Casey and the Sparrow

May 25, 1919 - It was during a baseball game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Brooklyn Dodgers that Casey Stengel (an outfielder for the Pirates) was hearing non-stop boos from the Dodger fans.

Seems the Dodger fans were still bitter about Stengel leaving the team to go play for the Pirates. It had been two years, but the Dodger faithful were still pissed.

As Stengel walked to the plate for a turn at bat, he turned to acknowledge the unforgiving crowd. He tipped his hat and a sparrow flew out from under his cap. The crowd roared with approval.

According to his teammate, Carmen Hill, the fledgling sparrow had flown into Hill's hands as he sat in the dugout next to Stengel. Stengel gently tucked the bird under his cap and the rest is history.

Stengel would go on to win 8 World Series (once as a player and seven times as a manager). He was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966.

He died in 1975.