Edward Joseph St. Claire, a switch-hitting catcher from Whitehall, New York, was a baseball star at Colgate University before he turned pro. Like most ballplayers born in 1921, St. Claire's career was interrupted by World War II.

He didn't reach the majors until 1951. That turned out to be the best of his four major league seasons. He hit .282 in 72 games with the Boston Braves.

After his four-year stint in the majors, St. Claire returned to the minors and played in a few cities that within a few years would have their own major league teams – Minneapolis, San Diego, Toronto and Atlanta. He retired after the 1958 season.

His son, Randy St. Claire was a relief pitcher for Montreal, Cincinnati, Minnesota, Atlanta and Toronto (1984-94). Another son, Steve, an outfielder and pitcher, played in the minor leagues for four seasons.

Walter Henry Schang was baseball's Zelig. He was an American League catcher for 19 years, and when he was around, good things happened. He joined the Philadelphia Athletics in 1913 and they won the World Series. He went to the Boston Red Sox in 1918, same thing. Babe Ruth went to the New York Yankees in 1920, but they finished third. Enter Schang a year later – and the Yankees go to the World Series.

Schang had a lifetime .284 batting average, hitting better than .300 six times. He was a switch hitter who made major league history in 1916 when he became the first player to home runs from both sides of the plate in the same game. Not that he was a slugger. For his career he had just 59 homers.

Schiappacasse was a native of Ann Arbor, Michigan, whose career continued after his brief visit to the majors. Still playing in 1909, Schiappacasse batted .293 for Saginaw of the Southern Michigan League. In 1910 he was with Muskegon of the West Michigan League. Tragically, late that season Louis Joseph Schiappacasse contracted typhoid fever and died. He was 29.

Whatever, the catcher played for five teams in his 11-season career, but most of his games were in a Philadelphia Athletics uniform, including three in the 1905 World Series, which the A's lost to the New York Giants.

Hit .300 or more, with at least 30 doubles, 20 triples, 20 home runs, 20 stolen bases, score and drive in at least 100 runs. (Willie Mays was close in 1957, matching or exceeding every number except RBI; he fell three short of the 100 mark. In 1979 George Brett nearly matched Schulte, but fell three stolen bases short of 20. In 1899 Buck Freeman of the Washington Senators of the National League had an even more impressive season than Schulte – except for his 19 doubles. Incredibly, Freeman hit 25 home runs AND 25 triples. And in 2007 Curtis Granderson of the Detroit Tigers hit .302, with 38 doubles, 23 triples, 23 home runs, stealing 26 bases and scoring 122 runs; alas, Granderson had only 74 runs batted in.)

Schulte's accomplishment would have been more impressive had he gotten to bat one more time with a hit resulting. At it was, his .300 average was a bit of a gimme because his 173 hits in 577 at bats gave him a hitting percentage of .2998, but baseball rounds these things off to three figures. He had 30 doubles, 21 triples, 21 home runs, stole 23 bases, scored 105 runs and drove in 121. He led the major leagues in home runs that year. The icing on the cake were the four grand slam home runs Schulte hit in 1911. He was the first major leaguer to do so in one season. Oddest accomplishment: He was second in the league in sacrifice hits, with 31. Sluggers just don't do that. Oh, yes, he also got married that season.

Schulte played in four World Series. And, as was typical of the times, he went back to the minor leagues after he was finished in the majors, rejoining the Syracuse Stars. He had played in Syracuse three seasons on his way up to the majors.

So why was he called Wildfire? Seems Schulte was a big fan of actress Lillian Russell. He saw her perform in a play called "Wildfire." He owned trotting horses and named one of them Wildfire. Chicago sportswriters got hold of that tidbit and hung the nickname on Schulte.

Socks II started his career with the Philadelphia Athletics seven seasons after Socks I finished his. Socks II began as a first baseman, but became a pitcher. He happened to join the Athletics after Connie Mack broke up the team that had dominated the American League for several years. Seibold's first full season was 1917 when the Athletics were buried in last place, which helps explain the pitcher's 4-16 record. A year later a sore arm ended his season after only 14 appearances.

Seibold tried to pitch his way back from the minors, but opted for retirement. Then he unretired ... and retired again. Finally, in the late 1920s he gave it one more shot, earning a spot with another bad team, the National League Boston Braves. In 1929 he won 12 games for the Braves, losing 17. A year later he had his best season, winning 15 games, losing 16. He pitched three more seasons, and in 1933 finally retired for good.

Selkirk put up decent numbers, though only four times in his nine-year major league career did he play more than 100 games. Twice he drove in more than 100 runs, but was never more than a cog in a machine driven by such stars as Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and Bill Dickey.

Twinkletoes? He got that nickname for the way he ran not on his toes, but on the balls of his feet.

In 1901 Johnson outwitted National League owners and turned the Western Association into the American League. The 30-year-old Seybold became a member of Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics and in the American League's first season had a 27-game hitting streak on his way to a .333 batting average.

A year later Seybold hit 16 home runs, which would remain the American League record until 1919 (when Babe Ruth hit 29).

Thereafter Seybold was solid, but not spectacular, playing until 1908 when an injury prompted him to retire at age 37 with a lifetime batting average of .294.