DAILY DIRT: ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ ‘Dizzy’ and ‘Simba’ lead a long list of great Cardinals nicknames

Don’t worry, Cubs fans. I’m planning a similar piece for you, too … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 298 of The Daily Dirt.

1. It’s Memorial Day weekend, which means baseball is beginning to hits its stride.

So we’re leading off today’s Daily Dirt with an MLB-themed comment, specifically dealing with the Cardinals.

While I have never been a dyed-in-the-wool Cardinals fan (remember, I was born and lived more than 40 years in Ohio), I have always enjoyed the Cardinals. I have always loved the Birds on the Bat uniforms and many of the franchise’s individual players — especially their nicknames. Which brings us to today’s topic: The three best nicknames in Cardinals baseball history in the eyes of someone not born into the “Cardinals way”:

Gold medal: “The Wizard of Oz.” There never could have been a more appropriate nickname for a player with the grace and overall appeal of shortstop Osborne Earl “Ozzie” Smith. 

Silver medal: “Dizzy.” Author Zachary Silver may have summed it up best when he wrote, “When you’re known by your nickname more than you are your birth name, you’re doing something right.” Such was the life of Jay Hanna “Dizzy” Dean, the eccentric personality who could also throw a baseball quite well. (Ole Diz’ can’t be mentioned of course, without a reference to his brother, Paul “Daffy” Dean — another great moniker.)

Bronze medal: “Simba.” Living about 600 miles away at the time catcher Ted Simmons was carving out his niche in Cardinals lore, he always appealed to me as a fan, largely because of his overall style that included those long, flowing locks from beneath his cap. Simba was one cool dude. I always made sure I had him on my Strat-O-Matic baseball teams.

Special mention No. 1: “Creepy” Crespi. His only season as a starting middle infielder with the club, Creepy batted .279 in 1941. His given name was Frank Angelo Joseph Crespi.

Special mention No. 2: “Pickles” Dilhoefer. William Martin “Pickles” Dillhoefer was a backup catcher who compiled a .223 career average between 1917-21.

Honorable mention: “Bake” McBride, Stan “The Man” Musial, Enos “Country” Slaughter, “Rogers “Rajah” Hornsby, Harry “The Cat” Brecheen, Frankie “The Fordham Flash” Frisch.

2. Many of you will be grilling while you’re chilling today.

Uncertain what to cook? Here’s a suggestion from our ongoing disgusting items found on menus from around the world: Today’s treat is something called “balut”. Don’t be fooled by the sweet-sounding name.

“It is a fertilized duck egg with an almost developed embryo in it,” writes food author Robert Wabash. “So how would someone eat this thing? Well, it’s as simple as boiling an egg. In fact, that’s exactly what you do: boil, peel, dip it in your choice of salt or vinegar, and then EAT IT.

“However, don’t be fooled by how it looks after you peel it; break it in half and you’ll see an almost developed little duck, with feathers and a beak. Can you imagine taking a bite of this egg and pulling out Daffy’s head from your mouth?”

3. By design, a headline is a supposed to pull the reader in and make him or her want to examine a story more closely.

The following are headlines that failed to do that for me:

“Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson Have Matching Platinum Blonde Hair Now” (I have not been able to figure out why this Pete Davidson commands such media attention … )

“Bill Clinton’s Loves and Hookups” (That had to have been a long, long story … )

“Dua Lipa Hikes Up Legs In Skimpy Spandex Yoga Suit” (What did Dua Lipa ever do to earn so many headlines … I’m not sure I even know who she is.)

“What We Know About Charles Barkley’s Longtime Wife” (I didn’t even know Chuck was married … )

“40 Totally Uncool Things Old People Need to Stop” (For those wondering, yes, I read this … ) 

Steve Thought O’ The Day — I’m still wondering if Dua Lipa is her real name.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. Bake McBride, from Fulton, Mo., finished his career with Steve’s beloved Indians (Yes, they were still the Indians in 1983).