TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

February 2, 1969 – Pitchers Stan Coveleski and Waite Hoyt are voted into the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee.

Stan Coveleski learned control as a youngster by throwing rocks at tin cans that swung from a tree. Though he pitched a shutout in his first big league start with the Athletics in 1912,

it was the spitball he later learned in the Minor Leagues. in 1913-1915, earning a permanent spot in the big leagues in 1916 when the Indians bought his contract.

Using a fluttering spitball that dove sharply and broke inside on lefties and righties, Stan Coveleski helped two unlikely teams to the World Series. He won three games in the 1920 Series — the first championship for Cleveland, against Brooklyn while yielding only two runs, he was traded on December 12, 1924: Traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Washington Senators for By Speece and Carr Smith, and in 1925 he helped the Senators to the World Series in his first year with that club, winning 20 games. He consistently topped 275 innings pitched and was a valuable pitcher well into his mid-thirties. A longtime resident of South Bend, Indiana, the ballfield in that college town bears his name.

What's in a Name?

He was born Stanislaus Kowalewski in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, which was mining country. He and four brothers all became professional baseball players. The last name was changed to "Coveleskie" for all formal matters, but somewhere along the line sources dropped the last "e" and made it "Coveleski." Stan's Hall of Fame plaque, and the stadium in South Bend, Indiana that bears his name, both spell the last name "Coveleski," but during their playing days, Harry (the only other brother to make the big leagues) and Stan were known as "Coveleskie."

Waite "Schoolboy" Hoyt pitched his first inning in the majors at the age of 18, and when he threw his last pitch 20 years later he had more than 230 wins in his Hall of Fame career. Originally signed by the New York Giants, Hoyt fell from the grasp of John McGraw and was with the Boston Red Sox in 1919-1920 before he was shipped off with the rest of Harry Frazee's big names prior to the 1921 season. Like many other Red Sox castoffs, Hoyt ended up with the New York Yankees, and it was there that he emerged as an ace. A clutch performer, Hoyt was 6-3 with a stellar 1.62 ERA for the Bronx Bombers in the World Series. He anchored the pitching staff for three Yankee championship clubs before moving on to several teams in his 30s.

Factoid - On September 24, 1919, Waite Hoyt pitched a 13-inning complete game for the Red Sox against the Yankees. From the third until the 14th inning he retired 27 batters in a row. Unfortunately, he lost the game 2-1.

Historic Days!

February 2, 1923, future Hall of Fame infielder Red Schoendienst is born in Germantown, Illinois. One of the most popular figures in St. Louis baseball history, Schoendienst was in a Cardinals’ uniform in seven decades, starting during World War II. As a player, he was a gritty second baseman with a strong arm and a good bat. He overcame great adversity when he rebounded from tuberculosis in 1960, after the illness forced him to miss all but five games the previous season. As a manager/player, Schoendienst led the Redbirds to two World Series titles, skippering the team in four different decades. His 14th-inning home run won the 1950 All-Star Game for the National League. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1989.

February 2, 1950 — At a Boston sports writers dinner, infielder Bobby Doerr receives the Fred Hoey Award, given by the scribes in memory of the first full-time broadcaster for both the Red Sox and the Braves. The scrappy second baseman’s friend and Boston teammate, Ted Williams, surprises the gathering by attending the event wearing a tie.

February 2, 1969 – Pitchers Stan Coveleski and Waite Hoyt are voted into the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee; 1976, the Veterans Committee selects players Roger Connor and Fred Lindstrom and umpire Cal Hubbard.

February 2, 1972 – Lefty Gomez, a southpaw best known for his four 20-win seasons with the Yankees, and Ross Youngs, a popular outfielder for the Giants who compiled a lifetime .322 batting average before succumbing to kidney disease at the age of 30, are selected by the Special Veterans Committee to be enshrined in Cooperstown. The group also gives the nod to former American League president William Harridge, initially hired to fill a three-year term as an interim, but will hold the position for the next 27 years.

February 2, 1989, former All-Star first baseman Bill White is elected president of the National League. White succeeds Chub Feeney, becoming the first African-American to be named president of either league and the highest ranking black executive in the four major sports.

February 2 2017 — The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame announces its 2017 inductees. Leading the way are Pitcher Roy Halladay and OF Vladimir Guerrero, who respectively starred for the Toronto Blue Jays and Montreal Expos, as well as former Baseball Canada President Ray Carter, amateur umpire Doug Hudlin, and the edition of Team Canada which won gold at the 2015 Pan American Games. Hudlin, a Victoria, British Columbia native who will be inducted posthumously. Halladay, who posted a 148-76 (.661) record during his dozen seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays, and Guerrero, a four-time all-star while playing for the Montreal Expos during the first eight years of his career.

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TRIVIA

Trivia: Six Pitchers who have hurled three complete game wins in one World Series, Stan did it in 1920. Can you name the other five?

Answer in tomorrows newsletter

 ANSWER TO YESTERDAY’S TRIVIA

Which of the following Dodger players is the only one not to steal at least 300 bases as a Dodger?

Steve Sax the 1982 ROY ranks 4th with 290 steals, he was caught stealing 126 times.

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