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Structure
Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 25 general entries.
Special Topics
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Mickey Mantle
Shortstop. Turns out the Gold Glove-winning Centerfielder couldn't field a ground ball to save his life. During his last two seasons in the minors, he made 102 errors at shortstop, and was so wild that his teammates strung chicken wire behind first base, to keep him from killing any fans.
| What uniform number did Mickey wear when he was first called up to the Majors? | Mickey Mantle
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6. Mickey wore #6 during his first year in 1951 with the Yankees. Cliff Mapes occupied the #7 jersey.
3. He won MVP awards in 1956 when he won the Triple Crown, 1957, and 1962 brought him the MVP.
| What scout signed Mickey to his first big league contract? | Mickey Mantle
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Tom Greenwade. Mickey was signed to a New York Yankee contract by scout Tom Greenwade. When Mickey's dad hinted that his son could make as much working in the mines and playing ball on Sundays, Greenwade threw in a monetary bonus.
| For several years, Mickey attached his name to a Holiday Inn Motel. Where was the motel located? | Mickey Mantle
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Joplin, MO. From Mickey's Hall of Fame induction speech:
"There is a man and a woman here that were really nice to me all through the years, Mr. and Mrs. Harold Youngman. I don't know if all of you have ever heard about any of my business endeavors or not, but some of 'em weren't too good. Probably the worst thing I ever did was movin' away from Mr. Youngman. We went and moved to Dallas, Texas, in 1957, but Mr. Youngman built a Holiday Inn in Joplin, Missouri, and called it Mickey Mantle's Holiday Inn. And we were doin' pretty good there, and Mr. Youngman said, 'You know, you're half of this thing, so why don't you do something for it.' So we had real good chicken there and I made up a slogan. Merlyn doesn't want me to tell this, but I'm going to tell it anyway. I made up the slogan for our chicken and I said, 'To get a better piece of chicken, you'd have to be a rooster, and I don't know if that's what closed up our Holiday Inn or not, but we didn't do too good after that. No, actually, it was really a good deal".
1956. In 1956 he hit 52 home runs, batted .353, and drove in 130 runs.
Gordon Stanley Cochrane. Gordon Stanley "Mickey" Cochrane was a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and the Detroit Tigers from 1925-1937. He hit a home run in his last major league at-bat. Joseph "Arky" Vaughan, Earle Combs, and Charles "Chuck" Klein, are other MLB HOF'ers.
| Mickey is the only player to have ever hit a fair ball out of Yankee Stadium? | Mickey Mantle
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f. No one has ever hit a fair ball out of Yankee Stadium in the 20th century, although Mickey came the closest. He reached the gothic wrought-iron facade that hung from the old stadium's roof five times. In addition to his widely remembered shots of May 30, 1956, when only the top 18 inches of the right-field facade kept the ball in the park, and May 22, 1963, when the ball was still rising when it hit the facade a few feet from the top, Mantle struck the same right-field facade on August 7, 1955, against Detroit; on May 5, 1956, against Kansas City; and on June 23, 1957, against the White Sox.
Spavinaw, OK. Mickey was born in Spavinaw, OK, just outside of Commerce, OK. Thus, the 'Commerce Comet' nickname.
| Who were Mickey's two closest friends during his time with the Yankees? | Mickey Mantle
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Billy Martin and Whitey Ford. Although Mickey's roommates were immortalized in Billy Crystal's "61*", it was Mickey, Billy, and Whitey, who were inseparable during their time in the big leagues.
| What forced Mickey onto the DL and out of the 1961 home run record chase? | Mickey Mantle
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A hip abscess caused by a bad reaction to a shot. Mickey had a long history of injuries and ailments, perhaps none more notorious than the hip abscess he suffered in the final week of 1961, as a bad reaction to a "cure-all" shot administered to help cure a viral infection he was suffering from. The abscess sidelined him for the final week of the 1961 season, and paved the way for Roger Maris to hit his historic 61 home runs.
| Mickey hit his 500th home run in 1967. What other Hall of Famer hit his 500th home run in 1967? | Mickey Mantle
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Eddie Mathews. Mickey hit his 500th home run on May 14, 1967-Mother's Day. Eddie Mathews followed up with his 500th on July 14, 1967.
| Mickey hit the first home run in which newly-built stadium? | Mickey Mantle
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Houston Astrodome in Houston, TX. Mickey hit the first home run in the Houston Astrodome on April 9, 1965, where the New York Yankees were facing off against the Houston Astros in the final game of Spring Training.
| Who managed the New York Yankees during Mickey's rookie season? | Mickey Mantle
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Casey Stengel . Casey Stengel managed the Yankees from 1949-1960, including Mickey's rookie year of 1951. Stengel went on to lead the Yankees to ten pennants and seven world series titles in his twelve-year tenure.
1951. He made his Bomber debut under Casey Stengel, and played with Joe DiMaggio in 1951.
Ralph Houk. Houk managed the Yankees for over 15 years in two stints.
1956. Mantle had an outstanding year and so did his Yankee team. The Bombers won the World Series, alongside Don Larsen's perfect game.
Lou Gehrig. Gehrig won the Triple Crown in 1934, his last year playing with Babe Ruth. Although Gehrig was an outstanding player, he was always overshadowed by either Babe Ruth or Joe DiMaggio. 1935 was his only year in the spotlight. He died of ALS in 1941.
Whitey Ford. Ford worked very hard on his speech the night before, while Mantle did not, but still delivered a good one.
| In 1961, the race was on to see who could break Babe Ruth's 60 home run record. Maris won, and Mantle did not. How many home runs did Mickey finish the season with? | The Great #7: Mickey Mantle
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54. Mantle finished the season with a disappointing 54 after a hip injury in September.
1969. Mantle made a great speech after being introduced by the great Mel Allen, the voice of the Yankees.
1995. Near the very end of his life, he looked very skinny and sick. Following his death, the 1995 and 1996 Yankees all wore arm bands in his honor.
7. He won titles in '51, '52, '53, '56, '58, '61, and '62.
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