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Baseball Trivia

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In the 1880s, tobacco companies used baseball cards to stiffen the small, soft cigarette packages and boost sales. These early baseball cards became very popular. The cards varied in design and format, and measured about 1.5 x 2.5 inches, much smaller than contemporary sports trading cards.

In the 1964 World Series, St. Louis reserve catcher Bob Uecker caught baseballs in the outfield during warm-ups with a tuba.

In the baseball's early days, umpires were unpaid volunteers. They were often a spectator and, sometimes, a player, chosen by the home team with the consent of the rival team's captain. In 1878, the National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, organized two years earlier, mandated that home baseball teams pay umpires $5 per game.

It's no secret that surly baseball legend Ty Cobb had few teammates as friends. He did, however, develop one strong relationship with his personal assistant, Alexander George Washington Rivers. Rivers was Cobb's exclusive “bat man,” chauffeur, and handyman.

Jack Graney of St. Thomas, Ontario, was the first baseball player to pitch to Babe Ruth in the major leagues. We all know what the Babe did in his career. As for Graney, he played 14 seasons and then became the first ex-ballplayer to broadcast a game on radio.

Joe Tinker of the Chicago Cubs was the first player to steal home twice in one game. This baseball first was accomplished on June 28, 1910.

John H. Gaffney was the highest-paid umpire in baseball in 1888, earning a salary of $2,500 a year, plus expenses when on the road.

A ball hitting the foul pole at Yankee Stadium in the 1930s was in play, not a homer.

A baseball hit by a bat can travel as fast as 120 miles per hour.

A baseball player trying to hit a 90-mile-per-hour pitch must begin his swing a quarter of a second after the ball is released.

According to one source, the Los Angeles Dodgers coined the term "high five." Outfielder Glenn Burke is credited with originating it in 1977.

According to the official rules of baseball, no umpire may be replaced during a game unless he is injured or becomes ill.

Actor Tom Selleck often wore a Detroit Tigers baseball cap in his title role on Magnum, P.I. on television.

As of 1999, seven umpires are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame: Jocko Conlan (1974), Tommy Connolly (1953), Bill Klem (1953), Billy Evans (1973), Cal Hubbard (1976), Al Barlick (1989), and Bill McGowan (1992).

As of March 31, 2000, Pacific Bell Park became the new home for the San Francisco Giants. Unlike 3Com Park, the Giants' former ballpark, all seats at the state-of-the-art Pacific Bell Park face the baseball diamond to ensure good views of the action for attending fans. A huge glove in left field is clearly marked with a "502" sign, making it the most distant current outfield measurement sign in baseball. Barry Bonds hit the first official Giants home run on Opening Day, April 11, 2000.

At the famous Yankee Stadium in the New York City borough of the Bronx, bleachers in right-center are often referred to as "Ruthville" and "Gehrigville." The green curtain in back of centerfield is sometimes raised and lowered like a window shade to force visiting batters to face a background of white-shirted bleacher fans, while allowing Yankees hitters to face a dark green background. It is sometimes removed in World Series play to sell more seats.

Athlete testimonials have been a key part of Wheaties' "Breakfast of Champions" advertising campaign for decades. Some of baseball's stars who endorsed the cereal included Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Jackie Robinson, Stan Musial, Ted Williams, Yogi Berra, Johnny Bench, and Mickey Mantle; 46 of the 51 players selected for the 1939 Major League All-Star Game endorsed Wheaties.

Johnny Bench, Cincinnati's Number 5, is the benchmark against which other catchers are still often compared. As Rookie of the Year in 1968, Bench controlled the game on both sides of the plate with his hitting (.267 with 389 home runs and a then-record 327 as a catcher), calling pitches, blocking home plate, throwing out opposing base runners. Bench won two MVP awards and ten Gold Gloves during his 17 seasons as one of the leaders of the team.

Major league baseball bats are made of ash. Almost all are shorter than 36 inches and weigh 31 to 36 ounces. The barrel can be 2.75 inches in diameter, but many of today's bats are 2.5 inches in diameter to save weight.

Major league baseball teams buy 182 pounds of special baseball rubbing mud each year from a farmer in Millsboro, Delaware.

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