Bob Feller ("The Heater from Van Meter") was only 16 when he signed his major league contract. His signing bonus with the Cleavland Indians, in 1935, was $1. Here are some interesting facts about our fellow Iowan:
*In his rookie season as a pitcher he won 17 games and the next year won 24. He actually had 6 seasons where he won more then 20 games.
*He threw 3 career no-hitters, and 12 career one-hitters.
*He is the only pitcher to throw a complete game no-hitter on Opening Day. (1940)
*In 1941 he enlisted in the Navy and was discharged 44 months later. He served most of his time aboard the U.S.S. Alabama in the gunnery department where he earned 8 Battle Stars.
*During his first season after his discharge he set an American League record for strikeouts in one season-348. In April of that season, he pitched his second no-hitter against the New York Yankees in New York.
*He played on 9 All-Star teams and participated in two World Series. (1948 and 1954)
*His overall record was 266-162, and he compiled 2,581 strikeouts.
*He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
These pictures of the boys are taken with the bat that Babe Ruth leaned on during his farewell speech at Yankee Stadium on June 13, 1948. Babe Ruth was weak from a malignant tumor on his neck. When he came out to give his farewell speech, he walked past the visiting team's dugout and grabbed a random bat to lean on and steady himself. He had no idea who's bat it was, and it turned out to be Bob Feller's bat. After The Babe spoke, one of Feller's team mates had Babe sign it, and then hid it. After many years, and several different owners, that bat is in the Bob Feller Museum in Van Meter.
Here are pictures that I got off of the computer of Babe with that same bat. Pretty Cool!!
The boys (all 4 of them!!) enjoyed their time looking at everything. Who knew that there was so much history right here in Iowa?!
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