Quote:
Originally Posted by JLange
...and to show that people actually do buy commons, here are my latest two pickups.
-E97 Joe Birmingham
-W503 Guy Morton
Thanks Brian!
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Commons are not "common" people. Joe Birmingham was the reason Napoleon Lajoie was dealt away from Cleveland to Philadelphia.
Joe Birmingham was named the Player/Manager of the Cleveland Naps in 1912 at the age of 28 and stayed at the helm for three more seasons.
His tenure was marked with a bit of controversy in 1913 which would be his best finish as manager (86-66, 3rd place). Nap Lajoie, who was Birmingham's former manager, struggled through a hitting slump in mid-season and Birmingham decided to bench the future Hall of Famer at one point. Lajoie who had no love for Birmingham was outraged and cursed out the young manager to his face and in the press.
The feud only ended when Lajoie was sold back to Philadelphia after the 1914 season.
His next season would be a disaster, as the newly named Indians lost 102 games, and in 1915, Birmingham was fired after only 28 games.
Guy Morton called "Moose" died of a heart attack at age 41.