Baseball Stories of Yore

[redsmetz]

I've been thinking of adding this thread as one folks can update as they come across a great story or perhaps a memorable game. What got me thinking about it was a story I came across when I saw the other day that Lou Gehrig was the first player in the 20th century to hit four home runs in a game. And I thought, someone hit four home runs in a game in the 19th century? Heck, some times players didn't hit four HR's in a season back then. So I looked it up and I'll share that in a separate thread.

We have so many knowledgeable fans on this site and folks come across great stories or anecdotes that I thought it would be fun to have spot for those. This isn't to supplant for example, the great line-up history thread or anything like that. I have two I'll share after I post this, both involving the Reds, although unfortunately we lost each game.

Enjoy!

[redsmetz]

The question came up in the thread about an Immaculate Inning about the possibility of a perfect game that's all three pitch strikeouts (how'd you like to take those odds, huh?) and I wondered about the fewest pitches thrown in a perfect game and I posted that in that thread. But while looking for that, I came across the shortest 9 inning game, both in time and in pitches. It was on August 10, 1944 at Crosley Field when the Boston Braves' Red Barrett outdueled Bucky Walters in a 2-0 win, throwing just 58 pitches in 1hour and 15 minutes time. There were only eight batters over the minimum and Walters only allowed one earned run. Heck, some of the folks might have had time to go back to work, right? BTW, HOF umpire Jocko Conlan was calling balls & strikes that day.

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/boxscore/08101944.shtml

[redsmetz]

While Gehrig was the first Modern Era player to hit four homers in a game, the feat was first accomplished on May 30, 1894, Memorial Day (or Decoration Day, as it was still some times called back then). The Reds played the Boston Beaneaters a doubleheader in Boston. In the second game, Bobby Lowe socked four home runs, as well as a single for a total of 17 bases in the game (both records at that time).

The Enquirer story on the 31st referred to our team as the "Porkopolis nine," writing about Lowe, they said, "the crowd saw some of the finest hitting ever seen in this country. Bobby Lowe broke all league records with four home runs in succession, and then by adding a single, making a total of 17 bases. The crowd cheered Bobby every time he came up, and when he responded wtih a home run even the visitors had to join in the good-natured smile."

I'm attaching the Enquirer article for your further enjoyment. I'm also attaching a follow up story from the Enquirer 22 years later in which Lowe extols his feat as better than what Ed Delahanty did in 1896 since his HR's were in succession. It gives some more details about the game.

[redsmetz]

I belong to a group on Facebook called Old Photos of Cincinnati. Today someone shared this unique view of Crosley Field, charter buses parked on Findlay Street looking west to the ballpark. The poster said this is from the 1940 season.

[Bob Borkowski]

I belong to a group on Facebook called Old Photos of Cincinnati. Today someone shared this unique view of Crosley Field, charter buses parked on Findlay Street looking west to the ballpark. The poster said this is from the 1940 season.

The parking around Crosley was not plentiful, as you might imagine. For that reason as a kid in the 50s I had the opportunity to ride the train with my grandpa and uncle several times from Aurora to Crosley. Man, pure excitement for a 10-year-old...rode the train to Union Terminal and then hot-footed it to Crosley to see most of a double-header (we usually had to leave early before the second game was over in order to catch our train). Also rode charter buses a time or two also. Great memories!

[redsmetz]

The parking around Crosley was not plentiful, as you might imagine. For that reason as a kid in the 50s I had the opportunity to ride the train with my grandpa and uncle several times from Aurora to Crosley. Man, pure excitement for a 10-year-old...rode the train to Union Terminal and then hot-footed it to Crosley to see most of a double-header (we usually had to leave early before the second game was over in order to catch our train). Also rode charter buses a time or two also. Great memories!

Was that the old CL&A? I'm thinking that rail line was defunct by then.

[Bob Borkowski]

Was that the old CL&A? I'm thinking that rail line was defunct by then.

I'm not sure if that was the CL&A or not. The train we rode came through Aurora around 10 am (on Sunday anyway) but I can't remember if we stopped in Lawrenceburg or not. Can't remember stopping anywhere really. But, heck, this was back in the early 1950s. Many moons ago. My memory becomes hazy.

[Brutus]

I yield my time to the gentleman, WOY.

[Always Red]

At a LaSalle HS stag about 7 years ago, I heard Mark Grace tell the most hilarious story ever about how he "had an accident" in his pants while playing 1B for the Cubs, and the hilarity that ensued. Grown men were crying, we were all laughing so hard.

But this is a much classier thread than that stag that night. I don't think I can tell the whole story here, unless maybe someone else from here was there that night to help me with it.

