Who was the best hitter in the Negro Leagues?
Joshua Gibson (December 21, 1911 – January 20, 1947) was an American baseball catcher primarily in the Negro leagues. Baseball historians consider Gibson among the best power hitters and catchers in baseball history.
Who is the MLB home run King?
Barry Bonds holds the Major League Baseball home run record with 762. He passed Hank Aaron, who hit 755, on August 7, 2007. The only other players to have hit 700 or more are Babe Ruth with 714 and Albert Pujols with 703. Alex Rodriguez (696), Willie Mays (660), Ken Griffey Jr.
How many home runs did Josh Gibson hit in a season?
84 home runsHe has been credited with as many as 84 home runs in one season. His Hall of Fame plaque says he hit "almost 800" homers in his 17-year career. These statistics are unverified and include games against amateur and semipro teams.
When did Josh Gibson hit 84 home runs?
1936He also reportedly hit 84 home runs in 1936 and amassed nearly 800 career homers—though those figures have been much disputed. Gibson's catching ability was praised by Walter Johnson and other major league stars against whom he played in exhibition games, and Gibson had a .
Has anyone ever hit a 600 foot home run?
Babe Ruth was said to have hit a home run over 600 feet. A Mickey Mantle homer was originally estimated to have gone 734 feet. While those feats would shatter Meyer's mark, there was no technology or tool that could give an exact measure of those distances.
Who is the best baseball player of all time?
10 Greatest Baseball Players of All TimeStan Musial. ... Ty Cobb. ... Walter Johnson. ... Hank Aaron. ... Ted Williams. Ted Williams has long been called “the greatest pure hitter who ever lived.” ... Barry Bonds. Barry Bonds Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images. ... Willie Mays. UPI/Bettmann Archive. ... Babe Ruth. Babe Ruth UPI/Bettmann Archive.More items...
Has anyone hit 7 home runs in a game?
"The White Sox hit seven home runs during Saturday's game against the Blue Jays at U.S. Cellular Field, and made dubious history in the process. Those seven long balls, all amazingly of the solo variety, were not enough to prevent a 10-8 loss.
How fast did Bob Gibson throw a fastball?
between 92-95 mphHow fast was Bob Gibson's Fastball? Bob Gibson's 4-seam fastball “sat” between 92-95 mph in the sample I considered. It's likely he actively varied his grip or intended velocity, producing a high velocity range, measured at 87-95, with numerous indications that he regularly exceeded 95 mph.
Has anyone ever hit a homerun out of Yankee Stadium?
Only two home runs have been hit into the bleachers in dead center field since Yankee Stadium was built in 1923—one by Mickey Mantle on June 21, 1955, and an even longer one by Mantle in the fourth inning yesterday.
Who hit 70 home runs?
Mark McGwireBack in 1998 in the height of the steroid era, Mark McGwire was chasing 70 home runs during one of the most exciting stretches of baseball. McGwire hit home runs number 69 and 70 on September 27th, and the 70th home run was caught by fan Phil Ozersky.
What is the longest ball ever hit in baseball?
What is the longest home run of all time? Here is the longest verified home run in professional baseball history! In 1987, Joey Meyer, playing for the Triple-A Denver Zephyrs, launched this ball an astonishing 582 FEET!
Who holds the record for most homers in a game?
The record for most home runs in a single game is eight, held by Jay Clarke for Corsicana of the Texas League on June 15, 1902.
Who are the top 5 home run leader of all time?
Here is a list of inactive players who have the most home runs in MLB history:Bonds, 762.Henry Aaron, 755.Babe Ruth, 714.Alex Rodriguez, 696.Willie Mays, 669.Ken Griffey, 630.Jim Thome, 612.Sammy Sosa, 609.More items...•
Who has the most home runs as a team in the MLB?
The New York Yankees have launched the most home runs by a team this season, with 233 home runs.TEAMSEASONHRSan Francisco Giants2022164New York Mets2022155Baltimore Orioles2022153Pittsburgh Pirates202213 more rows
Who caught Hank Aarons 715 homerun ball?
reliever Tom HouseHank Aaron watches his 715th career homer in 1974 against the Dodgers. The ball landed in the hands of reliever Tom House.
Who leads the MLB in home runs in a season?
