No less than 49 big league ballplayers, including several currently active, share a May 24 birthday. That's almost two rosters full of candidates for an All-5/24 team, and though not a single one has yet been named to Baseball's Hall of Fame -- Bartolo Colon is the active player with the best chance, so odds are the number will stay "nil" indefinitely -- it seems like we might be able to build a pretty good squad.
Er, maybe not. Anyway, let's find out, as we meet ...
FIVE AND TWO DOZEN (5/24)
** indicates Hall of Famer
* indicates All-Star
MGR: VACANT (Nobody born on 5/24 has ever managed in the big leagues)
LINEUP
C Ellie Rodriguez* (.245, 1968-76)
1B Mule Shirley (.210, 1924-25)
2B Carlos Febles (.250, 68 SB, 1998-2003 KCR)
SS Willy Miranda (Cuban hit .221, 1951-59)
3B Greg Briley (.253, 1988-93, mostly OF; 5 games at 3B)
LF Danny Bautista (.272, 1993-2004)
CF Gus Felix (.274, 1923-27)
RF Wally Shaner (.278, parts of 1923-29)
DH Sam Barkley (2B/1B; .258, 1884-89)
BENCH
C Carlos Hernandez (.253, 1990-2000)
C/UTIL Fred Jacklitsch (.243, parts of 1900-17)
IF Dave Machemer (.228, 1978 CAL, 1979 DET)
IF Mike Richardt (.226, 1980-84, mostly 2B)
IF/OF Kevin Frandsen (.215 as 2006 SFG rookie)
OF Bobby Brown (former NYY hotshot hit .245, 1979-85)
OF Rob Ducey (.242, 1987-2001)
ROTATION
RHSP Bartolo Colon* (140-87 through 2006; 2005 AL CYA)
RHSP Brad Penny* (72-62 through 2006)
LHSP Jack Pfiester (20-8 with 1906 CHC; 71-44 career)
RHSP Bob Wicker (20-9 with 1903 CHC; 64-52 career)
RHSP Joe Oeschger (20-14 for 1921 BSN; 82-116 career)
BULLPEN
CL-RH Jerry Dipoto (49 sves, 1993-2000)
RHRP Jack Berly (10-13, 1924, '31-33)
LHRP Justin Hampson (debuted, '06 COL; now SDP setup)
RH-LONG Joe Kennedy (39-52 through 2006)
RH-LONG Jae Weong Seo (25-36 through 2006)
NOTES ... Penny and Colon, at this writing, are a combined 11-2 in 2007 ... Jacklitsch played all eight non-pitching positions in the big leagues at some point, but was mostly a catcher ... Pfiester and Wicker each had a 20-win season with a turn-of-the-20th-century Cubs team, then quickly each fell off the proverbial map ...
A propos of nothing, seven of the 10 men on the pitching staff, including the entire five-man bullpen, have first names that start with the initial "J" ... Al Shealy, 8-6 mostly out of the bullpen for the '28 NYY, would have an argument to bump Hampston or Seo and break the J-monopoly ...
Machemer homered in his first career at-bat, but never hit another and had just 10 additional big-league base hits ... Brown was 0-for-10 in four games with the 1979 Blue Jays. He did walk twice, steal two bases in three tries and score a run. Anyone remember that? ...
It would seem to the modern fan that names like Wakefield and Abreu would strengthen this team considerably, but Bill Wakefield made 62 appearances in his only MLB season with the 1964 Mets and apparently did not throw a knuckleball, while Joe Abreu's WWII cuppajoe as a 3B/2B with the 1942 Reds resulted in just six hits over 28 at-bats, so he's no Bobby ...
So, put this team in the 2007 AL East. How many games could it win?
Er, maybe not. Anyway, let's find out, as we meet ...
FIVE AND TWO DOZEN (5/24)
** indicates Hall of Famer
* indicates All-Star
MGR: VACANT (Nobody born on 5/24 has ever managed in the big leagues)
LINEUP
C Ellie Rodriguez* (.245, 1968-76)
1B Mule Shirley (.210, 1924-25)
2B Carlos Febles (.250, 68 SB, 1998-2003 KCR)
SS Willy Miranda (Cuban hit .221, 1951-59)
3B Greg Briley (.253, 1988-93, mostly OF; 5 games at 3B)
LF Danny Bautista (.272, 1993-2004)
CF Gus Felix (.274, 1923-27)
RF Wally Shaner (.278, parts of 1923-29)
DH Sam Barkley (2B/1B; .258, 1884-89)
BENCH
C Carlos Hernandez (.253, 1990-2000)
C/UTIL Fred Jacklitsch (.243, parts of 1900-17)
IF Dave Machemer (.228, 1978 CAL, 1979 DET)
IF Mike Richardt (.226, 1980-84, mostly 2B)
IF/OF Kevin Frandsen (.215 as 2006 SFG rookie)
OF Bobby Brown (former NYY hotshot hit .245, 1979-85)
OF Rob Ducey (.242, 1987-2001)
ROTATION
RHSP Bartolo Colon* (140-87 through 2006; 2005 AL CYA)
RHSP Brad Penny* (72-62 through 2006)
LHSP Jack Pfiester (20-8 with 1906 CHC; 71-44 career)
RHSP Bob Wicker (20-9 with 1903 CHC; 64-52 career)
RHSP Joe Oeschger (20-14 for 1921 BSN; 82-116 career)
BULLPEN
CL-RH Jerry Dipoto (49 sves, 1993-2000)
RHRP Jack Berly (10-13, 1924, '31-33)
LHRP Justin Hampson (debuted, '06 COL; now SDP setup)
RH-LONG Joe Kennedy (39-52 through 2006)
RH-LONG Jae Weong Seo (25-36 through 2006)
NOTES ... Penny and Colon, at this writing, are a combined 11-2 in 2007 ... Jacklitsch played all eight non-pitching positions in the big leagues at some point, but was mostly a catcher ... Pfiester and Wicker each had a 20-win season with a turn-of-the-20th-century Cubs team, then quickly each fell off the proverbial map ...
A propos of nothing, seven of the 10 men on the pitching staff, including the entire five-man bullpen, have first names that start with the initial "J" ... Al Shealy, 8-6 mostly out of the bullpen for the '28 NYY, would have an argument to bump Hampston or Seo and break the J-monopoly ...
Machemer homered in his first career at-bat, but never hit another and had just 10 additional big-league base hits ... Brown was 0-for-10 in four games with the 1979 Blue Jays. He did walk twice, steal two bases in three tries and score a run. Anyone remember that? ...
It would seem to the modern fan that names like Wakefield and Abreu would strengthen this team considerably, but Bill Wakefield made 62 appearances in his only MLB season with the 1964 Mets and apparently did not throw a knuckleball, while Joe Abreu's WWII cuppajoe as a 3B/2B with the 1942 Reds resulted in just six hits over 28 at-bats, so he's no Bobby ...
So, put this team in the 2007 AL East. How many games could it win?
