Frank Baker’s famous sobriquet, “Home Run,” flew into the baseball consciousness for his efforts in the 1911 World Series, when the third baseman touched Rube Marquard and Christy Mathewson for longballs in back-to-back games. The one off Mathewson came in Game 3, and arrived in the top of the ninth […]
During the 1995 regular season, the Cleveland Indians averaged 5.8 runs per game while winning 69 percent of their contests. This combination had last been seen (and perhaps ducked away from) in 1939, when the Yankees of Joe DiMaggio, Charlie Keller, Bill Dickey, Red Rolfe, Joe Gordon and George Selkirk […]
By the time he was able to play ball under some World Series bunting, Ted Kluszewski was a few weeks past his 35th birthday, nearing the end of his career, playing for his third team in as many years. He’d make his initial stride across the biggest stage one to […]
At the end of their spectacular journey in 1970, the World Champion Baltimore Orioles could look at their collective postseason work (a sweep against the Twins in the ALCS, a five-game hold over the Reds in the Fall Classic) and point to and acknowledge a few standout individual batting performances: […]
There are 185 instances of a postseason batter – perhaps surrounded by bunting, perhaps hearing extra jeers or cheers from a crowd feeling the intensity, perhaps extra-energized by the heightened tension that seems to come with every delivery from mound to dish – generating at least two home runs in […]
On the season’s final day in 1980, the Royals skipped to a 4-0 win, able to generate the offense even without that season’s AL MVP – George Brett – in the lineup. Taking the day off, Brett finished the year short in his pursuit of being the first batter since […]
In 1924, Herb Pennock went 21-9 for the Yankees to become the franchise’s first 20-game winning southpaw. The honorific would be handed off – one Hall of Famer to another – to Lefty Gomez, who rang up a quartet of 20-win seasons in the 1930s (including a pair of Triple […]
When Arizona hosted San Diego on August 7, 2010, the visitors were clearly the superior team: first in the NL West, a full 22 games ahead of the cellar-dwelling Diamondbacks. But, at least for this particular day, the Padres had little shot, for they didn’t have Chris Young (at least […]
As all things stand on this June 5, 2025 morning, current Royals catcher/first baseman/DH Salvador Perez is tied with the forever face of the franchise George Brett for the most career multi-homer games in the franchise’s history. Perez holds an uncommon position as this season unfolds – he’s one of […]