Johnny Wockenfuss. Man, maybe the most underrated name in baseball history. It turns you from an erudite student of baseball into Daffy Duck instantly. Johnny Wockenfuss. And if you didn't know what it was like to watch Johnny Wockenfuss bat, here you go. It's ridiculous. Until the loosening of MLB's YouTube restrictions, there was no way to share this magic with the world. Thank you, MLB.
Because you are 12 or so, you are assuming Johnny Wockenfuss was a slap-hitting utility player. Well, he was a utility player, but he wasn't a slap hitter:
Year | G | PA | AB | HR | RBI | BB | SO | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
12 Yrs | 795 | 2373 | 2072 | 86 | 310 | 277 | 278 | .262 | .349 | .432 | .782 | 115 |
162 Game Avg. | 162 | 484 | 422 | 18 | 63 | 56 | 57 | .262 | .349 | .432 | .782 | 115 |
Imagine the litany of little league and high school coaches pleading with him to TURN AROUND, DANG IT. He refused. And so it was that Johnny Wockenfuss became a successful Major League Baseballer.
Johnny Wockenfuss, your batting stance is ridiculous.
Previous Internet Christmases
I: 1930 Spalding Base Ball Guide
II: Negro Leagues Database
III: Bob Gibson video
IV: John McGraw's Scientific Baseball
V: NBC Archive, featuring Bud Selig
VI: 1888's Base-ball: How to Become a Player
VII: Connie Mack's How To Play Base-Ball
VIII: Life Magazine's greatest baseball photos
IX: Branch Rickey's scouting report on Don Drysdale
X: 100,000+ crowd for White Autos game
XI: Thomas Edison baseball video
XII: Babe Ruth in Just Pals
XIII: Stories of the Base Ball Field
XIV: Babe Ruth swing analysis
XV: Bob Feller mechanical analysis
XVI: Vin Scully calling Hank Aaron's 715th home run
XVII: 1934 Tigers/Yankees Radio Broadcast
XIX: Bob Feller's fastball racing a motorcycle
XX: PCL Promo video from 1946
XXI: Oakland Oaks parade
XXII: Old-timey Red Sox picture collection
XXIII: A visual history of Seals Stadium
XXIV: Baseball Reliquary Online Museum
XXV: Proto-snark from 1915
XXVI: The 1924 Nationals and the Washington Post
XXVII: Before there was GameDay or the Internet ...
XXVIII: Glorious collection of old-timey radio broadcasts
XXIX: Free Bill Veeck eBook
XXX: Jackie Robinson photos from Ebony
XXXI: Walter Johnson's pitching motion
XXXII: Sad Expos things (and a Megadeth GIF)
XXXIII: Cy Young at an old-timer's game
XXXIV: Proto-defensive stats from 1910 and Johnny Evers!