Baseball

Jim Thorpe was an American athlete widely regarded as the best in the world during the early 20th century. He played football and baseball professionally and earned Olympic gold. Thorpe’s Personal Life The specifics of his birthdate or location of birth have not been independently verified, and his childhood experiences are frequently questioned. His parents have a mixture of ancestries. His mother was Charlotte Vieux, and his father was a farmer named Hiram Thorpe. He was brought up following Indian traditions. Before being transferred to the Haskell Institute, an Indian residential school in Kansas, he attended the Sac and Fox Indian Agency School. After a fight with his father, he left home and fell into depression because his mother had died when he was still a child. He returned to his father when he was 16 and started his studies at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. Due to his extraordinary physical prowess, he distinguished himself among his classmates during his school years. Glenn "Pop" Warner, a great football coach, recognized his talent and gave him coaching. Jim had yet another sorrow when his father passed away, leaving him an orphan.                                 His Career Thorpe obtained a contract with the New York Giants to play professional baseball and later wed Iva Miller, his college sweetheart. With the Giants, Cincinnati Reds, and Boston Braves throughout a six-year major league career, Thorpe batted just.252, though he produced a respectable.327 average in his final season. At the beginning of professional football, Thorpe had a far greater influence. He agreed to play for the Canton Bulldogs in 1915 for $250 per game, and he made his money back by bringing in sizable crowds and helping the team to league titles in 1916, '17, and '19.  The Bulldogs were one of the 14 teams that comprised the American Professional Football Association in 1920, which would later become the National Football League. Thorpe presided over the league for one season. Thorpe coached and participated in games for the Oorang Indians, an all-Native American team, from 1922 to 1923. The team's games included members performing "war dances" and other rituals to excite spectators. Walter Lingo, the proprietor of the Oorang Dog Kennels in LaRue, Ohio, sponsored the squad. Through 1928, Thorpe participated in NFL games with the Cleveland Indians, Rock Island Independents, New York Giants, and Chicago Cardinals. Thorpe was chosen as a founding member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963, and in 1982, as a co-winner of the 1912 track events, his name was added back to the Olympic record books. He was chosen as the best athlete of the previous century in a poll sponsored by ABC Sports in 2000. He placed third in a poll by the Associated Press, demonstrating his continued prominence in American culture.

One of the most contentious issues in professional sports still exists 25 years after Pete Rose accepted a lifetime suspension for betting on baseball. Rose’s Personal Life On April 14, 1941, Peter Edward Rose was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was raised in the adjacent Anderson Ferry, Ohio, as one of Harry and LaVerne Rose's four children. Early on, Rose was encouraged to participate in athletics by his father, who had formerly been a semi-professional football player. One rumor is that Harry Rose once went downtown to buy shoes for his daughter but returned with a set of boxing gloves for Pete. Rose played baseball with neighborhood pals for most of his childhood and eventually joined the community Little League team. He participated in baseball and football at Cincinnati's Western Hills High School, where he excelled most in the latter event. He was initially given the Geneva Red Legs, a Reds farm team in upstate New York, as part of his deal with the Reds.                                 His Career Buddy Bloebaum, who worked as a scout for the Reds, made the large club aware of the young athlete. After he graduated from high school in 1960, they decided to sign him. He participated in games with the Macon Peaches in 1962, the Tampa Tarpons in 1961, and the Geneva (New York) Redlegs in 1960. He started playing second base in the field and swinging the bat well at each stop. He accepted the Reds' invitation to spring training in 1963, made the club, and made his MLB debut on Opening Day. Rose had a 0 for 11 career debut. It didn't portend bad things to come. Even casual admirers know what Rose did in the following two decades. Rose received Rookie of the Year honors in his rookie season, batting.273 with 101 runs scored. Between 1963 and 1978, he was a member of the Reds teams that won the World Series in 1975 and 1976. From 1979 to 1983, he was a member of the Philadelphia Phillies, where he won a World Series in 1980. He completed his career at Cincinnati between 1984 and 1986 as a player-manager. Three times led the league in batting average (1968, 1969, 1973) Seven times led the league in hits (1965, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1981) A participant on 17 all-star teams 1973 national league MVP award winner Set records for your career in terms of hits (4,256), singles (3,215), games (3,562), at-bats (14,053), and plate appearances (14,053). (15,890) Despite his outstanding performance on the field, Rose is not eligible for employment by MLB or induction into the Hall of Fame since a baseball inquiry revealed that Rose had wagered on baseball, including 52 games involving his club. According to the article, he may wager up to $10,000 daily.

