LansdowneSt's Facegen Checklist

[LansdowneSt]

The lifeless body had lain on the floor of a St. Paul, Minnesota, speakeasy for about four hours before authorities received an anonymous telephone call near midnight on May 9, 1924. On-scene inspection revealed some ten stab wounds to the victim’s upper torso, including four to the heart. Predictably, the deceased was no stranger to investigators. He was Baseball Wilson, a middle-aged ex-con with “a sensational police record,” according to the St. Paul Dispatch. Investigative measures were subsequently undertaken but in Prohibition Era St. Paul, identification of the slayer of a local low life was something less than a law enforcement priority, and the crime went unsolved.

Had the homicide occurred some 30 years earlier, it might have received more vigorous attention. Then, the victim was better known as Big Bill Wilson, the scrappy team captain of the Minneapolis Millers, the Twin Cities’ entry in the Western League. A marginal talent but at times a useful player nonetheless, Wilson was then between the two major league stops (Pittsburgh in 1890, Louisville, 1897-1898) that would highlight his 15-year career in professional baseball. Thereafter, he descended into a life of crime, spending time in federal penitentiaries before his untimely demise. By the time of his death, Wilson was forgotten and friendless. As uncharitably noted in the local press, “no tears were shed” for Baseball Wilson, for “if he had a friend among the handful of persons who attended his funeral, that friend restrained his or her emotion with admirable stoicism.” In its account of the sparsely attended and dry-eyed requiem, the St. Paul Dispatch supplied a succinct epitaph for the deceased: “Baseball Wilson lived hard and died hard.” - SABR

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

A strong keystone combination is considered essential for a good team. Before there was Whitaker and Trammell, before The Wizard and Tommy Herr, before Tinker and Evers (and Chance), there was Nicholson and Scheibeck. Who, you ask? In 1890, Parson Nicholson and Frank Scheibeck became just the third major league combo to start every game for their club at second base and shortstop, respectively. - SABR

He received the nickname "Parson" because he refused to play baseball on Sundays. All told, he played three major-league seasons, the vast majority being for the aforementioned 1890 Toledo Maumees. Who can forget them, really?

Redid the facegen.

[luckymann]

Just FYI LSt 48 eligible players from this thread's beginning up to and including Andy Rincon have been added to the Footnote League for the 1908/09 Draft and will be making their appearance over the next few seasons. I'll keep doing this along the way.

[OleDylano23]

Hope this is okay to post here, but is there a specific place around here I can request a few face gens?

[luckymann]

Originally Posted by OleDylano23

Hope this is okay to post here, but is there a specific place around here I can request a few face gens?

Here

[OleDylano23]

Originally Posted by luckymann

Here

Thanks man.

[LansdowneSt]

Phil "Buster" Tomney played shortstop for three years with the Louisville Colonels. He was a regular in 1889 and 1890. Tomney's team went 27-111 in 1889. More than half of the starting position players turned over, but Tomney was one who stayed when the 1890 team went 88-44 to win the American Association pennant.

He died young at age 28 in March 1892 from a lung infection. His obituary in Sporting Life (March 26, 1892) stated as follows:

"Phil Tomney was a well-known and popular shortstop of excellent habits and gentle manly deportment. He was a fine fielder and good base-runner . . . He was a native of Reading Pa., where he commenced his ball playing career. . . His best work was done for the Louisville Club, for which he was secured by Manager Davidson in the summer of 1888. Tomney finished out that season and re-signed for the following season. In 1890, when Manager Chapman was secured to manage the Louisville Club, he retained Tomney, and his brilliant work in the field during that season helped the Cyclones to roll up the many victories that gave them the first place. Last year Tomney signed with the Sioux Citys, the winners of the Western Association pennant. He played with the team until the middle of last summer, when he was compelled to retire on account of the dread disease which finally caused his death."

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

The coach knew the boy had a chance. His delivery was smooth and easy. His breaking ball had good late movement to it. And though he was small and skinny, he, like so many other Dominican youngsters, threw hard enough, in the mid-80s. The coach had turned the boy into a pitcher only a few weeks earlier, but the boy was a natural. It was 1998 and a scout from the Astros was holding tryouts in Santo Domingo, 40 miles away from the coach's baseball academy in Bonao. There the boy could show he deserved a ticket to the majors. But there was a troubling detail. The boy was 19. Scouts don't give 19-year-olds from the Dominican Republic a second look, certainly not ones still as raw at that age as the boy was. "So, you see, we have a problem," the boy heard the coach tell him. "You need to find a new name. You need a new identity."

