PITTSBURGH – What’s in a team nickname?
For some sports franchises, the origin is obvious and needs no explaining. “Phillies” is short for “Philadelphians,” an easily understood name for the baseball team on the other side of Pennsylvania. Other names, like the Pittsburgh Penguins, were the result of a selection committee sifting through suggestions made by local fans.
What about the Pittsburgh Pirates?
There was professional baseball in the area as long ago as April 15, 1876, when the Pittsburgh Alleghenys first played at Union Park. That club was named for Allegheny City, the former municipality across the Allegheny River from downtown Pittsburgh that’s now known as the city’s North Side. They joined the International Association, a minor league, in 1877 but disbanded a year later.
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Cubs longest homers before 1900, Part 2 By JohnW53 on Dec 14, 2020, 6:53am CST +
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As noted in the previous post, of all the home runs hit by batters for the future Cubs from 1876-1900, an actual distance is cited in the Chicago Tribune for only 1: a blast by Fred Pfeffer at Detroit on Sept. 5, 1887: The ball hit a fence nearly 600 feet from the plate, and hadn t begun to come home when Fritz crossed the plate.
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In lieu of distances in feet, extraordinary home runs often were described in terms of where they landed. [Mark] Baldwin s hit in the third was a long one, the Tribune said of a game against Boston on May 16, 1888. It went to within a few feet of the engine-house before it touched the ground. At that [right fielder Tom] Brown s speed and throwing ability enabled him to get the ball and send it back so as to give Baldy trouble in making third. Had [shortstop Sam] Wise handled the throw cleanly there would have been an excellent chance for a out