Feast or famine- The last couple of days have been pretty sparse- today is going to look like a term paper.
Reds:
Ron Gant (47) - Thinking of him in his Reds year, it's hard to remember that he came up as a second baseman. A broken leg in a 1994 ATV wreck robbed him of his speed, but he came back in a big way in 1995 with the Reds, winning Comeback Player of the Year.
Tim Layana -Reds Rule 5 pick from the Yankees; he pitched for the 1990 Reds but was not activated for the postseason. Died in a car crash in 1999.
Cal Abrams -Wore uniform number 18 for most of his career because it represented the Hebrew word for "life". A Red in 1952; later traded for Gus Bell. He died in 1997 and was buried in his old Brooklyn Dodgers uniform.
Others:
Pete Broberg (62) -He was only the fifth player to go directly from the draft to the major leagues. HIs dad was an All-American basketball player at Dartmouth.
Jim Konstanty -He could have gone in the Reds section but his Reds career was pretty brief, and he's by far better known for his Phillie career, which included an improbable 1950 MVP win with the Whiz Kids. It would be about as much of a surprise as if Nick Masset won the MVP this year...
Mort Cooper -Cardinal pitcher who formed a battery with his brother Walker for a number of years. He won the MVP in 1942 by winning 22 with an ERA of 1.78; it was the lowest ERA for an NL starter between 1920 and 1967.
Mel Ott -Lots of good stuff about Mel. Despite being only 5'9" he was a feared power hitter- the first NL player to hit 500 homers. He was also one of only five players to be intentionally walked with the bases loaded. He led the Giants in homers for 18 consecutive years. Ony six NL players have played with the same team for 20 or more consecutive years; they are Ott, Anson, Musial, Stargell, Gwynn and Biggio.
Woody English -Cubs shortstop from Licking County, Ohio. After high school he took a job with the Pure Oil Company, started playing for the company team and was spotted by a scout. He had huge hands; they embarrassed him as a child and he used to sit on them to hide them. Later, they became quite an asset for a shortstop.
Moe Berg -I'm guessing most of you know about Moe, possibly the smartest man to play major league baseball. In his latter years he went kind of Bobby Fischer-ish; he lived with relatives, didn't hold any kind of job, and seemed to retreat into the world of his reading.
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Originally Posted by chicoruiz