The boy showed up at the tryout and threw a dozen pitches for the scout, a tall man named Ricardo Aponte. He wasn't the best one there—"not even close," remembers Aponte. "But his arm was loose and free. It wasn't worn down like so many others. And he was lefthanded. That's what made him rare." Aponte introduced himself and asked the boy his name and his age. "My name is Eny Cabreja," the boy said. "I'm 17."

The boy lived with those lies for four years. In 2002, three years after he signed with Houston, the pitcher that the Astros thought was 21-year-old Eny Cabreja said that wasn't so. He was Wandy Eriberto Rodriguez from the small farming town of Santiago Rodríguez. He told them that he wasn't 21. He was two years older. "I was scared I was going to be sent home," says Rodriguez. "When they said I could stay, I felt free. I didn't have to cheat anymore." - Sports Illustrated

All told, Wandy played 11 years, appeared in 275 games, going 97-98 with a 4.10 ERA (100 ERA+)

Redid the facegen. This facegen has the opposite problem that is being discussed with Bonds and Frank Thomas on the other thread. He appears in-game at 160lbs. bRef and Fangraphs both have him at 195 lbs. I'll likely appeal this one too. The facegen on the left is the one in the pack at 160 lbs, the next one, cropped, is mine at 160lbs and last is mine at 195lbs.

[LansdowneSt]

The Cardinals announced this morning (2 Feb 2022) that former MLB outfielder and first baseman David Green has passed away. He was 61 years old.

One of the first Nicaraguan-born players to crack the big leagues, Green eventually played 489 games at baseball’s highest level between 1981 and 1987, primarily for the Cards. Originally signed by the Brewers, he was traded to St. Louis after the 1980 season. After a cup of coffee as a 20-year-old in 1981, Green got into 76 games in 1982, hitting .283/.315/.373. In nine postseason games that year, he hit .273/.333/.545, as the Cardinals eventually defeated Green’s former team, the Brewers, in the 1982 World Series.

Green would stay with the Cards through the next two seasons, before being dealt to the Giants prior to the 1985 campaign. After one year in San Fran, he was dealt back to Milwaukee but was released before appearing in a game with them. He then spent some time in Japan, playing with the Kintetsu Buffaloes of [league redacted] before rejoining the Cardinals for part of the 1987 campaign. That was his last taste of the majors, though he did later spent some time in the minors with the Braves and Rangers.

All told, Green hit a combined .268/.308/.394 across his 489 career big league games, with 31 home runs, 168 runs scored, 180 runs batted in and 68 stolen bases. - MLB Trade Rumors

I had redone this facegen a few days ago but had not bothered to post it.

[LansdowneSt]

I went ahead and started a thread to appeal to the OOTP Database team to consider in-game weights that distort facegens unreasonably or are otherwise inaccurate (to the point of complicating facegen creation). The thread is here:

https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=334616

It seemed an easier approach for the OOTP to have all these requests and callouts in one place versus the Historical Database Issue threads (historic database issue though it is).

[LansdowneSt]

Deron Johnson, labeled the “next Mickey Mantle,” spent 16 seasons as a major-league slugger. His finest year was not as a Bronx Bomber but as a Cincinnati Red. A dual football and baseball interscholastic sports star, the San Diego native excelled on the gridiron and the ballfield alike. Pursued by several colleges, Johnson was offered numerous football scholarships, including one from Notre Dame, but Johnson turned down the Fighting Irish and the other schools. Upon graduation from high school in 1956, having been also sought by the Yankees, Braves, Red Sox, Indians, and Pirates, Johnson signed with the New York Yankees for $1,000 a month. Two trades later, DJ finally got an opportunity to play regularly for the Cincinnati Reds in 1964. A year later, he had his best season, clubbing 32 HR, knocking in a league-leading 130 and finishing fourth in the NL MVP race. After four years with the Reds, he spent one with the Braves and then four more very productive years with the Phillies. In 1973, he was traded to the A's and became one of the first primary designated hitters. All told, he accumulated 1,447 hits, 245 HRs, batting .244 with a 102 OPS+.

