Pivoted this week and switched over to the 20th Century. Got a lot of requests from some boomers to show questions from their days.
Enjoy.
Question 1:
Which Hall of Fame outfielder had one of the most dominant seasons of the Deadball Era in 1911, batting .420 with 248 hits, 47 doubles, 24 triples, and 83 stolen bases while winning the American League’s Chalmers Award?
Question 2:
Which Yankees legend set the MLB single-season record with 457 total bases in 1921, while also hitting 59 home runs and scoring 177 runs?
Question 3:
Which Hall of Fame first baseman won the 1934 American League Triple Crown by hitting .363 with 49 home runs and 166 RBI — yet somehow finished only fifth in MVP voting?
Question 4:
Which Cardinals legend nearly won the Triple Crown in 1948, leading the National League in batting average, hits, doubles, triples, runs, RBI, total bases and slugging percentage — but finishing one home run short of the league lead?
Question 5:
Which future home run king hit 44 home runs and stole 31 bases in 1963, becoming only the third player in MLB history at the time to join the 30-30 club?
Question 6:
Which Dodgers ace struck out a then-record 382 batters during the 1965 regular season, then finished the year by throwing a complete-game shutout in Game 7 of the World Series?
Question 7:
Which Yankees superstar earned the nickname “Mr. October” after hitting three home runs on three consecutive pitches from three different Dodgers pitchers in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series?
Question 8:
Which Royals Hall of Famer hit .390 in 1980, produced 9.4 bWAR despite playing only 117 games, and won the American League MVP Award?
Question 9:
Which Mariners superstar became a unanimous American League MVP in 1997 after hitting 56 home runs with 147 RBI?
Question 10:
Which Red Sox ace produced 11.7 bWAR in 2000 while posting a 1.74 ERA, a microscopic 0.737 WHIP, and a 291 ERA+?
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ANSWER KEY
1: Ty Cobb — Cobb’s 1911 season was absurd even by his standards. He hit .420 with 248 hits, 47 doubles, 24 triples, 127 RBI and 83 stolen bases while producing 10.5 bWAR. He unanimously won the Chalmers Award, the predecessor to the modern MVP.
2: Babe Ruth — Ruth amassed 457 total bases in 1921, a Major League single-season record that still stands. He also led baseball with 59 home runs and 177 runs scored.
3: Lou Gehrig — Gehrig won the 1934 Triple Crown by batting .363 with 49 home runs and 166 RBI. Somehow, he finished fifth in MVP voting while Detroit catcher Mickey Cochrane won the award.
4: Stan Musial — Musial’s 1948 season was one of the greatest offensive performances ever. He hit .376 and led the NL in virtually every major offensive category, but his 39 home runs left him one behind Ralph Kiner and Johnny Mize. He still easily won his third NL MVP Award.
5: Hank Aaron — Aaron hit 44 home runs and stole 31 bases in 1963, becoming just the third member of the 30-30 club. He also led the NL in homers and RBI and missed the batting title — and therefore the Triple Crown — by only seven points.
6: Sandy Koufax — Koufax struck out 382 hitters in 1965, breaking the modern-era single-season record at the time. He then struck out 10 Twins while throwing a complete-game shutout in Game 7 of the World Series to give Los Angeles the championship.
7: Reggie Jackson — Jackson homered in three consecutive at-bats in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series, hitting the first pitch he saw from three different Dodgers pitchers. The performance clinched the Yankees’ championship and permanently cemented his “Mr. October” reputation.
8: George Brett — Brett hit .390/.454/.664 in only 117 games in 1980. He produced 9.4 bWAR and received 17 first-place votes to win his only American League MVP Award.
9: Ken Griffey Jr. — Griffey hit 56 home runs, drove in 147 runs and scored 125 times for Seattle in 1997. He received every first-place vote to become the unanimous AL MVP.
10: Pedro Martínez — Pedro’s 2000 season may be one of the best pitching seasons ever. He went 18-6 with a 1.74 ERA, 0.737 WHIP, 291 ERA+ and 11.7 bWAR, striking out 284 batters against only 32 walks. He won his second consecutive AL Cy Young Award.
Thank you all for reading! Let us know how many you got correct in the comments below.
This week we jumped out of the 21st century and went back through baseball history, but we kept the names recognizable: Cobb, Ruth, Gehrig, Musial, Aaron, Koufax, Reggie, Brett, Griffey and Pedro.
If you went 10-for-10, you know your baseball history.