Off the Beaten Basepaths #4: Rebel Park in New Market, VA

Few ballparks in America offer an old-fashioned ambiance as does Rebel Park in New Market, Virginia. Coupled with its spectacular view of Massanutten Mountain, Rebel Park might be the most scenic baseball site in the Eastern United States. It is home to the New Market Rebels of the Valley Baseball League, a wooden bat, summer, […]

Fun With Retrosheet: Come-From-Behind Batting Champions, An Update

John Pastier was wondering (among other things) about the record for the most days leading the league in batting average without winning the title. Here’s the list: Player Year LED DNL DNQ First Last Pete Reiser 1942 131 36 0 5-11 9-24 Lenny Dykstra 1990 125 37 10 5-11 9-14 Larry Walker 1997 124 57 […]

When John Kruk Was Quiet, Slender, and Attacked by a Grandma

John Kruk was a skinny kid out of Keyser, West Virginia in the summer of 1981, but he had already attracted the attention of several scouts. “A great guy . . . a natural athlete,” remembers Preston Douglas, the head coach that season of the New Market Rebels, the collegiate summer team with whom Kruk […]

All Phillies…All the Time — Who’s on First?

The Phillies have had several outstanding first basemen over the years… it’s just that very few of them, for various reasons, bothered to hang around for very long. Most notable among this group are Jim Thome (three years), Dolph Camilli (four years), Dick Allen (three years at first), Von Hayes (ditto, three years primarily at […]

Denny’s Chickens Interview Baseball Superstar John Kruk

From Tim Dove: This baseball season, Denny’s is teaming up with ESPN to sponsor Wednesday Night Baseball’s “K Zone” and “Value Player” features and the “Touch ‘Em All” and “Grand Slam Moment” elements during Baseball Tonight. As part of Denny’s commitment to baseball, The Chickens Show interviews All-Star John Kruk, and Denny’s presents the 2-4-6-8 […]