Vintage Tuesday, you ask, eyes agog? That's right...some rules are made to be broken. But don't worry; Vintage Fridays will continue this week and every week. This is a one-time thing. Onward...
It may have taken 50 years, but Jim Gentile has been vindicated.
You may remember 1961 as the year that "Diamond Jim" made a run at the American League's Most Valuable Player Award by finishing fifth in batting average (.302), third in on-base percentage (.423), third in slugging (.646), third in home runs (46), and second in runs batted in (141). All those gaudy numbers and nothing to show for it. It's a shame he couldn't have eked out just one more RBI to catch league leader and MVP winner Roger Maris, isn't it?
Hold the phone.
The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR)'s Records Committee has discovered that an extra RBI was erroneously given to Maris on July 5. It has been determined that his total should have been 141, not 142, and therefore SABR, the Elias Sports Bureau, and the various online baseball encyclopedias are now acknowledging Gentile as the co-RBI leader of the American League for the 1961 season. You can read all about it on the Baseball Reference Blog.
Congratulations, Jim! It's not every day that a 76-year-old wins an RBI crown.
having never met you in person, i hope that you are the dude in this video. if i squint, i can see the likeness in your little blog photo.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/23/orioles-fan-runs-around-f_n_657081.html
Max - Nope, I have an alibi for the evening in question. Nice to see that Baltimore's Finest are pacifists, unlike those goons in Philly.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I've got a correction to make. Gentile has been recognized as co-RBI champ for the past 15 years. The only change that was made this week was to Mickey Mantle's runs scored total in 1961, which boosted Maris to sole possession of that year's lead. Both were mentioned in the article, so I conflated one with the other. Clear as mud, huh folks?
Kevin,
ReplyDeleteI read about this yesterday, and was hoping that you would write it up on Friday - but a few days early is even better!
I'm happy it wasn't you running on the field at O Park the other night. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't like jail...although they do put on some shows, so it wouldn't be all bad for you I guess.
ReplyDelete