On This Date: Ex-College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on September 17

September 17th, 2023 - 9:33

Extra! Extra! Instead of wondering if Plagiarist Biledumb is more adept at uniting American citizenry, one cogent thought with another, "Dr." Jill with puppeteer strings, hideous Hunter with foreign dealmaker, creating pseudonyms, halting flow of illegal aliens, vacationing on Delaware beach, hugging granddaughter from rural Arkansas, skinny-dipping when VP in front of female Secret Service agents or creepily showering with his daughter, you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former Fordham hoopers Frankie Frisch and Babe Young provided significant National League hitting performances for the New York Giants while ex-San Diego State hoopers Tony Clark and Graig Nettles supplied decisive homers on this date. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a September 17 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

SEPTEMBER 17

  • Cincinnati Reds CF Ethan Allen (Cincinnati basketball letterman in 1924-25 and 1925-26) accumulated four hits in an 8-7 setback against the New York Giants in nightcap of 1927 doubleheader.

  • New York Yankees C Benny Bengough (Niagara hoops letterman from 1916-17 through 1918-19) went 3-for-3 for the second time in 17 days in 1926.

  • Cleveland Indians SS Lou Boudreau (leading scorer for Illinois' 1937 Big Ten Conference co-champion) supplied four hits against the Washington Senators in a 1949 game.

  • Baltimore Orioles CF Al Bumbry (Virginia State's runner-up in scoring with 16.7 ppg as freshman in 1964-65) banged out four hits against the New York Yankees in a 1984 contest.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers rookie CF Glenn Burke (averaged 16.3 ppg in six basketball games with Nevada-Reno in 1974-75) went 3-for-3, including go-ahead, two-run double, and scored three runs in an 11-7 win against the Atlanta Braves in nightcap of 1976 twinbill.

  • Chicago Cubs RHP Ray Burris (two-sport standout in Southwestern Oklahoma State Hall of Fame) won his fifth straight start in 1975.

  • Arizona Diamondbacks 1B Tony Clark (San Diego State's leading scorer in WAC games in 1991-92) homered twice in back-to-back games against the Colorado Rockies in 2005.

  • C Gene Desautels (hoops letterman for Holy Cross in 1929 and 1930) awarded on waivers from the Cleveland Indians to the Philadelphia Athletics in 1945.

  • Houston Astros RF Cameron Drew (averaged 15.4 ppg and team-high 8.9 rpg as sophomore in 1983-84 before becoming NECC first-team selection in 1984-85 when leading New Haven CT in scoring and rebounding) collected two of his three MLB hits, including a triple, against San Francisco Giants P Rick Reuschel in a 1988 contest.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers C Joe Ferguson (hooper in 1967 NCAA playoffs with Pacific) jacked two homers against the Atlanta Braves in a 1979 outing.

  • Philadelphia Athletics RF Walt French (letterman for Rutgers and Army) contributed three hits in a game for the second consecutive day in 1925.

  • New York Giants 2B Frankie Frisch (Fordham hoops captain) smacked a decisive homer in the 10th inning of 5-4 decision over the Cincinnati Reds in 1926.

  • Detroit Tigers 1B Hank Greenberg (enrolled at NYU on hoops scholarship in 1929 but attended college only one semester) homered in third consecutive contest, sixth out of last seven games and eighth out of last 11 outings in 1946. Blast was milestone 300th of his 331 MLB career round-trippers.

  • Baltimore Orioles 3B Wayne Gross (Cal Poly Pomona assists leader in 1974-75) cracked a grand slam against the New York Yankees in a 1984 contest.

  • New York Giants RHP Jim Hearn (Georgia Tech hoops letterman in 1941-42) hurled a shutout against the Chicago Cubs in 1952.

