Bill Veeck is quoted as saying “There are only two
seasons - winter and Baseball”. As the
2013 Major League Baseball season kicks off, and
our latest commercial
featuring former baseball and football legend Bo Jackson begins airing, the
5-hour ENERGY® team is ready to play ball! Whether you’re a lifelong baseball
fan or just ready to get outside for some peanuts and Cracker Jack ® with
friends, a little obscure baseball knowledge is on deck, courtesy of 5-hour
ENERGY®! Check out these five fun facts
you may not know about America’s favorite pastime…
Youngblood Hits
for Two Different Teams…on the Same Day
Joel Youngblood went down in history as the first player
to get hits for two different teams, in two different cities on the same day!
In 1982, Youngblood played as a centerfielder for the New York Mets. In a game
against the Cubs, he hit a two-run single and later in the same game he was
replaced by another center fielder and traded to the Montreal Expos. Youngblood
was rushed to Philadelphia to be with his new team and was thrown into the game
where he hit a single, making him the first player to have a hit on the same
day for two different teams.
Baylor’s
Back to Back to Back World Series
Currently Don Baylor is a hitting coach for the
Arizona Diamondbacks, but during his baseball career he had quite the run! From
his MVP title in 1979 to winning three Silver Slugger awards, Baylor was an
outstanding player, but the thing you might not know is that he played in the
World Series three consecutive times in his career…for three different teams!
Baylor’s World Series run started in 1986 with the Boston Red Sox, continued in
1987 with the Minnesota Twins and finished in 1988 with the Oakland
Athletics. Unfortunately, Baylor’s only
World Series win was during his time with the Twins in 1987.
Twins Manage
Two Triple Plays
In a game against the Red Sox in 1990, the
Minnesota Twins became the first team in Major League Baseball history to turn
two triple plays in the same game. The first triple play was in the fourth
inning and the second was in the eighth, and both played out in a similar
fashion. Each started with a sharp hit to third baseman Gary Gaetti and went
5-4-3. Oddly enough, even with the two triple plays, the Twins still ended up
losing the game.
Piersall
Runs the Bases Backwards
Center fielder Jimmy Piersall was a bit of a character
and performed several stunts during baseball games, including climbing a
grandstand roof to heckle an umpire and going up to bat wearing a Beatles wig.
While people may remember Piersall for his wacky approach to the game, one of
his biggest stunts happened when he played for the New York Mets. In the fifth
inning of a game against the Phillies, Piersall hit his 100
th career
home run and ran the bases facing backwards. While other people laughted
, Mets manager Casey Stengel wasn’t amused and Piersall was
given a pink slip.
Opening Day Forfeit
On opening day in 1907, the New York Giants played
the Philadelphia Phillies at home after an unusual and massive April snowstorm.
Members of the grounds crew were called early in the morning to clear the field
of snow so the game wouldn’t have to be postponed. The field was cleared and
diehard baseball fans showed up to opening day. Towards the end of the game, as
the Giants continued to fall behind, things started to go downhill as fans
began to throw snowballs at each other and on to the field. Security was called
to try and stop the quickly escalating snowball fight, but they could not. Things
got so out of control that the umpire ordered a forfeit, with Philadelphia’s
3-0 lead as the final score, making the game the only opening day forfeit in
baseball history.
Did your favorite baseball story make our list? If
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Labels: 5-Hour Energy, baseball
