Category: 20th Century

Why We Love Baseball, by Joe Posnanski

August 12, 2025

Joe Posnanski wrote for the Kansas City Star throughout my teenage years. In retrospect, I have come to realize that he is a big part of the reason that I became a Royals fan. Because during those years, the Royals were bad. Like, really bad. All the other kids at my middle school and high school would not be caught dead wearing Royals gear, that’s how embarrassing this baseball team was during those years.

Every weekend, my dad would buy the Sunday edition of the Kansas City Star. And every Sunday, I would snag the sports section out of that bulky stack of newspaper and spread out on the floor to read anything that looked even mildly interesting.

It was not long before I became a regular reader of Joe Posnanski’s columns, because this man can write. And he wrote about the Kansas City Royals in a way that I just could not help but love the team, no matter how badly they played. So when my parents gifted me a copy of Why We Love Baseball this past Christmas, I knew I was in for a treat.

The book is subtitled A History in 50 Moments, and the combination of the two titles sum up the book quite aptly. Posnanski writes about fifty moments over the course of the history of the game that demonstrate exactly why we love baseball so much. From Babe Ruth to Shohei Ohtani, from Shoeless Joe to Cal Ripken, Jr., this book curates the greatest moments and retells the stories behind them in a truly captivating style.

But the book doesn’t stop at just those fifty moments. As a bonus, Posnanski throws in multiple collections of five shorter stories. For example, “Five Barehanded Plays” or “Five Catches” or “Five Blunders.” And just before revealing the number one moment in the book, there is “A Moment for Every Team,” that way every fan can find something they can enjoy, regardless of which MLB team they might root for.

And that, I think, is the true value that this book presents: it is a book that any baseball fan can find pleasure in. I also love the fact that this book does not have to be read continuously to be understood. It is essentially a collection of short stories, and, as such, it can be picked up at one’s leisure, anytime the reader is in the mood for a little baseball.

And in the same way Posnanski made me fall in love with the Royals, this book will make any reader fall in love with baseball all over again.

This day in baseball: Cobb’s 4,000th hit

July 18, 2025

On July 18, 1927, Athletics outfielder Ty Cobb became the first major leaguer to collect his 4,000th career hit. Cobb hit a double off his former Tigers teammate, Sam Gibson, at Navin Field in Detroit. The hit came in the first inning of a 5-3 loss for the A’s.

Cobb retired after the 1928 season with 4,191 hits, a record that will stand until Pete Rose breaks it in 1985.

Ty Cobb, 1916 (public domain / Wikimedia Commons)

How Lou Whitaker got into the Smithsonian

June 27, 2025

In the 1985 season, Detroit Tigers second baseman Lou Whitaker was selected for the All-Star Game for the third consecutive year. However, upon arriving at the Metrodome in Minnesota, Whitaker realized he had forgotten to bring some crucial parts of his uniform. While he had packed his socks and uniform pants in his suitcase with his clothes, Whitaker didn’t have a cap, jersey, helmet, glove, spikes, or batting gloves. He requested that an emergency uniform be sent, but the uniform got lost in transit, and Whitaker was forced to improvise.

Whitaker purchased a replica jersey at the park and stenciled his number 1 on the back of it with a marker. He also managed to purchase an adjustable mesh Tigers cap. His All-Star teammates also stepped up to assist: Cleveland pitcher Bert Blyleven let Whitaker wear his helmet at the plate; Baltimore’s Cal Ripken, Jr. had an extra glove; and Damaso Garcia of the Blue Jays was able to provide batting gloves (I haven’t been able to discover what he did about spikes). Starting at second base, he went 0-for-2 in the game before being removed in the sixth inning, and the American League lost, 6-1.

But the story doesn’t end there. The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. was so fascinated by his case of forgetfulness that they requested the garment. Whitaker obliged, and the jersey that he wore in that All-Star Game is still in the Smithsonian’s collection today.