  • Toronto Blue Jays 3B Garth Iorg (juco hooper with College of the Redwoods CA in mid-1970s) stroked a bases-loaded, game-winning single in the bottom of ninth inning in 5-4 win against the Boston Red Sox in 1984.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers LHP Sandy Koufax (Cincinnati's freshman hoops squad in 1953-54) tossed his 11th shutout of the 1963 campaign, a modern MLB record for lefthander.

  • Cleveland Indians rookie 3B Jack Kubiszyn (All-SEC first-team guard as senior averaged 18.3 ppg for Alabama from 1955-56 through 1957-58) provided a career-high three hits against the Minnesota Twins in the opener of 1961 twinbill.

  • Chicago White Sox LHP Thornton Lee (Cal Poly hooper in 1925-26) hurled his second straight complete game yielding fewer than five hits.

  • New York Giants CF Hank Leiber (Arizona hooper in 1931) provided three extra-base hits and five RBI against the Brooklyn Dodgers in a 1936 game.

  • The longest hitting streak of the 1940 season ended at 21 games when Philadelphia Phillies rookie RF Danny Litwhiler (member of JV hoops squad with Bloomsburg PA in mid-1930s) went hitless against the Cincinnati Reds.

  • Philadelphia Phillies 1B Tony Lupien (Harvard hoops captain in 1938-39) went 4-for-4 against the New York Giants in opener of a 1944 doubleheader.

  • Cleveland Indians 1B Ed Morgan (Tulane hoops letterman from 1923-24 through 1925-26) manufactured four hits in back-to-back games in 1930.

  • St. Louis Cardinals RF Red Murray (played hoops for Lock Haven PA in early 1900s) collected four hits and three RBI in a 1908 contest against the New York Giants.

  • New York Yankees 3B Graig Nettles (shot 87.8% from free-throw line for San Diego State in 1963-64) supplied a go-ahead homer in 11th inning of 5-3 win against the Milwaukee Brewers in 1976.

  • Chicago Cubs RF Bill Nicholson (hoops guard for Washington College MD two years in mid-1930s) went 4-for-4 with four RBI against the New York Giants in nightcap of a 1947 twinbill.

  • Detroit Tigers OF Jim Northrup (second-leading scorer and third-leading rebounder for Alma MI in 1958-59) homered in both ends of a 1971 doubleheader sweep of the Baltimore Orioles.

  • Montreal Expos OF Curtis Pride (led William & Mary in steals three times and in assists twice from 1986-87 through 1989-90), born with 95% hearing disability, stroked his first MLB hit in 1993 (pinch two-run double against Philadelphia Phillies).

  • Philadelphia Phillies SS Don Rader (Oregon hoops letterman in 1912) registered a career-high three hits in a 1921 game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

  • Brooklyn Dodgers rookie 1B Jackie Robinson (PCC's leader in scoring average in 1939-40 and 1940-41 with UCLA) opened game's scoring with a homer and knocked in eventual winning run with double in 4-2 win against the Pittsburgh Pirates clinching 1947 N.L. pennant.

  • Chicago Cubs utilityman Roe Skidmore (scored 41 points for Millikin IL in game against Illinois College on 1-28-66) delivered a pinch-hit single in his only MLB appearance in 1970 (off Jerry Reuss of St. Louis Cardinals).

  • New York Yankees RHP Lee Smith (averaged 3.4 ppg and 1.9 rpg for Northwestern State in 1976-77) notched milestone 400th of 478 saves in his 18-year MLB career.

  • Chicago Cubs 2B Wayne Terwilliger (two-year hoops letterman for Western Michigan in late 1940s) cracked a two-run homer in the seventh inning to account for decisive blow in 3-2 triumph at Brooklyn in 1950.

  • New York Yankees CF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) launched two homers in a 1983 game against the Cleveland Indians.

  • New York Giants rookie 1B Babe Young (Fordham hoops letterman in 1935-36) knocked in five runs against the Chicago Cubs in a 1940 contest. Two years later as a CF, Young had seven RBI in 1942 outing against the Cincinnati Reds.