Saturday, February 17, 2007 |
Today's Birthdays
Ike Boone BRO b. 1897, played 1930-1932, d. 1958-08-01. With that surname and his southern roots (he played for the University of Alabama and was born in Samantha, AL), you just wonder whether one of his ancestors did not wear a coonskin cap. Helen tells me the Appalachians are full to the rafters with families carrying that surname, particularly Kentucky, and not a few of them have leaked out to the states further south.
Ed Brandt BRO b. 1905, played 1936, d. 1944-11-01
Ed Chandler BRO b. 1922, played 1947, d. 2003-07-06
Roger Craig BRO,LAN b. 1930, played 1955-1961. Mark ye well the end of the 20-game loser. Roger Craig did it twice with the godawful expansion Mets in both 1962 and '63. Since then, their numbers have steadily declined:
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Of the players from the expansion era (1961+), only two lost 24 games, the record in that time: Jack Fischer (1965 Mets) and Craig (1962 Mets). Craig also has the distinction of being one of a remarkably large group of five pitchers who managed the feat twice: the others are Al Jackson, Dick Ellsworth, Wilbur Wood, and Phil Niekro, the last Hall of Famer to lose 20 games.
To equal or surpass the bumper crop of 20-game losers in 1974 — five — you would have had to go all the way back to 1920, when there were seven 20-game losers.
Notice the 23-year gap between Brian Kingman's 1980 season and Mike Maroth's. Kingman was not only the last 20-game loser for many years, but he is also the only 20-game loser in that era who played for a winning team. For years, Kingman used to attend late-season games by pitchers who were approaching the 20-game loss and show up to the stadium to "jinx" their threatened streak. Kingman never had a winning season in his career, and so far, Maroth's only winning season has been his injury-abbreviated 2006, curtailed due to bone chips.
As for Craig, he left his playing days behind in 1966 after picking up two World Series rings with the Dodgers and one with the Cardinals. He went on to manage the Padres and Giants, the latter during a stretch when they were mostly a mediocre team save for the 1989 World Series appearance.
Rod Dedeaux BRO b. 1914, played 1935, d. 2006-01-05. His major league career consisted of four at bats, one hit and one RBI; he suffered a back injury almost immediately after he was called up, ending his career. Returning to his alma mater at USC, he became a titan for the Trojan baseball team, managing from 1942 to 1987 in one of the greatest records at the college level in history, accumulating 11 College World Series titles and 28 conference titles with a career 1,332-571-11 record, seventh all times in wins. His five consecutive NCAA titles from 1970 to 1974 remains an unbroken record; no other school has more than two.
During his tenure at USC, he accepted a salary of only $1 per year for his services, as his family business — DART (Dedeaux Automotive Repair and Transit) — afforded him a considerable income. Dedeaux developed over 200 major league players, including Hall of Famer Tom Seaver, Mark McGwire, Randy Johnson, Fred Lynn, Dave Kingman, Roy Smalley, Don Buford, Ron Fairly, Rich Dauer, Steve Busby, Jim Barr and Steve Kemp. USC still plays on the field named after him.
Stottlemeyer lost 20 in '66 after winning 20 in '65
Bill in SG
: 2/18/2007 10:21:00 AM
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