The evening ended with Tim Naehring taking the podium, with a beer in his hand, regaling the masses with one story after another. If you've never seen Naehring at a LaSalle stag, he's like Peter Pan in Neverland. They worship him there.

[redsmetz]

I'm using the term "yore" here very loosely, but I thought I'd share this photo. Last weekend, my wife and I headed to her hometown, Jefferson City, Missouri for her 40 year class reunion. Around the school cafeteria were various photos from throughout the schools history (founded in 1956 - actually the year many folks in my wife's class were born). As my wife and I were going around looking at them, we came on this and I was fairly sure it was a picture of the only player in their school to make the major leagues - our very own Sam LeCure. Later on, when I was showing it to her best friend's husband (also from Ohio and a Reds fan) and one of my wife's classmates confirmed it was a picture of Sam ("the best pitcher to every play here...").

[redsmetz]

I just came across this piece at random today while researching something unrelated to baseball. It's a preview article about the 1917 in which John McGraw the club that worries him most, although we ultimately split the season series with the Giants. The article talks about the Cardinals having given us fits the previous season and the hope that Miller Huggins moving on to manage the Yankees would give us some relief from those woes, but we had losing records against both the Cardinals in 1917, as well as the Phillies with both teams finishing ahead of us. The Giants essentially ran away with the title that years.

- - - Updated - - -

BTW, others should feel free to add tidbits they come across as well. This wasn't intended to just be my thing.

[redsmetz]

Been a while and I thought I'd share the back of this postcard someone posted on the group Old Photos of Cincinnati on Facebook. Here's what a little research showed:

Just looked it up and the Reds were off to a woeful start that season. The letter is postmarked at 11 p.m. on Apr 27th (a Sunday, BTW) and by that time they were already 2-9 on their way to finishing the month without another win (they did have two ties in April, as well). They finished the season in 7th place (out of 8), thankfully ahead of the Cardinals. The manager that year was future HOF'er Joe Tinker in his one season as player/manager (shortstop), having come over from the Cubs. Those of you who are baseball fans will recall him as part of the famed poetic trio of "Tinker to Evers to Chance." He was paid a princely sum of $10,000, according to Baseball-Reference.com, roughly equivalent to about a quarter of a million dollars. The Giants were the juggernaut team that season, under manager John McGraw and they beat us like a drum that year, as did 2nd place Philadelphia, both beating us 17 games out of the 22 we played that year. Tinker did bat .317 that season, good for 4th in the league, but well behind league leader Jake Daubert who batted .350. Daubert would later come over to the Reds for the 1919 championship season. Presumably Uncle John sent many a postcard like this one to his niece.

[redsmetz]

I was reading something this morning and I went to look for the most consecutive home runs in an inning (still haven't found that answer, unless it's just three), but I came across this game of the Reds versus the Giants from the Reds NL championship season of 1939. We took a shellacking in this one though - lost 17-3. The Giants hit seven home runs, including five in the 4th inning. Aside from Mel Ott and Tony Lazzeri, I didn't recognize any other players for the Giants. I wonder what RedsZone ver. 1939 would have had to say about this loss, even with the Reds still in first place. I'm attaching the story from the New York paper.

As an aside, while looking for the report on this game, I came across a story a few days later noting that Reds pitcher Paul Derringer had remained in Philadelphia because there was a warrant sworn out against him in New York for an $8000 injury claim from a fight he'd had with someone three years earlier. If he had come to NYC, who would have been arrested or had to post a bond which would have required him to stay in the county, hence him staying away.

[redsmetz]

All the talk about Price and CTR, made me curious to look in the Enquirer's archives for earlier examples of the type of writing that was typical. I searched "cincinnnati reds horrible" just to see what would come up. I came across this gem from the Jul 21, 1915 edition with the Reds mired in last place at that point. They would move up one slot by season's end, 20 games back from the Phils. Reds pitcher Rube Benton got slapped around a good bit that and was followed by a rookie reliever Limb McKenry (name spelled differently in story)

The headline (see photo) is broken down thusly:

HORRIBLE
Is the Only Adjective
Which Can Be Used to Describe Benton's Pitching
So the Reds Fall Before the Braves Once More
McKenery, the Recruit, Succeeds Rube and Can at Least Locate the Plate

The story itself, written by long time Enquirer sportswriter Jack Ryder (who, BTW, was the first paid head coach for OSU football) was equally scathing.

[Hmm, it's not allowing me to insert a photo]

[goreds2]

I heard a story in the 1980’s of a former Negro League player who was in a Major League clubhouse or somewhere nearby a batting practice cage. He asked, who is that hitting? There are only two players in my lifetime that I have heard that unique sound off the bat. Those two players he referred to was Babe Ruth and Josh Gibson. He stepped outside to view the batting practice hitter and it was Bo Jackson.