60 Fun Facts About Hard MLB Baseball

Which pitcher holds the MLB career record with 511 wins, a total 94 ahead of second place?

Cy Young won 511 games from 1890 to 1911, 94 more than Walter Johnson's 417; he also holds the career records for losses, innings pitched and complete games.

Nolan Ryan's career strikeout record of 5,714 is how far ahead of the runner-up, Randy Johnson?

Nolan Ryan's 5,714 strikeouts stand 839 clear of Randy Johnson's 4,875; Ryan also posted a career 6.56 hits allowed per nine innings, the lowest of any qualified pitcher.

Cal Ripken Jr. voluntarily ended his consecutive-games streak in 1998 at what number?

Cal Ripken Jr. sat out the Orioles' final home game of 1998, ending the streak at 2,632 consecutive games, 502 beyond Lou Gehrig's 2,130.

Which Cleveland third baseman's backhand stops helped end DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak?

Ken Keltner's two backhanded stops at third base on July 17, 1941 helped hold DiMaggio hitless at 56; DiMaggio then hit in 16 straight, 72 of 73 games.

What batting average did Ted Williams post for the Red Sox in 1941?

Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941; entering the final-day doubleheader at .39955, which would have rounded to .400, he refused to sit and went 6-for-8.

Rickey Henderson's 1,406 career stolen bases broke the record of 938 held by which player?

Henderson's total is nearly 50 percent higher than Brock's, and he also holds the career records for runs and leadoff home runs.

Which Pirates left-hander retired 36 straight Braves in 1959, only to lose the game in the 13th inning?

Harvey Haddix retired 36 straight Braves on May 26, 1959; a Don Hoak throwing error opened the 13th, and Pittsburgh lost 1–0 on an unearned run.

Which Reds pitcher threw no-hitters in consecutive starts in June 1938?

Johnny Vander Meer no-hit Boston on June 11 and Brooklyn on June 15, 1938; in 1952 he threw another no-hitter for Tulsa in the Texas League.

Bob Gibson's live-ball-era record ERA in the 1968 'Year of the Pitcher' was what?

Bob Gibson posted a 1.12 ERA in 1968, the lowest of the live-ball era, yet went 22–9 because the Cardinals rarely scored for him; he struck out 17 in World Series Game 1.

What final won-lost record did 30-game winner Denny McLain post in 1968?

Denny McLain went 31–6 with a 1.96 ERA for the 1968 Tigers, sweeping the AL MVP and Cy Young awards; his last big-league game came in 1972.

Which showman owner sent 3-foot-7 Eddie Gaedel to the plate for the St. Louis Browns in 1951?

Bill Veeck signed 3-foot-7 Eddie Gaedel, who walked on four pitches on August 19, 1951 and left for pinch-runner Jim Delsing; Veeck called him 'the best darn midget who ever played big-league ball'.

Disco Demolition Night in 1979 forced the White Sox to forfeit a game to which team?

The Detroit Tigers were awarded the second game of the July 12, 1979 doubleheader by forfeit after Steve Dahl blew up a crate of disco records and fans wrecked the Comiskey Park field.

Cleveland's infamous Ten Cent Beer Night in 1974 ended in a forfeit to which visiting team?

Crew chief Nestor Chylak forfeited the June 4, 1974 game to the Texas Rangers after drunken fans stormed the field in the ninth inning with the score tied 5–5.

In the 1983 Pine Tar Incident, George Brett's bat had tar beyond how many inches from the handle?

Rules limit pine tar to 18 inches from the bat handle; after Billy Martin protested, umpire Tim McClelland measured Brett's bat against the 17-inch-wide plate and nullified his homer, a ruling AL president Lee MacPhail overturned.

Fred Merkle's famous 1908 base-running blunder came in a game between the Giants and which team?

The Chicago Cubs were the opponent on September 23, 1908; the disputed tie was replayed on October 8, the Cubs won, and they took the pennant by exactly one game.

Who was appointed the first Commissioner of Baseball in the aftermath of the Black Sox Scandal?

Kenesaw Mountain Landis, a federal judge, was named commissioner in November 1920; despite acquittals at the 1921 trial he permanently banned all eight implicated White Sox players.

Old Hoss Radbourn's untouchable single-season wins record, set with Providence in 1884, is how many?

Old Hoss Radbourn is credited with 60 wins for Providence in 1884 over 678.2 innings, then pitched every game of the Grays' three-game sweep of the New York Metropolitans in that year's World Series.

Whose walk-off home run won Game 7 of the 1960 World Series for the Pirates?

Bill Mazeroski, a glove-first second baseman with 138 career homers, led off the bottom of the ninth with a homer off Ralph Terry for a 10–9 win over the Yankees.

Which pitcher gave up Joe Carter's 1993 World Series-winning home run?

Mitch Williams, the Phillies closer, gave up Joe Carter's three-run homer with Toronto trailing 6–5 in Game 6, the first come-from-behind walk-off home run to end a World Series.

