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Lou Novikoff
Louis Alexander Novikoff (October 12, 1915 – September 30, 1970), nicknamed "the Mad Russian", was an American professional baseball outfielder. He played in all or parts of five seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs (1941–44) and Philadelphia Phillies (1946). Novikoff played fastpitch softball before making his professional baseball debut in Minor League Baseball in 1937. The Cubs promoted him to the major leagues in 1941 but sent him back to the minor leagues for the 1945 season. After playing for the Phillies in 1946, he returned to the minor leagues until 1950, when he resumed playing softball. After his career, Novikoff was inducted into the International Softball Congress Hall of Fame and the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame. Early life Louis Alexander Novikoff was born in Glendale, Arizona, on October 12, 1915. His parents, Alexander and Julia, immigrated from Russia and were of Molokan descent. He was the seventh of fourteen children. The family ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Left Fielder
In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the left fielder is assigned the number seven. Position description Of all outfielders, the left fielder often will have the weakest arm, as he generally does not need to throw the ball as far to prevent the advance of any baserunners. The left fielder still requires good fielding and catching skills, and tends to receive more balls than the right fielder because right-handed hitters tend to "pull" the ball into left field. The left fielder also backs up third baseman, third base on pick-off attempts from the catcher or pitcher and bunts, when possible. Moreover, when a runner is stealing third base, the left fielder must back up the throw from the catcher. Left fielders must also back up third base when ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Semi-professional Sports
Semi-professional sports are sports in which athletes are not participating on a full-time basis, but still receive some payment. Semi-professionals are not amateur because they receive regular payment from their team, but generally at a considerably lower rate than a full-time professional athlete. As a result, semi-professional players frequently have (or seek) full-time employment elsewhere. A semi-pro player or team could also be one that represents a place of employment that only the employees are allowed to play on. In this case, it is considered semi-pro because their employer pays them, but for their regular job, not for playing on the company's team. The semi-professional status is not universal throughout the world and depends on each country's labour code and each sports organization's specific regulations. Origin The San Francisco Olympic Club fielded an American football team in 1890. That year, the Olympic Club was accused by a rival club of enticing athletes to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ponca City Angels
The Ponca people are a nation primarily located in the Great Plains of North America that share a common Ponca culture, history, and language, identified with two Indigenous nations: the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma or the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska. This nation comprised the modern-day Ponca, Omaha, Kaw, Osage, and Quapaw peoples until the mid-17th century when the people sought to establish their nation west of the Mississippi River as a result of the Beaver Wars. By the end of the 18th century, the Ponca people had established themselves at the mouth of the Niobrara River near its confluence with the Missouri River, remaining there until 1877 when the United States forcibly removed the Ponca people from the Ponca Reservation in the Dakota Territory to the Indian Territory. This event, known as the Ponca Trail of Tears, resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Ponca civilians and the splintering of the nation. In 1879, two years after the removal, a small portion of the Pon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Option (baseball)
Major League Baseball transactions are changes made to the roster of a major league team during or after the season. They may include waiving, releasing, and trading players, as well as assigning players to minor league teams. Active, expanded, and postseason rosters As of the 2022 season, each Major League Baseball team maintains a 26-man active roster, a 28-man expanded roster, and a 40-man reserve list of players. Players on the 26-man roster are eligible to play in official major league games throughout the season. The 40-man reserve list includes the players on the 26-man roster plus as many as 14 players who are either on the team's seven-, ten-, fifteen-, or 60-day injured list, who are on paternity leave for up to three days, or who are in the franchise's farm teams in Minor League Baseball. From September 1 through the end of the regular season, each team is required to expand its active roster to 28 players. (Before the 2020 season, any player on the 40-man reserve li ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National League (baseball)
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP) of 1871–1875 (often called simply the "National Association"), the NL is sometimes called the Senior Circuit, in contrast to MLB's other league, the American League, which was founded 25 years later and is called the "Junior Circuit". Both leagues currently have 15 teams. The National League survived competition from various other professional baseball leagues during the late 19th century. Most did not last for more than a few seasons, with a handful of teams joining the NL once their leagues folded. The American League declared itself a second major league in 1901, and the AL and NL engaged in a "baseball war" durin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Farm System
