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January in Baseball History Trivia Quiz

The first in a series of 12 quizzes, designed to be educational about some historical months in baseball history. Which is your month to score the highest? I hope you find something new in it. :-)

A multiple-choice quiz by Nightmare. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
Nightmare

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
222,004

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Easy

Avg Score
8 / 10

Plays
805

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

Question 1 of 10

1. January 3, 1920: This was the date of one of the most famous trades, selling, or free agent dealings in baseball history. What happened on this date? Hint

Ty Cobb was traded to the Philadelphia Quakers

Babe Ruth was sold to the Yankees

Cy Young signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Angels

Ted Williams was involved in a 10-player trade

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Question 2 of 10

2. January 26, 1950: This player was selected to be inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame. He was the second player in history to reach 500 career home runs, and was the second player in history to hit more than 50 home runs in a season. Who was he? Hint

Reggie Jackson

Ron Santo

Jimmie Foxx

Hank Aaron

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Question 3 of 10

3. January 8, 1927: This MVP and Triple Crown batter signed with the Philadelphia Athletics after 22 loyal season with the Detroit Tigers because the Tigers wouldn't pay him much any longer. Who was this Hall of Fame inductee? Hint

Elston Howard

Ty Cobb

Don Larsen

Jack Sanford

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Question 4 of 10

4. January 31st was a historical date in baseball history. There have been many Hall of Famers born on this date, including the great Nolan Ryan, Ernie Banks, and in 1919 for this player who broke the Major League color-barrier in 1947. Who was the player who set the stage for black players in Major League baseball? Hint

Bobby Bonds

Bob Gibson

Jackie Robinson

Larry Doby

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Question 5 of 10

5. January 25, 1978: This pitcher was traded from the Texas Rangers to the San Diego Padres. With this result, this pitcher was the first to win a Cy Young award in both the American and National League. Who was this Hall of Fame pitcher who was noted for throwing 'altered' balls? Hint

Dizzy Trout

Schoolboy Rowe

Gaylord Perry

Robin Roberts

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Question 6 of 10

6. January 18, 1938: This future 12-season St. Louis Cardinal was born. In 1970, he filed suit against organized baseball. Though defeated by the U.S. Supreme Court, this opened the door for free agency. Who was this player? Hint

Frank Robinson

Curt Flood

Dave McNally

Nate Colbert

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Question 7 of 10

7. January 9, 1903: Frank Farrell and Bill Devery bought the American League Baltimore Orioles and took them to another city. Which city did they move the team to? Hint

St. Louis

Atlanta

San Francisco

New York

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Question 8 of 10

8. January 24, 1969: This pitcher who went into the record books by throwing the pitch that resulted in Babe Ruth's 60th home run in 1927, died in Burlington, North Carolina. Which Washington Senator was this? Hint

Spud Chandler

Bob Feller

Allie Reynolds

Tom Zachary

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Question 9 of 10

9. January 16, 1910: This future Hall of Fame pitcher was born. He made his name famous with the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1930s. He was the last pitcher to win 30 games in a season before Denny McLain in 1968 topped his mark. This pitcher had a 'swirling' nickname. Who was he? Hint

Jay Hanna Dean

Juan Marichal

Joey Jay

Don Larsen

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Question 10 of 10

10. January 10, 1938: This future San Francisco Giant was born. A giant he was as he hit over 500 home runs. 19 of his 22 seasons were with the his San Francisco team. This first baseman had a variety of nicknames including 'Stretch'. Who was this slugger who wore the number 44, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986? Hint

Wally Moon

Hoyt Wilhelm

Red Schoendienst

Willie McCovey

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. January 3, 1920: This was the date of one of the most famous trades, selling, or free agent dealings in baseball history. What happened on this date?

Answer: Babe Ruth was sold to the Yankees

Ruth was sold by Howard Frazee and the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees. Ruth hit 29 home runs in the 1919 season to set a record for season home runs. In 1920 with the Yankees, he shattered that record by hitting 54. Ruth would go on to hit over 50 home runs three more times in his career before retiring in 1935.

Answer: Jimmie Foxx

Although it was before the other's time, they never hit 50 home runs in a season. Foxx, nicknamed 'Double X', played from 1925-1945, mostly with the Philadelphia Athletics and the Boston Red Sox. His 58 home runs in 1932 made him the second player to reach the 50-plateau behind Babe Ruth. He retired with 534 home runs in 1945.

Answer: Ty Cobb

The others listed were not even born by 1927. Cobb won the Triple Crown in 1909, then the AL MVP in 1911. Ty, nicknamed the 'Georgia Peach', was one of five players inducted into the first baseball Hall of Fame in 1936. He led the league 11 times in batting throughout his career, including his .420 average in 1911.

Answer: Jackie Robinson

Robinson was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, and won the NL Rookie of the Year award. He went on to win the National League MVP in 1949. Jackie went to an amazing six World Series with the Dodgers in only 10 seasons. Larry Doby was the first black player to play in the American League for the Cleveland Indians in 1947 also.

Answer: Gaylord Perry

The others listed retired long before the Rangers or Padres existed. Gaylord won his first Cy Young award in 1972 with the Cleveland Indians. He packed his Cleveland bags and moved to Texas mid-season 1975. In his first season with the Padres in 1978, he showed the baseball world that he still had it (or wanted to hide it) by being the first to win the Cy Young in both leagues.

He was inducted into the hall in 1991 with a 314-265 career record.

Answer: Curt Flood

The others listed never played for the Cardinals. Flood played for 12 of his 15 seasons with the St. Louis from 1958-1969. Feeling black-balled for his filings, he went without a team in 1970. In 1971, he came back with the Washington Senators for only 13 games, and was not wanted by the owners of baseball.

It was this man who opened the door for rule changes in contracts with teams, later highlighted by Jim 'Catfish' Hunter of the Oakland Athletics.

7. January 9, 1903: Frank Farrell and Bill Devery bought the American League Baltimore Orioles and took them to another city. Which city did they move the team to?

Answer: New York

The 1901-1902 Baltimore Orioles were purchased and moved to New York to become the New York Highlanders. In 1913, the name was changed to who else, the New York Yankees. With these two investors, baseball history unknowingly would be changed forever.

Answer: Tom Zachary

The others listed never pitched for the Senators, and had not started their Major League career for at least 10 seasons from 1927. Zachary, who was traded by the St. Louis Browns mid-season 1927, gave up this historical pitch. Tom would go on to pitch for four teams before retiring in 1936.

Answer: Jay Hanna Dean

The others never played for the Cardinals, and did not start their careers yet in the 1930s. Jay Hanna 'Dizzy' Dean played for the Cardinals from 1930-1937. He went 30-7 in 1934 to win the National League MVP. His brother, Paul 'Daffy' Dean also pitched on the Cardinals with him. Dizzy was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1953.

Answer: Willie McCovey

The others never played for the San Francisco Giants, and never came close to hitting 500 home runs. Willie played from 1959-1980. Starting his career off right, he won the National League Rookie of the Year. In 1969, Willie won the NL MVP award over Tom Seaver and Hank Aaron. 'Big Mac' retired with 521 home runs.

Source: Author Nightmare

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