As I hit “send” on this email, President Obama is attending a “Béisbol” game in Havana between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Cuban National Team. His guests include the wife (Rachel) and daughter (Sharon) of Jackie Robinson. Former Major Leaguer Luis Tiant threw out the ceremonial first pitch in this return to the stadium where he played when named Rookie of the Year in the Cuban League (1960-61).
In Hot Stove #8, I lauded Bill James for his Nostradamus moment from 15 years ago when he predicted how Donald Trump might become President.
I sent my post to sportswriter Joe Posnanski who often writes about James’ insightful work in sports statistics. I lamented to Joe that the Trump prediction had not received wide coverage in this crazy election year.
Well, Joe has remedied that splendidly and also gave a nice nod to yours truly (click here).
I receive comments from time to time from Hot Stove readers, and this post collects some of these and adds some trivia and nostalgia.
If you can take your eyes off the debates for a moment, ponder these baseball connections to our current political discourse – one from each branch of government.
Snoopy is the shortstop/groundskeeper for Charlie Brown’s baseball team. The all-time best groundskeeper is of course KC’s George Toma. As for shortstop, see below.
Today is the big day! Royals pitchers and catchers report to spring training in Surprise, Arizona:
The Civil War: I promise this story will end on a baseball note, so please stick with me through some battle history of the Civil War. My source is a fine book written by David Von Drehle, a Kansas City-based writer and editor-at-large for Time Magazine. I met David at a Rainy Day author event last winter and bought a copy of his Rise to Greatness – Abraham Lincoln and America’s Most Perilous Year. That year was 1862, and one of the perils was that George McClellan was in charge of the army and all but refused Lincoln’s prodding to become more aggressive in the war. McClellan was constantly saying he needed more supplies and men before he could mount a new battle. So he sat. In June, the flamboyant Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart rode all the way around McClellan’s army for reconnaissance, and on his way cut telegraph wires, collected prisoners and horses and disrupted Union supply lines. Lincoln was not pleased. In October, McClellan was again declining to move when General Stuart made yet another bold dash around the Union army, looting a major supply depot and gathering livestock. Lincoln’s response:
“There are only two seasons – winter and baseball”: So said my favorite baseball owner, Bill Veeck. I got this quote from Inside Pitch, a weekly newsletter from the Baseball Hall of Fame. I recently signed up as a member of the HOF and got a junior membership for my 10-year-old grandson Ian. Within the next year or two, we hope to travel to Cooperstown for our first visit. The Veeck quote led off an article about Hall of Famers Ty Cobb and Ed Walsh who are shown in this photo packing snow to practice throwing curveballs in wintery NY in the early 1920’s. They could also do that this week with the blizzard that hit NY.
Kansas City Monarchs and the Major Leagues: Three years ago, my annual Martin Luther King message highlighted the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the role played by Bill Veeck in the integration of baseball. As noted then, the roster of the Kansas City Monarchs produced not only Jackie Robinson (Brooklyn, 1947), but also the first blacks to play for six other of the then-existing 16 teams. One of those was catcher Elston Howard who played for the Monarchs from 1948 to 1950. He went from the Monarchs to the Yankee farm system (including 1953 with the Kansas City Blues ) and was then promoted to the Yankee roster in 1955. This takes us to the story of Vic Power.
I had not planned to again hit your inbox before Rita and I headed to Puerto Vallarta, but the all-time outfield sparked some reader comments that I wanted to pass along.