President Donald Trump will have three more chances to do what he didn’t do in his first term: Throw out a ceremonial first pitch to open a Major League Baseball season in Washington. Trump, who was booed when he attended Game 5 of the 2019 World Series at Nationals Park, ended a tradition that began … Continue reading Donald Trump and baseball
Category: Griiffth and D.C. stadiums; pre-1901 Washington baseball;, the Homestead Grays
and everything else
Satchel Paige and D.C.
Satchel Paige arguably could be the greatest pitcher that ever was. As time passes and more of the accomplishments of his long career in the Negro Leagues are verified, it’s likely his case will grow stronger. He played professionally from the late 1920s into the 1960s. Game accounts and box scores of his many appearances … Continue reading Satchel Paige and D.C.
Griffith Stadium in 1956 became the last A.L. ball park to sell beer
Beer sales weren’t allowed in Washington’s Griffith Stadium until August 10, 1956. That left only Forbes Field in Pittsburgh and Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia as the only major league ball parks where, thanks to Pennsylvania law, fans couldn’t buy beer.* Washington’s longtime owner Clark Griffith had died in October 1955. A teetotaler, he favored … Continue reading Griffith Stadium in 1956 became the last A.L. ball park to sell beer
Win Mercer, 1890s’ heartthrob, two-way star of the N.L. Senators
George Barclay “Win” Mercer was a 20-game winner in back-to-back seasons for woeful Washington teams in the 1890s’ National League. He batted .305 as a frequently used position player in a five-year stretch from 1897 to 1901. By all accounts, the popular Mercer was a handsome ladies man and a big-time gambler. His nickname, reflecting … Continue reading Win Mercer, 1890s’ heartthrob, two-way star of the N.L. Senators
Who, if anyone, was the model for ‘Joe Hardy’?
Joe Hardy was the fictional baseball star created by J. Douglass Wallop in his 1954 novel The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant, adapted soon after for Broadway and film as Damn Yankees. Middle-aged Washington Senators fan Joe Boyd makes a deal with the devil to become a great player (Joe Hardy) and, he hopes, … Continue reading Who, if anyone, was the model for ‘Joe Hardy’?
All-Star Games in D.C.: 1937, 1956, 1962, 1969 and 2018
During the depth of the Great Depression, with a quarter of the American workforce unemployed, baseball attendance had fallen by 40 percent. A World’s Fair was scheduled in Chicago in the summer of 1933, and the city’s mayor wanted a major sports event to accompany it. He asked the publisher of the Chicago Tribune for … Continue reading All-Star Games in D.C.: 1937, 1956, 1962, 1969 and 2018
Ty Cobb’s last hit came at Griffith Stadium
Connie Mack’s Athletics were battling the Yankees for the 1928 pennant when Philadelphia came into Washington for a double-header on September 3, 1928. Down 6-0 with two outs left in the first game, Mack sent up 41-year-old Ty Cobb as a pinch-hitter against Bump Hadley of the Senators. Cobb, in his second year playing for … Continue reading Ty Cobb’s last hit came at Griffith Stadium
The Cracker Jack Classics and other RFK exhibitions
For six years, starting in 1982, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium played host to a star-studded old-timers game that was originally called the Cracker Jack Old Timers Baseball Classic. On July 19, 1982, a crowd of 29,196 attended the first of these five-inning games with the proceeds benefiting players who retired before the pension system … Continue reading The Cracker Jack Classics and other RFK exhibitions
Sept. 26, 1964: At D.C. Stadium, Stottlemyre was last pitcher to get five hits at bat
Under the new collective bargaining agreement, the designated hitter became universal for 2022. Pitchers, unless another Shohei Ohtani emerges, will no longer routinely bat in either league. So it’s worth looking back at a memorable game 58 seasons ago: September 26, 1964, the last time a pitcher actually had – and will ever again have … Continue reading Sept. 26, 1964: At D.C. Stadium, Stottlemyre was last pitcher to get five hits at bat
April 11, 1966: Emmett Ashford’s debut comes at D.C. Stadium
Emmett Ashford had trouble getting into D.C. Stadium on April 11, 1966, to become the first Black umpire in the Major Leagues. A Secret Service detail protecting Vice President Hubert Humphrey, there to throw out opening day’s ceremonial first pitch, stopped Ashford under the grandstands as he entered the stadium. “Listen, there are no Negro … Continue reading April 11, 1966: Emmett Ashford’s debut comes at D.C. Stadium
