Baseball oddities and trivia – a first could happen on Monday

Do you enjoy reading about the unusual in sports? I certainly do. No sport has more interesting tidbits, trivial facts and just plain odd situations than baseball. I will share some of those things with you and prep you for a potential first in baseball history that may happen in a couple of days.Recently I was asked for the seven ways a batter can get on base. It took me a minute to get them, but I did indeed remember all seven. I'm sure you know them, but if not here is the list.A hit, walk, error, fielder's choice, hit by pitch, a dropped third strike and catcher's interference. That's interesting and perhaps you could win a bet or two quizzing your friends on this issue.My dad had a favorite trivia question concerning baseball that he thought was hilarious though some thought he was a little off (now you know where I get it). He used to ask, what is the only pitch a pitcher can not throw on the first pitch of the game. His answer: the change up.In some ways he is correct though it is kind of like "if a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?" If the definition of a change up is a pitch whose speed is slower than normal, then how do you know what normal is if a pitch has not been thrown?He did have a point and you should have seen my young friends searching their minds to come up withan answer to his question!Several years ago I was watching a big league game on TV and the color analyst was Tim Kirkjian. He was so disappointed when he saw the starting lineup. One team was using a starting pitcher named Stephen Fife. The other team had an infielder named Darwin Barney, but alas he was not in the lineup.Kirkjian was so looking forward to a Barney Fife match up and how could one not be? See that's the kind of thing that excites me and no, I don't know what that says about me!So what is going to possibly happen on Monday that is the inspiration for this column? Well, part of the mystery involves a trade. Before we get to the possibility that both Tim Kirkjian and myself will find fascinating, let's look at a few other scenarios.Have you known of a situation where a player is traded for himself? It has happened three or four times in the history of the game, depending on who you talk to. Supposedly the first person that had this distinction was catcher Harry Chiti in the 1960's.Chiti was a member of the then Cleveland Indians when the New York Mets acquired him. When the season was over, he was sent back to the Indians. Traded for himself? Well, kind of…Someone wrote that Chiti himself suggested it wasn't really true. The Mets had purchased his contract from Cleveland which was much more common in those days. Since he was not really traded, when Cleveland reacquired him in the offseason by again purchasing his contract, one could argue that he wasn't really traded for himself. Again that tree in the woods…There have been three players that were traded to other teams for a player to be named later however. Those players were Brad Gulden, Dickie Noles and John McDonald. At least when they became that player to be named later they played for their original team again. Not so for Chiti, who never played for Cleveland again after that season. Kind of strange but right up my alley!There has been one player who played for two different teams in two different cities on the same day. No it was not a trade where the guy only had to switch clubhouses between games of a doubleheader. That would be too easy and it would not fit the scenario where games in two different cities was involved.In 1982 Joel Youngblood played in an afternoon game in Chicago. After the game he was traded to Philadelphia and a quick flight got him the City of Brotherly Love in time for an evening game. By the way, he got hits in both games!So what is going to possibly happen on Monday. Let's set the stage. On June 26 the Toronto Blue Jays were playing the Boston Red Sox in Fenway Park. In the second inning rain began to fall and the game was suspended. It would be resumed at a later date (see Monday).The batter for Toronto when the suspension took place was catcher Danny Jansen. If you are a baseball fan you likely know that Jansen was sent to Boston at the trade deadline.So when the game resumes Monday he will be pinch hit for as he is no longer with the Jays. The Boston catcher in that suspended game is currently in the minor leagues at Triple A. So it is possible that Red Sox skipper Alex Cora could substitute Danny Jansen at catcher for Boston. It is legal and Cora just HAS to do this, doesn't he? A chance to make major league history. I know a couple of people that will be gravely disappointed if Danny Jansen doesn't get the chance to be the first in major league history to ever play for both teams in the same game. Right Tim?It would also be great if Kenley Jansen was used to close out the game for the Bosox. A Jansen and Jansen law firm... er, I mean battery. Then the box score in the next day's newspaper could have three Jansen's making an appearance!Well, technically two...