draft", the Rule 4 Draft is Major League Baseball's primary mechanism for assigning amateur players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings, with the team possessing the worst record receiving the first pick. In addition, teams which lost free agents in the previous off-season may be awarded compensatory or supplementary picks.
Of the 66 players drafted by the Angels, 29 have been pitchers, the most of any position; 18 of these were right-handed, while 11 were left-handed. Fourteen outfielders, eight shortstops, four third basemen, and four first basemen were also taken. No second basemen have been selected. Thirteen of the players came from high schools or universities in the state of California, while Florida follows with six players. Four players have been selected from both Illinois and Georgia. All players selected have been from the United States. The franchise has made five selections in the same draft three times, in 1986, 2009, and 2010. (Full article...) -
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The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the Bronx, a borough of New York City. Also known as "the Bronx Bombers" and "the Pinstripers", the Yankees play in the East Division of Major League Baseball's (MLB) American League (AL). In its 121 MLB seasons, the franchise has won 27 World Series championships, the most of any MLB team and 16 more than the second-place St. Louis Cardinals. The Yankees played home games in Yankee Stadium from 1923 to 2008, except for a stint at Shea Stadium from 1974 to 1975 while Yankee Stadium was undergoing renovations. In 2009, the team moved into a new ballpark, which is also called Yankee Stadium.
The Baltimore Orioles began play in the AL in 1901. After two seasons, the Orioles were replaced by a club in New York; it is unclear whether it was an expansion team or a relocated version of the Orioles. Frank Farrell and William S. Devery purchased the franchise, naming it the New York Highlanders. In 1913, the team changed its name to the Yankees. From 1921 to 1964, the Yankees were the most successful MLB franchise, winning 20 World Series titles and 29 AL pennants. This period included streaks of four consecutive championships from 1936 to 1939 and five straight titles from 1949 to 1953. (Full article...) -
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The Tip O'Neill Award is given annually to a Canadian baseball player who is "judged to have excelled in individual achievement and team contribution while adhering to the highest ideals of the game of baseball." The award was created by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and first presented in 1984. It is named after James "Tip" O'Neill, one of the earliest Canadian stars in Major League Baseball (MLB).
Larry Walker, Jason Bay, Joey Votto, and Justin Morneau are the only players to win the Tip O'Neill Award at least three times. Walker won the award nine times, and Votto has won it seven times. Six winners – Walker, Bay, Terry Puhl, Rob Ducey, Ryan Dempster, and Corey Koskie – are members of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. The award has been presented to one amateur player, Daniel Brabant. Walker, Votto, and Justin Morneau won the MLB Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award alongside the Tip O'Neill Award; the trio are the only Canadians to win the MLB MVP Award. Éric Gagné, the 2002 and 2003 recipient, compiled a major league record of 84 consecutive save opportunities converted from 2002 to 2004 and won the Cy Young Award in 2003. He and John Axford went on to win the Rolaids Relief Man Award in the same year as the Tip O'Neill Award. Bay became the first Canadian to win the Rookie of the Year Award, which he won the same year he won his first Tip O'Neill Award. Votto is the only award winner to also win the Hank Aaron Award. (Full article...) -
Image 6Statistics current through September 10, 2024 (Full article...)
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Image 7The St. Louis Cardinals, a professional baseball franchise based in St. Louis, Missouri, compete in the National League (NL) of Major League Baseball (MLB). Founded in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association (AA), the team was originally named the Brown Stockings before it was shortened to Browns the next season. The team moved to the National League in 1892 when the AA folded. The club changed its name to the Perfectos for one season in 1899 and adopted the Cardinals name in 1900. The St. Louis Cardinals are tied with the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates as the third-oldest continuously operated baseball team.[a] In that time, the team has won 19 National League pennants and 11 World Series championships (most in the National League and second only to the New York Yankees, who have won 27). They also won four American Association pennants and one pre-World Series championship that Major League Baseball does not consider official.
The Cardinals had six periods of continued success during their history. The first period occurred during the 1880s when the team won four consecutive American Association pennants from 1885–1888 while known as the Browns. The Cardinals next found success from 1926–1934 when they played in five World Series, winning three. During World War II the Cardinals won four NL pennants in five years from 1942–1946, including three World Series championships. During the 1960s the Cardinals won two World Series and played in another. In the 1980s the Cardinals played in three World Series, winning in 1982. Most recently, the Cardinals have made the playoffs nine times, winning seven NL Central titles and qualifying as a wild-card entrant in 2001, 2011 and 2012, winning the World Series in 2006 and 2011. (Full article...) -
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The Los Angeles Dodgers are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in Los Angeles. They play in the National League West division. The first game of the new baseball season for a team is played on Opening Day, and being named the Opening Day starter is an honor, which is often given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season, though there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day. The Dodgers have used 26 different Opening Day starting pitchers in their 67 seasons in Los Angeles. The 26 starters have a combined Opening Day record of 29 wins, 27 losses and 10 no decisions.
