Reaching the major leagues is a special moment that most baseball fans will never experience.
There are also some surprises along the way with a few unlikely players making to the big time.
It was 100 years ago and the season before the New York Yankees would acquire Babe Ruth.
The Yankees finished third that year with a 80-59 record behind the infamous Chicago White Sox (88-52) and the Cleveland Indians (84-55).
During the 1919 season, the Yankees had a Hall of Fame player in right field, but his soon to be lifetime batting average of .091 in 13 games would become an issue and his career would end as fast as hit began.
On May 6, George Halas, yes the Pro Football Hall Fame coach of the Chicago Bears, made his major league debut for the Yankees in Philadelphia against the Athletics.
As a leadoff batter, Halas did get a single in the game that the A’s won 3-2 in 10 innings. Two days later, Halas picked up his final hit in a 2-0 Yankees win over the A’s.
It was downhill from there for Halas with the Yankees, which was probably the best thing for him and the fans of the National Football League.
Halas made just two more starts and later had four pinch-hitting appearances. He was also used as a pinch-runner three times including in his final game on July 5.
With the St. Paul Saints of the American Association in 1919, Halas was in 39 games and had 23 hits for a .274 batting average. He had a pair of doubles and a triple, but never hit a home run.
Da Bears
Known as “Papa Bear” to football fans everywhere, Halas was a co-founder of the NFL and part of the inaugural class for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963, while he still coaching the Chicago Bears.
Halas won his first of six NFL titles as a player/coach in 1921. His other championships were in 1933, 1940, 1941, 1946 and 1963.
His career coaching record with the Bears was 324-151-31. As a player, he was named to the NFL’s 1920s All-Decade Team.