As part – an immense, electrifying part – of the 1971 Giants push to an NL West crown, Bobby Bonds made his first All-Star Game, picked up his first Gold Glove and finished fourth in MVP voting. The 25-year-old also finished in the top-seven in the NL in both home […]
In 1923, while helping guide a Reds pitching staff to the best ERA In the Major Leagues, backstop Bubbles Hargrave also made an immense etching on the offensive side, posting a .333/.419/.521 line. The effort not only gave the 31-year-old a place among the top-10 in the NL in all […]
Late in the Giants’ season in 1923, first baseman George Kelly came to the plate five times, and, in the old refrain, “fell a triple shy of the cycle.” No matter, for Kelly, instead, homered three times in an exquisite 5-for-5 day at the plate. The performance marked only the […]
In 1982, Expos teammates Andre Dawson and Al Oliver each finished the year with 67 extra-base hits. The spotlight hasn’t been swiveled in their direction for any pure, numerical reason, but for where that number stood in relation to all the other extra-base hit figures produced by the NL’s batsmen: […]
Since the NL and AL started tussling in the Midsummer Classic, 30 pitchers have been able to take a breath at the pause to the season and pridefully point to already owning at least 15 wins. Bob Feller was the first to have this chance, way back in 1941 when […]
In 1963, outfielder Leon Wagner produced 26 home runs for his Angels club. It was a strong number, good enough to tie Daddy Wags for ninth in the AL, but was also a fairly steep drop from the previous season, when the first-time All-Star clocked 37. Wagner’s tally in ’63 […]