OT: Interesting baseball feats, crazy plays, etc

totallyradd

In the spirit of Will Ferrell playing all 10 positions for 5 teams yesterday (A tribute to Bert Campaneris' accomplishing the feat in 1965 - and to raise money for charity) what are some other players known for interesting feats during their career?

I came up with a few to get started:
Toby Harrah once played a double header at shortstop and not once touched the ball
Fernando Tatis once hit two grand slams in the same inning
Kevin Kouzmanoff is the only player to ever hit a grand slam on his first big league pitch
Dock Ellis once threw a no hitter on LSD
John Odom, a minor league pitcher, was once traded for 10 bats

LarkinCollector

Who was the little person that played for the Cards briefly and wore a fraction for his uni number? Smallest strike zone.

ETA: Eddie Gaedel #1/8, thanks Wikipedia.

mlbfan2

<< <i>Toby Harrah once played a double header at shortstop and not once touched the ball >>



I know that he didn't have any fielding chances, but he probably fielded a relay throw or two.


Don Mattingly hit 6 grand slams in 1987, and 0 in every other season.
The 1928 Boston Braves played nine straight doubleheaders.
On August 12th, 1966, Art Shamsky wasn't in the starting lineup, but he ended up hitting a home run in the bottom of the 8th, a home run in the bottom of the 10th, and a home run in the bottom of the 11th. His team still lost.

BostonAmericans

- Joel Youngblood git a base hit for two different teams in two different cities on the same day.
- Dwight Evans hit the first pitch of the MLB season (Red Sox - Tigers was first game on Opening Day) for a home run in 1986.
- Harry Chiti was the first player to be traded for himself (was traded for player to be named later and was that player).
- There have been instances of players getting their first hits/wins before they were called up when suspended games were completed after they were called up. The stats of the suspended game are for the date the game was originally played. Similarly, pitchers who were traded have been credited with wins for their former clubs while they were in another city. Just read Jayson Stark - his columns are full of that goofy stuff.

mcolney1

Don Mattingly playing 3rd base left handed
Herb Washington 105 games without batting, fielding or pitching

dennis07

"Joel Youngblood git a base hit for two different teams in two different cities on the same day"

Off of Fergie Jenkins and Steve Carlton no less!

gregmo32

I have to combine two sports for this one but it's worth it.

Up until roughly 1990 if you listed every player in major league history alphabetically, the first name would be ..........


Henry Aaron


At that same moment, if you listed every player in NBA history, the first name would be......


Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

At that time they were the all-time home run leader and all-time scoring leader respectively.

calaban7

George Stone in 1910 , for the STL Browns , had 40 RBI's , which is the lowest total to ever lead their team .------ Sonny

mlbfan2

<< <i>I have to combine two sports for this one but it's worth it.

Up until roughly 1990 if you listed every player in major league history alphabetically, the first name would be ..........

Henry Aaron

At that same moment, if you listed every player in NBA history, the first name would be......

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

At that time they were the all-time home run leader and all-time scoring leader respectively. >>



Not true, unfortunately. Kareem was never first alphabetically (Zaid Abdul-Aziz was).

Tabe

I still don't believe Dock Ellis was on LSD like he claims, especially since he's changed the story roughly 500 times.

Dave Kingman played for four teams in 1977.

JBrules

I believe that Buck Weaver still holds the record for the most consecutive foul balls (17). He did it against Babe Ruth back when he was a pitcher.

itzagoner

although quite commonly well-known, the offensive accomplishments of Ruth during the 1920 and 1921 baseball season are always fun to examine and compare.

Dialj

Tommie Aaron and Hank Aaron each hit a home run during the same inning of the same game on July 12, 1962 — a home run hitting feat not seen since 1932 when Lloyd Waner & Paul Waner did it in the same inning.

milbroco

I was at the game in Phjilly when Youngblood played his second game. I remember when they made the announcement when getting the hit.

milbroco

Richie Ashburn would intentionally hit foul balls in the area where his family and friends were in the stands.

Richie Ashburn once hit a lady with a foul ball and while she was being taken from the stands on a stretcher, hit her again on the same at bat.

Stooge

Rick And Paul Reuschel of the Chicago Cubs Combine To Blank The Dodgers 7-0. They are the only brother combination to pitch together in a game in which they throw a shutout in MLB history.

