Featured above is as harrowing a scene as you can imagine on a ballfield. Laying sprawled on the dirt is Dodgers left fielder Joe Medwick -- after having been beaned in the head by former teammate Bob Bowman of the Cardinals. In fact, Medwick was traded from the Cardinals to the Dodgers just a week prior to this incident. Per Charles F. Faber at SABR:
Batting cleanup for the Dodgers, Medwick faced his former teammate Bob Bowman in the first inning, with two runs already in and a runner on base. Bowman’s first pitch was a high, hard one on the inside. It struck Medwick in the head, knocking him unconscious. The Dodgers rushed out of their dugout, intent on wreaking vengeance on Bowman, who they believed had beaned the outfielder deliberately. Some tried to punch him. Even Larry McPhail, the Dodgers president, got in a swing, knocking off the pitcher’s hat. Medwick was carried off the field on a stretcher and taken to the Caledonian Hospital, where it was discovered that he had a concussion but no fracture. He tried to get out of his hospital bed and go after his assailant. Meanwhile, Bowman was removed from the game and escorted by policemen back to his hotel.
One reason the Dodgers were so irate about this incident is that Bowman had been in a verbal confrontation with Medwick and Dodgers manager Leo Durocher in the hotel the previous morning. The pitcher had shouted, “I’ll take care of you! I’ll take care of both of you.” Bowman said he meant that he would hold them hitless in the game. The Dodgers’ version was that the pitcher had threatened them with beanballs. Acting on this belief, McPhail appealed fruitlessly to National League President Ford Frick to ban Bowman from baseball for life. Further he attempted to have Bowman arrested for assault. The Brooklyn district attorney investigated and found no evidence of criminal intent on the pitcher’s part.The photo above is available on auction at RMY (auction link). Below are more links to check out:
- This Day in Dodgers History: In 1966 the great Koufax/Drysdale contract holdout commences. They are seeking a collective three year $1MM contract -- to be split evenly. In 2002 the Dodgers signed free agent Japanese starting pitcher Kaz Ishii after posting a $11.26 million bid to the Tokyo Yakult Swallows for the right to negotiate with him. He would eventually sign a four-year $12.3 million contract with the team.
- Happy Birthday, Al Humphrey, Orlando Alvarez & Trent Oeltjen!
- Job Fair at Dodger Stadium this weekend! This Saturday, Dodger stadium will host the 23rd Annual Community Job Fair from 10:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. Interviews and prescreening will be conducted on site with employers looking to fill a variety of job openings. Admission and parking are free, as well as a shuttle service from Sunset Blvd/ Vin Scully Ave. to Dodger Stadium. To register for the event and to explore job listings, visit LACommunityJobFair.com.
- Video: Watch Cody Bellinger talk hitting with Kevin Millar (link here).
- It appears that the Dodgers are being hit with some illness - a bug. I can certainly sympathize. I haven't been feeling entirely 100% since getting the flu in early January. Per Daniel Starkand at Dodger Blue; "Dodgers Spring Training: Hyun-Jin Ryu, Cody Bellinger And Several Others Scratched From Game Against Padres Due To Illness."
Dave Roberts said 25 players/coaches/trainers are out with the virus going around camp.— David Vassegh (@THEREAL_DV) February 28, 2018
- Via Tim Brown at Yahoo Sports; "The unlikely family of Venezuelan prospect Keibert Ruiz."
“I just got a sense this is a special kid who’s got a chance to move quickly through the system,” Barbary said.He talked to Gabe Kapler, then the club’s farm director. They spoke to Andrew Friedman.
What if Keibert, then 18 and fresh from hitting .374 in Rookie ball, came to live with him, in Clemson, during the winter? Keibert could learn English there. He could train in modern facilities. He could watch hours of “The Andy Griffith Show,” for which Barbary’s fondness is legendary. “It is the greatest show ever made for TV,” Barbary said with a laugh and absolute sincerity, having given no thought to the possibility the Dodgers’ catcher of the future might arrive at a mound not with the authority of Andy Taylor, but as a bug-eyed Barney Fife. When raising catchers, a man takes his chances.
- Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA; "Kenta Maeda is back on a starter’s path."
A return to the bullpen might be in Maeda’s future, say in the postseason, but the plan at least for most of the season is for him to be a starter.“It’s not that easy to find guys who can basically take the ball every fifth day and contribute the way he has,” Andrew Friedman said in November. “That being said, in the playoffs there was another gear and it was special coming out of the pen.”
- I was fascinated by this. Paul Lukas at UniWatch uncovers some background on, "An MLB History Mystery Involving an American Flag Pin."
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