Check out this fantastic vintage press photo (eBay auction) from the Houston Post featuring (from L-R) Billy Cox, Gil Hodges, Pee Wee Reese and Jackie Robinson being filmed by the media. It is dated to September 23, 1958 on the reverse, but that can't be right. The Dodgers were in Brooklyn that day to play the Cardinals, and I'm fairly certain the Dodgers spring home in Vero Beach is in the background. Additionally, Billy Cox last season as a Dodgers was in 1954, so clearly this is a photograph taken many years before finally being archived by the Houston Post.
Below are more links to check out:
- This Day in Dodgers History: In 1872 future Hall of fame Dodger Wee Willie Keeler is born in Brooklyn, New York. He would play five season for the Dodgers -- slashing a remarkable .352/.389/.425/.815. Overall, he batted over .300 16 times and was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1939. In 1987 the legendary entertainer and creator of The D-O-D-G-E-R-S Song, Danny Kaye, dies of heart failure. He was 74-years old. Go ahead and sing along to his famous ditty here. In 1988 the famous incident between Kirk Gibson, a newly signed free agent outfielder, and reliever Jesse Orosco occurs in Vero Beach. Orosco was a well known practical joker, but his barb against Gibson caused an uproar. He put eyeblack in Gibby's cap, so Kirk walked out of training camp while excoriating the club for not taking their job seriously. This incident would be heralded as an important moment for the soon-to-be championship club.
- Happy Birthday, John Ward, Wee Willie Keeler, Ed Phelps, Joe Koukalik, Bert Griffith, Scott Radinsky & Matt Treanor!
