? No. 37: A bag of baseballs

The old saying, "Let's trade him for a bag of baseballs" is given credence by a certain Oakland A's minor league prospect, who in 1983 was dealt to the Tigers for $100 ... and a bag of baseballs. This left-handed pitcher eventually made the majors and enjoyed a brief career as a reliever, spending most of his days with the Padres and Mariners in the late-'80s. Who is he?

Yesterday's Answer: Welcome back Listmaker. You are correct, Glenallen Hill it is!

? No. 36: Arachnids out to getcha

Sorry for the delay. I'd love to blame it on a 4-day bender, but alas, I've just been busy. Today's question is an odd one*. In 1990, this Toronto Blue Jays outfielder had a nightmare about spiders attacking him. While dreaming, he began sleepwalking and eventually toppled into a glass coffee table. The fall didn't wake him up, and he continued crawling across the floor — through the broken glass. He sustained several serious cuts which landed him on the DL. Said outfielder was a rookie that season, and wasn't a member of the Blue Jays World Series teams. He enjoyed his best season in 1995 with the San Fran Giants, and in his 13-year career he also played for the Indians and Cubs in a largely platoon role. Who is he?

Yesterday's Answer: Alex Rodriguez.

*And comes courtesy of the book, The Unofficial Guide to Baseball's Most Unusual Records.

? No. 35: Happy birthday to me

Since it's my birthday today, I'll stick with a birthday themed question. White Sox outfielder Carlos May made sure he would never forget his birthday when he selected his jersey number, 17. The back of his jersey read "May 17", which just happened to be his birthday.

But he's not the subject of today's trivia question. Tell me who this player is: He hit a walk-off grand slam on his birthday in 2002, giving his team a 10th-inning victory over the A's. Three other facts about this player: 1) His middle name is Emmanuel; 2) He's won a Gold Glove and a Sliver Slugger; 3) He has since switched teams once.

Yesterday's Answer: A couple pitchers have actually topped Owings' 6 RBIs. In a game I remember seeing the highlights of on SportsCenter, Robert Person notched 7 RBIs in the Phillies 18-3 drubbing of the Expos in 2002. He had two longballs in that game. But the record is held by the Braves' Tony Cloninger. In a game that I've read about in a book I edited, Cloninger collected an astounding 9 ribbies off three hits, two of them homers. Atlanta beat San Francisco 17-3 that day, and Cloninger pitched a complete game. Person's feat was a bit more remarkable, if only because he only lasted 5 innings in his game and hence had just four plate appearances to Cloninger's five. Cloninger clubbed 11 career home runs, but he was only a mildly successful hitter. For whatever reason, he hit the cover off the ball in '66, smacking 5 homers and collecting 23 RBIs and 7 multi-hit games. Two other pitchers have tied Owings' mark: Blue Moon Odom (a very good hitting pitcher) and Dave Giusti, both in the '60s.

? No. 34: Pitchers swinging a mighty stick

Getting back to pitchers that can hit a little, last week D-backs rookie pitcher Micah Owings went 4-for-5 with two home runs, four runs, and six RBIs at the plate and got the win on the mound, allowing three runs on three hits while striking out seven over seven innings. He is the first pitcher with four hits, four runs, and six RBIs in the same game. No player over the past 50 years has hit three home runs in a regular season game. But plenty have hit two. And three pitchers have even accomplished that feat twice. Today's question: Has any pitcher in the past 50 years topped Owings' RBI total in a game?

Yesterday's Answer: Seems I jinxed Mr. Webb, since he lost his scoreless streak in the first inning on Wednesday night. Since 1940, only Hershiser, Don Drysdale (58), Bob Gibson (47), and Sal Maglie (45) have thrown more consecutive shutout innings than Webb's 42 and change. That means Terrific Tom Seaver and Ron Guidry are the odd men out from that list. Seaver's longest streak was 19 innings; Guidry's longest streak was 18.1. Guidry did pitch back-to-back shutouts five times during his vaunted 25-3, 1.74 ERA season of 1978.

