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THE PLAZA FLOOD
Today’s story is about a three-time gold glover who saved eight kids during a crazy storm.
You may not remember Amos Otis, but back in the 70s he was a pretty big deal in Kansas City.
During 14 seasons with KC, Amos was an All Star five times, hit over 350 doubles, and finished top-10 in the MVP voting on four different occasions.
But nothing that he did on the field compared to his heroics on September 12, 1977.
That evening, the Royals were supposed to play, but it was raining.
In those days, with the artificial turf, they almost never got rained out - so many people stuck around to see if they would call the game.
The weather did not let up - matter of fact, it turned into a heavy downpour and quickly became dangerous.
“The Plaza Flood” as it became known, inundated the KC metro with 16 inches of rain, and the roads were completely undrivable.
25 people died that day.
Thousands of homes and stores were swamped, and the rising water caused cars to flip and float like logs.
As the floodwaters continued to rise, people were scrambling for safety - especially the folks who had showed up to the ballpark that day.
During the chaos, several Royals players sat at their hotel bar and passed the time.
Otis noticed eight dripping wet kids who had taken cover in the Holiday Inn lobby.
The centerfielder took it upon himself to help the stranded group of boys.
He took down their phone numbers and called their parents to let them know the kids were staying with him.
He drove them to find food, and hauled the boys over to his three-bedroom apartment.
All of the kids were Royals fans, so what had started as a nightmare quickly became a dream come true.
They stayed up late that night - listening to records, watching TV, playing cards, and chatting.
Otis was basically their foster dad for that day.
He dried their clothes, made sure they were fed, and gave them a place to sleep - then the next day he got them back to their parents safely.
The eight boys had started that day not knowing each other, but quickly became great friends - forever bonded by a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
As for Otis, he became the hometown hero.
BASEBALL TRIVIA
Find the answer at the bottom of this email!
Strange Names
If you're just joining us, we play this game every day where we try to find the weirdest names throughout baseball history.
Why? Don't ask us, it's just something we like to do.
If you've been rocking with us for awhile now, you know what time it is.
Today's winner is:
Primarily a second baseman, Stanky played in the big leagues from ‘43 to ‘53.
He was the king of drawing walks, which is why his career OBP is absolutely insane - tied with Jackie Robinson for the 39th best of all time.
Stanky was known as a grinder who “just knew how to win.”
After playing, he transitioned into coaching, and he was amazing at it.
Over the course of 14 years at the University of South Alabama, his managerial record was 490-195-2.
He also coached in the MLB with the Cardinals, White Sox, and Rangers.
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BASEBALL TRIVIA ANSWER: Mookie Betts