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20 Questions: Which player and year am I?

Posted by Andy on February 25, 2011

Let's start an all-new 20 Questions game. See my last such game for the rules. Remember, I will only answer the first valid question posted in the comments after each previous answer I give, so there is no point in posting question after question.

As an added twist, the subject of this 20 Questions is a particular season by a particular player.

To illustrate, let's use Mark Whiten as an example. If I were thinking of Mark Whiten in 1997 and you asked "did you appear as a pitcher?" I would say no, because he didn't in 1997. If I were thinking of Mark Whiten in 1998 and you asked the same question, then the answer would be yes. The same rules apply to all of his stats, teams he played for, post-season, etc. It's all confined to the one year of which I am thinking. Of course, if you phrase a question such as "did you appear at any time in your career as a pitcher?" then I'd answer yes, but such a question only helps to identify the player and not the year.

So, somebody start us off with our first question.

89 Responses to “20 Questions: Which player and year am I?”

  1. Patrick Says:

    Did you win at least 15 games in this season?

  2. Andy Says:

    Answer #1: No (I assume you mean was I credited with 15 Wins in my personal stats...at least that's what I am answering 'no' to).

  3. Jimmy Says:

    Were / are you primarily a National League player?

  4. Andy Says:

    Answer #2: Yes, I was primarily a National League player (just as a reminder, my answer is restricted to the particular season for the particular player I am thinking of---don't read anything into this comment, I'm not saying I was an AL player the rest of my career...just trying to make it clear.)

  5. deal Says:

    Is the mystery player still living?

  6. Andy Says:

    Who was President of the United States during this playing year?

  7. Andy Says:

    What year came immediately after this particular playing year?

  8. Andy Says:

    Answer #3: Yes, I am still living (obviously this question relates to today and not just the specific year in question.)

    #6--not only did you post before I answered the previous question, but that's not even a yes/no question. Why don't you just ask what the player's name is?

  9. Andy Says:

    OMG #7.

  10. Andy Says:

    What era did you play in? (Ex: deadball, steriod, etc.)

  11. tom Says:

    did you pitch a lot of shutout innings in this particular year?

  12. tom Says:

    i should say consecutively my bad so the question is did you pitch a lot of consecutive shutout innings the year in question?

  13. Brian Says:

    Someone's trolling... A "yes or no" question is one that can be answered by either "yes" or "no." So far, you've posted three questions that don't follow the rules, and called the OP a douche.

    Are you having a bad day? (Ooh -- that's a yes or no question!)

  14. Dr. Doom Says:

    @11 -

    Frankly, that's just rude. Someone trying to do something fun for the rest of us should not be subjected to name-calling. And, had you actually, you know, READ THE RULES at the top of the page, you would know that Andy will only post one answer at a time. So, if Gibby's Limp, or anyone else for that matter, already posted a question, Andy isn't going to answer your question unless you wait for him to answer the first person's question first. I hope that helps. And, in the future, please keep it respectful. There are a lot of us here because this particular community is not as venomous as many other online baseball communities out there. We're just trying to have fun. Please don't spoil it for the rest of us.

  15. Andy Says:

    Answer #4: No, I did not pitch a lot of shutout innings, consecutively or otherwise, that year. (That's a little extra clue for you...)

    #13: I just spammed the particular offending comment, but thanks for the defense. I spammed a bunch of comments he made under a different name as well.

  16. Andy Says:

    Again I have spammed certain offending comments, so comments like #16 won't make a lot of sense to people...

  17. tom Says:

    were you known for an unusual leg kick or wind up?

  18. Andrew Says:

    Did you hit more than 20 home runs in the year in question?

  19. Andy Says:

    Ok I am going to give you guys a little help. I WAS NOT A PITCHER.

  20. Andy Says:

    Answer #5: No, I did not hit more than 20 homers that year.

  21. tom Says:

    did our mystery player hit over 50 home runs that year?

  22. Andrew Says:

    Were you primarily an infielder that year?

