Issue #501
The goal with The Baseball Buffet series is to provide the best daily dose of relevant baseball info in a smart-brevity format (mostly short bullets, getting to the point, with quick analysis/insights.) Think of it like what baseball fans of a certain age would look forward to in their morning newspaper’s sports section each day!
⚾ Welcome! ⚾
Happy New Year! As expected, there wasn’t much MLB news on New Year’s Eve, but I did see one free agent signing:
SFG signs SP Tyler Mahle. According to an article by Thomas Harrigan and Maria Guardado at MLB, the Giants are signing right-handed SP Tyler Mahle to a 1-year contract. He is now 31-years old and has not pitched much over the past three seasons due to recovering from Tommy John surgery and having some right shoulder fatigue in 2025. But when he did pitch last year he did well, posting a 2.18 ERA over 16 starts and 86.2 IP for the Texas Rangers.
The Giants have also signed SP Adrian Houser this offseason, so he and Mahle presumably fill out the team’s 2026 rotation which has Logan Webb as the ace, along with Robbie Ray and Landen Roupp. Other options available include four 24-25 year olds in Hayden Birdsong, Trevor McDonald, Carson Whisenhunt, and Blade Tidwell.
Today’s Trivia Question
One of today's Birthday Boys (see below) is Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg. In 1934 he had 63 doubles, which is the fourth most all-time in a single season. The top three were Earl Webb who had 67 in 1931, George Burns had 64 in 1926, and Joe Medwick had 64 in 1936. Which two active players came close by having 59 and 58 doubles in single seasons, within the past ten years?
On this day in baseball history…
Here is what stands out to me for this day in baseball history. All quoted descriptions are from baseball-reference.com.
📅 On January 1…
1923: After suffering for several years from tuberculosis and endocarditis, Willie Keeler dies at the age of 50. “Hall of Fame outfielder Willie Keeler dies in Brooklyn, NY, at the age of 50. In 19 major league seasons, Keller hit .341, amassed 2,932 hits, and won consecutive batting titles in 1897 and 1898.”
1970: Chub Feeney becomes NL President. “Chub Feeney begins his 16-year presidency of the National League taking over for Warren Giles, who held the position for 18 years.”
1974: Lee MacPhail becomes AL President. “Lee MacPhail takes over as American League president, succeeding Joe Cronin, who retires. MacPhail will serve in this role until 1984. He will join his father, Larry MacPhail, as a member of the Hall of Fame in 1998.”
2009: MLB launches the MLB Network. “Major League Baseball launches MLB Network, a cable and satellite television channel based out of Secaucus, NJ. The channel debuts in nearly 50 million cable and satellite homes - the largest debut in cable television history, exceeding any other cable television launch by approximately 20 million homes.”
🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉
Hank Greenberg, Tim Keefe, Dallas Keuchel, LaMarr Hoyt, Earl Torgeson, Fernando Tatis
Hank Greenberg (1911-1986)
Hall of Famer
13-year major league career, spanning from 1930-1947 (with 1942-44 in military service), mostly as a 1B with the Detroit Tigers
In 1930 he mostly played in the minors and had one at-bat as a pinch hitter with Detroit. He continued to hit well in the minors for two more years and then made it back to the majors in 1933.
Four-time All-Star and won two AL MVP Awards
Led the AL in HR four times, with a high of 58 HR in 1938. Had 100+ RBI seven times, leading the AL four times, with a high of 184 in 1937.
Scored 100+ runs six times, including an AL-leading 143 in 1938.
Led the AL with 63 doubles in 1934 and again with 50 doubles in 1940.
