I meant to post about it yesterday but totes forgot (HEY! I'm human! DEAL with it!) that Saturday was the 120th anniversary of Ollie Pickering being the first-ever American League at-bat:
On April 24, 1901, Pickering was the leadoff batter for the Cleveland Blues (precursor to the Indians), which was the visiting team facing the Chicago White Sox in the first game ever played in the American League. The three other games scheduled that day were rained out. Thus, Pickering was the first person to bat in the American League
Of course a slightly further perusal throughout the story reveals this:
Pickering hit the second pitch from Chicago White Sox right-hander Roy Patterson to center field. William Hoy, a deaf-mute who was cruelly nicknamed Dummy, caught the routine fly, and with that the American League was officially underway.
😬🤷♂️🤣
(if it makes you feel any better, "Dummy Hoy" lived to the ripe old age of 99, so.)
No comments:
Post a Comment