In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher level at a given point, usually in an association with a major-level parent team. This system can be implemented in many ways, both formally and informally. It is not to be confused with a practice squad, which fulfills a similar developmental purpose but the players on the practice squad are members of the parent team. Contracted farm teams Baseball In the United States and Canada, Minor League Baseball teams operate under strict franchise contracts with their major league counterparts. Although the vast majority of such teams are privately owned and are therefore able to switch affiliation, those players under contract with the affiliated Major League Baseball team are under their exclusive control, and wou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Los Angeles Angels (PCL)
The Los Angeles Angels were a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles that played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) from 1903 through 1957. The Angels were formed in 1903 as charter members of the PCL. In 1958, they were forced to move to a smaller market as a result of the Brooklyn Dodgers' move to Los Angeles, which brought Major League Baseball competition into the PCL's territory. The franchise relocated to Spokane, Washington, as the Spokane Indians. The 1903, 1934, and 1943 Angels were recognized as being among the The National Baseball Association's top 100 minor league teams, 100 greatest minor league teams of all time. The 1934 team, with a 137–50 record, was ranked as the number one minor league team. Team history From 1903 through 1957, the Los Angeles Angels, a PCL team, were one of the mainstays of the Pacific Coast League, winning the PCL pennant 12 times. The Angels, along with the Portland Beavers, Oakland Oaks (PCL), Oakland Oaks, Sacramento Solons, S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Player-manager
A player–coach (also playing coach, captain–coach, or player–manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. Player–coaches may be head coaches or assistant coaches, and they may make changes to the squad and also play on the team. Very few current major professional sports teams have head coaches who are also players, though it is common for senior players to take a role in managing more junior athletes. Historically, when professional sports had less money to pay players and coaches or managers, player–coaches were more common. Likewise, where player–coaches exist today, they are more common at, but not exclusive to, the lower levels where money is less available. Player–coaches in basketball The player–coach was, for many decades, a long-time fixture in professional basketball. Many notable coaches in the NBA served as player–coaches, including Bill Russell and Lenny Wilkens. This was especially true up th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a base on balls, 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, left-handed specialist, lefty specialist, setup man, and the closing pitcher, closer. Traditionally, the pitcher also bats. Starting in 1973 with the American League and spreading to further leagues throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the hitting duties of the pitcher have generally been given over t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball (MLB). The PCL was one of the premier regional baseball leagues in the first half of the 20th century. Although it was never recognized as a true major league, to which it aspired, its quality of play was considered very high. A number of top stars of the era, including Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams, were products of the league. In 1958, with the arrival of major league teams on the west coast and the availability of televised major league games, the PCL's modern era began with each team signing Player Development Contracts to become farm teams of major league clubs. Following MLB's reorganization of the minor leagues in 2021, it operated as the Triple-A West for one season before switching back to its previous mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hollywood Stars
The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles–based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars (1926–1935) The first incarnation of the Hollywood Stars began its existence in 1903 as the Sacramento Solons, a charter member of the Pacific Coast League. The team moved to Tacoma, Washington, in 1904, where it won the pennant as the Tacoma Tigers. During the 1905 season, the team returned to Sacramento to finish out the season, moved to Fresno in 1906 to finish last as the Fresno Raisin Eaters, then left the PCL altogether. The Sacramento Solons rejoined the PCL in 1909, then moved to San Francisco during the 1914 season, finishing out the season as the San Francisco Missions. The team was sold to Utah businessman Bill "Hardpan" Lane and moved to Salt Lake City for the 1915 season. They played as the Salt Lake City Bees for the ne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torrance, California
Torrance is a coastal city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the metropolitan area. A small section of the city, , abuts the Pacific Ocean. Torrance has a moderate year-round climate with average rainfall of per year.City of Torrance Website: About Torrance () Retrieved April 7, 2009 Torrance was incorporated in 1921, and at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census had a population of 147,067 residents. Torrance has a beachfront and 30 parks located around the city. It is also the birthplace of the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO). History Pre-colonial era For tho ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