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

Jim Brower was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 6th round of the 1994 draft. He spent nearly four years in the Rangers system before being released early in 1998. He quickly signed with the Cleveland Indians, spending the 1998 season in AA, then splitting the next two seasons between the Indians and their AAA club. From there, he bounced around to several MLB clubs. Sometimes he got a chance, sometimes he didn't, but he never gave up, assembling an overall record of 33-32, with an ERA of 4.67 (96 ERA+) over nine seasons.

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

The brother of Hugh Hill, Still Bill Hill was a pitcher on the Louisville Colonels in 1897 when Honus Wagner broke in and was also a member of the worst major league team of all time, the Cleveland Spiders of 1899. He played four seasons going 36-69 with a 4.16 ERA (99 ERA+). After baseball he worked for the Cincinnati, OH police department. He died of a skull fracture after being hit by a car. - bRef Bullpen Wiki

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

In what was one of the best trade deadline deals ever made by the Mets, the team managed to acquire the reigning American League Cy Young winner right at the 1989 deadline. The man, Frank Viola, was a native New Yorker ready to bring his talents to the National League for the first time. To acquire Viola, it cost quite a bit. Rick Aguilera, Tim Drummond, Kevin Tapani, and David West were all sent directly to the Twins.

Pitcher David West went on to have a ten-year career going 31-38 with a 4.66 ERA (89 ERA+), getting a ring with the Twins in 1991.

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

Through 2010, Kevin Slowey pitched four years for the Minnesota Twins going 39-21 as a starter. In 2011, he went 0-8 with a 6.67 ERA and was pulled from the starting rotation. Slowey was not happy with the decision, burned his bridges with the Twins and was shipped off to the Rockies. From NBC Sports at the time of the trade:

"For an outsider like me, it’s hard to see just what it is about Kevin Slowey that causes all of the bulging neck veins at the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. But it seems like the entire Twins press box is rejoicing his departure in this morning’s trade with the Rockies. Here’s Jim Souhan’s take: 'Slowey, we hardly knew ye. Oh, wait, yes, we did. That’s why Twins traded the jerk for a boiled hot dog and a used spit cup.' Souhan later followed the comment with a note about how last year Slowey told Joe Mauer he “didn’t have to be accountable, didn’t have to talk about injuries.” Which is what a lot of this comes down to: people don’t like people who make their jobs more difficult.

John Shipley of the St. Paul Pioneer Press also had some unflattering twitter comments, since redacted. The only real surprise about today’s trade is that it took so long to happen. Slowey had been in the doghouse for at least a year, and while he might have had a little trade value last winter, the Twins pretty much gave him away now. Colorado isn’t the right place for Slowey to turn his career around, given that he’s a pretty extreme flyball pitcher, but he should benefit from the new start in more ways than one."

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

Three random short stories about Zack Greinke, likely future HOF'er...

Two from teammate, Tim Federowicz:

"So, we’re in a team meeting, and it was a real serious meeting getting ready for the playoffs. Like, “Let’s get ready, everyone get locked in, we’ve got about a week left.” And then at the end, Don (Mattingly) was like, “All right, anybody got anything?” Zack raised his hand, and we’re ready to listen to him. And he goes, “Yeah, after you guys are done using the bathroom, just make sure you wash your hands."

"I was struggling hitting at the time. I was like, “Man, I really don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m such an easy out.” And his response was like, “Yeah, you are. If I was facing you, I would just throw you all sliders and you’d have no chance.” "

Last one from catcher AJ Ellis during a mound visit on how to approach the next batter:

"He said, “Well, A.J., it’s pretty simple. I stand on the mound; you go 60 feet away. You squat down and I throw you the baseball. It’s pretty easy.” He kept that smirk, he didn’t break his face at all, and I just walked away, head down, kicking rocks."

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

Jim Donnelly has long been confused with James Henry Donnelly, who played briefly for the Kansas City Cowboys of the Union Association in 1884. The two are in fact discrete players. This Jim Donnelly also began his career in 1884, but played until 1898, while the other James Donnelly returned to his hometown of Boston after his brief stint in the Union Association.

