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 2014 Season                               Edition No. 2                        March 3, 2014

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Brethren:

 

On this record-setting (minus 6) frigid March day, I thought that a short From the Bullpen would be just what everyone needs to warm the cockles of our hearts. 

 

DRAFT DAY:  SUNDAY, MARCH 23, 2014, 1:00 P.M.

 

Apparently there is a fair amount of confusion about when we will hold our 30th Annual Hot Stove League Draft.  To clear this up, we will in fact be holding Draft Day on Sunday, March 23, 2014, at 1:00 p.m. in the Washington Room at Pansing Hogan Ernst & Bachman.  Be there, and be prepared. 

 

MIKE TROUT:  THE NEXT FRANK McCORMICK?

 

This Friday past, I was delighted to open my mailbox and find the current issue of Baseball Digest, my favorite reading material during baseball season and just about any other time during the year.  The first featured article was about Mike Trout, and the fact that he finished second in the AL Most Valuable Player voting in both his rookie and sophomore seasons, the first player ever to have accomplished this feat.  In fact, Trout became only the sixth Major League player to finish in the top five in MVP voting in his first two seasons of Major League play.  See the table below for the other five members who have finished in the top five in the MVP vote in their first two seasons of play: 

 

Player

League

Rookie Year

Second Year

Rabbit Maranville

N.L.

1913 (3rd)

1914 (4th)

Frank McCormick

N.L.

1938 (5th)

1939 (4th)

Johnny Pesky

A.L.

1942 (3rd)

1946 (4th)

Tony Oliva

A.L.

1964 (4th)

1965 (2nd)

Albert Pujols

N.L.

2001 (4th)

2002 (2nd)

Mike Trout

A.L.

2012 (2nd)

2013 (3rd)

 

The name Frank McCormick jumped off the page at me, because I don’t recall that I have ever before heard of Mr. McCormick, a first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds who finished fifth in the MVP voting in his rookie year in 1938, and then followed this up with a fourth place finish in 1939.  As it turns out, the unpublicized Mr. McCormick went on to win the MVP award in his third season, 1940, while leading the National League in hits (for the third straight season) with 191, and in doubles with 44. 

 

So why isn’t Frank McCormick a household name among baseball aficionados?  Because his career took a decided turn for the mediocre after his white-hot first three years in the Bigs.  Below you will find “Buck” McCormick’s career statistics:

 

 

 

 

One of the things that I love about our great game of baseball is that there is so much rich history, dating back for so many years, that you are often surprised when you learn about the career of some player from many years ago—like Frank McCormick—and realize that no matter how much you know about the game and its history, there is so much more information to know.  Just when you think that you have heard it all, there is a former MVP out there that you learn about, and then you know one thing more about the lore of this great game. 

 

Okay, I promised you that this would be a short issue, and so I will end it now.  Get working on your Draft cheat sheets, and I will see all of you in the Washington Room on Sunday, March 23. 

 

 

Skipper