? No. 33: Besting Brandon Webb

Last Friday Brandon Webb -- my fantasy league ace right now after Dan Haren has cooled off -- threw his third consecutive shutout. In the process he extended his scoreless streak to 42 innings, dating back five starts. He's just two shutouts from breaking Orel Hershiser's all-time record of 59 innings, which still seems nearly impossible despite Webb's herculean effort to date. He pitches tonight against Milwaukee, and for the sake of both my fantasy team and my Cardinals, I hope he continues his streak. What's remarkable is that Webb's 42 scoreless innings is only the 12th best streak in history (but it is the longest since Orel's). Most of those 10 other pitchers on the list between Webb and Hershiser achieved their feat before 1940. Since '40, only three pitchers (not named Orel) have topped Webb. Two of the following pitchers do not belong to that short list. Who are they?

A) Don Drysdale
B) Ron Guidry
C) Bob Gibson
D) Tom Seaver
E) Sal Maglie

Yesterday's Answer: The answer is Craig Biggio, who in 1997 went 619 at-bats without grounding into a double play. That's the record Granderson is after. Granderson just passed Corey Patterson, who last season went 463 at-bats without hitting into a twin killing. Both Lofton and Furcal have had seasons where they hit into just one, with Furcal's coming in a season with 664 at-bats.

? No. 32: Avoiding the dreaded GIDP

Jayson Stark recently reported that Tigers outfielder Curtis Granderson could be the first American League player since the division-play era to make it through an entire 162 game season without grounding out into a double play. If Granderson continues his current pace, he would have the most at-bats (627) -- regardless of league -- without a GIDP since GIDP became an official stat in 1939. Take a wild guess as to whose record would he be breaking?

A) Rafael Furcal
B) Craig Biggio
C) Kenny Lofton
D) Corey Patterson

Yesterday's Answer: Here's the (complete?) list of players to have played for both the Cards and Cubs since 1980. The asterisk denotes that the player transitioned directly from one team to the other via trade or free agency.

Bruce Sutter*, Dennis Eckersley, Leon Durham*, Ken Reitz*, Lary Sorensen, Chris Speier, Ivan DeJesus, Bill Campbell, Pat Perry, Steve Lake*, Ray Burris, Lance Johnson, Todd Zeile*, Frank DiPino*, Bob Tewksbury*, Jamie Moyer, Lee Smith, Mark Clark, Mike Perez, Donovan Osborne, Hector Villanueva*, Les Lancaster, Paul Kilgus, Erik Pappas, John Mabry*, Rick Sutcliffe, Danny Jackson, Mike Morgan*, Tony Fossas, Alan Benes*, Gary Gaetti*, Mike Difelice, Delino DeShields, Manny Aybar, Kent Mercker, Kent Bottenfield*, Shawon Dunston, Heathcliff Slocumb, Rick Wilkins, Dave Veres*, Miguel Cairo*, Jeff Fassero*, Joe Girardi*, Tony Womack, Ray King, Julian Tavarez, Mark Grudzielanek*, Jose Vizcaino, Todd Wellemeyer.

? No. 31: From one rival to the other

Here's an easier question -- maybe -- at the request of Mr. Gerard. The Cards-Cubs rivalry gets stirred up again today with a four-game series at Wrigley. There's plenty at stake as these two teams jockey for position in the pathetic Central. It's quite possible that either the Cubs or the Cards -- thought to be nearly out of it by their fan base as recently as two weeks ago -- could end the series in first place. Unfortunately, the Cards won't get a shot at Jason Marquis, a former Cardinal hurler (emphasis on HURL), as Marquis took the mound on Thursday. Marquis is one of many former and current major leaguers to have played for both the Cards and the Cubs. Lou Brock is, of course, probably the most famous. See if you can name five that have played for both the Cubs and the Cards since the year 1980. (Marquis doesn't count!) If you're having a hard time thinking of 'em, relax, it'll come to you: By my count, there's at least 49! (Bonus if you can name five, like Marquis, that went directly from the Cards to the Cubs -- or vice versa -- via trade or free agency.) Remember, since 1980.

Yesterday's Answer: The four 30-homer guys for the '77 Dodgers were: Steve Garvey (33), Reggie Smith (32), Dusty Baker (30), and Ron Cey (30). (Rick Monday was also a good guess, as he hit 32 in the previous year for the Cubs. But he just 15 that year for the Dodgers.) L.A. out-homered its opponents that year by a margin of 191-119.

? No. 30: Bombers in Blue

I'm currently reading The Bronx Is Burning, which is all about NYC circa 1977. Of course, the Yankees play a big role in that story, as does racial tensions, the city's near-bankruptcy, the mayoral race, and a certain serial killer. At work, I am supposed to be editing a book right now on the team the Yankees played that year in the Series, the Dodgers. This book was to focus on L.A.'s vaunted infield of Garvey, Lopes, Cey, and Russell. But one of those four wouldn't agree to be interviewed for the project, so we shelved the book. Looking at that great Dodger team of 1977, which featured a steady veteran rotation and an explosive offense, one thing stands out statistically: They had four guys hit 30 or more home runs. Who were they?