Barry BondsSingle-Season Leaders & Records for Home RunsRankPlayer (age that year)Home Runs1.Barry Bonds (36)732.Mark McGwire (34)703.Sammy Sosa (29)664.Mark McGwire (35)6556 more rows
How many home runs did Josh Gibson hit in 1943?
Although he was reportedly becoming increasingly reliant on alcohol and marijuana, 36 the 1943 version of Josh Gibson was as lethal as ever. At the age of 31, Josh batted .486 with 12 home runs and 22 two doubles. Posey had crafted a unique arrangement in which some of the Grays’ home games were played in Pittsburgh and the rest at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. According to author Brad Snyder, “In front of record crowds, Gibson wrested center stage away from (Satchel) Paige by hitting a home run once every four games.” 37 Josh hit more homers over Griffith Stadium’s left- and center-field walls in 1943 than did the entire American League that year, Snyder wrote. 38
Who did Josh Gibson play for?
On the baseball diamond, though, there was no difference in Josh’s performance. Gibson played for the semi pro Crawford Colored Giants in 1929 and 1930, earning a few dollars a game while often playing in front of 5,000 or more spectators, and word of his power inevitably reached Judy Johnson and the Homestead Grays. “I had never seen him play,” said Johnson, “but we had heard so much about him. Every time you’d look at the paper you’d see where he hit a ball 400 feet, 500 feet.” 17 The Grays already had two catchers, Buck Ewing and Vic Harris, so they didn’t immediately pursue Gibson, but he was certainly on their figurative radar.
Where was Josh Gibson's funeral?
The funeral was held at the same church, Macedonia Baptist, in which he and Helen had been wed 20 years earlier, and according to some accounts, people lined up for more than a half-mile to pay final respects. For his “official” career, Josh Gibson hit 107 home runs and batted .350.
Where did Mark Gibson live?
Mark Gibson was a sharecropper who in 1923 traveled to Pittsburgh in search of a better life for his family. He found work with the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Company and sent money back to Georgia for three years until he was able to bring the whole family to Pennsylvania in 1926.The Gibsons bought a house on Strauss Street in the Pleasant Valley section of Pittsburgh, and set about turning it into a home.
Where did Josh go to school?
Josh had finished the fifth grade while in Georgia. In Pennsylvania he started in the electrical studies program at the Allegheny Pre-Vocational School, and at 13 was placed in a similar program at Conroy Pre-Vocational, in Pleasant Valley. 8 By the time he turned 15 he dropped out of school in order to take a job at an airbrake manufacturing plant to help support the family. At 6-feet-1 and 200 pounds, he was already capable of working with the adult men doing heavy labor. He went to work after school with Carnegie-Illinois Steel, which left his evenings free for recreation.
Who was the manager of the Greenlee baseball team in 1927?
In 1927 Greenlee installed Harold “Hooks” Tinker as manager. Tinker happened to watch an Industrial League all-star game at Ammon Field in 1928, and Josh Gibson’s life changed forever. “I had two of my Crawford players on that all-star team. ….
Who said that Gibson was the greatest catcher?
Roy Campanella, though, averred that Gibson was “not only the greatest catcher but the greatest ballplayer I ever saw.” 19 Regardless of his ability as a backstop, the man could hit and hit with power. Any team he played for would have found a uniform for Josh.
Who is Josh Gibson?
A Larger-Than-Life Legend. By: Andrew Simon | @AndrewSimonMLB. Josh Gibson never got the opportunity to play in the Major Leagues, but he left a lasting mark on baseball history. An imposing presence both behind the plate and at it, Gibson is considered one of the most fearsome sluggers to ever grab a bat. A star in the Negro Leagues in the two ...
Who said "Everything I could do Josh could do better"?
Hall of Fame Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella, describing how Gibson pushed him to third base when they played together, said, “Everything I could do, Josh could do better.”. Legendary big league pitcher Walter Johnson, lamenting Gibson’s exclusion from white baseball, said of Gibson: “He can do everything.
How old was Josh Gibson when he signed with the Monarchs?
An 18-year-old Gibson, who by that time had established a reputation in semipro games, was asked to suit up as a replacement. With that, a great baseball career was launched. Credit the Monarchs for the Homestead Grays signing Josh Gibson!
Who is the most fearsome slugger in baseball?