Overall had 331 HR, 1,274 RBI, a .313/.412/.605 slash line, and a 159 OPS+
Tim Keefe (1857-1933)
Hall of Famer
14-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1880-1893, mostly with Troy, New York, and Philadelphia in the National League
Won 30+ games six seasons in a row, including in 1883 when he wen 41-27 and completed all 68 of his starts, with 619 innings pitched
Led his league in ERA three times, and led in wins twice with a 42-20 record in 1886 and a 35-12 mark in 1888
Overall had a 342-225 (.603) record, a 2.63 ERA, and a 126 ERA+
Dallas Keuchel (1988)
So far has had a 13-year major league pitching career, beginning with seven seasons for the Astros, and then time with six other clubs
Two-time All-Star and has won five Gold Glove Awards
Won the AL Cy Young Award in 2015 after leading the league in wins with a 20-8 record, and posting a 2.48 ERA with 216 K
Did well in the shortened 2020 season with a 1.99 ERA over 11 starts and 63.1 IP
Has really struggled from 2021-2024 with a cumulative 6.24 ERA over 277 IP
In 2025 only pitched at the Royals' AAA club in Omaha, with a 3.53 ERA over 7 starts
Overall so far has had a 103-92 record, a 4.04 ERA, and a 102 ERA+
LaMarr Hoyt (1955-2021)
8-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1979-1986, with six years for the White Sox and his final two with the Padres
Led the AL in wins with a 19-15 record in 1982, then did so again in 1983 with a 24-10 record, winning the AL Cy Young Award with a 3.66 ERA and league-leading 1.024 WHIP
Was an All-Star for the Padres in 1985 and finished the year with a 16-8 record and a 3.47 ERA
Drug use and related legal issues derailed his career, and led to his early retirement after his age-31 season in 1986
Overall had a 98-68 (.590) record, a 3.99 ERA, and a 99 ERA+
Earl Torgeson (1924-1990)
15-year major league career, spanning from 1947-1961, mostly as a 1B with the Braves, Phillies, Tigers, and White Sox
Led the NL with 120 runs in 1950, while also providing a .290 average, 23 HR, 87 RBI, and 15 SB
In 1951 had 24 HR and 20 SB, with 99 runs and 92 RBI
Overall had 149 HR, 133 SB, a .265/.385/.417 slash line, and a 117 OPS+
Fernando Tatis (1975)
11-year major league career, spanning from 1997-2010, playing for five different clubs
Mostly played 3B, with some time spent at 1B and OF
Had by far his best season in 1999 when he batted .298 with 34 HR, 21 SB, 104 runs, and 107 RBI
On April 23, 1999 he became the only player in MLB history to hit two grand slams in one inning
Overall had 113 HR, a .265/.344/.442 slash line, and a 101 OPS+
Father to Fernando Tatis Jr., current star RF for the Padres
Currently active players who were born on January 1 include COL Yanquiel Fernández and Lamonte Wade Jr. (free agent).
Baseball Quote of the Day
Yesterday I shared several quotes from a 19th-century star, King Kelly. Today I’ll do the same from another 19th-century star, one of today's Birthday Boys, Tim Keefe:
“Change of pace for pitchers was important in those days. It was then, as now, largely a case of outguessing the batter."
"I was considered a robber because I held out for $2,100."
Today’s Trivia Answer
Freddie Freeman had 59 doubles in 2023 (tied with three others for seventh all-time) and Nick Castellanos had 58 doubles in 2019 (11th all-time).
Good Reads
Here I am providing one or more links to baseball articles I’ve enjoyed recently, whether by writers at MLB.com or elsewhere.
One amazing stat for each team from the 2025 season, by Sarah Langs at MLB, 12/30/2025
1 prediction for every club in '26, by MLB writers, 12/31/2025
10 teams with plenty to do in the new year, by Jared Greenspan and Theo DeRosa, 12/31/2025
Can MLB Teams Be Re-Made in One Off-Season?, by Mark Kolier at Almost Cooperstown, 12/31/2025
See recent issues of The Baseball Buffet for more recent good reads!
How did you like this edition of Now Taking the Field?
Did you know? I wrote a 600+ page book with the same title as this newsletter/blog? Now Taking the Field: Baseball’s All-Time Dream Teams for All 30 Franchises was published in early 2019, by ACTA Sports. It is available at Amazon and most other major booksellers.
This newsletter was produced with beehiiv.
New to Now Taking the Field? Become a subscriber and get each article in your email inbox so that you don’t miss anything!