The Giants have operated continuously since their NL debut as the New York Gothams in 1883. The Giant nickname was adopted two seasons later and was preserved after the franchise moved to San Francisco in 1958.
The Giants are the sixth of the original NL clubs in our Mount Rushmore series. Your task is to choose the four players who best represent this franchise. Have fun!
Two of this year’s HOF picks figure in this quiz, as does an active pitcher who, perhaps surprisingly, is still looking for a place to play next season.
What seasonal pitching accomplishment has been recorded by only these live ball era pitchers?
| Rk | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Roger Clemens |
| 2 | Lefty Grove |
| 3 | Randy Johnson |
| 4 | Sandy Koufax |
| 5 | Curt Schilling |
| 6 | Max Scherzer |
| 7 | Pedro Martinez |
| 8 | Don Newcombe |
| 9 | Sal Maglie |
| 10 | Spud Chandler |
| 11 | Red Ruffing |
Congratulations to Richard Chester, Joseph and mosc who teamed up to identify that only these pitchers have consecutive 200 IP seasons since 1920 with a .750 winning percentage and a 125 ERA+. Red Ruffing may be the most surprising name on the list given that he also had consecutive seasons with 30 decisions and a winning percentage under .300 (the only pitcher with two such campaigns, consecutive or otherwise). More after the jump.
For a quick holiday diversion, consider what distinguishes these players from among all others who played their entire careers since 1901.
| Rk | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | Ethan Allen |
| 2 | Fernando Tatis |
| 3 | Tom Downey |
| 4 | Sherry Robertson |
| 5 | Lynn Jones |
| 6 | Hack Miller |
| 7 | Foster Castleman |
| 8 | Joe Pittman |
| 9 | Eddie Zimmerman |
Congratulations to John Autin! He correctly solved this New Year’s puzzle by identifying these players as non-pitchers born on New Year’s Day (early) who compiled more strikeouts than walks (eager) over their careers. To limit the list, those careers must have been of at least 100 games since 1901.
The final week of the year is usually pretty quiet on the baseball transaction front. But there have been some significant deals that transpired in the final days of the year.
As the hours tick by to the end of 2014, here are a few notes on the more memorable baseball transactions that occurred in the final week of the year. Happy New Year to everyone!
The Mount Rushmore election for the Atlanta Braves closed yesterday (Dec 17th) with Hank Aaron, Warren Spahn and Chipper Jones taking the top 3 spots. But, Eddie Mathews and Greg Maddux finished tied for the fourth and final Mount Rushmore spot.
This run-off election will decide the fourth player on the Braves’ Mount Rushmore. To participate, please cast one vote for either candidate. The election closes at midnight (24:00) Pacific time on Mon, Dec 22nd.
What distinguishes these eight players from baseball’s other greats? That’s for you to tell me when you find the career accomplishment that distinguishes these players from among all others?
| Rk | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Hank Aaron |
| 2 | Alex Rodriguez |
| 3 | Lou Gehrig |
| 4 | Willie Mays |
| 5 | Stan Musial |
| 6 | Jimmie Foxx |
| 7 | Ted Williams |
| 8 | Earle Combs |
Hint: the active player (assuming he can find work) who is closest to joining this group is Ichiro Suzuki.
Congratulations to David P, John Autin and bstar! They teamed up to identify that only these eight players had eight of more consecutive seasons scoring 100+ runs, and also had eight or more games in their careers scoring four or more runs. Those seasons and games are after the jump.
Following up from the post on the AL teams, here is a team-by-team look at some singular statistical markers from the 2014 season.
More after the jump.
Here’s a look back at the 2014 season, identifying singular statistical accomplishments for each team. This first installment looks at the American league.
More after the jump.
The Golden Era (1947-72) committee meets on Monday to consider players from that era who meet Hall of Fame eligibility requirements but have not yet been elected. Just for fun, thought we might run our own mock election using the same rules.
More after the jump.
As a companion to the current Circle of Greats election, here are some of the players featured on this week’s ballot.
They didn’t strike the mother lode like the famous 49ers, but these are the only players born in 1909 to have a particular season batting feat that at least their mothers could be proud of. What is it?
| Rk | Player |
|---|---|
| 1 | Mel Ott |
| 2 | Stan Hack |
| 3 | Billy Herman |
| 4 | Jo-Jo White |
| 5 | Gene Moore |
| 6 | Tom Winsett |
| 7 | Skeeter Webb |
| 8 | Otto Bluege |
| 9 | Chile Gomez |
This was a tough one. The solution is all of these players were born in 1909 and had a season of 100+ games played with twice as many walks as doubles and more strikeouts than RBI. More after the jump.