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Batterymate
In baseball, the battery is the pitcher and the catcher, who may also be called batterymen, or batterymates in relation to one another. History Origins of the term The use of the word 'battery' in baseball was first coined by Henry Chadwick in the 1860s in reference to the firepower of a team's pitching staff and inspired by the artillery batteries then in use in the American Civil War. Later, the term evolved to indicate the combined effectiveness of pitcher and catcher. Pitching to a preferred batterymate Throughout the history of baseball, although teams have typically carried multiple catchers, star pitchers have often preferred the familiarity of working consistently with a single batterymate. In the early 20th century, some prominent pitchers were known to have picked their favorite catchers. Sportswriter Fred Lieb recalls the batteries of Christy Mathewson / Frank Bowerman beginning in 1899 with the New York Giants, Jack Coombs / Jack Lapp beginning in 1908 with the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark Fidrych
Mark Steven Fidrych ( ; August 14, 1954 – April 13, 2009), nicknamed "the Bird", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played five seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Detroit Tigers. Known for his quirky antics on the mound, Fidrych led the major leagues with a 2.34 ERA in 1976, won the American League (AL) Rookie of the Year award, and finished with a 19–9 record. Shortly thereafter, however, injuries derailed his career, which ended after just five seasons in the major leagues. Early life The son of an assistant school principal, Fidrych played baseball at Algonquin Regional High School in Northborough, Massachusetts, and at Worcester Academy, a day and boarding school in central Massachusetts.Wilson, Doug. The Bird: the Life and Legacy of Mark Fidrych. Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martins Press, 2014. In the 1974 amateur draft he was selected in the 10th round by the Detroit Tigers. He later joked that when he received a phone call informing him tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lou Criger
Louis Criger (February 3, 1872 – May 14, 1934) was an American professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1896 to 1912 for the Cleveland Spiders, St. Louis Perfectos / Cardinals, Boston Americans / Red Sox, St. Louis Browns and New York Highlanders. Listed at and , he batted and threw right-handed. Biography Criger began his major league career with two games for the Cleveland Spiders of the National League in 1896. At the time, Cy Young was a pitcher for the Spiders; Young and Criger would remain teammates through 1908. During the 1897–1908 seasons, Young won 284 games, with Criger catching many of them. After playing for Cleveland through 1898, Criger and Young played in St. Louis in 1899 and 1900, then moved to the new American League franchise in Boston in 1901. Criger was the first Opening Day catcher in the team's history. In the first modern World Series in , he caught every inning of every game for Boston, helping his team win ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steve Carlton
Steven Norman Carlton (born December 22, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher for six different teams from 1965 to 1988, most notably as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies with whom he won four Cy Young Awards as well as the 1980 World Series. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994 in his first year of eligibility. Nicknamed "Lefty", Carlton has the second-most lifetime strikeouts of any left-handed pitcher (4th overall), and the second-most lifetime wins of any left-handed pitcher (11th overall). He was the first pitcher to win four Cy Young Awards in a career. He held the lifetime strikeout record several times between and , before his contemporary Nolan Ryan passed him. One of his most remarkable records was accounting for nearly half (46%) of his team's wins, when he won 27 games for the last-place (59–97) Phillies. He is the last National League pitcher to win 25 or mor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tim McCarver
James Timothy McCarver (October 16, 1941 – February 16, 2023) was an American professional baseball catcher, television sports commentator, and singer. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1959 to 1980 for four teams, spending almost all of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies. A two-time All-Star, he helped the Cardinals to the 1964 World Series title, batting .478 in the Series, including a three-run home run in the tenth inning to win Game 5. In 1966, he became the first catcher since the 19th century to lead the National League (NL) in triples with 13. McCarver was runner-up for the 1967 NL Most Valuable Player Award, behind teammate Orlando Cepeda, after batting .295 and leading NL catchers in assists and fielding percentage. Traded to the Phillies after the 1969 season, he was re-joined by pitcher and St. Louis teammate Steve Carlton, becoming his regular catcher as the team won three division titles from 1976 to 1978. A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bob Boone
Robert Raymond Boone (born November 19, 1947) is an American former catcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who was a four-time All-Star. Born in San Diego, California, he is the son of MLB player Ray Boone, and he is the father of two major leaguers: Bret Boone and Aaron Boone. All four family members were named All-Stars during their careers. Professional career Philadelphia Phillies Boone was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the sixth round (126th overall) of the 1969 amateur draft after attending Stanford University where he was admitted to the Zeta Psi fraternity. He was brought to the majors in late 1972. While Boone never had excellent hitting numbers, he was an excellent defensive catcher, committing only eight errors and allowing only three passed balls in the 1977 season. Boone made the National League All-Star team three times in a Phillies uniform and helped the team win the 1980 World Series. In 1981, he batted .211/.279/.295. In 2005, Boon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hank DeBerry