An imposing presence both behind the plate and at it, Gibson is considered one of the most fearsome sluggers to ever grab a bat. A star in the Negro Leagues in the two decades before integration, Gibson terrorized pitchers wherever he went, including throughout Latin America during winter league play.
Who was the catcher in the 1930s?
In 1930, as the story goes, Gibson was a spectator at a game in which Homestead Grays catcher Buck Ewing sustained an injury.
Who is Andrew Simon?
Andrew Simon is a research analyst for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @AndrewSimonMLB.
Can Gibson demolish a baseball?
But there’s no question Gibson could demolish a baseball. • One major difference between Ruth and Gibson: Everyone knows the exact number of big flies the Sultan of Swat swatted in his best season (60) and overall (714) in the Majors. Nobody knows how many Gibson launched in his sprawling baseball career.
Who is the all time home run king in baseball?
Josh Gibson is now baseball’s all-time home run king. Move over Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth. No, that’s not official, unless you count this: Officially, it’s my opinion. It’s not a political statement, and there is no detailed analytical statistical proof that Gibson holds one of our most-cherished sports records.
Why is baseball not counting barnstorming tours?
Baseball isn’t planning to count these unofficial barnstorming tours, partly because we don’t know who they were played against and partly because there weren’t meticulous stats kept. That’s the messy part.
Who won the RBI in 1961?
Baseball people live by numbers. Ten years ago, researchers determined that Roger Maris had been credited with one additional RBI in 1961. I’m not kidding. Forty-nine years after the fact, researchers were still combing through the details of specific games. That year, however, Maris had won the American League RBI title by one.
Is Baseball going to be comfortable with its statistics again?
Baseball is never going to be comfortable with its statistics again, but it created this mess in the first place. Next time a ball falls from the sky, no one will call Gibson out.
Did Jackie Robinson play for the clowns?
Or, wait, no. He played for the Clowns in 1952. Baseball isn’t counting the Negro Leagues after 1948, because they started dropping off in quality after Jackie Robinson got into the Majors. Top black players followed suit, and the Negro Leagues eventually died off. Baseball people live by numbers.
Overview
Baseball career
The Negro leagues generally found it more profitable to schedule relatively few league games and allow the teams to earn extra money through barnstorming against semi-professional and other non-league teams. Thus, it is important to distinguish between records against all competition and records in league games only. For example, against all levels of competition, Gibson hit 69 hom…
Early life
Gibson was born in Buena Vista, Georgia, to Mark and Nancy (Woodlock) Gibson and had a younger brother, fellow Negro leaguer Jerry, and sister. In 1923, Gibson moved to Pittsburgh, and his father found work at the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Company. Entering sixth grade in Pittsburgh, Gibson prepared to become an electrician, attending Allegheny Pre-Vocational School and Conroy Pre-Vocat…
Death
In early 1943, Gibson fell into a coma and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. After regaining consciousness, he refused the option of surgical removal and lived the next four years with recurring headaches. In 1944, Gibson was hospitalized in Washington, D.C. at Gallinger Hospital for mental observation. On January 20, 1947, Gibson died of a stroke at 35 years old in Pittsburgh. He was buried at the Allegheny Cemetery in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, where …
Legacy
Even though Jackie Robinson became the first black player in modern major league history in April 1947, Larry Doby, who broke the American League color barrier that July, felt that Gibson was the best black player in 1945 and 1946. Doby said in an interview later, "One of the things that was disappointing and disheartening to a lot of the black players at the time was that Jack was not th…
Films
• In 1996, Gibson was played by Mykelti Williamson in the made-for-cable film Soul of the Game, which also starred Delroy Lindo as Satchel Paige, Blair Underwood as Jackie Robinson, Edward Herrmann as Branch Rickey, and Jerry Hardin as Commissioner Happy Chandler.
• The character of Leon Carter, played by James Earl Jones in the 1976 film The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Moto…
Miscellaneous
• Gibson played baseball in the United States, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Mexico, with a lifetime batting average of .354–.384, depending on which statistics are counted.
• Starting in 1932–1933, Gibson played in Puerto Rico. In 1941–1942, Gibson played for the Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League. Playing for the Cangrejeros de Santurce, Gibson won the batting title that season with an average of .480, recognized as the record for that league.
See also
• List of baseball players who died during their careers
• List of notable brain tumor patients