The 40th anniversary of one of the greatest moments in the history of postseason baseball took place on October 14, 2015. Can you name the ballplayer who delivered a massive blow to win a classic contest during the 1975 World Series? If you answered “Carlton Fisk,” you’re off by a week, as Pudge’s 12th-inning walk-off homer to end Game Six of the Fall Classic took place on October 21. The correct response is Kurt Bevacqua.
Kurt Bevacqua? Yes, Kurt Bevacqua. Here’s the story:
The Topps Chewing Gum Incorporated – the folks best known for packaging their Bazooka bubble gum with baseball trading cards – announced the “Joe Garagiola Bazooka Big League Bubble Gum Blowing Championship” on August 4, 1975. The contest began soon thereafter, with each major league club staging its own competition to determine their representative for the elimination tournament. Each club, that is, except for the Tigers and Pirates. According to a Topps spokesperson, “At the time they turned us down, both Pittsburgh and Detroit were in pretty bad losing streaks.”
A sticky situation came up during the Cubs competition when George Mitterwald filed an official protest. The Cubs catcher claimed he had blown the largest bubble, but that the contest’s judge (Public Relations Director Chuck Shriver) failed to position the official calipers in time. Ultimately, 1975 batting champion Bill Madlock was crowned the club’s top bubble blower.
In Cleveland, Eric Raich blew an 18¼-inch bubble to take the Indians’ title, but just days later was sent to the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Oklahoma City. “It took a lot of concentration,” remarked the 23-year-old pitcher. “Maybe I’ll be Rookie of the Year in bubble gum blowing.”