I sometimes wonder if you try to guess my weekly theme before you open your copy of Sports Saturday (for which we are all appreciative that you do). I’m sure that it is of no surprise to you that I couldn’t let an event as momentous as the change in the monarchy in Great Britain, an event that has captured the world’s attention, go without inclusion in our weekly quiz.
Now, I am not deeply invested in the royal family, but I have respect for the dedication that Queen Elizabeth had to service in her lifetime. And, yes, I am slightly dismayed that King Charles is not referring to himself as “King Chuck.” I do have some royalty on my résumé. There was a period when I was known as “The Czar of Entertainment” on Boston television. But enough about me. It’s time for the weekly quiz. May you reign supreme.
1. After the death of King George VI, Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary ascended to the throne on Feb. 6, 1952, at age 25. How many World Series were Chicago teams in during Queen Elizabeth’s monarchy?
a. 5
b. 4
c. 3
d. 2
2. On May 15, 1991, the A’s visited the Orioles at Memorial Stadium. Also on that date, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip visited the ballpark. They saw Hall of Famers Rickey Henderson, Cal Ripken Jr., Harold Baines, Dennis Eckersley and Tony La Russa. The queen was accompanied to the game by the President and the First Lady. Who were they?
3. Cecil Fielder played 13 seasons in the AL and hit 319 homers. He’s still alive, which is why his son, Prince, is not King Fielder. Prince, who played 12 seasons, seven in the NL and five in the AL, also hit 319 homers. Which Fielder (as a batter) hit more home runs against Chicago teams?
4. Here’s another royal father/son question. Pitcher Mel Queen had a son, Mel, who was no Shohei Ohtani, but he did start his career as an outfielder and finished as a pitcher. As much as I would have liked, for the purposes of this question, neither played for a Chicago team. So, here are some fathers who played in the bigs. Which (if any) played for a Chicago team?
a. Jose Cano
b. Tito Francona
c. Dave LaRoche
d. Steve Swisher
5. He was known as “King Felix.” Pitcher Felix Hernandez won 169 games for the Mariners, but he was 0-1 against the Cubs and 7-7 against the White Sox. Against the Sox, in 143⅔ innings, King Felix struck out 125 and allowed 21 homers. Jim Thome hit the most Sox homers against Hernandez. Did he:
a. Have more homers than strikeouts?
b. Strike out more than he homered?
c. Have the same number of homers and whiffs?
6. In the 1970s and ’80s, there was a surly ballplayer with a somewhat redundant last name, Dave Kingman. He played three years for the Cubs and had a memorable season in 1979, when he slammed 48 homers, drove in 115 runs, slugged .631, had an OPS of .956 and struck out 131 times. Kingman led the league in four of those five categories. In which did he finish second to Dave Winfield?
7. The Kansas City Royals were born in 1969. Three of the four players listed below played for the Royals, Cubs and White Sox. Which one didn’t?
a. Tom Gordon
b. Billy Hamilton
c. Pete LaCock
d. Moe Drabowsky
8. George Herman Ruth had many nicknames, but of all of them, the most famous was “the Babe.” Many of his nicknames were related to royalty, such as “the Sultan of Swat.” Here are four nicknames. I may or may not have made up some of them. Please determine which are real and which are from the quizmaster’s fertile (or fertilizer-filled) brain.
a. “The Earl of Boston”
b. “The Maharajah of Mash”
c. “The King of Swing”
d. “The Baron of Brews”
9. Paul Goldschmidt is having a wonderful season. While it’s less prestigious than it once was, Goldy is trying for the Triple Crown, leading in batting average, home runs and RBI (please, don’t use or say RBIs; it’s not “Runs Batted Ins”). Who was the last NL Triple Crown winner?
a. Jimmie Foxx
b. Frank Robinson
c. Joe Medwick
d. Chipper Jones
ANSWERS
1. The Cubs reached and won the World Series in 2016. The White Sox reached and won the World Series in 2005. However, the Sox also reached but lost the Series to the Dodgers in 1959. The answer is three, but as Meat Loaf sang, “Two out of three ain’t bad.”
2. President George H.W. Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush.
3. Prince Fielder hit 22 homers against the Cubs and seven against the White Sox for a total of 29. Cecil hit 34 against the Sox and never played the Cubs, which means the elder Fielder is king and the younger remains Prince.
4. Jose’s son Robinson never played for Chicago. Tito’s son Terry played for the Cubs in 1986. Dave LaRoche had two sons in the majors. Adam ended his career in 2015 with the White Sox, but Andy never played in Chicago. Steve Swisher was a catcher for four seasons with the Cubs, and, yes, his son Nick Swisher played for the White Sox in 2008.
5. Now, I know you think the quizmaster loves it when the total is the same, but that’s not the answer. I loved this question because, with the White Sox, Thome hit three homers against King Felix and struck out only twice. That’s why the guy is in the Hall.
6. In 1979, Dave Winfield led the NL with 118 RBI, the most of his career and the only time he led the league in any major batting category.
7. Pete LaCock (son of Peter Marshall, famed host of Hollywood Squares) played his entire career with the Royals and the Cubs. The other three played for all three teams.
8. “The Maharajah of Mash” and the “King of Swing” were real.
9. It’s been awhile since Joe Medwick won the crown with the Cardinals in 1937 with a .374 batting average, 31 HR and 154 RBI. That season, “Ducky” also led with 156 games played, 111 runs scored, 237 hits, 56 doubles, slugging, OPS, OPS+ and total bases.
See you next week, and don’t forget to write. It looks like we will have a great end to the regular season.
