Marv Rotblatt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Marv Rotblatt |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
|||
| Pitcher | |||
| Born: October 18, 1927 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
|||
| Died: July 16, 2013 (aged 85) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
|||
|
|||
| debut | |||
| July 4, 1948, for the Chicago White Sox | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| July 22, 1951, for the Chicago White Sox | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 4–3 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.82 | ||
| Strikeouts | 30 | ||
| Teams | |||
|
|||
Marvin Rotblatt (born October 18, 1927 – died July 16, 2013) was a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. People often called him "Rotty". He played for the Chicago White Sox in the 1948, 1950, and 1951 seasons. His ERA (which measures how many runs a pitcher allows) was quite high during his time in the majors. Interestingly, he never got a base hit in his entire career.
Contents
About Marv Rotblatt
Marv Rotblatt was born in Chicago, Illinois. His father was a Jewish immigrant from Poland who owned a lamp business. Marv was also Jewish.
He went to Von Steuben High School in Chicago. Before playing professional baseball, Marv played for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His college team won the Big Nine Championship in 1947–48.
Minor League Career
Before joining the big leagues, Marv played in the minor leagues. He had some impressive moments there. In one season, he recorded 202 strikeouts. A strikeout is when a batter misses three pitches. He even pitched a no-hitter, which means he didn't allow any hits during an entire game!
A Short Pitcher on TV
Marv Rotblatt was only about 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 m) tall. This made him one of the shortest pitchers ever in Major League Baseball. Because of his height, he was invited to appear on a famous TV quiz show. The show was called You Bet Your Life and was hosted by Groucho Marx.
Marv was chosen for the show over his teammate, Bob Cain. Bob Cain knew a lot about short players. In 1951, Bob Cain was pitching for the Detroit Tigers. He once walked Eddie Gaedel, a very short pinch hitter. Eddie was only 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m) tall! He was signed by St. Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck, who loved to create exciting events.
The Rotblatt Softball Game
In 1964, students at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota started an intramural slow-pitch softball league. They decided to name it after Marv Rotblatt.
Today, traditional intramural softball is still played at Carleton. However, the name Rotblatt is now famous for a special annual softball game. This game has one inning for every year the school has existed, which is over 150 years! It's a unique and long-standing tradition at the college.
See also
- List of Jewish Major League Baseball players