Yesterday's Answer: Not Nellie Fox, who died in 1975. It's former Red Sox 2-bagger Bobby Doerr, who is 89. Lee MacPhail is the oldest member of the Hall. He's also 89 but has Doerr beat by six months or so. In the on-deck circle for players is 88 year-old Bob Feller.

? No. 29: The oldest living legend

The oldest living Hall of Famer is now dead: The Scooter, Phil Rizzuto, passed away at the age of 89. Rizzuto makes the case for the disbandment (or at least the reconstruction) of the Veterans Committee, who continue to allow players with suspect Hall of Fame credentials entrance into the Big Hall, while barring others who are more deserving. Rizzuto benefited mightily from his team's success: The fact that the Yankees won nine World Series titles during Rizzuto's career undoubtedly raised his profile considerably. How else can you explain a guy with a career .706 OPS gaining entrance? Rizzuto, a shortstop, is often credited as having played the game the right way, i.e. he was fundamentally sound and did a lot of the "little things" that don't always show up in the box score, like sacrifice hit and bunt. He is also noted as having gotten the most out of his talent, i.e. he was a short, skinny man. So does that mean David Eckstein belongs in the Hall, too?

I don't mean to be too harsh on the guy on the day that he died. So lets change gears. With Rizzuto's passing, who is now the oldest living Hall of Fame player? A few clues: He was also inducted by the Veterans Committee, was Rizzuto's peer, and was also a middle infielder who played his entire career for one AL team. No peeking, just guess.

Yesterday's Answer: Congrats to Jason for deducing Mr. Eddie Murray as the correct answer. Steady Eddie was recently let go by the Dodgers.

? No. 28: Name that player on unemployment

Only two players pop up on the following Top 10 lists for career numbers: intentional walks, sacrifice flies, RBIs, total bases, and ground into double plays. One is Hank Aaron. Who is the other? A couple clues: This player never hit more than 33 homers in a season, and he was recently fired.

Yesterday's Answer: Ankiel hit two home runs on Saturday, and in doing so equaled the total number of homers he had hit as a pitcher. He's got 3 now as a MLB position player versus 2 as a pitcher.

? No. 27: Ankiel goes yard!

Tonight Rick Ankiel gets his first cup of coffee as a major league outfielder. I'm following the game on the internet as it's blacked out on TV. Ankiel is currently 0-for-3 with 2 strikeouts, but then again he is facing Chris Young, the man with an ERA under 2.00. I saw Ankiel make his second big-league start, his first at home. It was two days after my birthday in 1999, and a friend and I drove down for the day game and purchased scalped tickets. We ended up spending a little extra for great seats on the lower level, about 30 rows back of home plate. I still vividly recall Ankiel's high striped socks and spectacular curve ball. He didn't pitch particularly well that day -- five hits and five walks in six innings -- but allowed just two runs. The Cards dropped the game, though. Some guy named Smoltz was throwing for the Braves that day.

I was back at Busch just over a year later when the eventual Rookie of the Year took the mound as the surprise starter for Game 1 of the NLDS against the Braves. Much different ballgame for Ankiel that day, as that's when his implosion began. I don't recall nearly as much about that particular day, in part because it all happened so fast (those pitches sure did fly to the backstop in the blink of an eye) and because ultimately the Cards knocked around Greg Maddux and won that game ... so I left Busch with a happy feeling. At that point, we didn't know that we had just witnessed a pitcher permanently unravel. In that fateful game, the wild pitches started in the third inning. The amazing thing is that even after he had obviously lost his control, he still managed to strike Chipper Jones out.

Fast forward nearly seven years, and Ankiel gets the call-up from the Pacific Coast League, where he was leading the league in round trippers with 32. If he would have stayed down there a bit longer, he may have earned his second Player of the Year award from Baseball America. (The first came as a pitcher in 1999, so how cool would that have been?) My question is: How many home runs did Ankiel hit in his big-league career prior to today? In other words, how many dingers did he hit as a pitcher in 96 plate appearances?

(Holy fuck! I kid you not ... while typing this question Ankiel went yard tonight! How can you not root for this kid?)

