MLB Lists: A goofy, spooky list of major league oddities

A couple more

Giants: Stay Inside on Nov. 21
Arguably the smallest slugger in MLB history, Mel Ott (511 HR at 5-foot-nine and 170 lbs.), died tragically young in an automobile accident on November 21, 1959 in New Orleans. He was only 49. His longtime fellow Giant, Carl Hubbell, died exactly 29 years later in a car accident in Scottsdale, AZ.

At the very least, it would seem Giants need to stay out of cars on Nov. 21.

Some other notables that passed away on that day includes arguably the least-known Black Sox conspirator Fred McMullin, who was a good-hitting backup first baseman who hit .294/.355/.388 in 1919 in the best year of his limited MLB career that only saw 304 games.

Also, one of the most tragic deaths of recent baseball history occurred on November 21st. Greg Halman was known for his exceptional blend of tools, though he struggled to make the major leagues as his batting average didn’t carry over from impressive AAA performances to the majors. He was also known for being a rare player from the Netherlands, and it was in the Netherlands in 2011 that Halman was killed by his brother during an episode of psychosis.

Two Guys Not Often in the Same Sentence
It is not widely known that Sandy Koufax and Tim Hudson share a strange record. Both finished 12 MLB seasons with the same record, 165-87. That was Hudson’s record at the end of 2010, but the right-hander continued to pitch five more years, finishing his career at 222-133.

Koufax is a Hall of Famer who retired after 12 seasons. His election to Cooperstown is widely understood to be a matter of his utter dominance in the NL and postseason in his last four campaigns, and a sterling 2.76 career ERA.

Hudson’s career ERA was 3.49, but considering he kept pace with Koufax for 12 years and his better consistency than the Dodger great, shouldn’t Hudson receive very serious consideration for the Hall of Fame?