Rick and Paul Reuschel make history

Vinny Castilla of the Colorado Rockies did something that has never been done before or since in the history of baseball. He repeated his Batting Average, Homeruns and Runs Batted In in consecutive years. Here are the stats:

1996 season:
BA: .304
HR: 40
RBI: 113

1997 season:
BA .304
HR: 40
RBI: 113

Pretty amazing stuff!

gemint

Ned Garver won 20 games in 1951. His team, the St. Louis Browns, won 52 that season, meaning he won 38% of his team's games. He's the only pitcher in modern history to win 20 games for a 100 loss team and, at 20-12, the only pitcher in MLB history to do so with a winning record.

Piggs

I wonder if anyone will ever match the father/son homeruns in the same game feat done by the Griffey's? That was a memorable moment for sure.

BLUEJAYWAY

My favorite. When baseball player Jimmy Piersall hit his 100th homerun he ran the bases backwards. The correct direction, just backwards. This was but one of his many antics he was known for. Good movie about him, "Fear Strikes Out". He was played in the movie by Anthony Perkins of "Psycho' movie fame.

totallyradd

Both Randy Johnson and Dave Winfield killed birds during games. Johnson's is probably more famous as it was while he was pitching. Winfield's came while warming up between innings.

I wanna say some hitter had a homerun that hit and killed a bird as well (If my memory serves correctly, it was Cecil Cooper), though I couldn't find anything about that online, so maybe it was a myth.

Tabe

<< <i>Both Randy Johnson and Dave Winfield killed birds during games. Johnson's is probably more famous as it was while he was pitching. Winfield's came while warming up between innings.

I wanna say some hitter had a homerun that hit and killed a bird as well (If my memory serves correctly, it was Cecil Cooper), though I couldn't find anything about that online, so maybe it was a myth. >>


I seem to recall Willie Horton doing the same with a population.

skrezyna23

Rickey Henderson was Nolan Ryan's 5000th strikeout victim.
Don Mattingly went 1-9 in All-Star games but hit .417 in his only playoff series (1995).
Andre Dawson and Mark McGwire each hit 49 HRs in 1987.

zep33

<< <i>Kevin Kouzmanoff is the only player to ever hit a grand slam on his first big league pitch
>>



Daniel Nava - did it in 2010. I was at the game too

skrezyna23

<< <i>

<< <i>Kevin Kouzmanoff is the only player to ever hit a grand slam on his first big league pitch
>>



Daniel Nava - did it in 2010. I was at the game too >>



Daniel Nava's GS

Couldn't find Kouzmanoff's.

gregmo32

Damn, that was crushing to me. All these years, pre-internet, I blamed Alaa Abdelnaby for messing up a fantastic sports fact. I guess I owe him an apology

gregmo32

I think that this one is true.

In his Hall of Fame career, when facing Nolan Ryan, the great Frank Thomas was 0-12, with 11 K's.

Dakillo

Ned Garver won 20 games in 1951. His team, the St. Louis Browns, won 52 that season, meaning he won 38% of his team's games. He's the only pitcher in modern history to win 20 games for a 100 loss team and, at 20-12, the only pitcher in MLB history to do so with a winning record.


A close second to this record, yet proportionally more impressive, was Steve Carlton going 27-10 for the 1972 Phillies, who finished 59-97. That accounts for 45% of the team's wins.

psychump

Steve Garvey played only 5 seasons for the Padres,batted no higher than .294 and never hit more than 21 homers or drove in more than 86 runs. The club retired his number! If he'd had a good year,they'd have built a statue!

psychump

<< <i>Ned Garver won 20 games in 1951. His team, the St. Louis Browns, won 52 that season, meaning he won 38% of his team's games. He's the only pitcher in modern history to win 20 games for a 100 loss team and, at 20-12, the only pitcher in MLB history to do so with a winning record.


