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Hack Wilson

Lewis Robert "Hack" Wilson (April 26, 1900 – November 23, 1948) was an American Major League Baseball player who played 12 seasons for the New York Giants, Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. Despite his diminutive stature, he was one of the most accomplished power hitters in the game during the late 1920s and early 1930s. His 1930 season with the Cubs is widely considered one of the most memorable individual single-season hitting performances in baseball history. Highlights included 56 home runs, the National League record for 68 years, and 191 runs batted in, an MLB record yet to be approached; the closest any player has come to having that many RBIs came in the very next season, when Lou Gehrig had 185 for the New York Yankees. "For a brief span of a few years," wrote a sportswriter of the day, "this hammered down little strongman actually rivaled the mighty Ruth." While Wilson's combativeness and excessive alcohol consumption made him one of the most colorful sports personalities of his era, his drinking and fighting undoubtedly contributed to a premature end to his athletic career and, ultimately, his premature death. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979.

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Article summary

Lewis Robert "Hack" Wilson (April 26, 1900 – November 23, 1948) was an American Major League Baseball player who played 12 seasons for the New York Giants, Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. Despite his diminutive stature, he was one of the most accomplished power hitters in the game during the late 1920s and early 1930s. His 1930 season with the Cubs is widely considered one of the most memorable individual single-season hitting performances in baseball history. Highlights included 56 home runs, the National League record for 68 years, and 191 runs batted in, an MLB record yet to be approached; the closest any player has come to having that many RBIs came in the very next season, when Lou Gehrig had 185 for the New York Yankees. "For a brief span of a few years," wrote a sportswriter of the day, "this hammered down little strongman actually rivaled the mighty Ruth." While Wilson's combativeness and excessive alcohol consumption made him one of the most colorful sports personalities of his era, his drinking and fighting undoubtedly contributed to a premature end to his athletic career and, ultimately, his premature death. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979.

Key claims

  1. date of birth: 1900-04-26 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  2. date of death: 1948-11-23 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  3. release date: 1934 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the date of birth is "1900-04-26". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. The record states that the date of death is "1948-11-23". What evidence would count against this claim?
  4. The record states that the release date is "1934". What evidence would count against this claim?
  5. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  6. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1378020284

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.