Obscure sports trivia

Not Canadian.

I’ll pay this off. The other two were John Hiller and Ryan Dempster.

 

The MLB color line was broken in 1947. The first black MLB player inducted into the HOF was Jackie Robinson in 1962. Who was the first black player to spend his entire career in the American League to be inducted into the HOF, and when?

PS: Satchell Page, who played for Cleveland, the St. Louis Browns and Kansas City at the end of his career, does not count. He was inducted primarily for his play in the Negro Leagues, not the American League, and went in as a member of the Kansas City Monarchs.

 

I’m going to guess Reggie Jackson. He went in circa 1991 or 1992?

 

Not Reggie.

 

The first AL black player to make the HOF was Rod Carew in 1991. He went in with Fergie Jenkins.

By that time, the NL's Aaron, Banks, Brock, Campanella, Gibson, Irvin, Mays, McCovey, Morgan, F. Robinson, J. Robinson, Stargell and Williams were already in.

There was an absolutely staggering talent differential in the leagues in the 50s, 60s, and 70s, mostly because the NL had the black stars (not even mentioning Clemente, Marichial and Cepeda, Latin HOFers). And not to mention outstanding players like Pinson, Parker, Roseboro, Wynn, Clendenon, Bonds, Maddox, Gary Matthews, Gilliam, Reggie Smith, Dusty Baker, Jim Ray Hart, Don Wilson, Agee, Lee Maye, Cleon Jones and others I'm probably forgetting. The AL had Elston Howard, George Scott, Cecil Cooper, Larry Hisle and Lyman Bostock, who would have been great, off the top of my head, maybe Earl Battey.

No surprise the NL won the All-Star game every year. It had better players.

 

That is amazing the talent differential and cool trivia factoid. Id add Rice, Vida, Garr and well, that’s about it lol.

 

Two pitchers won 300 games, struck out 3000 batters, and saved 25 games. Who?

 

Walter Johnson is one. Lefty Grove meets the win/save criteria but only had 2200 strikeouts.

 

John Shmoltz?

 

Phil Niekro is the other.

 

Correct, Johnson and Niekro

 

Mike Trout set an Angels record with a home run in his sixth consecutive game. Whose team record did he surpass?