The contribution Robinson made to Major League Baseball will always be cherished. Every major league team observes Jackie Robinson Day on April 15 each year to commemorate the day he broke the color barrier in baseball by becoming the first African-American player to play in either the American or National leagues in the 20th century. Robinson’s Personal Life On January 31, 1919, Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia. The youngest of five kids, he was young. Soon after Jackie was born, his father abandoned the family, and Jackie never saw him again. He was reared by his mother, Millie, and his three brothers and one sister. After Jackie was born, the family relocated to Pasadena, California, around a year later. Jackie watched his elder siblings succeed in sports there as he grew up. At the 1936 Olympics, his brother Mack, a track standout, took home a silver medal in the 200-meter dash. Jackie attended UCLA for college, where he excelled in basketball, football, baseball, and track. He was the first UCLA athlete to receive varsity letters in all four sports. In the long jump, he was the NCAA champion as well. Robinson played professional football after graduating from college, but World War II's outbreak quickly ended his career. He was enlisted in the military. Jackie met renowned boxing champion Joe Lewis, at basic training, and they grew close. Robinson attended officer training school with the assistance of Joe. Jackie was deployed to Fort Hood, Texas, to join the 761st Tank Battalion after completing his officer training. Because they were not permitted to serve alongside white soldiers, this battalion was exclusively made up of African-American soldiers.                                 His Career Early in 1945, the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro League signed Jackie Robinson, who had a successful season, hitting.387. Branch Rickey, an executive for the Brooklyn Dodgers, was scouting the Negro Leagues at the time to find players who had not only the talent but also the temperament to handle the pressures of integrating Major League Baseball. In August 1945, Rickey interviewed several baseball players before selecting Robinson to join the Royals, a Dodgers feeder team in Montreal. His 1947 Dodgers debut attracted much attention, but not all favorable. Robinson soon established himself as a player, although opponents' teams and supporters objected to his skin tone. Robinson would go on to hit.311 throughout a 10-year career, despite being signed by the Dodgers at the comparatively advanced age of 28. In 1949, when he led the National League in batting with a.342 average, most stolen bases (37), and a career-high 124 RBI, he earned the First and Most Valuable Player Award for the first time ever given to a player of color. From 1949 to 1954, Robinson was an All-Star each year. In 1955, he guided Brooklyn to a World Series victory over the New York Yankees. Robinson worked as a sportscaster and a business executive at Chock full o'Nuts and was involved in the NAACP and other civil rights organizations after leaving the Dodgers.

