From Cobb to "Catfish"

From Cobb to "Catfish"
edited by John Kuenster
Rand McNally & Co., 1975

The recent explosion in the popularity of the internet has made Baseball Digest expendable. It's now possible to sit at a computer every morning and read newspaper sports columns from across the country.

But that was not always the case. For over 50 years, starting in 1941, if a baseball fan wanted to get a local perspective on baseball news, their best bet was Baseball Digest. The magazine gathered together on a monthly basis the best in writing from across the country on the great American pastime.

In 1975, then-editor John Kuenster picked out what he thought were the 128 best stories to ever grace the pages of Baseball Digest and had them published together in From Cobb to "Catfish." The result is a treasure trove for baseball fans.

Such famous names as Shirley Povich, Heywood Broun, John P. Carmichael, James T. Farrell, Red Barber, Frank Robinson, Frank Graham, Reggie Jackson, Bill Veeck, Maury Allen, and Nellie Fox are among the many that grace the pages of From Cobb to "Catfish" with their writing and recollections.

The book's subject matter ranges, as the title suggests, from the early days of baseball up to the time of the book's printing. One page might contain a story on Reggie Jackson's perplexing personality while the next is a masterpiece by Shirley Povich titled "Mystery of Sam Rice's Famous Catch Resolved."

Many of the pieces contained in From Cobb to "Catfish" are remembrances of moments past by the actual participants. Hall of Famer Ed Walsh relates how he struck out Nap Lajoie with the bases loaded in a late September game to help his White Sox win the 1908 pennant. Walsh says that he pitched him a "heavy spitball" (one that was extra-loaded with tobacco juice) for the first two strikes and then fooled him with a rising fastball to catch Lajoie looking for strike three.

Hall of Fame first baseman George Sisler tells how he was called upon as a rookie to pitch a game in 1915. His opponent was none other than "The Big Train," Walter Johnson. The understandably nervous Sisler ended up pitching a complete game 2-1 win for his Browns. He says:

For a minute I thought maybe I'd go over and shake his hand and tell him that I was sorry I beat him, but I guess that was just the silly idea of a kid who had just come face to face with his idol and beaten him.

Because many of the stories in From Cobb to "Catfish" were originally published as local newspaper stories, they often give a first-hand perspective on baseball events that have since become immortal. The choking of the Cubs in 1969 against the Amazin' Mets, the demolition of Ebbets Field, Lou Brock's breaking of Maury Wills' single season stolen base record, Dusty Rhodes' 1954 World Series heroics, Willie Mays' last game--these are just some of the moments immortalized in the book.

All in all, From Cobb to "Catfish" is a very enjoyable read. Because of the brevity of most of the stories contained in it, it is one of those books that you can pick up and open up to any point in the book and find something interesting to read for 10 or 15 minutes team. It also contains many historical photographs that I've never seen published anywhere else. I'd recommend it to both the casual and dedicated baseball fan.

From Cobb to "Catfish" may be available for purchase on the web at one of these sites.

--JingleBob, March 14, 1999