You Name the Decade III Quiz | Baseball

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which decade saw 3'7" Eddie Gaedel pinch hit in his only at-bat, resulting in Major League baseball changing rules?

Answer: 1950s

1951 saw Browns' owner Bill Veeck pull another of his publicity stunts. Gaedel walked on four pitches. He was 26 when he appeared. 10 years later he died in his hometown of Chicago as the result of a mugging.

2. Eight times in which decade, did the great Rogers Hornsby have over 200 hits in a season, lead the league seven times in batting, win two MVP awards, and win two Triple Crowns?

Answer: 1920s

In 1920, Hornsby was already a six-year veteran with the Cardinals. In that decade, Rogers also hit over .350 nine times, including hitting over .400 twice. Strangely enough, Hornsby played for four different teams from 1926-1929, and won his second MVP as a Cub in 1929. He retired after 23 seasons in 1937, and was inducted into the hall in 1942.

3. Manager Sparky Anderson made four trips to the World Series in which decade?

Answer: 1970s

The 1970s saw the Cincinnati Reds go to four World Series under the helm of Anderson. His only other World Series trip in his career was as a Tiger in 1984, in which he won the Manager of the Year award for his efforts.

4. In which decade did the Philadelphia Phillies change their name to the Blue Jays for two seasons, then change it back to the Phillies?

Answer: 1940s

For 10 consecutive seasons, the Phillies could finish no better than seventh place in the National League. In six of those seasons they finished eight. A bigger problem was that there were only eight teams in the National League at the time. The franchise thought that a name change would do the trick in 1943, but they finished seventh again. Still the Blue Jays in 1944, the team finished a dismal last place again.

The franchise went back to the Phillies name in 1945 and finished last again. They took a fifth place finish in 1945, then won the National League in 1950.

5. Which decade saw the Hall of Fame open its doors to Nolan Ryan, George Brett, Orlando Cepeda, and umpire Nestor Chylak?

Answer: 1990s

Along with Robin Yount, Joe Williams, and Frank Selee, they were all inducted in 1999. Nolan was voted in on 99% of the ballots, a feat seen for only the second time in baseball history. Tom Seaver pulled 99% in 1992.

6. The color barrier in Major League baseball was broken in a decade that saw both the National and American League sign their first black players. Which decade saw both these stars break the barrier?

Answer: 1940s

The National League Dodgers saw Jackie Robinson as a rookie in 1947. He won the NL Rookie of the Year award. The Cleveland Indians saw infielder Larry Doby be the first black AL player. Robinson was 28 years old as a rookie while Doby was 23. Both went on to play for at least 10 years in the big leagues, and both were Hall of Fame inductees.

7. Which decade saw 59-year old Satchel Paige on a Major League mound for the last time?

Answer: 1960s

Paige, after winning an undocumented 2500 games in the Negro Leagues during his career, came to the Cleveland Indians in 1948. He retired in 1953 with the St. Louis Browns. He came back at the age of 59 for one more performance, starting a game in 1965 for the Kansas City Athletics. He went three innings and allowed only one hit in his no-decision final game.

8. Which decade saw both the New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers move to the west coast?

Answer: 1950s

Both the Giants and Dodgers were crosstown rivals in New York for many decades. After the 1957 season when both teams moved to the west, the rivalry continued. The Dodgers were first to strike a World Series crown in 1959. The Giants didn't win a World Series for the rest of the century.

9. The World Series began with the 1903 series pitting the Boston Pilgrims against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pilgrims won the series. In which decade did baseball see a team lose three consecutive World Series for the first time?

Answer: 1900s

After only three World Series after the inaugural in 1903, the Detroit Tigers began working on this record. From 1907-1909, the Tigers lost to the Cubs and Pirates. It would not be until 1935 before they finally won it all.

10. The Seattle Pilots existed in only one season of Major League baseball. Which decade did they appear in?

Answer: 1960s

In their only year of existence in 1969, the Pilots finished in last place of the AL West with a 64-98 record. The team then packed up and moved to Milwaukee to become the Brewers. The franchise saw their first World Series in 1982, but lost to the Cardinals four games to three.

Source: Author Nightmare

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You Name the Decade III Trivia Quiz

The third in a series of five about guessing the decade of when some events happened throughout baseball. I hope that you have fun with it. :-)

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