Sunday was a great day for Washington sports. Before celebrating the Nationals’ first walk-off victory of 2018, fans at Nationals Park got to see another set of local heroes inducted to the Washington Hall of Stars. In addition to fairly recent greats, like basketball stars Len Bias, Grant Hill and Walt Williams, came Buddy Myer, …
Apr 23
Rickey’s papers set the stage for a historic baseball summer in Washington
Former Senators outfielder Curt Flood “approach(ed) perfection” with St. Louis in 1963. That same year, former Senator slugger Harmon Killebrew was described as strikeout prone and overpriced as a Minnesota Twin. Former Nationals manager Frank Robinson was “upset” by the change-up as a Cincinnati Red in the spring of 1964. Those are the professional opinions …
Apr 22
Almost Perfect – Big Train’s No Hitter
As most of you know by now Phil Humber of the Chicago White Sox tossed a perfect game yesterday. Humber’s perfect game was the 21st perfect game in Major League history. This morning I wanted to see how close Washington’s Walter Johnson came to pitching a perfect game during his July 1, 1920 no-hit game …
Apr 16
Recalling Washington’s struggles with baseball integration
It was great to be at the Nationals Park on Jackie Robinson Day. Even if the crowd was sparse in the cool, wet weather, it was heartwarming to see all the players wearing No. 42 in honor of the man who broke baseball’s color barrier. Reflecting on the legacy of Robinson and those who followed …
Apr 14
ROY SIEVERS, UNDERRATED AND UNDERVALUED, DESERVES TO BE HONORED
Roy Sievers baseball life is the stuff of Hollywood movies. St. Louis native Roy Sievers was literally born into a baseball life. Roy’s dad, Walter Sievers, had a successful tryout with the Detroit Tigers in 1916, and was offered a minor league contract. He wanted to be a pitcher, but with his lethal bat, the …
Apr 09
Nats won fans hearts early in inaugural season
I will always love the Nationals, but I’m still waiting for something that will make me fall in love with this year’s team – something momentous to convince me that this year’s edition of the Nats is capable of doing great things. In their first year in Washington, 2005, it took just two games for …
Apr 02
“Wait’ll next year and hope?” Nope. Nats fans demand more
Baseball is said to be a timeless game. The rhythm of the game and the season bring generations together, and phrases like ‘Bang! Zoom!’ and ‘See you later!’ take on a special meaning around here every spring, summer and fall. Year after year, we pack the ballpark, gather around the television, tune in to broadcasts, …
Mar 26
The Story of the 1936-38 Trenton Senators
It isn’t often that a sports franchise relocates to a city based on the potential drawing power of having a star player from that city on the roster, but that was a major factor in the creation of the Trenton Senators. By the mid-1930s Trenton, New Jersey had long been a baseball hotbed. Numerous successful …
Mar 25
Proud to add Ed Johnson to our list of contributors
Those of you who attended the 6th Annual DC Baseball History Meeting this past February had the pleasure of hearing Ed Johnson present on Washington baseball great Cecil Travis. During the course of his presentation, Ed mentioned that much of the research he’d done for his presentation was done during the 1990s, in anticipation of …
Feb 14
The Washington “Homestead” Grays Video Series
The Washington “Homestead” Grays The Game Comes Home documentary web series chronicling the History of Baseball in tale of baseball in the Nation’s Capitol. JBH Video present the Homestead Grays in Washington D.C. Written by William Meaux & Phil Wood, Narrated by Mark Redfield, Directed, Photographed & Edited by Jeff Herberger.
