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Talk:Eddie Gaedel

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On-Base Percentage

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His career OBP is not 1.000. If you have one carrer plate appearance and have a walk, your OBP would be undefined. It would be 1/0. I changed it to undefined but the OBP stat should just be removed. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.205.69.179 (talk) 02:11, 4 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

The above comment is wrong. As noted in Wikipedia, OBP is H+BB+HBP/AB+BB+HBP+SF. As such, his on-base percentage is 1/1=1.000. I've changed it accordingly. ClubMedSux (talk) 15:01, 14 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

D.O.D.?

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There are two different dates of death listed, cne in 1959 the other in 1961. Can anybody confirm? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 158.104.166.60 (talk) 17:50, 4 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Dwarf or Midget?

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dwarf? he sure looks more like a midget in the pictures. Kingturtle 21:12, 28 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The term midget is actually archaic and no longer used. Dwarf is essentially the preferred term. -Tim Rhymeless (Er...let's shimmy) 10:02, 1 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Normally yes, but considering when Gaedel lived it might be possible he identified as a midget. There was a time proportional and pituitary dwarfs preferred "midget." However unless we know for certain he identified as a midget, dwarf is indeed preferred.--T. Anthony 10:45, 5 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I thought that the currently preferred designation was "little person." At the time, he was always a "midget," never a dwarf. (The word was often used as a synonym for "smaller." I played youth baseball in an organization officially named a "Midget League" -- probably so that my city park administration wouldn't have to pay a fee to call it a "Little League." ) —Preceding unsigned comment added by WHPratt (talk • contribs) 15:10, 27 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

don't you DARE call him a midget. Midget is an offensive term. Midgets do not like that term. They prefer to be called dwarves, little people, small folks, or midgets. So don't call them little people. It's offensive in this pc world. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.14.185.221 (talk) 22:06, 5 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]


A dwarf is someone with dwarfism, characterized by normal-sized head and torso with misshapen/stunted arms and legs. Peter Dinklage is a dwarf. A midget is a proportionally-sized person less than 4' 10" tall. Eddie was a midget. Shellus Maximus 21:27, 4 December 2018 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Daddyman1962 (talk • contribs)

Shortest player, excluding Eddie Gaedel

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If Gaedel is excluded, who is officially the shortest player in Major League Baseball history?—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 128.6.205.77 (talk • contribs) 20:09, 12 July 2006.

Ernie Oravetz, who died in 2006 had a claim to be the shortest real ballplayer. He stood 5 feet 4 inches and weighed 145 pounds. Now, there probably were a few shorter men who didn't stay around long enough to make an impact. Even a scan of the baseball databases would be inconclusive, as most of the weights and many of the heights must be heresay. WHPratt (talk) 05:50, 1 March 2009 (UTC)WHPratt[reply]
Sparky Adams was pretty short, though I think Oravetz narrowly has him beat. Wizardman 20:57, 19 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I remember that Albie Pearson, one of the original L.A. Angels was often listed at 5'4", but he objected to this and claimed to be a bit over 5'5". WHPratt (talk) 01:31, 23 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Strike Zone

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"Gaedel's strike zone was reportedly a mere one and a half inches high". That seems unlikely if my interpretation of the strike zone is right. It would be more than that from knee to pant waist. Feel free to put it back if there's a reference. DJ Clayworth (talk) 20:40, 19 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

The strike zone is defined in relation to the batter's "normal stance." I'd read that Bill Veeck had Eddie practice a deep crouch. As he only batted once, that was his normal stance. Try to picture the little man (arms and legs short to begin with) bent over, with his elbows almost touching his knees. This is borne out by the famous photograph. 1.5 inches may be a reverse exaggeration, but even if it was twice that, it wasn't much more than the diameter of a baseball. WHPratt (talk) 01:27, 23 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]
That's an interesting explanation, but the photograph in the article clearly shows that the vertical distance from knee to waist is more than the diameter of the baseball; I think that unless we can find a reference this has to go. Encyclopedias shouldn't include "reverse exaggerations" as if they were facts. DJ Clayworth (talk) 14:34, 24 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Actually, in 1951 the strike zone was from "the letters" (i.e., the bottom of the shoulders) to the (tops of the) knees. It was redefined in 1963, in 1969 and several times thereafter. The 1-1/2 inch measurement was supposedly Bill Veeck (see Veeck as in Wreck) with a tape measure while rehersing Gaedel. Should the article attach Veeck's name to the estimate, the world will take care to provide the proverbial grain of salt. WHPratt (talk) 14:24, 26 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Veeck also says that Gaedel failed to stick with the tight 1.5 inch crouch he had been taught when he actually came to the plate; I think the article, as currently edited, strikes the right balance. Baileypalblue (talk) 12:34, 10 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]
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