Baseball Has a “Greek Moment!”

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Greeks in Baseball!

Baseball Has a “Greek Moment!”

You never know what interesting tidbits of information you might uncover which looking for something else. In doing a little research for my essay the other day about umpire Chris Pelekoudas, I discovered that Jim Campanis (featured above) – the son of Dodger general manager Al Campanis – once described what he called baseball’s “Greek Moment.”

Jim is quoted the book Baseball’s Golden Greeks, by Diamantis Zervos. In it, he recalled a game played between the Red and Dodgers at Crosley Field on August 12, 1967, 58 years ago this month. In the top of the seventh inning of this game, Dodger Jim Campanis came to the plate as a pinch hitter for pitcher Bob Miller.

Here’s where the “Greek thing” comes in. On the mound for the Reds was pitcher Milt Pappas. Calling balls and strike behind the plate was umpire Chris Pelekoudas, while coaching at third was Alex Grammas, all four of these guys being of Greek descent! A truly “Greek Moment” in baseball!

I also discovered that this might have been Jim’s most memorable baseball moment, Greek or otherwise. He managed to survive in the majors for six seasons for the Dodgers, Royals, and Pirates (1966-1973), hitting .147, with four home runs, and 9 RBIs over 113 games. Hey…at least he made it. Not many guys can say that!

In speaking of Jim Campanis, I also learned that he holds the distinction of probably being the only player traded by his own father! That’s right…In 1968, when Al Campanis became the GM for the Dodgers, one of his first trades was of his son Jim to the Kansas City Royals for two minor leaguers.  Geesh…I wonder how Jim reacted when he heard the news!

Of course, it’s always interesting to check out the box scores for old games. Our “senior” readers will remember the names of the umpiring crew that day. In addition to Pelekoudas, the “Men in Blue” were Doug Harvey, Johnny Kibler, and Shag Crawford. The Big Red Machine was just starting to form with stars Pete Rose, Tony Perez, and Vada Pinson in the lineup. The game, won by the Reds 4-0, was played in a snappy 1:59, with Pappas throwing a complete game shutout on the way to his twelfth win.

According to an article on the Baseball USA website, the five most famous Greek major leaguers are: Milt Pappas, Eric Karros, Mike Moustakis, George Kottaris, and Tino (Constantino) Martinez. That’s quite an impressive list. See if you agree!

This also gives me the chance to say a few words about Milt Pappas and his fine career. Milt is probably the most famous Greek pitcher of all times. He played only three games in the minor league before he was recruited by the Baltimore Orioles and made his major league debut in 1957. Over his 17-year career (1957-1973), he played for the Reds, Orioles, and Cubs. Milt compiled an impressive 209-164 record (.560), with a 3.40 ERA, 1728 strikeouts, and 43 shutouts. Milt was a three-time All-Star and pitched a no-hitter while with the Cubs on September 2, 1972 (which should have been a rare perfect game except for a blown strike-three call to the last batter by umpire Bruce Froemming). Milt is a member of the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame.

Gary Livacari 

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Information: Excerpts edited from article Five Most Famous Greek Ballplayers

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