Tag Archives: Hall of Famers

Happy Birthday–February 17

Pat Pieper (1886)
Nemo Leibold (1892)
Wally Pipp (1893)
Ed Brandt (1905)
Red Barber (1908)
Rod Dedeaux (1914)
Roger Craig (1930)
Cliff Gustafson (1931)
Dick Bosman (1944)
Dave Roberts (1951)
Jamie Easterly (1953)
Mike Hart (1958)
Michael Jordan (1963)
Scott Williamson (1976)
Cody Ransom (1976)
Juan Padilla (1977)
Josh Willingham (1979)

Pat Pieper was the public address announcer for the Chicago Cubs from 1916-1974.  For the first sixteen of those years, he made the announcements with a megaphone.

Rod Dedeaux and Cliff Gustafson were highly successful college baseball coaches, Dedeaux with USC and Gustafson with Texas.

Already known as a basketball star, Michael Jordan played one year of minor league baseball for AA Birmingham in the White Sox organization before returning to the less-challenging sport.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 17

Happy Birthday–February 15

Sliding Billy Hamilton (1866)
Charlie Irwin (1869)
Jimmy Ring (1895)
George Earnshaw (1900)
Larry Goetz (1900)
Lorenzo Ponza (1915)
Chuck Estrada (1938)
Ron Cey (1948)
Rick Auerbach (1950)
Joe Hesketh (1959)
Mark Davidson (1961)
Melido Perez (1966)
Ugueth Urbina (1974)
Alex Gonzalez (1977)
Luis Ugueto (1979)
Russell Martin (1983)

Lorenzo Ponza invented the modern pitching machine.

Larry Goetz was a National League umpire from 1936-1957.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 15

Happy Birthday–February 14

Joe Gerhardt (1855)
Arthur Irwin (1858)
Morgan Murphy (1867)
Candy LaChance (1870)
Bob Quinn (1870)
Earl Smith (1897)
Mel Allen (1913)
Red Barrett (1915)
Len Gabrielson (1940)
Ken Levine (1950)
Larry Milbourne (1951)
Will McEnaney (1952)
Dave Dravecky (1956)
Alejandro Sanchez (1959)
John Marzano (1963)
Kelly Stinnett (1970)
Damaso Marte (1975)

Bob Quinn was a long-time executive for the St. Louis Browns, the Boston Red Sox, and the Boston Braves.  He was later the director of the Hall of Fame.

Ken Levine has been a broadcaster for Baltimore, San Diego, and Seattle.  He has also worked on a number of television programs, notably including "Cheers" and "Frazier".

John Marzano was drafted by Minnesota in the third round in 1981, but he did not sign.

We would also like to wish a very happy birthday to Mother 6.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 14

Happy Birthday–February 12

Pants Rowland (1879)
Chick Hafey (1903)
Dom DiMaggio (1917)
Joe Garagiola (1926)
Pat Dobson (1942)
Mike Martin (1944)
Ray Corbin (1949)
Lenny Randle (1949)
Don "Full Pack" Stanhouse (1951)
Cam Bonifay (1952)
Chet Lemon (1955)
Greg Johnston (1955)
Joe Bitker (1964)
Ryan Lefebvre (1971)
Chris Snyder (1981)
Cole De Vries (1985)

Clarence "Pants' Rowland spent his life in baseball.  A catcher, he went on to manage the Chicago White Sox to the World Championship in 1917.  He was an American League umpire from 1923-1927.  He was also a minor league manager and executive, and was president of the Pacific Coast League from 1944-1954.  He is a member of the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame.

Mike Martin has won over 1,800 games as the head coach of Florida State.

Cam Bonifay was the general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1993-2001 and is currently working in the Cincinnati organization.

Ryan Lefebvre appeared in six minor league games for the Watertown Indians in 1993.  He was a Twins broadcaster in the 1997 and 1998 before moving to Kansas City in 1999, where he has been a broadcaster for the Royals ever since.

