Texas Rangers Quiz (1961-present; including Washington
Senators, 1961-71): 1) Who is the single-season RBI leader? 2)
Who are the only three to win 20-games? 3) Who is the only
batting champ in franchise history? 4) What two threw no-hitters
in the 1970s? 5) Who has the longest hitting streak at 28? [Last
name ends with a ‘K’] 6) Who is the career leader in wins? 7)
Who is the career leader in hits? Answers below.
6/25/1950
Saturday marks the 55th anniversary of the start of the Korean
War so I thought we’d take a brief moment to go into some of
the origins of the conflict.
At the close of World War II, Soviet forces occupied North
Korea while Americans held the South. In August 1945, the
Soviets surprised U.S. officials by accepting the 38th parallel as
they could have quickly overtaken the whole country.
To oversimplify the U.S. position in ‘45, from a foreign policy
standpoint we felt that with the detonation of the two atomic
bombs in Japan the U.S. now had an umbrella of security.
Threaten us in any big way and we”d annihilate you. After all,
we were the only ones with the bomb and no one could touch
us. Thus, it was easy to let our conventional forces slip and they
did so in a big way. The military establishment fell apart. So
we were left with a choice between incinerating people or doing
nothing in the event of a crisis.
By 1946, the Cold War was beginning to come into focus.
On March 5th, Sir Winston Churchill gave his “iron curtain”
speech at Fulton, Missouri, correctly warning of the dangers to
come.
The following year, March 12, 1947, President Harry Truman
announces that the U.S. will come to the aid of Greece and
Turkey who were both threatened by Communist rebels as well
as the Soviets. In opposing tyranny, Truman says the U.S.
will support “free peoples who are resisting attempted
subjugation by armed minorities or outside pressure.” This
becomes known as the Truman Doctrine.
In June 1947, Truman’s Secretary of State, George Marshall,
proposes a massive aid package for Europe, the Marshall Plan,
which is an attempt to rejuvenate their economies and thus help
reduce the opportunities for communists in Western Europe.
[This was formally adopted in the spring of 1948.] Meanwhile,
Joseph Stalin was consolidating his power in Eastern Europe.
U.S. ambassador George Kennan writes his famous article for
Foreign Affairs magazine (July 1947) in which he spells out a
policy for containing Soviet ambitions. Kennan uses the
pseudonym “Mr. X.”
As 1948 evolved, with the establishment of the Marshall Plan,
Stalin fought back in such a way that Europe”s non-communists
were obliged to accept that the time had come to take sides and
give in to the polarization of the continent. In April, the Soviets
launched their blockade of Berlin (which was to be in effect
until May of the following year).
Meanwhile, back on the Korean peninsula, in April 1948,
President Truman had approved a Joint Chiefs of Staff policy
statement:
“The U.S. should not become so irrevocably involved in the
Korean situation that an action taken by.any other power in
Korea could be considered a cassus belli for the U.S.”
In August 1948, Syngman Rhee became the president of the
new Republic of Korea (the South), while a few weeks later, the
Soviets created the Democratic People’s Republic under Kim Il
Sung (Kim Jong Il’s father). Efforts to put the two regions
together had previously failed and the U.N. recognized the
government in the South as the only lawful one.
[Both the U.S. and USSR withdrew their troops by 1950. The
American military establishment thought it served no purpose
for our forces to be there. At this time the administration
decided to consolidate the troops on islands off the Asian coast
rather than in vulnerable positions on the mainland.]
Events began to escalate further in 1949. Czechoslovakia was
formally brought into the Soviet sphere and the division of
Germany acquired a permanence. NATO was established in
April, thereby committing the U.S. to come to the aid of the
Western democracies if they were attacked.
Then in August 1949, the U.S. lost its nuclear monopoly…much
sooner than we had expected…as the Soviets successfully tested
their first atomic bomb. We suddenly realized that Cold Wars
could turn hot and it also forced us to look at our conventional
capabilities. Top Secret NSC Order #68 called for rebuilding
the conventional side in order to provide options other than
nuclear war. [But this wasn”t signed until after the Korean
attack.]