  23. tom Says:

    did this hitter flirt with batting .400?

  24. Andy Says:

    I'm ignoring #21 since that was answered in #20.

    #22:

    Answer #6: Yes, I was primarily an infielder that year.

  25. tomlaw Says:

    Was this player primarily an infielder in the year in question?

  26. tom Says:

    did you drive in 100 runs?

  27. Andrew Says:

    Did your team win more games than they lost?

  28. tomlaw Says:

    Is the subject year in the decade of the 1990's?

  29. Andy Says:

    Answer #7: No I did not drive in 100 runs.

  30. tom Says:

    did you win the NLCS with an unusual home run?

  31. Andy Says:

    Tom, that's a really vague question so I am going to ignore it. Let's give somebody else a chance.

  32. Andy Says:

    BTW the higher-ups have informed me that the troll's IP address has been blacklisted. It's a shame because he used to make genuine comments on this blog and now he's permanently blocked.

  33. tom Says:

    okay but i did have a purpose for that question so i will let others go for a moment

  34. Andrew Says:

    Did your team play in the postseason this year?

  35. Chris Castonguay Says:

    Did the player steal 30+ bases that year?

  36. Andy Says:

    Answer #8: Yes, my team played in the post-season that year.

  37. KB Says:

    Are you left-handed?

  38. branden Says:

    lol, what would have been the most obvious first question! (are you a pitcher/ are you a hitter?)

  39. Chris Castonguay Says:

    Are you a middle infielder?

  40. Andy Says:

    Answer #9: No I am not left-handed. (Meaning that my B-R page says I throw righty.)

  41. Andrew Says:

    Did your team win the World Series that year?

  42. Andy Says:

    Answer #10: No, my team did not win the World Series that year.

  43. Andy Says:

    Halfway through the questions, you've got it narrowed it down decently. There was a question posted earlier that I did not answer because it came after other unanswered questions that was a good one...would really help you narrow it down.

  44. WanderingWinder Says:

    Does the year in question fall in the range 1990-2010?

  45. Andy Says:

    Answer #11: No, not in the range 1990-2010. That only leaves, what, 120 other years?

  46. WanderingWinder Says:

    Well, I can assume it's not going to be too old, since the guy's still alive.

  47. tom Says:

    did this player play for the Cardinals?

  48. Andy Says:

    That's fair, WW! Sorry for the snarkiness 🙂

  49. Andy Says:

    Answer #12: No, I did not play for the Cardinals (in the year in question...again I'm not saying anything about other years.)

    Tom your questions might be a bit too specific. For example you could have asked if he played for the NL West, a 50/50 question instead of focusing on just one team.

  50. Chris Says:

    Tom, shouldn't you just guess Ozzie Smith? 🙂

  51. Andrew Says:

    I'll repost this one... did I steal over 30 bases this year?

  52. Tmckelv Says:

    @49,

    So we can assume it is after 1968 (NL West)?

  53. Andy Says:

    #52 Such an assumption would be foolish.

  54. Tmckelv Says:

    @52 I meant...Assume after 1968, not that it was the NL west.

  55. Andy Says:

    #51

    Answer #13: Yes, I did steal over 30 bases this year.

    Those of you with PI subscriptions are cooking with gas now...a player who is still alive, right-handed, infielder, 30+ SB, <20 HR, on a playoff team before 1990. There aren't very many guys who qualify for each year (in fact zero most year.) There are only 40 seasons in the last 10 years that match, and that's before sorting out who was on a playoff team.

  56. tom Says:

    okay so subtlety isn't my strong suit lol

  57. tom Says:

    did he play in the NL west the year in question?

  58. tomXVI Says:

    Andy,

    Here's a yes / no question...could you institute a cover charge to keep out all the riff-raff?

  59. Chris Says:

    Lets narrow it down. Was the year in question 1968 or more recent?

  60. Andy Says:

    Answer #14: No I did not play in the NL West that year.

