Cooperstown, New York will be crowded later this summer
thanks in part to the bumper crop of new inductees that will be on hand to have
their plaques hung. Four
players, including Chipper
Jones, Trevor
Hoffman, Jim Thome
and Vlad
Guererro will be joining fellow 2018 Hall of Famers Alan
Trammell and Jack Morris
for the festivities. Although there should be an inordinate length of thank you
speeches, the candidates are all well-deserved and it’s great to see the
hallowed hall grow with the addition of such deserving fresh blood. Now, on to
the Baseball Historian’s notes for the week.
-Legendary Puerto Rican right-handed pitcher Julio
Navarro has passed away at the age of 82. Although he posted a modest
record of 7-9 and a 3.65 ERA with three major league teams spanning six seasons,
he pitched at various professional levels for 22 years. His best big league
season was in 1963 with the Los Angeles Angels, where he contributed a 2.89 ERA
and 12 saves in 57 relief appearances. His son Jaime
enjoyed a productive 12-year career in the majors between 1989 and 2000.
-The Los Angeles Angels (AKA California Angels) have been a
major league team since 1961. However, the Angels name has been connected to
baseball in California for much longer—stretching back the 19th
century. Jessica Deline uncovers the interesting history in this
piece for Halos Heaven.
-Another member of the baseball community passed
away in 32-year-old Marcos
Carvajal. The right-hander died in his native Venezuela from pneumonia
complications that were worsened by medical supply shortages. He had stints
with the Colorado Rockies in 2005 and the Florida Marlins in 2007, going a
combined 0-2 with a 5.21 ERA in 42 relief appearances. His first big
league strikeout was Arizona Diamondbacks slugger Luiz Gonzalez,
and he last pitched professionally in 2011 with the Montepaschi Orioles
Gorsseto of the Italian Baseball League.
-The Cleveland Indians will stop
using their controversial Chief Wahoo team logo in 2019. This will include
its use on uniforms, banners and other displays on the field. Major League
Baseball was quoted as saying Chief Wahoo was “no longer appropriate" to
be used on the field. The cessation of its use coincides with the team hosting
the 2019 All Star game. Since the Indians will retain the copyright to the logo
and continue to sell items bearing its likeness even after this change, it
remains a mystery as to why this continues to be deemed as appropriate off the
field by failing to see this change through fully.
-Despite an excellent career on the field, Ray Chapman
is best-known for being the only player in major league history to die as the
result of an injury suffered on the field during a game, as he was hit in the
head by a Carl
Mays pitch in 1920.There have been other close calls , bother before and
since. Another, which also occurred during spring training in 1920 when utility
man Chick
Fewster of the New York Yankees was beaned by Big Jeff
Pfeffer of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Despite a fractured skull and bleeding
brain hemorrhage, he not only returned to play later that season, but played
professionally until 1929. Matt Ferenchick tells his story here.
-For decades, the 1918 Boston Red Sox were held in the
highest esteem by fans of the team, as it took nearly a century (86 years to be
exact) for another championship trophy to grace the boys of the Hub. Now that
the Red Sox have won three World Series in the past 14 years, the Boston Globe’s Kevin Paul Dupont says
the squad from one-hundred years ago deserves
to be looked at differently.
-Although voting for the Hall of Fame is over for another
year, some are already looking forward to the future. Jay Jaffe of Sports Illustrated has taken a deep
look into the next five elections and who he believes are the mostly likely
to get the next nods from the writers. He is not only forecasting a number of
players to be inducted, but who he believes will fall short may surprise many.
-Vince Pesky, the younger brother of Red Sox legend Johnny
Pesky recounted seeing legendary pitcher Satchel
Paige on the mound with the Portland Beaver. Pesky, who was 94 when he
recorded the interview
in 2015, still had strong memories of witnessing the Hall-of-Fame right-hander
do his thing.
-Here is some raw footage of the
ballyhoo surrounding the 1939 All Star Game. There may not be sound in the
clip, but fans are sure to recognize some of the biggest names to ever grace
the denizens of professional baseball.
-Finally, another baseball
passing to report in Oscar
Gamble, who succumbed to the effects of a tumor at the age of 68. He was a
talented outfielder, who hit .265 with 200 over 17 major league seasons
(1969-195) with seven teams—most notably the New York Yankees. Although his
career splits (.266 batting /.828 OPS versus righties and .263 batting average/.705
OPS, the left-handed hitter played sparingly against Southpaws during his
career. He was perhaps best known for sometimes sporting an impressive Afro
that made him the subject of some of the most
popular baseball cards ever made.
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