A close second to this record, yet proportionally more impressive, was Steve Carlton going 27-10 for the 1972 Phillies, who finished 59-97. That accounts for 45% of the team's wins. >>




Roger Clemens in '97 went 21-7 and won the Cy Young and the pitching triple crown for the last place Blue Jays. He has the best w-l pct. for a starter on a last place team.

mlbfan2

<< <i>

<< <i>Ned Garver won 20 games in 1951. His team, the St. Louis Browns, won 52 that season, meaning he won 38% of his team's games. He's the only pitcher in modern history to win 20 games for a 100 loss team and, at 20-12, the only pitcher in MLB history to do so with a winning record.

A close second to this record, yet proportionally more impressive, was Steve Carlton going 27-10 for the 1972 Phillies, who finished 59-97. That accounts for 45% of the team's wins. >>



Roger Clemens in '97 went 21-7 and won the Cy Young and the pitching triple crown for the last place Blue Jays. He has the best w-l pct. for a starter on a last place team. >>



Garver got very good run support in 1951, so his 100-loss team actually was a pretty good hitting team when he happened to be pitching.

Carlton obviously had a great season, but having 45% of the team's wins doesn't necessarily make it better. Think of it this way - if the other pitchers on his team had been much better, then he may have only had 25% of his team's wins. Would you then think *less* of his season? I wouldn't.

Ditto for Clemens.

It's not always harder for a very good pitcher to win games on a poor team. One pitcher on a poor team can still get very good run support and fielding.

Stooge

Hank Aaron's uniform number was #44.

He must have really loved that number...he hit 44 HRS 4x's in his career.

Pete Rose STARTED in an All-Star Game at 5 different positions. And in a career where most players are attempting to achieve 3,000 hits, Pete Rose has over 3,000 singles!

calaban7

<< <i>I think that this one is true.

In his Hall of Fame career, when facing Nolan Ryan, the great Frank Thomas was 0-12, with 11 K's. >>




This is true . I checked Retrosheet.org .

He did have " 1 " HBP . Ryan must have just wanted to rub it in .------ Sonny

psychump

I just read that "Pesky's Pole" in Fenway Park is named that because Johnny Pesky hit so many homers off it. But in his eight seasons as a Red Sox player,he only hit 6 homers at Fenway Park!

Ironmanfan

<< <i>

Dave Kingman played for four teams in 1977. >>



each of those four teams were in different divisions (Mets, Yankees, Padres & Angels)

IMF

psychump

When Don Drysdale's then-record fifty eight and two-thirds scoreless inning streak was broken in 1968,it was Howie Bedell's(?) run batted in that did it. It was his only RBI of the season!

Estil

This is from a related topic I did a couple years ago (I'll bring it back up if you guys would like) about some interesting career/season records or milestones that don't get hardly any attention:

Career: Walter Johnson's 110 shutouts - In Walter Johnson's time of course, pitchers were expected to go the distance and were only pulled for a relief pitcher if they got hurt or if they REALLY sucked. Nowadays however, with the advent of setup men and closers, a starting pitcher nowadays is lucky if he even gets a fourth that many complete games, let alone shutouts.

Season: Denny McLain's 30 win season (1968) - Obviously the five man rotation is the biggest obstacle. For a 162 game season, that's roughly 32 starts. So you could only get two losses/no-decisions to reach 30 wins. And again, with starters routinely leaving after seven innings (unless they're going for a no-hitter), it's a wonder pitchers can even still win the traditional magic number of 20 games a season.
Sidenote: Bob Welch in 1990 was the last 25 game winner. Again, if you get about 32 starts a season out of an average five man rotation, that only allows you seven losses or no decisions. Also not much of a margin of error.

Sandy Koufax becomes youngest Hall of Famer at 36 in 1972 - Koufax just beat out Lou Gehrig by five months (though in Gehrig's case he didn't have to wait five years) for the title of youngest HOFer. As everyone here knows, Koufax for his last five seasons was among the most brilliant pitchers the game has ever seen, including four no-hitters in four years and one being a perfecto, but was forced to retire early because of his arthritic pitching arm. There is no way this record will ever be broken, as too many things would have to happen for it to be possible. For example, if you have a player who gets into MLB at say, 20, and is killed at say, 34, and has HOF numbers, AND the HOF decides to waive the five year rule (which they can if the player passes away; they did for Clemente), but see, that's a LOT of "what ifs".

