Big Blue Huddle

Kennedy over Lincecum. It's going to be very difficult for the Giants now. These guys are 2 of my favorite pitchers even though they are both right-handed. I usually root for lefties. This figures to be a pretty boring Sept. Presently not even the hint of a decent wild-card race. Save for a late-season collapse it looks like the field is set. The chalk will be on the Phillies and Red Sox. The chalk choices didn't hold up last season. We'll have to see if they fare better this year. Arizona is a nice story. I always liked Kirk Gibson. Kennedy I have been a fan of since his USC days. Given that the Cubs have returned to Wrigley-era ignominy, the D-Backs become my rooting interest in the NL. 

Dasher: No problem with you looking. That's the formula I suggest. From memory first, then seek help. It's interesting to me that the question  was that difficult. I put the "Oh to be young again" word game at the front of the question, expecting that it would give the player's name away, which  is quite unique to the game. Anyway I was flipping through Bill James' last Abstract, which  was written before the 1988 season.  McDowell was the darling of saber geeks early in his career. He had enormous projections. The guy had a career of above-average duration, but he didn't play all that well after a promising startl.   
On the 40s, I didn't realize Saito was that old.  On Rhodes, I remember taking my oldest son when he was little to see the Red Wings play the Chiefs at the old stadium. Authur was the starter for the Rochester. He had a no-hitter through  5, I believe, then got hammered in the 6th. My son is 25. I guess that was about 20 years ago. Geez be left-handed and stay healthy. 

9-4-11: Name the player in MLB history who has the most career HRs without having ever hit at least 20 HRs in any one season. 

Oh he is certainly a good one Dash. Hate to see that happen to Don Mattingly who, all things considered, is doing a great job this season. Donnie gets all the important jobs. The team goes Chapter 7, dial M for Mattingly as Manager. When they get their ownership mess stable, he will have a fighting chance.

Still looking I see.  I have no idea who his roommate was at Arizona St.

9-2-11: Oh to be young, again. This former Ranger OF is an Arizona St alumn. He played on the '84 USA Olympics team.  He was inducted in the College Baseball Hall of Fame this year. Also played in the majors with the Indians and Braves. He is the first player in Ranger history to hit for the cycle.  Name the player.

Yeah Wales. It was also the final factor in outlawing the spitter. Mays was universally despised because he combined the two traits of pitching that were an irrefutable indictment: Pin-point control; he would routinely be among the league leaders in fewest walks, and most hit batsmen. His submarine delivery made it excruciatingly difficult to pick up the ball. I read a pretty good book on the subject. Think it's called, "The Pitch That Killed."

Joe Sewell had his 5'6" self a helluva career. Ended up with the Yankees. So Dasher is a red-hot iron on these. For Wales tastes, I'll do some 80s stuff so oldsters like Dash and I don't have the advantage. 

Alright! I'm doing a cheap impersonation of Billy "White Jones" Johnson's TD celebration right now. 8 times for the original #1 so-numbered because he was the lead-off batter. Money talks and dash has cash with 2 in a row. 

9-1-11: Ray Chapman was killed by the beanball thrown by Carl Mays in August of 1920. The player called up to replace Ray on the roster would ultimately be enshrined in the HOF. He has the lowest strikeout rate in MLB history. His lifetime K total is one Mark Reynolds would accept for one season.  Name the player.

Good ballplayer, Dash. Wrong answer. Let's leave some more bread crumbs along the path of life. How did numbers on the backs of their unis come about? The answer lies within. 

Quite an accomplishment for Jeff, nygsem. I would guess as time went by, he rooted for Johnson? I remember reading somewhere that when Ken Griffey Jr. was 12  years-old, he didn't make an out the entire season. Can you imagine what a nightmare scene it must have been like pitching to him?