And another huge blow for the U.S. occurred in October 1949
when Mao Zedong, having driven the Chinese Nationalist forces
onto the island of Formosa (Taiwan), established the People’s
Republic of China. By early 1950, the U.S. was trying to figure
out how it “lost” China to the Communists. From 1945-49, the
U.S. had funneled some $2 billion in aid to the Nationalists.
The Republicans were able to successfully blame the Democrats.
At the same time the Republicans were questioning why we
needed a program of high taxes to sustain an aggressive foreign
policy and to rearm when the real danger was from within as
claims of Communist subversion in America were sweeping the
land.
Meanwhile, the U.S. had to address the fact that the Soviets had
successfully tested their first atomic weapon in 1949. We then
began to test the hydrogen bomb, an explosive that would be
measured in millions of tons of TNT rather than thousands.
By 1950, the Cold War had necessitated that the U.S. defend
forces of freedom in Asia as well as elsewhere. Japan turned into
a major forward base for U.S. troops and we stepped up our
military and economic assistance to South Korea and South
Vietnam.
But in a famous speech in January 1950, Secretary of State Dean
Acheson had excluded South Korea from the U.S. formal
“defense perimeter.” [Formosa was also left off a perimeter that
included the Philippines and Japan.] Certainly surprising since
South Korea was dangerously close to Japan.
Well, this diplomatic gaffe clearly did not go unnoticed in
either North Korea or the Soviet Union. North leader Kim Il
Sung began to pester Joseph Stalin for permission to invade the
South. According to recently declassified documents from the
Soviet archives, Kim asked Stalin 48 times. Stalin kept saying
nyet. Then, finally, he gave his approval in January 1950. He
believed the U.S. simply would not respond and our public
pronouncements backed him up.
According to reporter Warren Strobel, on June 21, 1950, Stalin
received a telegram from his ambassador in Pyongyang, warning
that the South had learned of the invasion plan. Stalin replied
immediately, giving his approval for an all-out attack. On June
25, the North launched it.
President Truman was in Missouri when he was told of the
invasion. At once he feared this was the opening of World War
III. As he flew back to Washington, he was actually thinking
of the pre-war plight of Manchuria and Ethiopia. Truman
recalled:
“I remembered how each time that the democracies failed to act
it encouraged the aggressors to keep going ahead. If the
Communists were permitted to force their way into the Republic
of Korea without opposition from the free world, no small nation
would have the courage to resist threats and aggression by
stronger Communist neighbors. If this was allowed to go
unchallenged, it would mean a Third World War, just as similar
incidents had brought on the Second World War.” Upon landing
in Washington, he told an aide, “By God, I”m going to let them
have it.”
In what is perhaps the U.N.’s finest hour, on June 26 a
Security Council resolution passed 9-0 demanding an immediate
North Korean withdrawal. [You have to remember that back
during this time the U.N. was even more wishy-washy than it is
today.] The Soviets had made a terrible blunder. About five
months earlier they had walked out of the Security Council over
the Council’s refusal to give a seat to Communist China rather
than for the Nationalists on Formosa. They thus didn”t have a
chance to veto the resolution.
Also on June 26, General MacArthur, head of forces in the
Pacific, sent a report on South Korean resistance. “Our estimate
is that a complete collapse is imminent.”
According to one source, Truman’s major concern during these
first few days was actually the Middle East. He told an officer in
the White House, “Korea is the Greece of the Far East. If we are
tough enough now, if we stand up to them like we did in Greece
three years ago, they won”t take any next steps. But if we just
stand by, they’ll move into Iran and they’ll take over the whole
Middle East.”
After the first U.N. resolution to withdraw was ignored, on June
27 the U.N. acted to “repel the armed attack and to restore
international peace and security in the area.” Truman issued a
statement:
“The attack upon Korea makes it plain beyond all doubt that
Communism has passed beyond the use of subversion to conquer
independent nations and will now use armed invasion and war.”