Joe Bitker was drafted by Minnesota in the sixth round in the 1984 January draft, but he did not sign.

This is a great day for players with colorful nicknames.  In addition to those listed above, we have Sweetbread Bailey (1895), Kiddo Davis (1902), Dutch Dietz (1912), and Monk Dubiel (1918).

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 12

Happy Birthday–February 10

Horace Wilson (1845)
Jim Keenan (1858)
Curt Welch (1862)
Billy Evans (1884)
Herb Pennock (1894)
Bill Adair (1913)
Allie Reynolds (1917)
George Sobek (1920)
Randy Jackson (1926)
Billy O'Dell (1933)
Dick Bogard (1937)
Jim Barr (1948)
Larry McWilliams (1954)
Lenny Dykstra (1963)
Lenny Webster (1965)
Jayhawk Owens (1969)
Alberto Castillo (1970)
Bobby Jones (1970)
Kevin Sefcik (1971)
Lance Berkman (1976)
Cesar Izturis (1980)
Duke Welker (1986)
Liam Hendriks (1989)
Max Kepler (1993)

Horace Wilson was an American professor English at Tokyo University.  He is credited with introducing baseball to Japan in either 1872 or 1873.

Billy Evans was the youngest umpire in major league history, starting his career at age 22.  He was an American League umpire from 1906-1027.  He would later become general manager of the Cleveland Indians and the Detroit Tigers, and was president of the Southern Association from 1942-1946.

Bill Adair was a long-time minor league player (1935-1956) and manager (1949-1973).  He also was the scout credited with signing Andre Dawson and Tim Raines.

George Sobek was a long-time scout for the White Sox, credited with signing Denny McLain, Steve Trout, and Mike Squires.  He also played in the NBA and was a long-time college basketball referee.

Another long-time scout, Dick Bogard played in the minors for six years, managed for three, and was a scout for nearly thirty years, mostly for Houston and Oakland.  He is credited with signing Walt Weiss, Jason Giambi, and Ben Grieve.

Jim Barr was drafted six different times before finally signing.  Minnesota drafted him in the sixth round of the January Secondary draft in 1970, but he did not sign.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 10

Happy Birthday–February 9

Harry Pulliam (1864)
Heinie Zimmerman (1887)
Specs Toporcer (1899)
Bill Veeck (1914)
Jodie Phipps (1918)
Vic Wertz (1925)
Erv Palica (1928)
Clete Boyer (1937)
Eddie Solomon (1951)
Mookie Wilson (1956)
Pete O'Brien (1958)
John Kruk (1961)
Doug Linton (1965)
Todd Pratt (1967)
Vladimir Guerrero (1975)
Dioner Navarro (1984)

Harry Pulliam was president of the National League from 1903-1909.

Bill Veeck was the owner of the Cleveland Indians (1946-49), St. Louis Browns (1951-53), and Chicago White Sox (1958-61, 1975-81).

Pitcher Jodie Phipps played in the minors from 1939-1957, winning 275 games.  He also managed in the minors for seven seasons.

We would also like to wish a happy birthday to LBR.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 9

Happy Birthday–February 5

Bill Rariden (1888)
Max Flack (1890)
Roger Peckinpaugh (1891)
Joan Payson (1903)
Jack Murphy (1923)
Don Hoak (1928)
Al Worthington (1929)
Hank Aaron (1934)
Norm Miller (1946)
Mike Heath (1955)
Roberto Alomar (1968)
Eric O'Flaherty (1985)
Mark Hamburger (1987)

Joan Payson was the original owner of the New York Mets.

