Baseball History Podcast

Edwin Donald Snider, nicknamed “Duke”, was born September 19, 1926 in Los Angeles, California. A graceful center fielder with a picture-perfect swing, Duke Snider was the biggest bat in the Brooklyn Dodgers’ potent lineup of the 1950s. He hit 40 or more homers five consecutive times and led all batters in home runs and Runs Batted In during the ’50s.

José Canseco Capas, Jr. was born July 2, 1964 in Havana, Cuba. Canseco was a baseball giant in size, potential, and gossip, and became the first member of the 40-40 club when he was a mere 23 years old, winning the Most Valuable Player award that year in a landslide. But arrogance and injuries, some inadvertently caused by the bulging muscles that gave him such exceptional power, ended up wreaking havoc with his career.

Herbert Jude Score was born June 7, 1933 in New York in the borough of Queens. The Cleveland Indians left-hander, seemed destined for the Hall of Fame, only to have his career ruined when a line drive struck him in the face in one of baseball’s most frightening incidents.

Orlando Manuel Cepeda Pennes, nicknamed “The Baby Bull” or “Cha Cha”, was born September 17, 1937 in Ponce, Puerto Rico. A powerful slugger during his 17-year Major League career, he withstood a series of knee injuries to become a seven-time National League All-Star.

Stanley Frank Musial. Back from the war, his skills undiminished, Musial approached spring training in St. Petersburg in 1946 in his usual fine shape.

Stanley Frank Musial, nicknamed “Stan the Man,” was born November 21, 1920 in Donora, Pennsylvania.Few players in the history of baseball have matched the accomplishments and consistency of Stan Musial.