Yesterday's Answer: Lefty Grove is the correct answer. Old Lefty has 55 career saves. The Big Train is in second with 34. Niekro and Spahn both have 29. Lefty, who won precisely 300 games, split his career between the Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Sox. He earned all but four of his saves in his nine seasons with the A's.

? No. 26: Saving the 300 game winners

Hooray for Tom Glavine! Actually, I've never really liked the guy all that much, probably because he was a member of the boring Braves, who my Cardinals often had to defeat in the playoffs. (And lately, he's pitched for the Mets -- same story.) But I gotta give one thing to Tom: He's easier to like than Greg Maddux. Maddux just frustrates me to no end. He just doesn't look like an athlete. He looks like the dopey accountant down the hall. If he can win 300 games, so can I, right?

Anyway, in Glavine's honor today we'll focus on 300 game winners. Of the 23 men on that list, seven pitched a majority of their careers before the year 1900, including Cy Young. Of the remaining pitchers on the list, who has the most career saves?

A) Warren Spahn
B) Phil Niekro
C) Lefty Grove
D) Walter Johnson

Yesterday's Answer: In 1988, Gwynn reached base twice or more in 11 straight games. Not shabby. Out of curiosity, I did a quick search to see how some of Gwynn's non-slugging contemporaries compare in that category. Wade Boggs had streaks of 16 and 14 games. Rickey Henderson, an on-base machine, had streaks of 15, 12, 11, and 11. Tim Raines had an 11-game streak. Paul Molitor had three 10-game streaks. Kenny Lofton had a 13-game stretch. Chuck Knoblauch had a 12 and three 11s. Mark Grace had a 16 and 11. And Kevin Seitzer -- remember him? -- had a 10 game streak.

? No. 25: Who knew Gwynn could hit?

As I write this question, I'm watching the Cardinals-Padres tilt on ESPN, enjoying the fine HD on my relatively new 37-inch TV. Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn is at the game, so he'll be the source of my trivia question today. (David Wells, who is starting tonight, will have to wait for the "fattest pitcher ever" question, surely forthcoming.) Gwynn's longest hitting streak in his career was 25 games, and happened in just his second season in 1983. Other than that streak, his longest was 20. I guess I was surprised that Gwynn didn't have a bunch of 20-some game streaks, not to mention a streak in the 30s. But he did have a 19, two 18s, a 16, four 15s, a 14, five 13s, and eight 12s -- so I guess he could hit a little. My question today is: What was Gwynn's longest career streak for times reaching base twice in a game? Price Is Right rules.

Yesterday's Answer: Way to go Listmaker, using your powers of deduction! Mickey Lolich, believe it or not, is the only true answer. Best as I can tell, other than Gibby in '67, Lolich is the only starting pitcher since '65 not named Tiant to start three games in a World Series that his team eventually won. In Lolich's case, he actually was credited with the W in each of his games, too. Lolich took the hard road to get there. Typically, a pitcher needs to start Game 1 to have a chance at this feat, because that enables him to come back in Games 4 and 7. But in this case, Lolich started Game 2 and pitched a complete game as the Tigers defeated the Cardinals 8-1. He returned in Game 5 and spotted the Redbirds three runs in the top of the first, then blanked them for eight innings as the Tigers won 5-3. Three days later he took the mound in Game 7 to face Gibby. Both pitchers tossed nine innings -- Lolich's third complete game of the series -- but the Tigers edged the Cardinals 4-1. To no surprise, Lolich was the World Series MVP after posting a 1.67 ERA in 27 innings pitched.

As for the others... Randy Johnson started and won Games 2 and 6 of the 2001 Series, and picked up the win in relief of Game 7. So close, but no cigar for him. Ron Darling lost a Game 1 heartbreaker in 1986, 1-0. He won in Game 4 and started, but did not get the win, in Game 7. Koufax, who is possibly the best World Series pitcher ever (note the 0.95 ERA), was the loser in Game 2 of the '65 Series, then pitched a complete-game gem in Game 5 and came back on two days rest to throw a duplicate gem in Game 7. In 1991, Morris won Games 1 and 7 (the 10-inning complete game), but the Twins lost his Game 4 start, 3-2.

? No. 24: World Series aces

I just finished Tom Adelman's The Long Ball, and I highly recommend it. The author's research is remarkable and his inferences refreshing. Go read it. But first, answer this question, inspired by the book.