OK new tact on today's trivia question. I will list all of the participants except for the leader, who as I mentioned, did it 8 times.
5 times (7 players): Derek Jeter, Willie Randolph, Horace Clarke, Hank Bauer, Phil Rizzuto, Frank Crosetti, Stuffy Stirnweiss
4 times (2 players): Chuck Knoblach, Rickey Henderson
3 times (4 players): Johnny Damon, Mickey Rivers, Bobby Richardson, Fritz Maisel
2 times (10 players): Alfonso Soriano, Wade Boggs, Steve Sax, Omar Moreno, Tom Tresh, Whitey Witt, Frank Gilhooley, Henry Wolter, Charlie Hemphill, Patsy Dougherty
1 time (26 players): Brent Gardner, Bernie Williams, Randy Velarde, Luis Polonia, Sandy Alomar, Sr., Roy White, Jerry Kenney, Phil Linz, Tony Kubek, Roger Maris, Gil McDougald, Jackie Jensen, Jerry Priddy, Sammy Bryd, Red Rolfe,  Mark Koenig,  Ben Paschal, Elmer Miller, Chick Fewster, Frank Gleich, Sammy Vick,Bert Daniels, Harry Niles, Danny Hoffman, Wid Conroy, Lefty Davis.
5 x 7 = 35. 2 x 4 = 8 4 x 3 = 12  2 x 10 = 20  26  Those come to 101. Now all you need is the leader who supplies 8, gets me to 109. When I was researching this I couldn't get my columns to balance, which was pissing me off, royally. I neglected Maris's 1960 opener in lead-off. Found it. I probably had a mental block about him batting 1. OK with that as a background, I will also say that our boy is in the HOF.  Now can somebody here play this game? 

Conjecture. Somebody got seriously injured or killed by the donut flying off. That's usually what happens. Insurance considerations. For example, the on-deck area for the next hitter has been banned. The kid has to stay in the fenced-off, bench area. Little League affiliates fenced off an on-deck enclosure so a kid could get his swings in there. Not too worry. Also banned. As I recall, the on-deck deal was a result of another player walking up to the side of the kid on-deck who inadvertantly hit the kid in the head with one of his practice swings. I don't see how Ellie's could have flown off the top part of the bat. As you know, those fit pretty snuggly once you worked it up from the handle. 

Wales: Thank you for the clarification. Elston Howard invented the donut. They don't allow you to use those in Little League games, anymore. Too bad. Best way to make the bat feel lighter in your hands once you stepped in against the pitcher. 

Big Hitter: Incorrect. Hoss is one of the guys in a log-jam for second with 5 opening- day lead-off assignments. 

Mad Dash for Cash: Yes all Angels. They need(ed) the obligatory "halo at the top"cap circa expansion LA Angels that the kid wore from the movie "Sandlot." Later on he got really into the 60s and disappeared. My hero in that movie is Squint. He ended up marrying the very lovely lifeguard. 9 kids were the product of his insatiable desire for her.

Wales: Thanks for the background. A certain personality, with a certain biochemstry, is hooked for life when they try some of that stuff. Don't really follow the Henderson comment. Do you mean he started the game? Geez I don't think so if I'm understanding you correctly. 
The Jeter guess is incorrect. I wasn't putting the parathentical element in there to lead anybody astray either. Jeter finished tied for second in this question, along with six other players. That is 6 with 5 names at the top. The leader has 8.

Still looking for the answer to 8-30s question:

Limited time today so I will post 8-31: The Yankees are playing in their 109th season. Ergo there have been 109 Opening Days & 109 corresponding Opening-Day lineups. Name the player who hit lead-off the most times in the Opening Day lineup. (The past test framing of the question does not necessarily eliminate a current player from consideration, by the way)

Bravo, Hermoso and Pagan. Ballplayers with wings. How so?

Mr. Da Lama: Correct but I don't get your very eclectic NBA allusion on Claire BarTth (Bart) "Toys in the Attic" Johnson. He was so nicknamed because he was whippier than a crap house rat, is what we were led to believe. If he left for the NBA I never knew that. He did kind of disappear all of a sudden.

Red: Good fastball. Opposite end of the Wood spectrum. 

Gem: Got it. Things got fuzzy during the college era.