Dock Ellis said he threw his 1970 no-hitter under the influence of LSD against which team?

Dock Ellis no-hit the San Diego Padres on June 12, 1970, in the opener of a doubleheader, walking eight; he later said he had taken LSD that day believing the Pirates were off.

Jim Abbott, born without a right hand, threw a 1993 no-hitter for the Yankees against which team?

Jim Abbott beat the Cleveland Indians 4–0 at Yankee Stadium on September 4, 1993, switching his glove from his right forearm to his left hand after each pitch to field.

Who refused a 1969 trade and took baseball's reserve clause to the Supreme Court?

Curt Flood lost Flood v. Kuhn 5–3 in 1972, but the fight galvanized the players' union, and the 1975 Messersmith–McNally arbitration brought free agency.

Joe Nuxhall, the youngest player in MLB history, debuted for the Reds in 1944 at what age?

Joe Nuxhall was 15 years and 316 days old on June 10, 1944, when he pitched two-thirds of an inning against the Cardinals; he later spent decades as a Reds broadcaster.

At what age did Satchel Paige pitch his last major league game in 1965?

Satchel Paige was 59 when he threw three scoreless innings for the Kansas City Athletics on September 25, 1965; he had been the oldest rookie ever at 42 with Cleveland in 1948.

Under what official name did the Astrodome open in 1965?

Its official name was Harris County Domed Stadium; billed as the Eighth Wonder of the World, it housed the Astros from 1965 through 1999.

Which Yankee was MLB's first designated hitter, walking on five pitches from Luis Tiant in 1973?

Ron Blomberg drew a bases-loaded walk from Luis Tiant on April 6, 1973; his bat went to Cooperstown, and AL owners had approved the DH 8–4 as a three-year experiment.

Which umpire's blown call at first base cost Armando Galarraga a perfect game in 2010?

Jim Joyce called Jason Donald safe on the 27th out on June 2, 2010; Joyce tearfully apologised afterward, and he and Galarraga co-wrote the book Nobody's Perfect.

Tom Cheney's single-game record of 21 strikeouts in 1962 came in a game that lasted how many innings?

Tom Cheney of the Washington Senators struck out 21 Orioles while pitching all 16 innings on September 12, 1962, allowing a single run in a 2–1 win.

Rennie Stennett went 7-for-7 in a nine-inning game in 1975 as the Pirates beat the Cubs by what score?

The Pirates won 22–0 at Wrigley Field on September 16, 1975; Wilbert Robinson's seven hits for Baltimore in 1892 had been the only previous seven-hit nine-inning game.

Fernando Tatís hit two grand slams in the same inning in 1999, both off which Dodgers pitcher?

Chan Ho Park gave up both slams in the third inning on April 23, 1999 at Dodger Stadium, giving Fernando Tatís eight RBIs in a single inning.

How many RBIs did Hack Wilson drive in during his record 1930 season?

Hack Wilson drove in 191 runs for the 1930 Cubs (revised from 190 in 1999); Lou Gehrig came closest with 185 in 1931, and Wilson's 56 homers stood as the NL record for 68 years.

Which Negro leagues star holds MLB's highest career batting average since the statistics were integrated in 2024?

Josh Gibson's career .372 average topped Ty Cobb's .367 when Negro Leagues statistics entered the MLB record in May 2024; his .466 in 1943 also became the single-season record.

Ichiro Suzuki set the MLB single-season hits record in 2004 with how many?

Ichiro Suzuki collected 262 hits for the 2004 Mariners, breaking George Sisler's 84-year-old mark of 257 set in 1920.

Barry Bonds hit his record 73rd home run of 2001 off which pitcher?

Dennis Springer, a Dodgers knuckleballer, gave up No. 73 on October 7, 2001, the final day of the season, at Pacific Bell Park.

Don Larsen's 1956 World Series perfect game was which perfect game in MLB history?

Don Larsen's was the sixth perfect game in MLB history, after Lee Richmond and John Montgomery Ward in 1880, Cy Young in 1904, Addie Joss in 1908 and Charlie Robertson in 1922, and the first in World Series play.

Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout one-hitter in 1998 came in which start of his career?

Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout one-hitter against the Astros on May 6, 1998 came in his fifth big-league start, tying Roger Clemens's nine-inning record and breaking Bill Gullickson's rookie mark of 18.

Ferguson Jenkins was the first Canadian in the Baseball Hall of Fame; who was the second, in 2020?

Larry Walker, the 1997 NL MVP from Maple Ridge, B.C., was elected in 2020 and inducted in 2021; Jenkins, the 1971 Cy Young winner, had been inducted in 1991.

Masanori Murakami became the first Japanese player in MLB in 1964 with which team?

He debuted on September 1, 1964, three decades before Hideo Nomo made the crossing famous.

Which pitcher gave up Bartolo Colón's first and only career home run in 2016?