  61. deal Says:

    did the mystery season occur for a team based in California?

  62. deal Says:

    take back my question

  63. tom Says:

    were you part of a "miracle" that year?

  64. Andy Says:

    I'm going to ignore the last 2 questions....the first one is pretty close to the one I just answered, and Tom's is just too vague.

  65. tomXVI Says:

    For the record, my comment at #58 was directed at Gibby's limp (whose comment was subsequently deleted) and not at anyone else

  66. Michael Says:

    Did you have fewer than 60 strikeouts in your year?

  67. Andrew Says:

    Are you Ryne Sandberg in 1984?

  68. george Says:

    Was he a teammate of Bob McClure?

  69. Andy Says:

    Answer #15: Yes, I had fewer than 60 strikeouts.

  70. tom Says:

    were you in the NL East?

  71. Andrew Says:

    Are you Larry Bowa?

  72. Andy Says:

    Tom, I'm ignoring your question again. I'm really appreciation your participation but I think you might need a little more practice. See also most post at #60 where I answered that I was not in the NL West.

    As for #71...

    Answer #16: Yes, I am Larry Bowa. Now you just need the year...

  73. Andrew Says:

    Are you Larry Bowa, 1976 edtion?

  74. tomlaw Says:

    Larry Bowa 1977

  75. tomXVI Says:

    I'll guess bowa in '78 then

  76. tomXVI Says:

    oops meant 76

  77. Chris Says:

    Was it really narrowed down enough to know it was Bowa or was that a shot in the dark? I would have guessed there were dozens of options left to filter through.

  78. Jay Says:

    I think it was down to four choices and Bowa was the only one with multiple years.

  79. Andrew Says:

    It was a toss-up between Bowa and Rodney Scott, '81. I realize now it could only be LB '77 since Andy said OVER 30 steals. We had a lot of information -- playoff team, but not a WS winner. Before 1990. Living player. Infielder. More than 30 steals/less than 20 HR. National League, but not NL West. That really narrows down the possibilities.

  80. Andy Says:

    #73

    Answer #17 No, not Larry Bowa in 1976. (Although in a quick check by me, it could have been that year just the same...I think the answers to what's been guessed are all the same)

  81. deal Says:

    has to be Bowa 77

  82. John Q Says:

    Larry Bowa 1977?

  83. Andy Says:

    Answer #18: Yes, I am Larry Bowa in 1977!

  84. fordham'13 Says:

    man, that was excruciating to read through because of all the dumb comments.

  85. Michael E Sullivan Says:

    Yeah, no kidding Fordham, and that's even after Andy had filtered the worst of it by the time I got here.

  86. Michael E Sullivan Says:

    You live in Seattle? Do you know Joe?

  87. bells Says:

    I like this idea for the blog! Both times (that I've seen it, I assumed it had only happened twice so far) it has been a bit of a nightmare, but I'm confident it can get worked out. Maybe next time you can make a rule that each question has to be from a different person? Or at least consecutive questions can't be from the same person, or the same person can't ask more than 3 of the 20 questions....

  88. dukeofflatbush Says:

    Larry Bowa has the fewest HRs for a player with 2000 hits

  89. DoubleDiamond Says:

    My first visit here since the game was started. I followed it all of the way through, but it had already been guessed.

    Thanks for trying this again.

    Regarding the types of questions - Bringing up pitching statistics before it was even determined whether or not the player was primarily a pitcher that year was somewhat premature.

    The phrase, "a lot of shutout innings" or "a lot of consecutive shutout innings", is open to interpretation. What constitutes "a lot"? A Drysdale or Hershiser record-setting streak? Or something less? So is "unusual home run". Is this a home run hit by someone who doesn't usually homer (such as Ozzie Smith)? Or is it a grand slam inside the park walk-off home run?

    I think we have gotten better in our question selection, and I hope we'll have the chance to participate in more of these, at least until the games that count start up again. Thanks again, Andy, for trying this again, with a twist this time.