OT: Sunday Morning MLB Trivia: the "Jackie Was Out!!" edition

[colbert17]

This past week the Padres' Victor Caratini stole home. He was the first Padre to achieve the feat since Travis Jankowski in 2016.
Steals of home are cool so I decided to look at this play. When people talk about MLB records that will never be broken they never mention career steals of home. Ty Cobb stole home 54 times!!! The most by any player since 1936 is 17.
So I looked for something unique.
I thought about how about did anyone steal home steal home twice in a game. Yes it happened 17 times. But I found something else.
Over the past at least 60 years this has happened only once.
What two team mates stole home in the SAME INNING of the same game? The only clues I'll give to start are it was after 1960 and one player was very famous while the other is not so famous but you will know his name for another individual achievement he accomplished.
What two teammates stole home in the same inning of the same game?

There are some interesting things about the game when this happened which I'll share after we get the answer. Again try not to look it up. Let's play.

 

[hoquat63]

Obvious answer and probably wrong for the famous one is Maury Wills

 

[colbert17]

Obvious answer and probably wrong for the famous one is Maury Wills

incorrect

 

[RU Diesel07110]

Ricky henderson

 

[colbert17]

Ricky henderson

Incorrect

 

[colbert17]

The famous one was a good base stealer but stealing bases is not the first thing to come to mind about him.

 

[RU Diesel07110]

Concepcio/rose/Morgan

 

[colbert17]

Concepcio/rose/Morgan

All three are incorrect.

 

[colbert17]

Clue: It was in the American League

 

[RU Diesel07110]

Aperici/Reggie

 

[zappaa]

Clarifying 1st and 3rd front end steal of home is not a stolen base....if guy from 1st is also stealing

 

[WhiteBus]

Rod Carew

 

[colbert17]

Aperici/Reggie

incorrect

 

[colbert17]

Clarifying 1st and 3rd front end steal of home is not a stolen base....if guy from 1st is also stealing

This was not a 1st and 3rd situation.

 

[colbert17]

Rod Carew

Correct!!!!!
Now who was his less famous teammate?

 

[WhiteBus]

Correct!!!!!
Now who was his less famous teammate?

Thats the hard part. I think I know the game as the two of them had a bunch of stolen bases in a single game.

 

[zappaa]

This was not a 1st and 3rd situation.

Just clarifying.

 

[zappaa]

This was not a 1st and 3rd situation.

If they steal simultaneously it is a steal of home...lol

 

[colbert17]

Thats the hard part. I think I know the game as the two of them had a bunch of stolen bases in a single game.

Between the two them they had 5 stolen bases....all in one inning.

 

[WhiteBus]

Between the two them they had 5 stolen bases....all in one inning.

Yes! in one inning, that is the story I remember. Oliva would be my guess but he is famous. So I'll go with Rich Reese

 

[colbert17]

Yes! in one inning, that is the story I remember. Oliva would be my guess but he is famous. So I'll go with Rich Reese

Oliva had bad knees and couldn't run, but Rich Reese is a good guess...but incorrect.

 

[colbert17]

If we don't get it in 15 minutes i'll give the answer.

 

[zappaa]

How a team could allow 2 guys to steal home is beyond me.
Stay in your stretch for goodness sake

 

[rudad02]

Clarifying 1st and 3rd front end steal of home is not a stolen base....if guy from 1st is also stealing

Yes if the guy on first breaks & then the guy on third follows. If the guy on third breaks first & the guy on first trails him it is a steal of home IMO.

 

[colbert17]

How a team could allow 2 guys to steal home is beyond me.
Stay in your stretch for goodness sake

Zap,
Stayed tuned after I give the answer. I have a run down of the inning.

 

[GoodOl'Rutgers]

Since its American league the cacher couldn't be Mackey Sasser... no real guess.. but for some reason I am thinking of the A's

 

[Ronnie_B]

Since its American league the cacher couldn't be Mackey Sasser... no real guess.. but for some reason I am thinking of the A's

I loved Sasser's bat, he had a sweet swing, too bad he also suffered from the yips.

 

[Unionst]

Zoilo Versailles

 

[colbert17]

Okay guys here you go. The team mates who both stole home in the same inning were a Rod Carew and Mr. I'll Play All 9 positions in a game........Cesar Tovar.

May 18, 1969
Detroit at Minnesota with two of the best pitchers in the AL that year: eventual 19 game winner Mickey Lolich for the Tigers and eventual 20 game winner Dave Boswell for the Twins.
Bottom of the third , Tigers lead 2-0. Tovar leads off with a single and is balked to second by Lolich. Carew follows with a walk. First and second nobody out with your #3 hitter up. Both runners take off stealing second and third. With the same batter up Tovar takes off for the plate and Carew follows to third. Now, still with the same batter up Carew steals home. So 5 stolen bases including two steals of home during a single at bat. The batter ends up being the AL MVP with 49 HRs and 140 RBI: Harmon Killebrew.
So what nutty manager is letting these guys run wild with Killebrew up. A rookie manager in his only year with the Twins, Billy Martin.

 

[zappaa]

Lolich allows Tovar to steal home and immediately after allows Carew to steal home...insane???
His fine In Kangaroo court should have been enough for a great team party.
Yes, the pitcher lets you steal home, there is no other way to describe it

 

[rudad02]

Very interesting. Carew stole home 7 or 8 times one year.

 

[WhiteBus]

Damn. Should have had that!!
Cesar is famous for something else. First AL player to do what??

 

[zappaa]

Very interesting. Carew stole home 7 or 8 times one year.

Once again, only because the pitcher and catcher allow it to happen.
Don’t forget, you can steal home when the catcher is throwing the ball back to the pitcher

 

[WhiteBus]

Okay guys here you go. The team mates who both stole home in the same inning were a Rod Carew and Mr. I'll Play All 9 positions in a game........Cesar Tovar.

May 18, 1969
Detroit at Minnesota with two of the best pitchers in the AL that year: eventual 19 game winner Mickey Lolich for the Tigers and eventual 20 game winner Dave Boswell for the Twins.
Bottom of the third , Tigers lead 2-0. Tovar leads off with a single and is balked to second by Lolich. Carew follows with a walk. First and second nobody out with your #3 hitter up. Both runners take off stealing second and third. With the same batter up Tovar takes off for the plate and Carew follows to third. Now, still with the same batter up Carew steals home. So 5 stolen bases including two steals of home during a single at bat. The batter ends up being the AL MVP with 49 HRs and 140 RBI: Harmon Killebrew.
So what nutty manager is letting these guys run wild with Killebrew up. A rookie manager in his only year with the Twins, Billy Martin.

Carew always credited Billy for teaching him to become a better base stealer.

 

[colbert17]

Very interesting. Carew stole home 7 or 8 times one year.

Cobb has the record for stealing home in a season with 8 and 54 for his career. Carew did it 17 times in his career.

 

[colbert17]

Here's a bonus question.

Sept. 22, 1968 Cesar Tovar becomes the second player in MLB history, after Bert Campaneris, to play all nine positions in a game. The Twins starting first baseman would one day become a star for the Yankees.
Who was it?

p.s. Tovar was the starting pitcher in the game and had one strikeout. It was Reggie Jackson.

 

[colbert17]

I bumped this because I like the bonus question.

 

[WhiteBus]

Craig Nettles

 

[colbert17]

Craig Nettles

correct!! Also played CF and 3B in the game.

 

[WhiteBus]

correct!! Also played CF and 3B in the game.

Players used to play a lot of positions back then. Tovar didn't have a regular position but played almost everyday