Val Haltren’s Off-Season
Despite having hit .331, .340, and .351 in the three seasons since the New York Giants bought him, The New York Telegraph said one of his teammates did not approve of George Van Haltern returning home to California to play winter ball:
“One of the members of the New York team said the other day if Van Haltren would stay one winter where the weather was cold enough to brace him up , it would do him more good than a spring trip to get him is condition.”
National League President Nick Young told the paper, no player should play winter ball:
“Ball players should have the benefit of six months’ rest in the year. The strain of the long championship games is a severe tax, though few players realize it. They ought to save enough money to last through the winter, and take things easy.”
Van Haltren hit .301 or better for the next five years, even though he spent each winter in California—until he broke his ankle sliding during a game in 1902 all but ended his career.
George Van Haltren
The Color Line, 1932
When the New York Yankees swept the Cubs four games to none in the 1932 World Series, Dizzy Dismukes, writing in The Pittsburgh Courier, said the series reignited talk of baseball integration:
“With the World Series over in four straight wins, fans who think little of the playing abilities of race ballplayers are now prophesying as how the Grays, the Crawfords, Black Yankees, Black Sox and any number of race clubs would have made a better showing against the Yankees.”
Nope
When the New York Yankees lost their first game of the 1938 season, in the midst of Joe DiMaggio’s holdout—he did not return until the 13th game—a reporter from The Associated Press tracked him down at his restaurant, Joe DiMaggio’s Grotto, on Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco:
“Joe ‘was sorry’ to hear that the Yankees lost…but covered the holdout situation in eight flowing words…
“Have you contacted (Yankees owner Jacob) Rupert? He was asked.
“’Nope,’ was the reply.
“Will you accept $25,000?
“’Nope.’
“Will you appeal to Judge Landis?
“’Nope.’
“Will you play for anybody?
“’Nope.’
“Has Rupert contacted you recently?
“’Nope.’
“Is any settlement looming?
“’Nope.’
“Are you doing anything about the situation?
“’Nope.’
With that, DiMaggio returned to “selling fish dinners.”
DiMaggio appeared in his first game for the 6-6 Yankees on April 30. They went 93-57 the rest of the way, he hit .324 with 32 home runs and 140 RBI.
With Ed Barrow looking on, Joe DiMaggio ends his holdout and shakes hands with Jacob Rupert
Cobb’s Stolen Bats
A small item in The Detroit Times in December of 1915 said the home of Frank J. Brady, the “property man” of the Detroit Tigers had been robbed.
Among the haul:
“(T)wo of Ty Cobb’s favorite bats, Catcher (Oscar) Stanage and shortstop (Donie) Bush also lost equipment which they valued highly.”
Also stolen was “the glove worn by George Mullin” when he pitched his no hitter. There was no record of the items being recovered. The paper valued the loss at “several hundred dollars.”
Baseball History Daily 
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