By June 28, most of the South Korean army had been destroyed
and the North was in Seoul. [This was their original battle plan,
to launch a blitzkrieg that would take the capital in 3 days and
the whole country in seven.] MacArthur estimated the South’s
fighting force was down to just 25,000 effective troops.
On June 30, MacArthur placed an urgent call to Truman
requesting that he be allowed to send two divisions to Korea
from Japan. Truman never hesitated and on July 1st the first
troops landed at Pusan. The struggle to retake the South had
begun.
The Korean War would go on until an armistice was signed on
July 27, 1953. 37,000 Americans died with thousands still listed
as missing.
I save tons of articles over the years and in going through a
folder came across something author (and Korean War Vet)
James Brady wrote for Parade Magazine in June 2000.
“Every soldier thinks his own war was unique. But Korea did
have its moments: proving a UN army could fight; ending
MacArthur’s career, with a farewell address to Congress (‘Old
soldiers never die. They just fade away…’); helping elect
Eisenhower, who pledged in ’52, ‘I will to go Korea’;
demonstrating that Red China’s huge army could be stopped;
insulating Japan from attack; and enabling the South Korean
economic miracle. But the war’s lack of a clear-cut winner and
loser may have set the stage for Vietnam.”
[Sources: “Twentieth Century” J.M. Roberts; “The Oxford
History of the 20th Century;” “America: A History” Shi /
Tindall; “In the Time of the Americans” David Fromkin;
“A History of the Twentieth Century” Martin Gilbert; Warren
Strobel / U.S. News & World Report]
Stuff
1950 Chart-toppers…#1 hits
The Tennessee Waltz – Patti Page
Goodnight Irene – Gordon Jenkins & The Weavers
“The Third Man” Theme – Anton Karas….also a #1 for Guy
Lombardo
If I Knew You Were Comin’ (I’d’ve Baked A Cake) – Eileen
Barton
Mona Lisa – Nat “King” Cole
Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy – Red Foley
I Can Dream, Can’t I? – Andrews Sisters
All My Love (Bolero) – Patti Page
The Thing – Phil Harris
Harbor Lights – Sammy Kaye
Music! Music! Music! – Teresa Brewer
I Wanna Be Loved – Andrews Sisters
Rag Mop – Ames Brothers
The Cry Of The Wild Goose – Frankie Laine
Hoop-Dee-Doo – Perry Como (The Fontaine Sisters)
Sentimental Me – Ames Brothers
Television: “Your Show of Shows,” “You Bet Your Life,” “The
Jack Benny Program,” and “George Burns & Gracie Allen” all
debut in 1950. “Hopalong Cassidy” is a huge children’s hit.
The U.S. population reaches 150 million.
[Source: “Joel Whitburn’s Pop Hits: 1940-54”]
–I didn’t have the time the other day to go into the U.S. Grand
Prix fiasco at Indianapolis this past weekend, but here is what
happened, as best as I can ascertain.
In practice on Friday, two Toyotas crashed using Michelin tires.
Michelin then checked all the tires being used by seven teams
and concluded there was no guarantee they were safe. The other
three teams, six cars, were using Bridgestone tires.
Michelin unsuccessfully asked Formula One’s governing body,
FIA, to allow it to change tires after qualifying (against the rules)
and FIA also refused Michelin’s request to add a curve (a
chicane) that would have slowed speeds at a crucial point on the
track.
So Michelin told its teams not to compete. [If there was a bad
accident and the tire problems were known, you can imagine the
awful publicity for Michelin.] And, after the warm-up lap was
complete, the 14 cars using Michelin tires pulled into the pits,
leaving just the other six other out on the track.
Well, you can imagine the crowd reaction at Indy as 120,000
fans rained boos down on one of racing’s all-time debacles.
Veteran British driver David Coulthard told the BBC, “I have no
words to describe how damaging this is for F1. I am sick in the
stomach to be part of this.”
