<— NOV 06     NOV 08 —>

BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1855 Edward Sylvester (The Only) Nolan
1868 Julie Freeman
1872 Monte McFarland
1872 Billy Ging
1873 Frank Eustace
1885 Ed Mensor
1889 Carl (Tommy) Thompson
1891 Tracy Baker
1896 Rufus Battle
1896 Randolph Prim
1898 Mike Pasquella
1906 Alan Strange
1910 Wilbur Lee (Bill) Brubaker
1911 Herb Crompton

Crompton was a Quad Cities area kid who spent two games with the Senators in 1937 and, after wandering all over the minors, got a longer run with the Yankees in 1945.  From his obituary, we learn that he came from a large family, married got sick in his early 50s, and died on 05 August 1963.  (A lot of what is said about Crompton’s career in those obituaries I found was wrong, though…)

Herb Crompton got his first hit in his debut game on April 26, 1937.  He had entered the game as a pinch runner for Shanty Hogan, then stayed in the game at catcher.  After hitting into a fielder’s choice off of Johnny Marcum, he reached the pitcher for a single to left.  A few weeks later, he was back in the minors.

1916 Joe Hatten
1919 Tommy Neill
1921 Manuel Godinez
1932 Dick Stuart

Dr. Strangeglove.  Could hit pretty well, but his reputation in the field left a lot to be desired.

1933 Bob Hale
1935 Jay Hankins
1938 Jim Kaat

Smart pitcher who had a long career (might still have the Twins career record for wins) and was the best fielding pitcher prior to the arrival of Greg Maddux.  Spent even more time in the broadcast booth where he’s been great.

1938 Jake Gibbs
1941 Clarence Jones
1944 Joe Niekro
1945 Dave Bennett
1947 Don Newhauser
1948 Tom Walker
1948 John Albert (Buck) Martinez

Still working the broadcast booth nearly 40 years after his solid career as a catcher ended.

1950 Willie Norwood
1951 John Tamargo
1955 Guy Sularz
1958 Reggie Patterson
1959 Rich Rodas
1961 Orlando Mercado
1965 Kevin Bearse
1966 Andy Tomberlin
1966 William Suero
1966 Brian Drahman
1967 Dave Wainhouse
1968 Russ Springer
1969 Dave Fleming
1971 Todd Ritchie
1972 Travis Smith
1973 Sean DePaula
1974 Glendon Rusch

When Rusch came to the majors with the Royals, I was a season ticket holder.  Rusch didn’t have a big fastball, but he had impeccable control and a simple, clean delivery.  He just got hit around some and it took a while for him to have a few good years – and rarely in consecutive seasons.  However, he looked so smooth out there, and was a lefty, that he stuck around for a dozen seasons.  From the beginning to the end, he would invariably win only about 40% of his decisions.

1974 Kris Benson
1976 Les Walrond
1978 Juan Salas
1979 Willie Collazo
1979 Juan Brito
1981 Dave Krynzel
1982 Brian Horwitz
1983 Esmerling Vasquez
1985 Mitch Harris
1988 Dariel Alvarez
1989 Sonny Gray
1990 Danny Santana
1992 Jordan Weems
1997 Jonathan Pintaro
1999 Roansy Contreras
2000 Rafael Flores
2000 Mason Barnett

OBITUARIES:

1888 Rit Harrison

Like his baseball career (one game for New Haven in 1875), Harrison’s life was brief – he passed away in Bridgeport, Connecticut at 39. His earthly remains were buried in Riverside Cemetery in Waterbury, CT.

1901 Tub Welch

A St. Louis native, James Thomas Welch played for two teams in the 1890s (Toledo, Louisville), but only one year for each… That said, the backstop had several good seasons in the minor leagues (mostly in the Western League and Texas League) for more than a decade. Welch earned his nickname early on in his career – standing 5′ 11″ but weighing the neighborhood of 230 pounds. For his era, he was a large man.

Without trying to be funny – that 230 might be an average. I saw one note that claimed he arrived in camp at 210 in 1894. It seems Welch may have weighed even more than 230 at various times in his career. When he signed with Kansas City in 1896, the newspaper announcing his signing said that he weighed 50 pounds less than in previous seasons and hadn’t touched liquor in at least two years. That said, I see many articles where people referred to Welch as being a pretty good athlete despite his size. Early in his career, he even played games at second base and the outfield. He also had a good reputation as a thrower.

In the main, it appears he was a gentle giant. One player said he loaned money to teammates in need and was friends with just about everyone on the field. At the same time, he could defend himself if needed. One day Toledo teammate George Tebeau came into the locker room in a bad mood and saw that Tub was using a bar of soap that Tebeau claimed was his. Tebeau called out Tub for his size, claiming he was a lousy player and a worse human and all that… At some point, Welch grew tired of Tebeau’s rant and told George that he didn’t know the soap belonged to him, that the soap was provided by the team anyway, and then told George to “…button up your lip.” Tebeau, as you can imagine, didn’t appreciate the suggestion and more or less challenged Welch to a fight. So, Welch lifted him off the ground, shoved Tebeau in a locker, stuffed the bar of soap in his mouth, and then tossed him to the ground and heaped a few lefts and rights in there for good measure. Tebeau never bothered Welch again.