Lou Whitaker, 1985 All-Star Game (legendsrevealed.com)
Lou Whitaker, 1985 All-Star Game (legendsrevealed.com)

When the umpire gets hit

June 3, 2025

During a softball game when I was a teenager, I had a teammate who hit a foul ball, and next thing we all knew, the home plate umpire was on his back, his face beet red. We quickly learned that the foul ball had caught the umpire between the legs — an especially awkward occurrence for a male umpire at a high school girls’ softball game. While everyone waited for the umpire to regain his bearings, girls in both dugouts were noticeably working hard not to giggle too loudly. I felt bad for the guy.

It’s not uncommon for a player to get hit by the ball at some point in a game. However, as in situations like the one above, sometimes it is one of the umpires who gets hit. Someone put together the compilation video below of MLB umpires getting hit by the baseball, and watching it is like watching a train wreck. You feel bad for them, but somehow, you can’t stop watching.

Johnny Vander Meer

April 30, 2025
Johnny Vander Meer, c. 1948 (Baseball Digest / public domain)

John Samuel Vander Meer was born on November 2, 1914 in Prospect Park, New Jersey. His interest in baseball began at the age of 8, listening to the radio as the New York Giants defeated the New York Yankees in the 1922 World Series. He then began playing at age 10 as a first baseman for his school, finally moving to the mound at the age of 17.

Vander Meer was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1933 and assigned to the Dayton Ducks. He bounced around the minors for a few years, unable to impress the clubs who signed him, before finally making his major league debut on April 22, 1937, at the age of 22, with the Cincinnati Reds.

The following season, on June 11, 1938, Vander Meer pitched a no-hitter against the Boston Bees. Four days later, against the Brooklyn Dodgers, he threw another no-hitter, becoming the first and, thus far, the only player in major league history to throw two straight no-hitters. This accomplishment is one that many consider to be impossible to reproduce, much less beat.

Vander Meer’s performance earned him the role as the starting pitcher for the National League team in the 1938 All-Star game. He ended the season with a 15–10 record and a 3.12 ERA, while striking out 125 and walking 103. The Sporting News named Vander Meer their MLB Player of the Year for 1938.

Though he was named an All-Star again in 1939, Vander Meer had a disappointing season due to a series of illnesses and arm troubles. He posted a 5-9 record with a 4.67 ERA. Experiencing problems with his control, Vander Meer was sent back to the minors in 1940, returning to the majors in September and posting a 3-1 record the rest of the season. In the 1940 World Series against the Detroit Tigers, Vander Meer made only one appearance when he entered Game 5 in the fifth inning, with the Reds trailing 7–0. He pitched three scoreless innings as the Reds lost 8–0. The Reds went on to win the Series in seven games.

Vander Meer would go on to be named an All-Star twice more in his career, in 1942 and 1943. He joined the United States Navy in June 1944, during World War II, where he would play for the Navy baseball team. He was discharged from the Navy in December 1945.

In 1946, Vander Meer returned to play for the Reds at the age of 31, though his performance had started to decline by this time. He did manage to post a 17-14 record in 1948; however, in early 1950, his contract was sold to the Chicago Cubs. He was then released by the Cubs in March 1951, signed with the Cleveland Indians, but appeared in only one game for the Indians before being released.

Vander Meer produced a 119–121 record with 1,294 strikeouts (and also 1,132 walks) and a 3.44 ERA in 2,104 2⁄3 innings over the course of his 13-year major league career. He also collected 29 career shutouts and is one of only six NL pitchers since 1930 to lead the league in strikeouts in three straight seasons (1941–1943).

After retiring as a player at the age of 40, Vander Meer became a minor league manager in the Cincinnati Reds organization for ten seasons before retiring in 1962. He was inducted as part of the inaugural class into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 1958.

After baseball, Vander Meer worked for Schlitz Brewing Co. for 15 years. Johnny Vander Meer died at his home in Tampa, Florida, on October 6, 1997, at the age of 82.