Our last Bobblehead pack game was last night against the Brewers. It was Eddie Gaedel bobblhead night. Eddie Gaedel. Who is Eddie Gaedel, you might ask? According to Wikipedia...
Weighing 65 pounds (29 kg) and standing 3 feet 7 inches (109 cm) tall, Gaedel became the shortest player in the history of the Major Leagues. He made a single plate appearance and was walked with four consecutive balls before being replaced by a pinch-runner at first base. His jersey, bearing the uniform number " 1⁄8", is displayed in the St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. St. Lous Browns owner Bill Veeck, in his 1962 autobiography Veeck said of Gaedel, "He was, by golly, the best darn (little person) who ever played big-league ball. He was also the only one."
Interesting story about Gaedel's jersey. Bill DeWitt Jr's father had the jersey made for him with the number 6 for Bobby Dillinger. This was back before you could buy kid's jerseys. Come to think of it, you probably couldn't even buy adult jersey's. LOL. Anyway, when Bill Veeck started considering putting Gaedel in a game, they needed a jersey so they removed the 6 and replaced it with 1/8. Bill DeWitt Jr. had loaned the jersey to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown years ago but he requested it back when Ballpark Village opened in 2014. The jersey has returned home.
The Cardinals won 4 to 3. Woohoo! We have one more game not in our bobblehead pack although it is a bobblehead game. Stay tuned...
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