[Scott Garner]

Here is a photo of Bob Feller throwing a 98.6 MPH pitch on August 20th, 1946 at Washington DC. The pitch was measured using a fairly sophisticated contraption for 1946. This promotional night was announced by Senators management to the public prior to the unsuspecting Feller and the visiting Indians arriving for their appointed series in Aug. 1946. Oops! Rumor has it that Feller refused, and only agreed to participate once the Senators agreed to cough up $500. If nothing else, Rapid Robert was no slouch when it came to sniffing out a business opportunity.

By today's standards this looks pretty primitive, but consider that prior to this, Feller's fastball was measured by him throwing a ball through a target at the same time a speeding guy on a motorcycle raced to the same target at 90 MPH.

Just for grins, take the time to watch Feller throw in this speed test on YouTube. The coolest part is one of his errant pitches knocks the crap out of the contraption and splinters one of the supporting beams in the front of it. It's worth a couple minutes of your time if you're interested... I know I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of one of his heaters!

I've also included the game ticket to the event. Enjoy!