The OOTP database mixes the two together and a note regarding this has been posted in the Historic Database thread.

This Jim is also my third baseman in my new Random Debut game. Redid the facegen as the old one was one of those placeholder faces. Love his Eraserhead hair. Ahead of his time

[LansdowneSt]

The school system in Jackson, Michigan, discontinued the baseball program about the time Benny Frey reached high school. Undaunted, Benny learned to pitch on the sandlots and from his brothers. He played summer ball for a variety of teams in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio before being signed by the Toledo Mud Hens of the Double-A American Association in 1923 at the age of 17.

Second only to baseball was his love of fishing. At having been sold to another minor league team, Frey had initially refused to report, saying he would hunt and fish in Michigan instead. The local paper poked fun at that, commenting that to fish in Michigan in February required an axe. Frey got the message and was in training camp the next week. Eventually, he found his way to the Reds where he played the vast majority of his eight-year career going 57-82 with a 4.50 ERA (90 ERA+).

Avid fisherman that he was, he spent his off-days in Spring Training fishing. In 1937 he came back with a 12-pound, 27½-inch bass. He was being driven by Al Hollingsworth to find a taxidermist to mount the prize when they were struck. Frey did not claim any serious injuries, but the accident may have added to his physical woe. Hollingsworth injured his right (nonthrowing) arm. On April 16, Dressen announced that Frey was being optioned to Nashville. Frey contemplated the demotion and decided that he would head back to Michigan. About a week later he announced that he was retiring and asked to be placed on the voluntarily retired list. He told reporters that he intended to join one of his brothers in the plumbing trade. He also harbored the fear that his arm was gone and that he would never play again.

On November 1, Frey rigged his car to pipe exhaust into the interior. He was in the garage at his sister’s farm near Jackson, Michigan, where he died from self-inflicted carbon monoxide poisoning. Relatives confirmed that “his arm was never going to be good enough again … and that he spent several months despondent since his release.” Thirty-one-year-old Frey was survived by his mother and 10 siblings [and left behind a life of unrealized possibilities - Ed.]. - SABR

Redid the facegen. He's pitching great relief for my Random Debut team...

[LansdowneSt]

Most baseball fans are aware of “The Shot Heard ’Round the World,” Bobby Thomson’s dramatic ninth-inning home run off Ralph Branca that won the 1951 pennant for the New York Giants. Fewer may be cognizant of Whitey Lockman’s role in setting the stage for that climatic event. Had Lockman not made a crucial hit before Thomson came to the plate, the Staten Island Scot would not have faced Branca, nor would a homer have been sufficient to win the game for the Giants. - SABR

All told, over 15 seasons, Lockman accumulated 1,658 hits, belted 114 HRs and drove in 563 runs with a .279/.342/.391 slash line (95 OPS+).

Redid the facegen.

[LansdowneSt]

When Rocco Baldelli emerged as a young star in the minor-league system of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, he drew comparisons to Joe DiMaggio. Though that association was almost certainly setting him up for failure, the speedy outfielder had been more earnestly compared to a young Andre Dawson or Dale Murphy. Within a few years, however, Baldelli’s story underscored the fickle nature of baseball and illustrated the ups and downs faced by elite athletes on the cusp of stardom.

The young centerfielder's road to stardom for the young Tampa Bay franchise was derailed by injuries. As the years went by, Baldelli was experiencing frequent muscle cramping and severe fatigue that would set in after even light exercise. Before the 2008 season, he announced that his baseball career was indefinitely on hold. Though he was not retiring, he said that the fatigue rendered him unable to perform the basic baseball functions like running, throwing, and hitting. Baldelli drew an analogy between his condition and a cell phone that would not hold a charge. By the time he joined the Red Sox in 2009, Baldelli’s diagnosis had been revised to a channelopathy, a protein abnormality that interferes with muscular function. His final season was 2010 and was a return to the start, Tampa Bay, and he played ten games in September. In his first major-league at-bat of the 2010 season, Baldelli hit a pinch-hit home run. He is currently the manager of the Minnesota Twins.

Redid the facegen, mostly to get rid of the appearance of pink lipstick.