1975 World Series between Fisk, Yaz, and the Spaceman's Red Sox and the Big Red Machine is always in the discussion when the question is, What is the greatest World Series ever? The Series featured Fisk's extra-inning, hand-waving home run that smacked into the Monster's foul pole, a whole lot of postponements due to rain, and easily one of the best postseason games ever (Game 6, with said homer by Fisk ending what had been a game with numerous highlights). In that Series, the Sox's Luis Tiant pitched in front of his Cuban parents for the first time in his big-league career, which at that point was 12 years and counting. El Tiante pitched brilliantly in the Sox's Game 1 win, tossing a complete game five-hit shutout. In Game 4 he battled for nine innings and 150-some pitches, getting just enough offensive support to win 5-4. After several rainy days pushed back Game 6 in Boston, he took the mound for his third start with the Sox on the verge of elimination and the hometown crowd chanting "Loo-ee" throughout the game. He was far from brilliant in the game, giving up 6 runs in 7 innings. But Dwight Evans bailed him out with a dramatic catch and Bernie Carbo and Fisk took care of the offensive fireworks. His team won all three of the games he started in the Series.

Of the following pitchers, who can make the same claim?

A) Jack Morris 1991
B) Sandy Koufax 1965
C) Randy Johnson 2001
D) Mickey Lolich 1968
E) Ron Darling 1986

Yesterday's Answer: All good guesses, particularly Gwynn, whose name is on the list often. But the player I'm looking for is Nellie Fox. The longtime White Sox second baseman was just about impossible to strike out in his career. Over a span of 13 straight seasons with at least 582 plate appearances, Fox struck out a low of 11 times (twice) and a high of 18 times. That's just silly. If we go all the way back to 1900, there are a lot of players (from the deadball era) who went an entire season without striking out. Post-deadball era, the record is held by Joe Sewell, who twice struck out just three times (and in three other seasons tallied just four Ks).

? No. 23: Hardest to K

Quick: Name the hitter currently leading the majors in strikeouts. It's an easy question, as Adam Dunn, who has 128 whiffs already, is always at or very near the top. He's currently one behind Ryan Howard, also a great guess. But turning the tables, can you tell me who the current leader is in fewest strikeouts? Of those qualified for the batting title, there are just two batters under 25 — Paul Lo Duca with 24 and Placido Polanco with 19.

Today's question takes this theme a step further. Since 1957, one batter has been particularly stubborn at the plate, striking out fewer than 20 times in a season on seven occasions in that span. Over his 19-year career, the bulk of it spent as an everyday player with few trips to the DL, he K'd just 216 times. He holds the record over that stretch of time for fewest K's in a season: 11, in a whopping 698 plate appearances. Who was this 15-time All-Star?

Yesterday's Answer: Believe it or not, two teams have scored 8-plus runs in the same inning only one other time in major-league history. The first occurrence happened on May 8, 2004, when visiting Detroit got eight runs and Texas countered with 10 in the fifth inning of the Rangers' 16-15, 10-inning win. The 16 runs combined were a record for a second inning, two more than the previous mark.

? No. 22: The makings of one long inning

Two Yankees questions in a row? You bet. Yesterday, the Yankees and White Sox did something shocking, even for A.L. teams with bloated payrolls: They each posted 8 runs in the 2nd inning. How many additional times in major league history have a pair of teams matched or bettered that feat, regardless of inning? (Easy question if you watched SportsCenter or read the game recap.)

Yesterday's Answer: You are all too good. Three correct answers is a first! Prince Fielder's (big) daddy is the correct response. Cecil was already in steep decline by the time the Yankees acquired him, even though he was just in his early thirties. He was making a huge pile of cash ($9 million per year), too, making the risk even more pronounced. The Yankees bit the bullet on that deal. By '97, Fielder's only full season with the Yankees, his slugging percentage had dipped to .410 and he was reduced to sharing time at DH with Mark Whiten, Wade Boggs, Mike Stanley, Rock Raines, Pat Kelly, and some dude named Scott Pose. Fielder was out of the bigs by the age of 35.

The Tigers wisely unloaded their former All-Star at the right time. Unfortunately, they also took on Ruben Sierra in the process. He wasn't exactly making chump change himself ($6 million, although the Yanks paid a mil of that), and he stunk to high heaven over the season's final two months. Shortly after the '96 season, though, the Tigers were able to unload Sierra on the Reds. Sierra wouldn't stop sucking until his stellar (steroids?) season of '01 at the age of 35, when he sported this line: 23 homers in just 94 games and a .561 slugging percentage. He then parlayed that effort into a payday with the Mariners, where he earned $1.9 million and promptly returned to mediocrity or worse for the balance of his career.

