Today is Pete LaCock's birthday, which is practically a national holiday in some of the social circles I frequent.
I always liked LaCock when I was a kid (er, wait...), both for his name and for the fact that his father is Peter Marshall, best known for hosting The Hollywood Squares — though I recently discovered that the elder LaCock (yes, that's the family name) also made a bravura appearance on a spectacular 1982 episode of CHiPs that featured Donny "Ralph Malph" Most as a Gene Simmons-esque rock singer called Moloch.
I met LaCock five years ago at Cubs Fantasy Camp, and found him to be a good-natured gent with an excellent sense of humor, especially in matters pertaining to his last name. He also told me some amazing stories about hanging out at his dad's place in the early 70s with Paul Lynde and Charles Nelson Reilly, who would often joke that young Pete was "playing for the wrong team," if you get my drift.
But I'm sure what all you 70s baseball fans really want to know is: Did Pete LaCock ever face pitcher Dick Pole?
And thanks to the Baseball Reference website, I have determined that it did in fact happen — though only once, on May 29, 1978. LaCock, who was playing first that day for the Kansas City Royals, batted against Pole in the first inning of what would eventually be an 8-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners at Royals Stadium. The Royals had already touched Pole for three runs, but LaCock failed to further beef up the score, flying out to left for the second out of the frame. On this day, at least, the Pole was mightier than LaCock.
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