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Friday, November 27, 2009

Baseball Picture of the Day: Pittsburg Pirates, champions National League, 1909

Approx. 84 days until pitchers and catchers!

It’s Black Friday, and aside from Talk like a Pirate Day, I can think of no other day that makes me think of looting, plundering and murdering in pursuit of treasure. Okay, I made that up. Still, here’s a picture- suggested by Vlad- of the 1909 Pirates celebrating their NL pennant by making John McGraw and Frank Chance walk the plank.
ARRR!

It’s in the Public Domain, and comes from the Library of Congress.

Tomorrow: Play at the Plate.

Gamingboy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 06:59 AM | 20 comment(s)
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1. John (You Can Call Me Grandma) Murphy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 07:55 AM (#3397545)

That photo is almost as creepy as those commercials for Assassin's Creed 2.

2. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Marching Through Georgia

Posted: November 27, 2009 at 08:38 AM (#3397553)

Stylized team photos were commonplace in the early 20th century, although this is one of the better ones. The Reach Guides from about 1907 to 1914 have many examples, like the manager for the Little Rock Travelers carrying a giant suitcase with the players all attached to the outside. These guides also have many hundreds of other team pictures per year, ranging from minor leagues to industrial leagues to black and Indian teams, and even to an insane asylum team. One of these years someone with a lot of patience is going to put those photos online, but since there are many thousands of them it ain't gonna be easy.

3. A Surfeit of Peaches Graham (SdeB) Posted: November 27, 2009 at 08:45 AM (#3397555)

I wonder how long it took them to create that image using Photoshop.

4. Ivan Grushenko of Hong Kong Posted: November 27, 2009 at 09:04 AM (#3397562)

Are we supposed to try to name them?

5. John (You Can Call Me Grandma) Murphy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 10:07 AM (#3397584)

Muggsy and Hans are pretty easy to spot, though I have no idea how the hell Pete Townshend could have been on the team almost 40 years before he was born.

6. RB in NYC (Now with Resolutions!) Posted: November 27, 2009 at 10:19 AM (#3397588)

I'm with #1 on this one. Yikes.

7. The Piehole of David Wells, Red Sox Colostomy Bag Posted: November 27, 2009 at 10:41 AM (#3397609)

Is the 'h' optional?

8. Gamingboy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 10:44 AM (#3397611)

Is the 'h' optional?

At the time, it was. You can also see the spelling on the T206 Wagner.

Etymology of Pittsburgh

In 1891 the United States Board on Geographic Names adopted thirteen general principles to be used in standardizing place names, one of which was that place names ending in -burgh should drop the final -h. The Board published a report of place name "decisions", also in 1891, in which the city's name was rendered Pittsburg.[3] The Board's decisions had limited but effective power; they were compulsory upon all federal government agencies, including the Post Office. The new official spelling was resisted by many people in the city. The Pittsburgh Gazette refused to adopt the Board's decision, as did the Pittsburgh Stock Exchange and the University of Pittsburgh.[3] Official city documents continued to use the old spelling.[1] Responding to mounting pressure and, in the end, political pressure from senator George T. Oliver,[3] the United States Geographic Board (a successor to the original United States Board on Geographic Names) reversed the decision on July 19, 1911, and the Pittsburgh spelling was restored.[1]

The confusion and controversy surrounding the aborted spelling change means that both the Pittsburgh and the Pittsburg spelling were commonly encountered around the turn of the 20th century, and continued uses of Pittsburg still occur to this day.

9. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Marching Through Georgia

Posted: November 27, 2009 at 10:46 AM (#3397613)

Is the 'h' optional?

Pretty much. Same with towns like "Hillsboro" or "Hillsborough," or countries like "Burmah" and "Corea," and religions like "Hindooism." Hell, it wasn't until 1884 that each town didn't have its own time zone.

EDIT: a whole case of Coke to gamingboy.

10. gef the talking mongoose Posted: November 27, 2009 at 12:16 PM (#3397648)

an insane asylum team

Just out of curiosity, I wonder if any the roster included any of Darren Daulton's forebears.

11. Snowboy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 12:34 PM (#3397654)

Option "h"?

12. Lassus Posted: November 27, 2009 at 12:35 PM (#3397655)

That photo is almost as creepy as those commercials for Assassin's Creed 2.

For anyone interested, the choir music that starts that commercial (and eventually cuts out for something more modern) is the beginning of Gregorio Allegri's Miserere mei, Deus. Yes, it's nine minutes, but all I ask is that you listen up to 2:10.

13. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Marching Through Georgia

Posted: November 27, 2009 at 12:36 PM (#3397656)

an insane asylum team

Just out of curiosity, I wonder if any the roster included any of Darren Daulton's forebears.

Well, see for yourself. And looking at some of the names on the picture, it wouldn't surprise me. That manager Bryan looks a bit like Frank Lane, and to me that's a hint right there.

14. Snowboy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 01:03 PM (#3397674)

Man, they had good nicknames back then.
How do you drop "Czolgosz" on someone? And it sticks to the point that they put it down as your name under your picture in the team photo?
That's like dropping "Ted Bundy" on someone in 1985...harsh.
Is there any chance that the only reason he was in the insane asylum was because of his nickname?
"Hey, Czolgosz"
"STOP #&%*ING CALLING ME THAT!"

15. John (You Can Call Me Grandma) Murphy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 01:18 PM (#3397677)

For anyone interested, the choir music that starts that commercial (and eventually cuts out for something more modern) is the beginning of Gregorio Allegri's Miserere mei, Deus. Yes, it's nine minutes, but all I ask is that you listen up to 2:10.

This was actually the creepy commercial that I was talking about, Lassus:

Assassin's Creed 2

With that said, Miserere mei, Deus is pretty damn good.

16. Snowboy Posted: November 27, 2009 at 01:21 PM (#3397680)

(I guess instead of Ted Bundy, I should have said it's like calling someone "Hey, Lee Harvey Oswald!" in 1972.)

17. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Marching Through Georgia

Posted: November 27, 2009 at 01:22 PM (#3397681)

How do you drop "Czolgosz" on someone?

Well, first you call on Bob Sheppard to tell the warden how to pronounce it.

18. ess eff Posted: November 27, 2009 at 02:56 PM (#3397724)

So the Eastern Hospital was in a West Coast state? That's insane.

19. Jolly Old St. Neck Wound, Marching Through Georgia

Posted: November 27, 2009 at 03:41 PM (#3397741)

What's even more insane is that there can be an Eastern part of a Western state. Backwards reels the mind as I try to digest that.

20. jwb Posted: November 27, 2009 at 04:09 PM (#3397763)

Where's Werr?