Interesting old major leaguers stories

[Sixty one]

I thought that it's time to start a new thread devoted to stories of past major leaguers who have unusual stories and thought I would start with the story o pitcher Lou Brissie who was wounded in WWII and went on to pitch in the majors with a leg that was shattered in battle. He had a remarkable career with the A's and the Indians and even pitched in a allstar game. If you google his name you'll learn a great deal more about this remarkable man who is still living at the age of 88.

[ojo]

i don't have time to go into detail here but....

moe berg

[Sixty one]

i don't have time to go into detail here but....

moe berg

If memory serves me right, didn't Mo Berg act as a spy for the US on a trip to Japan during the 1930's? I believe that there is a book about his life and his career as a catcher in the majors.

[35Knucklecurve]

I read Jimmy Piersall's book, Fear Strike Out in junior high and never forgot it. He struggled with mental illness, which often manifested itself on the field. At one point, he carried a bucket of raw meat to the stands and began throwing it to fans who were taunting him. He managed to have a very successful career despite the demons he battled.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Piersall

On May 24, 1952, just before a game against the New York Yankees, Piersall engaged in a fistfight with Yankee infielder Billy Martin. Following the brawl, Piersall briefly scuffled with teammate Mickey McDermott in the Red Sox clubhouse. After several such incidents, Piersall was sent to the minor league Birmingham Barons on June 28. The final straw came when Piersall spanked the four-year-old son of teammate Vern Stephens in the Red Sox clubhouse during a game.

In less than three weeks with the Barons, Piersall was ejected on four occasions, the last coming after striking out in the second inning on July 16. Prior to his at-bat, he had acknowledged teammate Milt Bolling's home run by spraying a water pistol on home plate. Piersall then moved to the grandstand roof to heckle home plate umpire Neil Strocchia.
[snip]
He once stepped up to bat wearing a Beatles wig and playing "air guitar" on his bat, led cheers for himself in the outfield during breaks in play, and "talked" to Babe Ruth behind the center field monuments at Yankee Stadium. In his autobiography, Piersall commented, "Probably the best thing that ever happened to me was going nuts. Who ever heard of Jimmy Piersall, until that happened?"
[snip]
In a reserve role with the second-year team, Piersall played briefly under manager Casey Stengel. In the fifth inning of the June 23 game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Piersall hit the 100th home run of his career, off Phillies pitcher Dallas Green. He ran around the bases in the correct order, but facing backwards as he made the circuit.

I remember watching that game against the Phillies and asking my Dad why he was running backwards. He answered that Piersall wanted to see where he'd been but he as afraid see where he was going.

[JL25and3]

If memory serves me right, didn't Mo Berg act as a spy for the US on a trip to Japan during the 1930's? I believe that there is a book about his life and his career as a catcher in the majors.

Casey Stengel called Berg "the strangest man ever to play baseball," and his life story certainly seems to reflect that.

He graduated Princeton magna cum laude with a degree in modern languages ("and couldn't hit in any of them"). Later he got his LL.B. and passed the New York bar, but he never practiced as a lawyer. He broke in as a catcher with the Dodgers in 1923, spent a couple of years in the minors, and came back with the White Sox in 1926. From then until 1939 he played in the AL, almost entirely as a light-hitting BUC. (Apparently Berg is Yiddish for Molina.)

In 1934 he traveled to Japan with a touring team of much better players, and he brought along a movie camera - ostensibly to get footage for American newsreels. He managed to lie his way to the roof of one of the tallest buildings in Tokyo, where he filmed the entire city and its harbor. He wasn't working for the government when he did that, but in 1942 he screened the footage for military intelligence officials.

In 1943 Berg joined the OSS, precursor to the CIA. He was sent to the Balkans to help choose which of the various resistance groups the US would support most strongly; Berg backed Tito. He also collected intelligence on the German A-bomb project and to try to recruit scientists to work for the Americans.

And that was pretty much the end of Berg's life, though he lived until 1972. He turned down some offers to coach in MLB, and for a few years in the early 50s the CIA gave him a contract which ended up providing him with a little money in exchange for no usable information. Otherwise he spent the last 25+ years of his life unemployed and withdrawn, living with friends and relatives, really not even trying. Strange, strange man.

[ojo]

they used to call people like that 'eccentric'...i'd bet my last dollar he suffered from some form of autism.

[Jersey Yankee]

they used to call people like that 'eccentric'...i'd bet my last dollar he suffered from some form of autism.

Eccentric is only when you're rich. Think Howard Hughes.

[Nome]

How about the Mike Keckich, Fritz Peterson Wife swap, where everything was up for grabs. Home, furnishings, dog, and cars

Andy

[Sixty one]

How about the Mike Keckich, Fritz Peterson Wife swap, where everything was up for grabs. Home, furnishings, dog, and cars

Andy

I'm just wondering Andy.....has there ever been a book written about this fiasco? I wonder how many of our younger fans know about this story?

[ShaneTravis]

How about the Mike Keckich, Fritz Peterson Wife swap, where everything was up for grabs. Home, furnishings, dog, and cars

Andy

There is a movie in the works about this story.

[JDPNYY]

Does anyone know if Doc Medich is practicing medicine? I know a bunch of years ago his license was suspended, but I never remember heating anything after that.

[Nome]

Does anyone know if Doc Medich is practicing medicine? I know a bunch of years ago his license was suspended, but I never remember heating anything after that.

Medich was suspended just after getting his medical degree for illegally issuing prescriptions for narcotics. He was never reinstated.

Andy

[Nome]

Does anyone know if Doc Medich is practicing medicine? I know a bunch of years ago his license was suspended, but I never remember heating anything after that.

you might remember that Dr Bobby Brown was the Yankee third baseman till 1954 when he went into full time Medical practice as a renouned Cardiologist. He continued his practice till 1984 when he was appointed AL President, a position he held till 1994. Incidentally the NL president from 1989 to 1994 was Bill White of announcing Yankee fame,

Andy

[Nome]

I'm just wondering Andy.....has there ever been a book written about this fiasco? I wonder how many of our younger fans know about this story?

I don't know of any books written about this story, but there were many that included it in a list of other stories. One of the best is "Tales from the Dugout". Another was "Big Hair and Plastic Grass", a history of wild tales from baseballs 60's and 70's. Incidentally in 2009 Fritz Peterson wrote a book titled "Mickey Mantle is going to Heaven"

Andy

[JDPNYY]

Medich was suspended just after getting his medical degree for illegally issuing prescriptions for narcotics. He was never reinstated.

Andy

I searched the internet and could not find anything that said he was never reinstated. The story pretty much died after saying his license was suspended. I wonder what he's done for a living all these years.

[hellonewman]

I searched the internet and could not find anything that said he was never reinstated. The story pretty much died after saying his license was suspended. I wonder what he's done for a living all these years.

Seems to have had quite a star-crossed medical career...

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1...th-boy-autopsy

[fredgmuggs]

Seems to have had quite a star-crossed medical career...

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1...th-boy-autopsy

At first glance that seems more like anesthesiologist

[Nome]

I searched the internet and could not find anything that said he was never reinstated. The story pretty much died after saying his license was suspended. I wonder what he's done for a living all these years.

Not the greatest sources, but I got it from HTTP://en.wickipedia.org/wiki/doc_medich#cite_note-8

Andy