According to his St. Louis death record, he began suffering from the effects of kidney disease, which eventually took him at 35. A bachelor at the time of his death, his earthly remains were interred at Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis.

“One Base Hits,” Leavenworth Times, August 8, 1886: 5.
“Another Game Saved,” Lincoln Journal Star, September 10, 1887: 2.
“Two More Players Here,” Savannah Morning News, March 23, 1894: 8.
“Lost One to Peoria,” St. Joseph Herald, August 19, 1894: 5.
“Notes of the Game,” St. Joseph Herald, August 19, 1894: 5.
“Baseball Matters,” St. Joseph Gazette, January 11, 1896: 5.
“Rowdy Players,” Buffalo Enquirer, February 24, 1898: 6.

1904 Fred Carroll

Carroll, a California native, settled in San Rafael after his baseball days were over. He was but 40 when he had a fatal heart attack. He was a catcher who could hit, draw walks, and steal bases during the 1890s… His 1889 season, where he batted to a .330/.486/.484 slash line with 19 SB is a Hall of Fame level season. Unfortuately, he was out of the majors by 1892.

“Old Time Baseball Star is Called Out Forever,” San Francisco Call, November 9, 1904: 15.

1918 Mike Tiernan

Silent Mike was an outfielder with the Giants for 13 seasons – and one of the great stars of their championship squads. He’s a forgotten star, too – hitting .311 with a great OBP and two home run crowns, a large number of stolen bases, and twice scored more runs than games played in a season (missing two others by a single run). His career is very nearly Hall of Fame quality (42 WAR), but not long enough. The Brooklyn Daily Times noted that Tiernan died of tuberculosis.

“Silent Mike Tiernan Dies,” New York Times, November 9, 1918: 14.
“Mike Tiernan Called Out by the Great Umpire,” Brooklyn Daily Times, November 9, 1918: 8.

1922 Sam Thompson
1927 Ed Clark
1930 Warren Fitzgerald
1930 John Hanna
1942 Birdie Cree
1942 Lev Shreve
1943 Bill Wolff
1946 Tom Daly
1947 Cy Wright
1948 Jake Smith
1954 Art Bues
1954 Charlie Frisbee
1966 Rube Bressler
1969 Chick Galloway
1970 Johnny Hudson
1970 Paul McCullough
1982 Jim Bivin
1984 George Bennette
1984 John Griffin
1989 Tommy Tatum
1993 Tex Shirley
1996 Eddie Lukon
2006 Johnny Sain
2006 Buddy Kerr
2009 Bob Dillinger
2010 George Estock

Estock once struck out 22 batters while pitching for the Wilmington Blue Rocks. After his professional career ended, he umpired and coached kids… He spent nearly 30 years with the Dupont Company before retiring to Florida.  When Estock died, he was 86.

Estock made it to the majors with the Braves in 1951, a teammate of Spahn and Sain, making a single start among 37 appearances and losing his only decision. But it was a good career and a good life. And baseball never left his thoughts for very long.

Bill Valvo, “Remembering George Estock and his love of baseball,” Sebastian Sun, November 19, 2010: B1.
Obit, Wilmington News Journal, November 10, 2010: B9.
Keona Gardner, “Former Major Leaguer Helped Teach High School Players,” Stuart News, November 10, 2010: C1, C2.

2014 Allen Ripley
2015 Fred Besana

Heart disease conspired to take Besana from us when he was 85.

2017 Roy Halladay

Plane crash. On drugs, no less. He was 40.

2021 Pedro Feliciano

During a comeback from an injury, Feliciano was diagnosed with a rare genetic heart condition. He died in his sleep at 45.

YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE!!!

1964 Baseball owners approve the Braves decision to move from Milwaukee to Atlanta after the 1965 season.

1973 Sylvia Presser, from the New Jersey Civil Rights Division, rules to allow girls to play Little League baseball.

TRANSACTION WIRE:

1928 Boston unloads player-manager Rogers Hornsby to the Cubs for five players and $200,000. Emil Fuchs, the owner, would take over the reins of the Braves.

1973 Chicago sends Glenn Beckert (and Bobby Fenwick) to the Padres for outfielder Jerry Morales.

1985 Montreal signs amateur free agent pitcher Mel Rojas.

1997 The Yankees send Kenny Rogers (and cash) to the Athletics for a player to be named later – Scott Brosius.

2007 Houston sends Brad Lidge and Eric Bruntlett to the Phillies for Michael Bourn, Mike Constanzo, and Geoff Geary.

2011 Kansas City sends Melky Cabrera to the Giants for Jonathan Sanchez and Ryan Verdugo.