Jack Murphy was a longtime sportswriter in San Diego who helped bring the Padres to the city.  The baseball stadium was named in his honor for many years until the naming rights were sold.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 5

Happy Birthday–February 3

Lou Criger (1872)
Slim Sallee (1885)
Larry MacPhail (1890)
Joe Stripp (1903)
Buck Ross (1915)
Dick Tracewski (1935)
Joe Coleman (1947)
Bake McBride (1949)
Fred Lynn (1952)
Ronald Williamson (1953)
Fred Toliver (1961)
Joe Klink (1962)
Scott Klingenbeck (1971)
Skip Schumaker (1980)
B. J. Garbe (1981)

Larry MacPhail was the general manager of Cincinnati (1933-36) and Brooklyn (1938-42) and was president and part-owner of the Yankees (1946-47).  His son Lee MacPhail was president of the American League and his grandson Andy MacPhail was the general manager of the Twins (1985-94) and the president of the Cubs (2000-02) and the Orioles (2007-present).

Ronald Williamson was a catcher in the Oakland organization from 1971-1973.  In 1988, he was found guilty of murder and sentenced to death.  He was cleared in 1999 through DNA testing and became the subject of John Grisham’s first non-fiction book, “The Innocent Man.”  Williamson passed away from cirrhosis in 2004.

Outfielder B. J. Garbe was chosen by the Twins with the fifth pick of the 1999 draft.  He was with the Twins through 2004, ended his career in 2006, and never got higher than AA.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–February 3

Happy Birthday–February 2

Orval Overall (1881)
George Halas (1895)
Willie Kamm (1900)
Wes Ferrell (1908)
Red Schoendienst (1923)
George Toma (1929)
Don Buford (1937)
Max Alvis (1938)
Dale Murray (1950)
John Tudor (1954)
Pat Tabler (1958)
Buddy Biancalana (1960)
Scott Erickson (1968)
Melvin Mora (1972)
Adam Everett (1977)
Ronny Cedeno (1983)

Logan Darnell (1989)

Better known as a football coach, George Halas was an outfielder and played in 12 games for the Yankees in 1919.

Groundskeeper George Toma is a charter member of the Groundskeepers' Hall of Fame.  It is to be hoped that he will eventually be a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame as well.

We would also like to wish a very happy birthday to meat and to Mama SoCal.

 Right-hander Scott Gavin Erickson pitched for the Twins from 1990-1995.  Born in Long Beach, California, he attended high school in Cupertino, California and then went to the University of Arizona.  He was drafted by the Twins in the fourth round in 1989.  Erickson pitched very well in the minors, but did not stay there long, making his major league debut in June of 1990.  He was apparently ready, as he went 8-4, 2.87 in seventeen starts at age 22.  The next year was the best of his career:  he was 20-7, 3.18, made the all-star team, finished second in Cy Young voting, and was seventeenth in MVP balloting.  He also began to experience some arm trouble, a problem that would plague him the rest of his career.  He had another solid year in 1992, but then his effectiveness as a Twin was pretty much over.  Erickson had back-to-back seasons with an ERA over five, leading the league in losses in 1993.  His ERA was again over five in July of 1995 when he was traded to Baltimore for Scott Klingenbeck and a player to be named later (Kimera Bartee).  He struggled at first as an Oriole but then got things back together, going 16-7, 3.69 in 1997.  In 1998, Erickson led the league in starts, complete games, and innings pitched.  He was still decent in 1999, but after that seven years of pitching over 200 innings (plus another when he pitched 196) finally took their toll.  He struggled through an injury-plagued 2000 campaign, going 5-8 in the three months that he was healthy enough to pitch.  Erickson missed all of 2001 due to injury, tried to comeback in 2002 and didn't pitch well, and missed all of 2003 due to injury.  He then struggled through three more years, pitching for the Mets and Rangers in 2004, the Dodgers in 2005, and the Yankees in 2006.  He also was in the minors for part of each of those seasons before finally calling it a career.  He attempted a comeback in 2008, but after pitching in Mexico decided he could not pitch well enough to continue.  As a Twin, Scott Erickson was 61-60, 4.22 in 153 starts and nearly a thousand innings.  He had his ups and downs, but at his best he was a very good pitcher.  He is a member of the University of Arizona Sports Hall of Fame.  Scott Erickson is currently the owner of a movie production company called HomeTeam Productions.  He was the pitching coach of the Carolina Mudcats (Cleveland, A) in 2012 and was the pitching coach of the AZL Indians in 2013.  He has gotten involved with real estate development with the Diamante Golf Club in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.  Further, he is the president of MLM, short for majorleaguemechanics.com, which offers professional pitching instruction.  We don't know how successful any of these ventures have been, but he certainly shouldn't lack for things to do.

