In Cincinnati, They Don’t Need a Computer

Don’t ask why, but the authors of “The Elias Baseball Analyst” wanted to find out what players since 1975 had the highest ratio of fly-outs to ground-outs, and vice versa.

They finally got the answer “following 11 years of coding the batter-by-batter description of every major league game, feeding the information into our computers, editing and correcting the raw material, and writing a new set of programs to digest the matter.”

Shortly after completing their calculations, the authors were in Cincinnati, and they asked Pete Rose if he could guess what player had the highest ratio of fly-outs.

“Is he a regular?” Rose asked.

He was told there was a 1,000-plate appearance minimum.

Rose thought for no more than five seconds before answering, “Gary Redus.”

Correct.

Say the authors: “It was a little bit like thinking that you’re the first to climb a mountain, but when you reach the summit you see some old Coke cans scattered about. Pete was absolutely right; we went away convinced that he must know everyone’s statistics, not just his own.”

Trivia Time: Who is the only player to appear in four World Series with one team and four more with another? (Answer below.)

Said Dick Vitale, after being made a territorial choice of the Jersey Jammers of the United States Basketball League: “I can’t play a lick, but I can talk a good game. If they put me in basketball shorts, it’s like putting Dr. Ruth in a bikini and having her walk on the beach. Everybody’s in trouble.”

From Wednesday night’s Oakland-Minnesota box score: “HBP--Puckett by Plunk. WP--Plunk. Bk--Plunk, Viola.”

Ker-plunk.

74 Years Ago Today: On April 10, 1913, President Woodrow Wilson threw out the first ball as the Senators edged the New York Yankees in the Washington opener, 2-1. Walter Johnson allowed an unearned run in the first inning, then did not yield another run for 56 consecutive innings. The record stood until 1968, when Don Drysdale pitched 58 scoreless innings.

Would-you-believe-it Dept.: Ted Williams, after hitting .254 for Boston in 1959 at 41, was sent the same contract by Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey, calling for $125,000, the highest salary in the game.

Writes Will McDonough of the Boston Globe: “Williams sent the contract back. Not for a raise. He wanted a cut. Williams told Yawkey he would not return to play another year unless Yawkey cut him the full amount allowable in those days, 25%.

“Williams forced the owner to pay him $31,250 less because he was embarrassed to hit in the .250s. He played one more year, hit .316 and then retired, without ever asking for his money back.”

Said Chicago Bears Coach Mike Ditka, when asked what he’ll do if Jim McMahon fails to come back from shoulder surgery: “I’ll play Doug Flutie. I’ll win with him and go to the Super Bowl. And then he becomes a national hero. He runs for President. He makes me secretary of defense and we go out and conquer the whole world. We wipe out Iran, Iraq and Libya.

“Just teasing, guys.”

Trivia Answer: Frankie Frisch. He played for the New York Giants in 1921-24 and with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1928, ‘30, ’31 and ’34.

Quotebook

Jim Bouton, author and former pitcher, on life in the minor leagues: “A Southern League grounds crew consists of one old man with a rake.”