The Dodgers started playing in Los Angeles in 1958, after moving from Brooklyn. The first Opening Day game for the Dodgers in Los Angeles was played in San Francisco against the San Francisco Giants on April 15, 1958. California native Don Drysdale was the Dodgers' Opening Day starting pitcher that day, in a game the Dodgers lost 8–0. Dodgers starting pitchers won both of their Opening Day starts in their first home ballpark in Los Angeles, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. (Full article...) -
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The Silver Slugger Award is awarded annually to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League (AL) and the National League (NL), as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball (MLB). These voters consider several offensive categories in selecting the winners, including batting average, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage, in addition to "coaches' and managers' general impressions of a player's overall offensive value". Managers and coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their own team. The Silver Slugger was first awarded in 1980 and is given by Hillerich & Bradsby, the manufacturer of Louisville Slugger bats. The award is a bat-shaped trophy, 3 feet (91 cm) tall, engraved with the names of each of the winners from the league and plated with sterling silver.
From 1980 to 2019, and in 2021, a Silver Slugger Award for designated hitters (DH) was only given in the American League, because use of a DH in place of the pitcher in the batting order was prohibited in the National League; a Silver Slugger Award for pitchers was given for the National League instead. In the 2020 season, the National League temporarily allowed use of the designated hitter, and no pitcher was awarded the Silver Slugger Award. An award was given instead to the best designated hitter in the National League. The first NL Silver Slugger Award for designated hitter was given to Marcell Ozuna. Beginning in 2022, the pitcher Silver Slugger Award was retired after MLB announced the full-time implementation of the universal DH rule in both leagues. The Silver Slugger Award for DH is now awarded in both leagues. (Full article...) -
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The Major League Baseball All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award that is presented to the most outstanding player in each year's MLB All-Star Game. Awarded each season since 1962 (two games were held and an award was presented to each game winner in 1962), it was originally called the Arch Ward Memorial Award in honor of Arch Ward, the man who conceived of the All-Star Game in 1933. The award's name was changed to the Commissioner's Trophy in 1970, but this name change was reversed in 1985 when the World Series Trophy was renamed the Commissioner's Trophy. Finally, the trophy was renamed the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player Award in 2002, in honor of former Boston Red Sox player Ted Williams, who had died earlier that year. No award was presented for the 2002 All-Star Game, which ended in a tie. Thus, the Anaheim Angels' Garret Anderson was the first recipient of the newly named Ted Williams Award in 2003. The All-Star Game Most Valuable Player also receives a Chevrolet vehicle.
As of 2023[update], NL players have won the award 28 times (including one award shared by two players), and American League (AL) players have won 33 times. Baltimore Orioles players have won the most awards for a single franchise (with six); players from the Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants are tied for the most in the NL with five each. Five players have won the award twice: Willie Mays (1963, 1968), Steve Garvey (1974, 1978), Gary Carter (1981, 1984), Cal Ripken Jr. (1991, 2001), and Mike Trout (2014, 2015, becoming the only player to win the award in back-to-back years). The award has been shared by multiple players once; Bill Madlock and Jon Matlack shared the award in 1975. Two players have won the award for a game in which their league lost: Brooks Robinson in 1966 and Carl Yastrzemski in 1970. One pair of awardees were father and son (Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr.), and another were brothers (Roberto Alomar and Sandy Alomar Jr.). Three players have won the MVP award at a game played in their home ballpark (Sandy Alomar Jr. in 1997, Pedro Martínez in 1999, and Shane Bieber in 2019). Derek Jeter is the only player to win the All-Star Game MVP and World Series MVP in the same season, doing so in 2000. (Full article...) -
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The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. The award has been presented by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) since 1931. (Full article...) -
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The Texas Rangers are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. They play in the American League West division. Before 1972 (and for the first seven years of the draft), they were known as the Washington Senators and based in Washington, D.C. Since the institution of MLB's Rule 4 Draft, the Rangers franchise has selected 68 players in the first round. Officially known as the "First-Year Player Draft", the Rule 4 Draft is MLB's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur baseball clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings, with the team possessing the worst record receiving the first pick. In addition, teams which lost free agents in the previous off-season may be awarded compensatory or supplementary picks.
Of the 71 players picked in the first round by Washington or Texas, 37 have been pitchers, the most of any position; 27 of these were right-handed, while 10 were left-handed. Twelve outfielders, nine third basemen, six shortstops, four catchers, two first basemen, and one second baseman were also taken. Fourteen of the players came from high schools or colleges in the state of Texas, and California follows with ten players. The Rangers have drafted one player, Tanner Scheppers in 2009, who was playing in the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball at the time of the draft. Scheppers was originally drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 29th round of the 2005 MLB Draft, and by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the second round of the 2008 MLB Draft. (Full article...) -
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The Minnesota Twins are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the American League Central division. Since the institution of MLB's Rule 4 Draft, the Twins have selected 70 players in the first round. Officially known as the "First-Year Player Draft", the Rule 4 Draft is MLB's primary mechanism for assigning players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur clubs to its franchises. The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings, with the team possessing the worst record receiving the first pick. In addition, teams which lost free agents in the previous off-season may be awarded compensatory or supplementary picks.