Kevin Eason of the Times of London wrote the following:
“The only question the people of the United States asked
yesterday as Formula One slunk out of Indianapolis was: ‘Can
we help you pack?’ If Americans had any doubts about whether
they liked Formula One, they were erased by the debacle of
Sunday’s U.S. Grand Prix. Confusion was mixed with anger and
derision at a sport that dared to attract 120,000 spectators to such
a venue and stood them up.
“Bob Kravitz, a columnist on the Indianapolis Star newspaper,
spoke for the nation when he said: ‘Simply stated, this race is
done. Forget what any contract might say about future events.
The Formula One gang has lost all its credibility with the
American market and torn apart every relationship it needed to
succeed.’
“ ‘With Sunday’s farce, Formula One wrote itself a one-way
ticket out of Indianapolis and, in all likelihood, the entire
American market. It was bad enough Formula One came into
Indianapolis six years ago acting like they deserved to be treated
like royalty. Formula One is the rude house guest who never
brings anything to the party and wipes its muddy shoes on the
new Persian carpet. Good riddance.’”
Tony George, whose family has run the Indy Speedway for
generations, was so pissed off he refused to wave the checkered
flag at the end. He then withheld the trophies for the first three
finishers. Imagine, there were fans from as far away as Brazil,
Argentina, and all over Europe. Just a total disgrace.
Well, at least as a kid I can say I was a fan during the sport’s
heyday….Jimmy Clark, Graham Hill, John Surtees, Jack
Brabham, Chris Amon, Bruce McLaren, Denny Hulme, Jochen
Rindt, Swede Savage, Jackie Stewart, Pedro Rodriguez, Richie
Ginther, Dan Gurney, and all the rest.
–Drat! Barry Bonds is beginning to go through light workouts
and the latest is that he may be playing by late July. Then again,
we could always see an indictment on tax evasion charges first;
at least that’s the hope here.
–NBA owners and players have reached agreement on a new
contract whereby a player must be 19 by the end of the calendar
year in which he is drafted and one year removed from high
school. The NBA will also be expanding its development league
so that each of 15 teams will be affiliated with two NBA
franchises. But only players in their first two seasons may be
sent down to the minors and there are some concerns this will
hurt the recruitment of foreign stars who won’t want to come
over if there is a chance they’d be relegated to playing minor
league ball for a spell.
[Not for nothing, but if my main man Tim Duncan doesn’t hit his
free throws on Thursday, the Spurs lose.]
–For the second time this season, the New York Yankees scored
13 runs in a single inning. Geezuz, I hate these guys.
–Dan D., out Hawaii way, observes that there are always two
women and one man as contestants on “Wheel of Fortune.” Now
I can’t say I’ve watched this program in quite a while, but this is
certainly worth an intensive investigation. [Dan has been on
shark attack alert for me, but alas there hasn’t been any news on
this front.]
Top 3 songs for the week of 6/20/70: #1 “The Long And
Winding Road” (The Beatles) #2 “The Love You Save” (The
Jackson 5) #3 “Which Way You Goin’ Billy?” (The Poppy
Family)
Texas Rangers Quiz Answers: 1) Single-season RBI: Juan
Gonzalez, 157 (1998). 2) 20-game winners: Fergie Jenkins, 25-
12 (1974); Kevin Brown, 21-11 (1992); Rick Helling, 20-7
(1998). 3) Only batting champ: Julio Franco, 1991 (.341). 4)
No-hitters in 70s: Jim Bibby, 1973, and Bert Blyleven, 1973. 5)
Longest hitting streak, 28: Gabe Kapler, 2000. 6) Career, wins:
Charlie Hough, 139. 7) Career, hits: Ivan Rodriguez, 1723.
Ranger Tidbit:
Talk about pitiful, the first season in Washington, 1961, the
Senators drew 597,000. The first season in Texas, 1972, they
drew just 662,000. Heck, the Washington Nationals practically
drew 500,000 their last home stand.
*My favorite Roger Miller line…from “Dang Me.”
“Well I was sittin’ around with the rest of the guys…six rounds
bought and I bought five…”
Next Bar Chat, Tuesday.