James Shields of the Padres gave up the two-run homer at Petco Park on May 7, 2016; it was the only home run of Colón's 21-season career.

Julio Franco became the oldest player ever to homer in 2007, at what age?

Julio Franco was 48 when he homered off Randy Johnson on May 4, 2007; he had debuted with the Phillies in 1982 and last played that September at 49.

The 1994-95 players' strike, which cancelled the World Series, lasted how many days?

The strike ran 232 days, from August 12, 1994 to April 2, 1995, wiping out 948 games and forcing the first cancelled World Series since 1904.

Who was the first overall pick in the inaugural MLB draft in 1965?

The Kansas City Athletics took Arizona State outfielder Rick Monday first overall on June 8, 1965; as a Cub in 1976 he snatched an American flag from two protesters trying to burn it at Dodger Stadium.

Fenway Park's Green Monster was completed at what height?

The wall built in the 1934 rebuild stands 37 feet, replacing a 10-foot slope called Duffy's Cliff and the original 25-foot wooden fence; Monster seats were added on top in 2003.

Randy Johnson's fastball killed a dove during a 2001 spring training game against which team?

After retiring, Johnson's photography company adopted a dead bird as its logo.

How many consecutive hitless at-bats did Chris Davis go in 2019, an MLB record for a position player?

Chris Davis went 0-for-54 from September 14, 2018 until a hit on April 13, 2019 against the Red Sox, passing Eugenio Vélez's 0-for-46 from 2010–11.

Which franchise was the first MLB team located outside the United States?

The Montreal Expos joined the NL East in 1969 and did not post a winning record until 1979.

The Seattle Pilots played a single season in 1969 before moving to become which team?

The Pilots became the Milwaukee Brewers in 1970 after Bud Selig's group bought the bankrupt club; Seattle had gone 64–98 at cramped Sick's Stadium.

Bobby Thomson's 1951 'Shot Heard Round the World' came off which Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher?

Ralph Branca, wearing No. 13, gave up the three-run homer in the ninth inning of the deciding playoff game on October 3, 1951, capping a Giants comeback from 13½ games back in August.

Roberto Clemente's 3,000th and final regular-season hit in 1972 was a double off which Mets pitcher?

Jon Matlack gave up the double at Three Rivers Stadium on September 30, 1972; Clemente died on December 31 in a plane crash while flying earthquake relief supplies to Nicaragua.

Willie Mays' famous 1954 World Series catch robbed which Cleveland hitter?

Vic Wertz's drive in the eighth inning of Game 1, with the score 2–2 and two on, was run down about 425 feet from the plate at the Polo Grounds.

Which Cy Young winner gave up Kirk Gibson's limping walk-off homer in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series?

Dennis Eckersley gave up the two-out, two-run homer on a 3–2 backdoor slider; Gibson, that season's NL MVP, did not bat again in the Series.

Between 1956 and 1966, how many Cy Young Awards were handed out each year?

Commissioner Ford Frick created a single award for all of MLB in 1956; only after he retired in 1965 did each league get its own award, starting in 1967.

Miguel Cabrera's 2012 Triple Crown was the first since which player did it in 1967?

Carl Yastrzemski took the 1967 Triple Crown at .326 with 44 homers and 121 RBIs; Cabrera's 2012 line was .330, 44 and 139.

How many relief innings did Madison Bumgarner pitch in Game 7 of the 2014 World Series?

Madison Bumgarner pitched five scoreless innings of relief on two days' rest in Game 7, a 3–2 Giants win over the Royals, finishing with a 0.25 career World Series ERA.

In which year did MLB redefine the no-hitter, retroactively erasing Harvey Haddix's 1959 gem?

The 1991 definition retroactively struck Haddix's gem from the list; his response was 'It's O.K. I know what I did.'

Harvey Haddix's nickname 'The Kitten' compared him to which Cardinals left-hander known as 'The Cat'?

Harry 'The Cat' Brecheen was a small Cardinals left-hander of the 1940s; Haddix, a similarly built lefty who reached the Cardinals in 1952, was dubbed 'The Kitten'.

How much did Connie Mack's Athletics pay for Shoeless Joe Jackson's contract in August 1908?

Connie Mack bought Jackson's contract from the Greenville Spinners for $900 in August 1908; Jackson had been earning $75 a month while hitting .346 to lead the Carolina Association.

Per Jackson, why was he playing in his socks in the mill game that earned him his nickname?

He took the painful new cleats off before batting; a heckler shouted 'You shoeless son of a gun, you!' as he ran to third.

What was Jackie Robinson's batting average in his only baseball season at UCLA?

He hit just .097 despite going 4-for-4 and twice stealing home in his first game; he won the 1940 NCAA long jump title.

Which trade did the young Babe Ruth learn at St. Mary's Industrial School?

Ruth became a shirtmaker and a proficient carpenter at St. Mary's, where boys worked from age 12.