Jeffrey Stuart
Author's posts
May 09
A Fond Memory of Herb Plews
By Jeff Stuart One of my earliest baseball memories was watching a Senators – Yankees game on Wenesday evening, August 8, 1956 at Griffith Stadium on WTTG – Channel 5 in Washington. The Yankees won 12-2. But Washington’s rookie second baseman Herb Plews had 4 hits and 3 doubles, all off Yankee fireballer Bob Turley. …
May 07
Catch and Throw – Nats Web Gems
By Jeff Stuart “A good friend of mine used to say, ‘This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.’ Think about that for a while.” Nuke Laloosh in the Movie BULL DURHAM Sometimes the game is …
Apr 20
A Gamble that Payed Off
By Jeff Stuart In the summer of 1957, my mother – who did not like baseball – came home from a Senators promotional event one day with a baseball autographed by Roy Sievers. My brother Chris and I almost immediately took the ball outside and played with it.I have no idea how many hours of …
Apr 17
Sunday, Bloody Sunday
By Jeff Stuart In their inaugural 2005 season the Washington Nationals played exceptionally well for the first half of the season. At the mid-season point, after winning 9 of 10 and sweeping the Pirates at home and the Cubs in Chicago, their record stood at 51-30. They were in first place on July 4. Then …
Oct 15
Livan Hernandez and the Fine Art of Bunting
By Jeff Stuart It was the 10th inning of a 4-4 game on very hot Sunday afternoon, August 28, 2011 in Cincinnati. Chris Marrero had singled to start the inning and Jesus Flores, the catcher, also singled. Runners on first and second with nobody out. Manager Davey Johnson decided it was time for a bunt, …
Oct 13
Not Caring If We Ever Get Back
By Jeff Stuart In the June 13, 1967 edition of the Washington Star Morris Siegel reported that a fan from Silver Spring had called the Senators’ public relations department that morning. “Please, please tell her (his wife) the game went 22 innings and didn’t end until nearly 3:00 A.M,” he pleaded. When told it was …
Sep 20
Young Phenoms, Now and Then
By Jeff Stuart and Phil Hochberg Every club has hopes on opening day of the baseball season. It is a similar kind of hope and sense of renewal that takes place when a highly regarded young prospect makes his major league debut. But you never know. The play’s the thing. On April 28, 2011, Bryce …
Aug 30
Gil Hodges in Washington
By Jeff Stuart It was fifty odd years ago today Gil Hodges taught the gang to play. The legendary Dodger great Gil Hodges, acquired from the New York Mets in return for outfielder Jim Piersall, took over the helm of the Senators just 40 games into the 1963 Season. While the club lost a franchise …
Aug 09
Don Zimmer-66 Years-Just Baseball
By Jeff StuartDon Zimmer was there to witness so much baseball history and is indelibly linked to it. He was one of the last two players alive to have played with Jackie Robinson. He was on the 1955 Dodgers World Series Championship team. “When Yogi hit the ball down the left-field line,” said Zimmer with …
Aug 09
Pearson and Allison, Back to Back Rookies of the Year
By Jeff Stuart When Albie Pearson won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1958 and Bob Allison followed suit in 1959, Washington became the first American League team to have players win the award in back to back years. It was not until 30 years later that another AL team accomplished the feat. Jose …