? No. 21: First baseman to the rescue

The Braves made the biggest splash at the trade deadline this year when they landed first baseman Mark Teixeira, who only has 13 home runs so far this year but sports a .524 slugging percentage that is around his career average. Still, Teixeira will need to pick it up if he's going to approach his career-best .575 slugging percentage from 2005.

Eleven years ago, another slugging first baseman traded teams at the July 31 deadline, landing with the Yankees, who at the time held a 10 game lead over the Orioles but would need all the help they could get down the stretch. Ruben Sierra was the player he was traded for in this 1996 deal. I'm not specifying which team he came from (or Sierra went to), because it makes the question too easy. This first baseman hit a whole lot of bombs in the '90s, pacing the majors in home runs two straight years. He stuck around in a Yankees uniform for only one-and-a-half seasons, and was out of baseball altogether by 1999. Who was he?

Yesterday's Answer: Apparently I stumped all two of you: The answer is John Halama, who was 26 when the Mariners acquired him. At his best, he was a league-average hurler. After going 41-31 in four seasons for some pretty darn good Mariners teams, Halama bounced from Oakland to Tampa Bay to Boston to Washington to Baltimore, and hasn't made a big-league start since 2006.

? No. 20: July 31st trade deadline blues

For as much hype as the trade deadline receives, teams rarely deal big-name players anymore in the month of July. That's especially true on July 31, the final day to deal before a player must clear waivers. For every Nomar Garciaparra to the Cubs as part of a four-team deal (in 2004), there are twenty variations on the Shawon Dunston-for-Craig Paquette theme. The last truly jaw-dropping July 31st trade we had came in 1998, when the Mariners dealt Randy Johnson to the Astros in exchange for a batch of top prospects. Two of those prospects were destined to be All-Stars: Freddy Garcia and Carlos Guillen. The third, however, was not. He was the "player to be named later" in the deal, and spent four seasons in Seattle before bouncing around the rest of his career. Who is he?

Yesterday's Answer: I love my old copies of Who's Who in Baseball, the annual with the cover design that never changes. It's one of the few quick references available if I'm looking for minor league career stats for major league players. It tells me, and the internet verifies, that Sosa has hit 35 dingers in the minors, and that A-Rod has him beat by one, with 36. In 1994, Rodriguez hit a combined 21 in single- and double-A before getting a cup of coffee. He returned to triple-A the next year and hit another 15 before finally sticking with Seattle. Sosa, by contrast, spent part or all of four seasons in the minors before finally sticking with the White Sox in 1990. Griffey hit 27 minor league bombs in his two seasons in single- and double-A at ages 17 and 18. Thomas hit 23 in single- and double-A, and much later in his career hit another in 2005. Bonds hit just 20 — 13 in A-ball and then 7 the following year in triple-A.

? No. 19: Minor League bombs

Since we're just passing time until Barry breaks the Hammer's home-run record, here's a question loosely based around Bonds. Of the active major leaguers to have tallied 499 or more home runs — Bonds, Sosa, Griffey, Thomas, and Rodriguez — who has hit the most home runs in the minor leagues? (Again, no peeking or googling, just make an educated guess.)

Yesterday's Answer: Listmaker guessed correctly again. The '87 Twins were the only World Series winner to yield more runs over the regular season than it scored. The Twinkies allowed 806 and scored 786, which came as a surprise to me since they had a slugging lineup including Kent Hrbek, Gary Gaetti, Kirby Puckett, and Tom Brunansky. Yes, they had Les Straker as a No. 3 starter. But the team also boasted Frank Viola and Bert Blyleven — not a bad one-two punch — and a pair of 42-year-olds named Joe Niekro and Steve Carlton. And Jeff Reardon as a closer. Lots of impressive pitchers on that list, but most had off-years during the regular season.

? No. 18: Lucky World Series winner?

Today's question comes via Baseball Musings. Only one team since the inception of the modern World Series in 1903 won the world championship despite being outscored during the regular season. Was it the ...

A) 1985 Royals
B) 1987 Twins
C) 2003 Marlins
D) 2006 Cardinals

Yesterday's Answer: Jim Kaat. Oddly enough, the day his streak ended, he struck out two batters in one inning.