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Max Patkin
Max Patkin (January 10, 1920 – October 30, 1999) was an American baseball player and clown, best known as the Clown Prince of Baseball (a play on "Crown Prince"). Patkin was the third "officially" crowned Clown Prince of Baseball, after Al Schacht and Jackie Price, though that nickname has also been applied to Baltimore Orioles#St. Louis Browns, St. Louis Browns third baseman Arlie Latham among others. Patkin performed for 51 years as a baseball clown. Career After an arm injury curtailed his minor league career, Patkin joined the Navy during World War II. Stationed in Hawaii in , Patkin was pitching for a service team, and Joe DiMaggio homered off the lanky right-hander. In mock anger, Patkin threw his glove down then followed DiMaggio around the bases, much to the delight of the fans—and a career was born. Later in the 1940s, Patkin was hired as a coach by Bill Veeck and the Cleveland Indians. After Veeck sold the team in , Patkin began Barnstorm (sports), barnstorming aro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the pitcher is assigned the number 1. The pitcher is often considered the most important player on the defensive side of the game, and as such is situated at the right end of the defensive spectrum. There are many different types of pitchers, such as the starting pitcher, relief pitcher, middle reliever, lefty specialist, setup man, and the closer. Traditionally, the pitcher also bats. Starting in 1973 with the American League(and later the National League) and spreading to further leagues throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the hitting duties of the pitcher have generally been given over to the position of designated hitter, a cause of some controversy. The Japanese Ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
