Baseball History: The 1946 Season Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Bob Feller willingly served his country during World War II, but the war deprived him of a chance at 300 victories. In 1946, he won 26 games and lost 15, getting 41 decisions in 42 starts with 36 complete games and an ERA of 2.18. He would have won the Cy Young Award but it hadn't been invented yet. He played for only one team in his career, from 1936 to 1956. What team was it?

Answer: Cleveland

Rapid Robert from Van Meter, Iowa, still chalked up 266 wins against 162 losses. He celebrated his 84th birthday in 2002.

2. This perennial All-Star won the NL MVP Award in 1946, as he did in 1943 and '48. His uniform number was 6, and he played his entire career with one team. Who was he?

Answer: Stan Musial

Stan the Man, from Donora, PA, hit .365 in 1946, with 16 homers and 103 RBI's. He was the NL's best player of the 1940's. He played for the Cardinals from 1941 to 1963, batting .331 lifetime. He marked his 82nd birthday in 2002.

3. This great player returned to the Major Leagues in 1946, after devoting three years to military service. He was born November 25, 1914 in Martinez, California, made his Major League debut on May 3, 1936, and died in Hollywood, Florida, on March 8, 1999. Who was this?

Answer: Joe DiMaggio

The facts do come fairly close to fitting Williams, but it was the Yankee Clipper. DiMaggio retired after the 1951 season, only 36 years old but with a nagging leg injury. He still had done enough to qualify as one of the greatest players of his century.

He had a lifetime batting average of .325 and 361 homers. He hit over .300 in 11 of his 13 seasons. He is one of the few players immortalized in song: "Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you", from Simon and Garfunkle's "Mrs. Robinson."

4. This immortal player had a monster year in 1946, winning the AL MVP, and he made his only World Series appearance after three years as a Marine fighter pilot. Who was he?

Answer: Ted Williams

Although the Splendid Splinter wasn't a stellar fielder, he was one of the best hitters of the century, and the most feared batsman of his time. "Uh oh, here comes Williams". He was the man any manager would love to have on his team, he was MVP in 1946 and '49, but he lost several MVP's to Joe DiMaggio et al because he was not popular with the press and because his team, the Red Sox, seldom won the pennant. Williams won two triple crowns (1942 and '47), a feat matched by few, but did not win the MVP in those years.

He wound up his career with 521 homers and a .344 BA. All this in spite of missing years for military service in both WW II and the Korean War. You can bet Bosox fans weren't happy about that. He died July 5, 2002, in Inverness, Florida.

5. 1946 was the last year of all-white Major League baseball in the twentieth century. Although it wasn't on a Major League diamond, a momentous event was taking place on April 18, 1946, in Jersey City, New Jersey. A player named Jackie Robinson was making his minor league debut as the first black player of the twentieth century. His team was playing the Jersey City Little Giants. What was the name of Robinson's team?

Answer: The Montreal Royals

The Dodgers' "A" farm club (it was A, B, C, D levels then, not A, AA, AAA) was Robinson's team for one season. He had played for the Kansas City Monarchs in the Negro Leagues. Jackie won the 1946 International League batting crown with a .349 average. The Homestead Grays were also a Negro League team. The Newark Bears were a farm team of the Yankees.

6. The 1946 All-Star Game was held at Fenway Park, and Ted Williams belted two homers, one on an "eephus" pitch by a Pittsburgh Pirate pitcher. What was the pitcher's name?

Answer: Rip Sewell

Sewell was one of the NL's best pitchers during WW II, with a record of 70 and 45 from 1942 to '45. The "eephus" pitch was a big, slow, high-arc blooper that plopped into a catcher's glove. Many hitters had a tough time with it because it was so strange, but Mr. Williams (no mere mortal he) had no trouble at all. Sewell's first name was Truett, and he was an Alabama boy.

His career with the Pirates ran from 1938 to 1949.

7. Two Cardinal pitchers had such great seasons in 1946, that their names appear in almost every ranking of the top five starting pitchers. In virtually every category, one or both of their names can be found. Who were they?

Answer: Howie Pollet and Harry Brecheen

Pollet was first in wins (21), third in win percentage (.677), second in complete games (22), tied for second in shutouts (4), first in innings pitched (266), first in ERA (2.10), and placed in several other categories. There's your 1946 Cy Young winner (if there had been one). Brecheen was on the list for wins, win percentage, shutouts (leader with 5), innings pitched, and strikeouts, and placed in 6 other categories. Brecheen, nicknamed "The Cat," also won three games in the World Series.

A pretty decent job!

8. On opening day, a Giant outfielder hit his 511th and final home run. The next day he sustained an injury which ended his days as a regular player. What was his name?

Answer: Mel Ott

"Master Melvin" was one of the most exciting players in baseball during the 1930's. He finished with a .304 BA and 1860 RBI, in his 22 years with the New York Giants, his only team. He was born in Louisiana and died there in 1958, sadly only 49 years old.

9. At that time, before 1969, there were no annual playoffs. The pennant-winning teams in each league faced off in the World Series, sometimes the day after the regular season ended. In some years, however, special playoffs were needed when two teams tied for first place. The NL used a best-of-three structure. In 1946, the Cardinals won the special playoff in two games. What team did they beat?

Answer: The Brooklyn Dodgers

The losing pitcher in the clinching game was Ralph Branca. Does that sound familiar? There were special NL playoffs in 1946, '51, '59, and '62. Oddly enough, the Dodgers played in all of them but won only in 1959. The Baltimore Orioles at that time were still in their previous incarnation as the Saint Louis Browns of the American League.

10. In the eighth inning of the seventh game of the World Series, a Cardinal base runner scored from first on a double, with the run that would win the Series from the Red Sox. Who was he?

Answer: Enos Slaughter

Slaughter was a hell-for-leather player whose hustle won the day for the Redbirds. Harry Brecheen won three games, but the best hitters in the series failed at the plate. Stan Musial went 6-for-27. Ted Williams went 5-for-25. And so we leave the magical season of 1946. Next time who knows what historic season we might visit. Be here to find out! Sources: baseball-reference.com; "Total Baseball: Fifth Edition"; "The Ballplayers," ed. Mike Schatzkin

Source: Author mickeygreeneyes

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Nightmare before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

It was the first full season after World War II ended, and all the real players were back in action. How much do you know about that year on the diamond?

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