Shortstop Jeffrey Adam Everett played for Minnesota in 2008.  He was born in Austell, Georgia, and attended high school in Kenesaw, Georgia.  He attended both North Carolina State and South Carolina, and was drafted by Boston with the 12th pick of the 1998 draft.  He was in the Red Sox' chain for two years and did fairly well, but was traded to Houston after the 1999 season as part of a package for Carl Everett.  He spent parts of the next four years at AAA New Orleans, where he established a reputation as an excellent fielder.  He got brief trials with the Astros in 2001 and 2002, but was called up in May of 2003 and quickly become Houston's regular shortstop from that point on.  His best year at bat was 2004, when he hit .273, but his strength was always as a fielder, not as a batter.  Everett was injured in mid-June of 2007 and missed almost all the rest of the season.  He became a free agent after the season and signed with Minnesota.  He suffered through an injury-plagued season, playing only 48 games and batting just .213/.278/.323.  A free agent again after the 2008 campaign, he signed with Detroit for 2009.  He was their mostly-regular shortstop and played about the way he has played for most of his career, batting .228 but providing good defense.  It wasn’t good enough, however, as the Tigers released him in mid-June of 2010.  Out of baseball the rest of the season, he has signed with Cleveland for 2011.  He again made it through June and was released, bringing his playing career to an end.  After his retirement, Adam Everett worked for the Cleveland Indians, first as a special assistant for baseball operations and later as minor league infield coordinator.  In 2014, he moved to the Houston Astros.  He was a roving minor league infield instructor that year and became their bench coach for 2015.

Left-hander Logan Reece Darnell appeared in seven games for the Twins in 2014.  He was born in Nashville, went to high school in Madison, Tennessee, attended the University of Kentucky, and was drafted by Minnesota in the sixth round in 2010.  He was promoted to AA in 2011 despite not having been all that impressive at lower levels.  Not surprisingly, it took him a while to have success there.  He did well there in 2013, though, and was promoted to Rochester by mid-season.  He had a solid 2014 in Rochester and made seven appearances in the big leagues, getting a couple of brief callups during the season and another in September.  He pitched well in three relief appearances but not well at all in four starts.  Perhaps coincidentally, he moved to the bullpen in Rochester in 2015 and had another solid season, but was not called up to the Twins.  Recently, he was taken off the forty-man roster, but cleared waivers and was outrighted to Rochester.  He turns twenty-seven today.  Stardom does not appear to be in his future, but you never know with relievers, especially left-handed ones.  There's still a chance that Logan Darnell may play an important role in a big-league bullpen at some point.

Happy Birthday–January 31

Bob "Death to Flying Things" Ferguson (1845)
Zane Grey (1872)
George Burns (1893)
Pinky Hargrave (1896)
Pedro Cepeda (1906)
Don Hutson (1913)
Jackie Robinson (1919)
Ernie Banks (1931)
Hank Aguirre (1931)
Nolan Ryan (1947)
Fred Kendall (1949)
Ted Power (1955)
Ed Wade (1956)
Francisco Oliveras (1963)
Yuniesky Betancourt (1982)
Caleb Thielbar (1987)

Better known as an author of western novels, Zane Grey played outfield for two years in the low minors, batting .323 in 86 games.  He also wrote several books about baseball.

Pedro Cepeda is the father of Orlando Cepeda and is considered by some to have been a better player; he was known as the Babe Ruth of Puerto Rico.

Don Hutson, a charter member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, played in the low minors from 1936-1937, hitting .301 in 194 games.

Ed Wade was the general manager of the Philadelphia Phillies from 1998-2005 and the Houston Astros from 2007-2011.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–January 31