In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is annually given to one player from each league as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The award was established in 1940 by the Chicago chapter of the BBWAA, which selected an annual winner from 1940 through 1946. The award became national in 1947; Jackie Robinson, the Brooklyn Dodgers' second baseman, won the inaugural award. One award was presented for both leagues in 1947 and 1948; since 1949, the honor has been given to one player each in the National and American League. Originally, the award was known as the J. Louis Comiskey Memorial Award, named after the Chicago White Sox owner of the 1930s. The award was renamed the Jackie Robinson Award in July 1987, 40 years after Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color line.
"Casey at the Bat: A Ballad of the Republic Sung in the Year 1888" is a baseball poem written in 1888 by Ernest Thayer. First published in The San Francisco Examiner on June 3, 1888, it was later popularized by DeWolf Hopper in many vaudeville performances. It has become one of the best-known poems in American literature. The poem was originally published anonymously.
Ernest Lawrence Thayer was an American writer and poet who wrote the poem "Casey", which is "the single most famous baseball poem ever written" according to the Baseball Almanac, and "the nation’s best-known piece of comic verse—a ballad that began a native legend as colorful and permanent as that of Johnny Appleseed or Paul Bunyan."
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), as voted by the managers and coaches in each league. It is also awarded to women fastpitch softball players in the National Pro Fastpitch as of 2016. Managers are not permitted to vote for their own players. Additionally, a sabermetric component provided by Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) accounts for approximately 25 percent of the vote. Eighteen Gold Gloves are awarded each year, one at each of the nine positions in each league. In 1957, the baseball glove manufacturer Rawlings created the Gold Glove Award to commemorate the best fielding performance at each position. The award was created from a glove made from gold lamé-tanned leather and affixed to a walnut base. Initially, only one Gold Glove per position was awarded to the top fielder at each position in Major League Baseball; however, separate awards were given for the National and American Leagues beginning in 1958.
In Major League Baseball (MLB), the 500 home run club is a group of batters who have hit 500 or more regular-season home runs in their careers. On August 11, 1929, Babe Ruth became the first member of the club. Ruth ended his career with 714 home runs, a record which stood from 1935 until Hank Aaron surpassed it in 1974. Aaron's ultimate career total, 755, remained the record until Barry Bonds set the current mark of 762 during the 2007 season. Twenty-seven players are members of the 500 home run club. Ted Williams (.344) holds the highest batting average among the club members while Harmon Killebrew (.256) holds the lowest.
The Willie Mays World Series Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award is given to the player deemed to have the most impact on his team's performance in the World Series, which is the final round of the Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason. The award was first presented in 1955 as the SPORT Magazine Award, but is now decided during the final game of the Series by a committee of reporters and officials present at the game. On September 29, 2017, it was renamed in honor of Willie Mays in remembrance of the 63rd anniversary of The Catch. Mays never won the award himself.
The Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame is a collection of plaques, mounted on a brick wall next to the Left Field Gate at Citizens Bank Park, the ballpark of the Philadelphia Phillies. From 1978 to 2003, the Phillies inducted one figure from their franchise history and one notable person from the Philadelphia Athletics (A's) organization each year—with the exception of 1983, when the Phillies inducted their Centennial Team. Once Veterans Stadium closed in 2003, the wall plaques used to recognize the Phillies' members were moved to Citizens Bank Park; however, the Phillies no longer induct notable Athletics. Each person inducted into the Wall of Fame was honored with a metal plaque showing the person's face; their position with, and years of service to the team; and a summary of their most important contributions. In March 2004, the Athletics' plaques were relocated to the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society in Hatboro, Pennsylvania, and a single plaque listing all of the A's inductees was attached to a statue of Connie Mack located across the street from Citizens Bank Park.
Daniel Maurice Casey was an American professional baseball player whose career spanned from 1884 to 1894 and 1899. He played in Major League Baseball, principally as a pitcher, over parts of seven seasons for four major league clubs. He saw his most extensive playing time with the Philadelphia Quakers, appearing in 142 games for that team from 1886 to 1889. He also appeared in 46 games for the Syracuse Stars in 1890.
The 2006 Tampa Bay Devil Rays season was their ninth since the franchise was created. They finished last in the AL East division, posting a league-worst record of 61–101. Their manager was Joe Maddon, who entered his first season with the Devil Rays. The Devil Rays' offense had the fewest runs (689), hits (1,395) and RBI (650) in Major League Baseball, as well as the joint-lowest batting average (.255) and lowest on-base percentage (.314).
John Franklin Douglas was an American first baseman in major league baseball who played five games during the 1945 season for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Born in Thayer, West Virginia, he died at age 66 in Miami, Florida.
The 2006 San Diego Padres season was the 38th season in franchise history. The Padres captured their second consecutive National League West crown, with a record of 88–74, and for the first time in franchise history back-to-back postseason appearances, and three consecutive winning seasons. Although the Padres final record equaled that of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Padres record of 13-5 against the Dodgers awarded them the official division title. The 2006 season also marked the end of Bruce Bochy's tenure as manager of the team, after 24 seasons overall, 12 seasons as manager (1995–2006), winning 4 division titles. The Padres were eliminated in the 2006 National League Division Series by the eventual World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, losing 3–1.
Dale Scott Thayer is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, and San Diego Padres.
John Patrick Parnell "Patsy" Cahill was a Major League Baseball outfielder. In addition to playing the outfield, Cahill also played third base, shortstop and he also pitched 10 games.
Jesse Walworth Thayer Orndorff was a Major League Baseball catcher. He played for the Boston Doves in 1907. He played parts of nine seasons in the minor leagues from 1904 to 1917.
Claude Allen Greene IV, is the current director of athletics for Auburn University. He previously served as athletic director for the University at Buffalo, and as assistant athletic director for the University of Mississippi. Greene attended college at the University of Notre Dame, and was a two-year starter on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish baseball team. He was a ninth-round draft pick of the New York Yankees in the 1998 Major League Baseball draft, and went on to a four-year career in the minor leagues for the Yankees, playing for the Oneonta Yankees, Greensboro Bats, Tampa Yankees, and Elmira Pioneers. He grew up in Bellevue, Washington and attended O'Dea High School in Seattle, playing baseball and basketball, graduating 1995.
