Ebbets Field 100

The move of the NBA’s Nets this season has allowed fans and journalists to speak a magical word that had disappeared from the lexicon of major sports leagues for more than 50 years: “Brooklyn.” Brooklyn is probably New York City’s most beloved and, possibly, provincial borough and the relocation of the New Jersey Nets to […]

The Glory Days: First NL Expansion Draft

The New York Mets and the Houston Colt .45s stocked their rosters with players selected in the expansion draft held by the National League on October 10 of 1961 at the Netherland-Hilton Hotel in Cincinnati. The Mets’ brain trust was headed up by general manager George Weiss and manager Casey Stengel, both of whom had […]

The Glory Days: More 1960s Stars Depart

There were other players who retired in the 1960s after having helped the Dodgers and Yankees make regular treks to the World Series in the late 1940s and into the 1950s. The best-known players from that group were Dodgers Carl Furillo, Johnny Podres, Jim “Junior” Gilliam and Clem Labine, and Yankees Bobby Richardson, Gil McDougald, […]

Mantle In Milwaukee: Sixty Years Ago

Milwaukee commuters wrestling their way down highway 43 may not know that the pavement between Locust and Burleigh Streets is hallowed ground, the former site of Borchert Field, home of the minor league Milwaukee Brewers for much of the first half of last century. Borchert Field was an old, rickety ballpark with crazy dimensions: the […]

Double No-No Equals Yes

As a high school pitcher growing up in small-town New Jersey, Johnny Vander Meer drew plenty of attention. Watching one of the young man’s starts, you never knew what you might see. “They never made a hit off me,” Vander Meer said. “They couldn’t. I walked them all. I could throw hard in those days, […]

The Greatest Character of the Game: Casey Stengel’s Baseball

In its longstanding relationship with baseball, New York City has been home to four Major League teams: the Yankees, Giants, Dodgers, and Mets. But the first man to wear all four uniforms and only one to do it while each team still resided in New York was Casey Stengel. Dubbed by sportswriters “The Professor” for […]

A Good Luck Charm for Casey Stengel

If it ain’t over ’til the fat lady sings; the New York Yankees incredible run of 5 consecutive world championships didn’t start until an attractive soprano named Lucy Monroe sang the National Anthem. From 1949 – 1953, it was her wont to step to the microphone and perform her polished rendition of  “The Star Spangled […]

An All-Star Team of ex-Major Leaguers in Their 90s

A recent quick visit to Wikipedia produced a list of the ex-major leaguers who are 90 and up, and from there it was an easy process to put together an All-Star lineup for these guys, practically all of whom starred in the ’40s. I’m offering it for consideration and debate: Catcher: Mike Sandlock, who spent […]

Long Night’s Journey Into Nothingness

As I sat through last week’s 20-inning marathon between the Mets and Cardinals, I couldn’t help thinking “I’ve been here before.” The Mets have played a disproportionate number of 20-inning games, and I’ve watched all of them, starting with that ridiculous doubleheader in 1964 in which the Mets lost a 23-inning dandy to the Giants […]