Unanimous HOF election (BBWAA vote only!) - I thought for sure that Nolan Ryan and especially Cal Ripken Jr would be the first player to be elected unanimously into the HOF (by the BBWAA) but they came up five and eight votes short respectively. Seriously, if they (or even Willie Mays!) can't get in unanimously, I don't think anybody will.

Same team having four consecutive Rookie of the Years - The Los Angeles Dodgers have had not once, but twice had at least four consecutive Rookie of the Years. The first time was in 1979-82 with Rick Sutcliffe, Steve Howe, Fernando Valenzuela, and Steve Sax. But not to be outdone, the Dodgers decided to do one better with five consecutive Rookies of the Year for 1992-96: Eric Karros, Mike Piazza, Raul Mondesi, Hideo Nomo, and Todd Hollandsworth (good luck fitting that on the back of the jersey!). Seriously, I don't think any other team has even had three straight ROY's, must less four or five.

Frank Thomas' SEVEN straight seasons of .300 BA/100 H's/100 R's/100 RBI's/290 TB's/20 HR's/100 BB's - Frank Thomas sure put the Big Hurt on consistency! In EVERY season from 1991-97, Big Frank had at least .308 BA, 141 H's, 102 R's, 101 RBI's, 291 TB's, 24 taters, and 109 BB's. No wonder he was #1 on the Beckett Hot List for 34 straight months!

NEW: Minnie Minoso playing in MLB in five different decades, professionally in seven - Minnie Minoso stands alone as the only player in modern MLB history (since 1901) to play in five different decades. More specifically, he played in 1949, 1951-64, 1976, 1980. Add to that him playing in the minor independent Northern League in 1993 and 2003 and that makes an additional two decades he's played professionally. The only other player to play MLB in five different decades was Nick Altrock (1898, 1902-09, 1912-19, 1924, 1931, 1933).

NEW: Rickey Henderson being on one team four non-consecutive times - Okay everybody knows Rickey as "the greatest of all time" in terms of stolen bases, runs scored, and walks (the swollen head asterisk guy doesn't count). But what makes Rickey even more fascinating is that he stands alone as being the only player to be on a team four non-consecutive occasions! You could say he's the "Grover Cleveland of baseball". More specifically his four terms with the Oakland Athletics are: 1979-84, 1989-93, 1994-95, 1998.

NEW: Billy Martin being manager of a team five non-consecutive times - Billy Martin and George Steinbrenner's "he loves me, he loves me not" relationship is fairly well known, but it fits with Rickey's accomplishment so we'll give Billy a tip of the hat. His five consecutive terms with the Yankees as manager are: 1975-78, 1979, 1983, 1985, 1988)

Estil

<< <i>Ned Garver won 20 games in 1951. His team, the St. Louis Browns, won 52 that season, meaning he won 38% of his team's games. He's the only pitcher in modern history to win 20 games for a 100 loss team and, at 20-12, the only pitcher in MLB history to do so with a winning record. >>



Is that anything like Spahn and Sain and pray for rain?

ClockworkAngel

<< <i>Steve Garvey played only 5 seasons for the Padres,batted no higher than .294 and never hit more than 21 homers or drove in more than 86 runs. The club retired his number! If he'd had a good year,they'd have built a statue! >>



Garvey's heroics against the Cubs in game 4 of the 1984 NLCS would be the biggest reason it was retired. Also, back in those days those were considered pretty good years. Not a lot of guts hitting 40 HRs in the mid 80's

Estil

<< <i>
- Harry Chiti was the first player to be traded for himself (was traded for player to be named later and was that player). >>



You think that's weird, how about Dave Winfield getting traded to the Indians in exchange for dinner?

royalbrett

<< <i>"Joel Youngblood git a base hit for two different teams in two different cities on the same day"

Off of Fergie Jenkins and Steve Carlton no less! >>



I knew he did this on the same day, but I did not know the pitchers. Very interesting.


I know this is a homer stat, but I doubt anyone will beat Brett's batting titles in three different decades (tie, maybe. Beat, no way).

psychump

All three starting outfielders for the 1894(!) Philadelphia Phillies hit over.400!
Billy Hamilton-.404
Sam Thompson-407
Ed Delahanty-.407
Their fourth outfielder,Tuck Turner outhit all three,batting .416 in 339 AB's.
All three starters made the Hall Of Fame but Tuck Turner never even became a regular.