Al Reach (1840)
Lip Pike (1845)
Tip O’Neill (1858)
Joe Judge (1894)
Martin Dihigo (1905)
Lindsey Nelson (1919)
Bill Sharman (1926)
Jim Marshall (1931)
W. P. Kinsella (1935)
Glenn Borgmann (1950)
John Montefusco (1950)
Bob Knepper (1954)
Kerwin Danley (1961)
Bill Haselman (1966)
Dave Hollins (1966)
Joey Eischen (1970)
Todd Walker (1973)
Miguel Tejada (1974)
Chris Young (1979)
Scott Hairston (1980)
Jason Kubel (1982)
Eric Young (1985)
Pat Dean (1989)
Neil Ramirez (1989)

Al Reach played major league baseball from 1871-1875.  He later founded the A. J. Reach Company, which was the largest sporting goods company in the United States at one time (it eventually merged with Spalding).  This company also published the Reach Guide, an influential baseball publication, from 1883-1927.

Martin Dihigo was a star in the Negro Leagues, winning 250 games as a pitcher and also winning two batting titles.

Lindsey Nelson was one of the most famous broadcasters in the country at one time.  He broadcast New York Mets games from 1962-1978 and San Francisco Giants games from 1979-1981.

Basketball Hall of Famer Bill Sharman was a minor league outfielder from 1950-1953 and in 1955, reaching AAA with St. Paul.

W. P. Kinsella has written several books on baseball, most notably "Shoeless Joe" the book on which the movie "Field of Dreams" was based.

Kerwin Danley has been a major league umpire since 1998.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–May 25 →

Dummy Hoy (1862)
Deacon Phillippe (1872)
Zack Wheat (1888)
Halsey Hall (1898)
Arch McDonald (1901)
Willis Hudlin (1906)
Augie Galan (1912)
Lawrence Ritter (1922)
Clyde King (1924)
Skip Bertman (1938)
Tom Penders (1945)
Reggie Cleveland (1948)
Buck Showalter (1956)
Ricky Gutierrez (1970)
Ramon Ortiz (1973)
Mike Gonzalez (1978)
Mike Dunn (1985)
Jordan Zimmerman (1986)
Kyle Barraclough (1990)

Deacon Phillippe was the winning pitcher in the first World Series game.  He lived in what would become the state of South Dakota from 1875-1896, where his family farmed near the town of Athol.

Legendary sportswriter and broadcaster Halsey Hall broadcast Twins games from 1961-72.

Arch McDonald was an early baseball broadcaster known for his re-creations of games.

Author Lawrence Ritter wrote the excellent book, "The Glory of Their Times".

Skip Bertman was the head baseball coach at LSU from 1984-2001.

College basketball coach Tom Penders played minor league baseball for the Indians in 1968.

Kyle Barraclough was drafted by Minnesota in the fortieth round in 2011 but did not sign.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–May 23 →

Al Simmons (1902)
Terris McDuffie (1910)
Jose Valdivielso (1934)
Ron Piche (1935)
Rich Garcia (1942)
Walt Hriniak (1943)
Tommy John (1943)
Jim Colborn (1946)
Jose Mesa (1966)
Al Levine (1968)
Julian Tavarez (1973)

Terris McDuffie pitched from 1930-1954, playing in the Negro Leagues, the Cuban Winter League, the Mexican League, the Puerto Rican League, the Dominican League, the Venezuelan League, the California Winter League, and the minor leagues.  His biography at b-r.com is worth reading.

Rich Garcia was an American League umpire from 1975-1999.

Tommy John was one of the Twins’ television broadcasters from 1994-1996.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–May 22 →