Charlie Brotman, voice of the Senators and the inaugurals
Charlie Brotman grew up in D.C. and graduated from McKinley Tech High School in 1946. After two years in the Navy, he decided he wanted to be a sports announcer. “Who didn’t?” he once told an interviewer, so he enrolled at the National Academy of Broadcasting in the District, in addition to attending classes at … Continue reading Charlie Brotman, voice of the Senators and the inaugurals
July 15, 1952: The record of 12 straight hits reached at Griffith Stadium
(updated July 8, 2024) Does any individual achievement deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak? Given that nobody before or after his 1941 record has come near it, the answer is clearly "no." Yet of all the multi-game records of shorter duration, another far less heralded feat continues … Continue reading July 15, 1952: The record of 12 straight hits reached at Griffith Stadium
A hospital’s mini-tribute to Griffith Stadium
After Washington's Griffith Stadium was torn down in February 1965, nearby Howard University acquired the 8.5-acre property for $1.5 million, to build what is now a 250-bed teaching hospital. The hospital opened in 1975. A historic marker, attached to a utility pole, notes existence of the stadium from 1911 until its demolition. The marker, placed … Continue reading A hospital’s mini-tribute to Griffith Stadium
First umpire to wear glasses did it at Griffith Stadium — in 1956
Ed Rommel, a knuckleballer who won 171 games in 13 seasons beginning in 1920, later spent 22 years as an American League umpire. On April 18, 1956, he became the first umpire in the 20th Century to wear eyeglasses during a game. His groundbreaking move, unnoticed at the time, came at Griffith Stadium on a … Continue reading First umpire to wear glasses did it at Griffith Stadium — in 1956
Ruth hit his last Yankee homer at Griffith Stadium
Babe Ruth appeared in 171 games at the ballpark that became known as Griffith Stadium, including his last two in a Yankees’ uniform – September 29 and 30, 1934. His homer in the first game of a doubleheader on September 29, a three-run shot, was the last he hit as a Yankee. My 1961 Fleer … Continue reading Ruth hit his last Yankee homer at Griffith Stadium
Ed Walsh, an original Nats owner, recruited Clark Griffith
In October 1911, as the Philadelphia Athletics were playing the New York Giants in the World Series. Edward J. Walsh, a founding owner and director of Washington’s American League team, met with Cincinnati Manager Clark Griffith at Philadelphia's 30th Street Station. That meeting helped determine the fate of Major League Baseball in Washington for nearly … Continue reading Ed Walsh, an original Nats owner, recruited Clark Griffith
Former Nats founded the players alumni association
Three former expansion Senators – Chuck Hinton, Jim Hannan and Fred Valentine – helped found the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association in February 1982, recruiting more than a dozen other former players. The organization today has more than 8,600 members. Brooks Robinson is the group’s current president and several other Hall of Famers serve … Continue reading Former Nats founded the players alumni association
Gabby Street’s Monumental catch
Charles Everd “Gabby” Street played in the majors for seven seasons as a catcher with the Cincinnati Reds, Boston Braves, New York Highlanders, St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Senators, where he spent four years as Walter Johnson’s personal catcher. In the midst of his playing career, he survived the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and … Continue reading Gabby Street’s Monumental catch
Ed Roebuck: Fungo hitter extraordinaire
Relief pitcher Ed Roebuck, who spent two months of the 1963 season and another one in ’64 with the Senators, was one of the game’s greatest fungo hitters. As a child, according to Paul Hirsch’s SABR bio essay, Roebuck liked to pass time hitting stones with a stick. The pitcher became so good at making … Continue reading Ed Roebuck: Fungo hitter extraordinaire
The 1867 Nationals Western Tour
The original Washington National Baseball Club was a top-level, ostensibly amateur, team in the 1860s. But like other highly skilled teams of that era, the team was made up of what are often known as “ringers” brought in from elsewhere and given no-show jobs by wealthy and well-connected baseball enthusiasts. The first professional league, the … Continue reading The 1867 Nationals Western Tour
Washington baseball history 