John Herman DeBerry (December 29, 1894 – September 10, 1951), was an American people, American professional baseball player, and Scout (sports), scout. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball, most notably for the Brooklyn Robins during the 1920s. DeBerry was known for his defensive skills and for being the catcher for Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Dazzy Vance. Baseball career DeBerry was born in Savannah, Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee. He began his professional baseball career in at the age of 19 with the Paducah Indians of the Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League. DeBerry made his major league debut with the Cleveland Indians on September 12, 1916 Cleveland Indians season, 1916, at the age of 21. DeBerry appeared in 25 games for the Indians in 1917 Cleveland Indians season, 1917, but spent most of the season playing for the Milwaukee Brewers (minor league baseball team), Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association (20th century), American Asso ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dazzy Vance
Charles Arthur "Dazzy" Vance (March 4, 1891 – February 16, 1961) was an American professional baseball player. He played as a pitcher for five different franchises in Major League Baseball (MLB) in a career that spanned 16 seasons over 21 years. A late bloomer, Vance pitched his first full season in 1922 at age 31 and, aided by his impressive fastball, became the only pitcher to lead the National League in strikeouts for seven consecutive seasons. Vance was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955. Early life Born in Orient, Iowa, Vance spent most of his childhood in Nebraska. He played semipro baseball there, then signed on with a minor league baseball team out of Red Cloud, Nebraska, a member of the Nebraska State League, in 1912. After pitching for two other Nebraska State League teams in 1913 (Superior) and 1914 ( Hastings Giants), Vance made a brief major league debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1915 and appeared with the New York Yankees that year as well ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Muddy Ruel
Herold Dominic "Muddy" Ruel (February 20, 1896 – November 13, 1963) was an American professional baseball player, coach, manager and general manager. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1934 for the Washington Senators, St. Louis Browns, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers, and Chicago White Sox. One of the top defensive catchers of his era, Ruel was notable for being the personal catcher for Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson and for scoring the winning run for the Washington Senators in Game 7 of the 1924 World Series. Major League career Ruel was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He began his professional baseball career at the age of 19 with his hometown team, the St. Louis Browns, appearing in 10 games during the 1915 season. He then played in the minor leagues for two seasons with the Memphis Chickasaws before joining the New York Yankees in . With the Yankees, Ruel shared catching duties with Truck Hannah from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter Johnson
Walter Perry Johnson (November 6, 1887 – December 10, 1946), nicknamed "Barney" and "the Big Train", was an American professional baseball player and Manager (baseball), manager. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Washington Senators (1901–60), Washington Senators from to . He later served as manager of the Senators from 1929 through 1932 and of the Cleveland Indians from 1933 through 1935. Generally regarded as one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history, Johnson established several records, some of which remain unbroken. He remains by far the all-time career leader in Shutout (baseball), shutouts with 110, second in Win–loss record (pitching), wins with 417, and fourth in complete games with 531. He held the career record in strikeouts from 1919, passing Christy Mathewson’s mark of 2,507, to 1983, when three players (Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan and Gaylord Perry) passed his career total of 3,508. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy Sullivan (baseball, Born 1875)
William Joseph Sullivan, Sr. (February 1, 1875 – January 28, 1965) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball, most notably as a member of the Chicago White Sox with whom he won a World Series championship in 1906. Although he was a relatively weak hitter, he sustained a sixteen-year playing career by being one of the best defensive catchers of his era. Sullivan's reputation as a defensive standout is enhanced because of the era in which he played. In the Deadball Era, catchers played a huge defensive role, given the large number of bunts and stolen base attempts, as well as the difficulty of handling the spitball pitchers who dominated pitching staffs. He had to catch every type of pitch imaginable, such as shine balls, spitballs, knuckleballs, and emery balls. Early life William Joseph Sullivan was born on February 1, 1875, in the town of Oakland, Wisconsin, to Irish immigrant farmers. He attended Fort Atki ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ed Walsh
Edward Augustine Walsh (May 14, 1881 – May 26, 1959) was an American pitcher and manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball, nicknamed "Big Ed". From 1906 to 1912, he had several seasons where he was one of the best pitchers in baseball. Walsh holds the record for lowest career earned run average, 1.82.Coffey (2004), pp. 26–33. He is one of two modern (post-1901) pitchers to win 40 or more games in a single season, and the last pitcher to do so. He is the last pitcher from any team to throw more than 400 innings in a single season, a feat he accomplished in 1907 and 1908. Though injuries shortened his career, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1946 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 1946. Early life Walsh was born in Plains Township, Pennsylvania, to Michael and Jane Walsh. He worked in the Luzerne County coal mines when he was young. Walsh started his professional baseball career with the 1902 Meriden Silverites of the Connecticut State League. After p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has been Citizens Bank Park, located in the South Philadelphia Sports Complex. The National League approved a new franchise for Philadelphia to begin play in 1883, at its annual meeting in Providence on December 7, 1882. The Phillies are the oldest, continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in American professional sports and one of the most storied teams in Major League Baseball. Since their founding, the Phillies have won two World Series championships (against the Kansas City Royals in and the Tampa Bay Rays in ) and eight National League pennants (the first of which came in 1915). The team has played 122 consecutive seasons since the first modern World Series and 142 seasons since its inagural 1883 campaign. As of the end of the 2024 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
