Baseball History Podcast

Melvin Thomas Ott was born March 2, 1909 in Gretna, Louisiana. As a 17-year-old “Boy Wonder” in 1926, Mel Ott’s size belied his power. Using an unorthodox batting style in which he lifted his right foot prior to impact, he hit 30 or more home runs in a season eight times and winning or sharing home run honors on six occasions.

Brooks Calbert Robinson, Jr. was born May 18, 1937 in Little Rock, Arkansas. He played his entire 23-year career with the Baltimore Orioles from 1955 to 1977. As the Orioles third baseman, he was probably best known for his fielding ability.

James Hoyt Wilhelm was born July 26, 1922 in Huntersville, North Carolina. He was best known for his knuckleball, which enabled him to have great longevity, mainly as a specialist relief man.

Robert William Andrew Feller was born November 3, 1918, on a farm near Van Meter, Iowa. Bob Feller’s blazing fastball set the standard against which all of his successors have been judged. “Rapid Robert” spent his entire 18-year career with Cleveland, amassing 266 victories and 2,581 strikeouts, while leading the league in strikeouts seven times.

Rodney Cline Carew was born October 1, 1945 on a train in Gatun in the Panama Canal Zone. Carew lined, chopped and bunted his way to 3,053 career hits. He hit over .300 in 15 consecutive seasons with the Twins and Angels, achieving a .328 lifetime average.

Johnny Lee Bench was born December 7, 1947 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Johnny’s childhood dream was to become a major league baseball player and his father counseled that the position of catcher was the most direct route to that goal. He took that advice and in 1965 was selected in the amateur draft by the Cincinnati Reds.

Exhibition Game: Foul Ball]]>

Paul Glee Waner was born April 16, 1903 in Harrah, Oklahoma. He and his brother Lloyd, starred in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ outfield in the 1920s and 1930s. Nicknamed “Big Poison,” he led the National League in batting on three occasions and accumulated over 3,000 hits in his career.

LeRoy Robert Paige, better know to baseball fans as Satchel Paige. Regarded as the nearest thing to a legend that ever came out of the Negro Leagues, this 6’4″, lanky right-hander parlayed a fastball, nimble wit, and a colorful personality into a household name that is recognized by people who know little about baseball itself and even less about the players who performed in the Jim Crow era of organized baseball.

Ludwig Heinrich Gehrig or Henry Louis Gehrig was born June 19, 1903 in New York City, New York. ehrig’s consecutive game streak of 2,130 games did not come easily. He played well every day despite a broken thumb, a broken toe and back spasms. Later in his career Gehrig’s hands were X-rayed, and doctors were able to spot 17 different fractures that had “healed” while Gehrig continued to play.