Of the 70 players picked in the first round by Minnesota, 30 have been pitchers, the most of any position; 22 of these were right-handed, while 8 were left-handed. Twelve outfielders were selected, while twelve shortstops, seven third basemen, four catchers, four first basemen and one player at second base were taken as well. Thirteen of the players came from high schools or universities in the state of California, and Florida follows with nine players. The Twins have drafted six players from Arizona, including five players from Arizona State University. (Full article...) -
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This is a list of seasons completed by the Toronto Blue Jays, based in Toronto, Ontario, and a member of Major League Baseball's (MLB) American League East Division. Since June 5, 1989, the Blue Jays have played in the Rogers Centre (called the "SkyDome" until February 2, 2005). Before that, they played at Exhibition Stadium. They played their 2020 season at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The name "Blue Jays" was chosen via a contest in 1976 from among more than 4,000 suggestions.
The Blue Jays made their MLB debut during the 1977 baseball season, as an expansion team. They first made the playoffs in 1985, by capturing the American League East Division, but lost the American League Championship Series (ALCS) in seven games to the Kansas City Royals. The team returned to the playoffs in 1989, where they lost to the Oakland Athletics in the ALCS in five games, and again in 1991, where once more the Blue Jays were defeated in the ALCS in five games, this time by the Minnesota Twins. (Full article...) -
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The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) and concludes the MLB postseason. First played in 1903, the World Series championship is a best-of-seven playoff and is a contest between the champions of baseball's National League (NL) and American League (AL). Often referred to as the "Fall Classic", the modern World Series has been played every year since 1903 with two exceptions: in 1904, when the NL champion New York Giants declined to play the AL champion Boston Americans; and in 1994, when the series was canceled due to the players' strike. The best-of-seven style has been the format of all World Series except in 1903, 1919, 1920, 1921, when the winner was determined through a best-of-nine playoff. Although the large majority of contests have been played entirely during the month of October, a small number of Series have also had games played during September and November. The Series-winning team is awarded the Commissioner's Trophy. Players, coaches and others associated with the team are generally given World Series rings to commemorate their victory; however, they have received other items such as pocket watches and medallions in the past. The winning team is traditionally invited to the White House to meet the President of the United States.
A total of 119 World Series have been contested through 2023, with the AL champion winning 68 and the NL champion winning 51. The New York Yankees of the AL have played in 40 World Series, winning 27 – the most championship appearances and most victories by any team amongst the major North American professional sports leagues. The Dodgers of the NL have the most losses with 14, while the Yankees have the most losses among AL teams with 13. The St. Louis Cardinals have won 11 championships, the most championships among NL clubs and second-most all-time behind the Yankees, and have made 19 total appearances, third-most among NL clubs. The Dodgers have represented the NL the most in the World Series with 21 appearances. The Seattle Mariners are the only MLB franchise that has never appeared in a World Series; the Milwaukee Brewers, San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Rays, and Colorado Rockies have all played in the Series but have never won it, with the Padres and the Rays appearing twice. The Los Angeles Angels and Washington Nationals are the only teams who have won their only World Series appearance, and the Toronto Blue Jays and Miami Marlins are the only teams with multiple World Series appearances with no losses. The Toronto Blue Jays are the only franchise from outside the United States to appear in and win a World Series, winning in 1992 and 1993. The Houston Astros are the only franchise to have represented both the NL (2005) and the AL (2017, 2019, 2021, 2022), winning the Series in 2017 and 2022. The 1919 and 2017 world series were both marred with cheating scandals: the Black Sox Scandal and the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal. The most recent World Series champions are the Texas Rangers. (Full article...)
More did you know
- ... that the San Francisco Giants drafted Brock Bond when they meant to draft Casey Bond?
- ... that Eddie Gillette led the Wisconsin Badgers football team to an undefeated season and in baseball "beat some of the best pitchers in the 'Three-Eye League'"?
- ... that the 2005 book Baseball Before We Knew It brought new evidence of the origins of baseball into play?
- ... that in baseball, no Gold Glove Award-winning catcher posted an errorless season until Charles Johnson and Mike Matheny accomplished the feat twice in six years?
- ... that Bob "Horse" Reynolds founded the Los Angeles Angels baseball team and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame within a year?
- ... that Red Snapp was considered the "king of the minor leagues"?
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Major League Baseball has several blackout rules. Games are blacked out based on two criteria:
- A local broadcaster has priority to televise games of the team in their market over national broadcasters.
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