A to Z, The Orioles' Legacy: Bob Nieman

Player: Bob Nieman
Years of Service: 6 (1951-52, 1956-59)
Position: Outfielder


Image via Seth.com

Nieman hit home runs in his first two major league at-bats, the first player ever to do so. He is the first on my A to Z list to play in both St. Louis Brown and Baltimore Oriole uniforms. He also played one year in Japan for the Chunichi Dragons.

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For each letter of the A to Z Challenge, I will feature one player from Baltimore Orioles/St. Louis Browns history. I hope you will join me. I hope you'll also check out the other 1200+ blogs participating. See the full list at Tossing It Out.



My friend and fellow music teacher Marc is jumping into the A to Z Challenge a little late but is doing double-time to catch up. Check him out at Marc Whitman's Blog.

A to Z, The Orioles' Legacy: Eddie Murray

Player: Eddie Murray
Years of Service: 13 (1977-88, 1996)
Position: First Baseman

EDDIE! EDDIE! EDDIE!


Photo via Camden Chat

By the time I was old enough to pay attention, Eddie Murray was the Orioles' big star. The hair, sideburns and bushy mustache added up to an iconic image of the era. Murray was, quite simply, one of the best switch hitters in baseball history. He was the third player to amass 3,000 hits and 500 homers for his career. The first two? Hank Aaron and Willie Mays - 'nuff said.

Murray was a no-brainer, first-ballot Hall-of-Famer and he is the first inductee on my A to Z list. As extraordinary as he was at the plate, it should not be forgotten that he was also a stellar first baseman. For his career, he won three Gold Gloves at the position. An early scouting report in the organization trumpeted his skill in turning a 3-6-3 double play.

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For each letter of the A to Z Challenge, I will feature one player from Baltimore Orioles/St. Louis Browns history. I hope you will join me. I hope you'll also check out the other 1200+ blogs participating. See the full list at Tossing It Out.

A to Z, The Orioles' Legacy: Chet Laabs

Player: Chet Laabs
Years of Service: 8 (1939-46)
Position: Outfielder


Image via The Full Wiki

On the day in 1944 when the St. Louis Browns beat the Yankees for their only American League pennant, Chet Laabs was the star, hitting two home runs on the final day of the regular season. He was an All-Star in 1943. However, his most productive season was 1942: .275 batting average, 27 homers, 90 runs scored and 99 RBI.

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In answer to Mock's question regarding Red Kress, he was traded to the White Sox in 1932 and then to the Senators in 1934. He played minor league ball in 1937 before finding his way back to the Browns in 1938.

Kress's journeyman career is interesting in light of a trend I've noticed on my A to Z list. I set the parameters for selection before I picked the players. For each letter, I chose the player who had the longest tenure with the club. What I've observed is a surprisingly high number of players who were known more for their defense than their offense. Mark Belanger is the perfect example: notoriously weak at the plate and yet considered one of the best defensive shortstops ever. That was enough for him to find a home with one of the era's strongest franchises for the better part of two decades. The lesson is pretty clear: fielding your position well is great for job security. Offensive prowess can be streaky but a good gloveman probably always will be one.

Which brings us to the case of Red Kress, jack of all trades. The Browns shipped him off after he'd had a string of solid offensive years, essentially when his stock was at a high point. He never matched the same success at bat but it seems his versatility in the field helped keep him in the sport for several more years. He played his last professional season in 1946 with the New York Giants at age 39.

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For each letter of the A to Z Challenge, I will feature one player from Baltimore Orioles/St. Louis Browns history. I hope you will join me. I hope you'll also check out the other 1200+ blogs participating. See the full list at Tossing It Out.

A to Z, The Orioles' Legacy: Red Kress

Player: Red Kress
Years of Service: 8 (1927-32, 1938-39)
Position: Shortstop


Photo via Fanbase

Kress was the ultimate utility man, playing seven different positions during his major league career - all but catcher and center field. As a minor leaguer, he once played all nine positions in a single game. His professional highlight was a 22-game hitting streak in 1930.

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For each letter of the A to Z Challenge, I will feature one player from Baltimore Orioles/St. Louis Browns history. I hope you will join me. I hope you'll also check out the other 1200+ blogs participating. See the full list at Tossing It Out.

A to Z, The Orioles' Legacy: Baby Doll Jacobson

Player: Baby Doll Jacobson
Years of Service: 10 (1915, 1917, 1919-26)
Position: Outfielder


Image via Juggle.com

Another St. Louis Brown, Jacobson almost deserves inclusion here for the nickname alone. His .311 career batting average is good for 95th on the all-time major league list. He hit for the cycle on April 17, 1924.

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For each letter of the A to Z Challenge, I will feature one player from Baltimore Orioles/St. Louis Browns history. I hope you will join me. I hope you'll also check out the other 1200+ blogs participating. See the full list at Tossing It Out.

My Baseball Fantasy: Spring Is Here at Last

Private League: won 7-3, currently tied for first place
Public League: currently in fourth place out of twelve teams
My Player of the Week (March 31-April 10): Matt Kemp (Center Fielder/Right Fielder, Dodgers) with 1 home run, 4 RBI, 7 runs, 6 stolen bases and a .438 batting average


Photo via KFFL.com

A year ago, Kemp was my first round draft pick. This year, he was still available in the third round of our private league draft so I grabbed him. His stock drop resulted from an underwhelming 2010 but he's certainly off to a good start in 2011.

The fantasy baseball season is off to a great start. As I explained in an earlier post, I'm in two leagues this year: the same private league I was in last year with Mock & Co. and a Yahoo! public league. The differences between the two are many. Most significantly, the private league is using a head-to-head format this time whereas the public one is rotisserie. Furthermore, the private league has ten members while the public one has twelve.

Then, of course, there is a great disparity in my familiarity with league members. Nine of the ten managers in our private league are returned from last year's league. Mock is, of course, a good friend and I know Marc both personally and professionally. I've met their brothers/cousins, but only once. I've never met the others. The public league, on the other hand, is composed entirely of strangers - to be expected. Predictably, there is far more banter in the private league. The draft this year was quite a lot of fun. There was a brief back-and-forth in the public league draft but it passed mostly in silence.

So far, I really like the head-to-head format a lot. Of course, winning helps. But even beyond that, individual baseball games over the course of the week, and presumably the season, take on far greater importance. I feel more on top of things, out of necessity.

At any rate, I'm excited for the new season. Huzzah!

A to Z, The Orioles' Legacy: César Izturis

Player: César Izturis
Years of Service: 3 (2009-present)
Position: Shortstop


Photo via Dempsey's Army

Izturis is, simultaneously, the first current Oriole and the first international player to be featured in my A to Z list. Not much of a threat with a bat, he is one of the best fielding shortstops in baseball and will serve as utility man for the club this year. He made his first appearance last Thursday, starting at short against Detroit. With regular shortstop J.J. Hardy heading to the disabled list, Izturis is going to get a lot more work. He represented Venezuela in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. The Venezuelans did well, making it to the semifinals before falling to South Korea.

Itzuris is a great clubhouse leader, too. Here is a very nice Baltimore Sun piece by Jeff Zrebiec from spring training.

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For each letter of the A to Z Challenge, I will feature one player from Baltimore Orioles/St. Louis Browns history. I hope you will join me. I hope you'll also check out the other 1200+ blogs participating. See the full list at Tossing It Out.


In particular, I hope you'll check out my new blogging friends:

My First Book
Jeffrey Beesler's World of the Scribe