George Herman Ruth eclipsed the game, still regarded as baseball's pinnacle. He became one of the most well-known Americans ever living thanks to his career, both on and off the field. Ruth’s Personal Life On February 6, 1895, George Herman Ruth, Jr. was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He was raised in Pigtown, a rough area for working-class people, where his father operated a saloon. George's parents sent him to St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys when he was young because he was getting into so much trouble. George acquired a strong work ethic at the reform school. He was taught trades like carpentry and shirt-making. Brother Matthias, one of the school's monks, encouraged George to take baseball. George had natural talent. George improved greatly as a pitcher, batter, and fielder with the assistance of Brother Matthias. The monks persuaded the owner of the Baltimore Orioles to come to see George play baseball when he developed such skill. At 19, George signed his first professional baseball deal after impressing the owner. Since George was so young, the seasoned Orioles players began referring to him as "Babe," and the moniker stuck.                                 His Career When George Ruth was 19, minor league recruiter Jack Dunn noticed him. Jack hired George for $600 to throw for the Baltimore Orioles because he liked how he did it. George was overjoyed to receive payment for playing the game he adored. Numerous rumors surround George Ruth's origin of the moniker "Babe." The most well-known is that George Ruth was one of Dunn's "babes," which was subsequently abbreviated to "Babe," when he showed up for practice because Dunn frequently brought in new players. Although Jack Dunn was successful in locating talented baseball players, he was also incurring losses. On July 10, 1914, Dunn sold Ruth to the Boston Red Sox after just five months with the Orioles. Ruth didn't get to play much in the beginning, despite being in the major leagues today. Ruth was even assigned to the lower league Grays for a few months to play. During her first season in Boston, Ruth met and fell in love with the young waitress Helen Woodford, who worked at a nearby coffee shop. In October 1914, the two got hitched. Ruth returned to the Red Sox in 1915 and started pitching. Ruth's pitching improved over the following few seasons, going from excellent to exceptional. Ruth threw his 29th shutout inning in a World Series in 1918. For 43 years, that record was held. Ruth's insistence on spending more time hitting and less time pitching in 1919 caused a change in the status quo. Ruth hit 29 home runs in the campaign, breaking the previous record. When it was revealed in 1920 that the New York Yankees had acquired Ruth for a stunning $125,000, many people were shocked (more than twice the amount ever paid for a player). Ruth was a member of the 1927 squad, widely regarded as the greatest baseball squad ever. He set a record of 60 home runs in a season that year, which remained for 34 years.

Introduced back in the mid-nineteenth century, baseball has now become a household name across the United States. Major League Baseball, or MLB for short, has the honor of being the oldest major professional sports league in the world, and watching baseball have been dubbed "America's National pastime." On the surface, baseball seems like a pretty straightforward game, and for the most part, it is, but some terminologies and rules can be confusing. If you are one of those, who find the sport of baseball perplexing, then don't worry and keep on reading because we will walk you through everything there is to know about baseball.   How a typical game of baseball plays out In a typical baseball game, There are eighteen players on the field, nine on each team. Each team takes turns batting and bowling over the course of nine innings. The offensive team tries to score as many runs as possible, while the defensive players try their hardest to limit the score to a minimum, and obviously, the team with the most runs wins the match.   A baseball field The home plate, first base, second base, and third base make up the four corners of the square-shaped field on which the ball is pitched, and the batters make the runs. The home plate is where the batter stands and the ball is thrown, whereas the first base is located on the far right of the home base. Similarly, the second and the third base are located on the opposite side and the far left side of the home base, respectively. The area beyond the square field is known as the outfield, whereas the area inside is called the infield. Other than this, located in the center of the infield is the pitcher's mound. This is where the pitcher from the defensive team stands and delivers Curveballs, Cutters, Changeups, Knuckleballs, and various other pitches.   How runs are made During an inning, the defensive side's pitcher will throw the ball toward the offensive team player who is in batting position at home plate. The ball must reach the batter without touching the ground. The batter will hit the ball in an area where the defensive fielders can get to it quickly, or the batter can hit the ball beyond the fielder's reach, i.e., beyond the boundary. If the batter cannot hit it across the boundary, then all four players run from their bases to the next one. If the batter reaches the home plate successfully, provided that the ball is not caught midair, and a fielder doesn't throw the ball back to the first base, the batter is awarded a run. A batter is also out if he misses the pitch three times, provided that the pitches made are valid.   Conclusion Baseball is one of the most thrilling sports to watch or play right now, and as it has such simple rules and gameplay, it is much easier for beginners to get into. Even someone who knows only the basic rules can enjoy this beautiful game.