Before I tell you the correct answer to the trivia question posed in the North Side Baseball Poster Contest, a few bits of information.
The entry deadline for this contest was Sunday, December 21 at 4 p.m. CT. I received far fewer responses to this one than the last one: just 33 people sent in entries. Before I tell you how many correct responses there were, here, once again, is the question:
Name the only player in major-league history who appeared in a World Series after not making a single appearance during that year's regular season.
The answer supplied to me along with the question was Clyde McCullough, who was the Cubs' regular catcher for most of the 1940s. He missed the entire 1945 regular season in military service, but returned for the World Series and pinch-hit in the ninth inning of Game 7. He struck out.
A number of entrants mentioned James "Bug" Holliday, who played in the big leagues for 10 seasons, from 1889 through 1898. Before that, though, he played in a postseason series in 1885 for the White Stockings (one of the Cubs' predecessor nicknames) against the St. Louis Browns. Those series have been retroactively termed "World Series," though as baseball-reference.com's postseason page notes: "Post-season games prior to 1903 were considered exhibitions."
The question was intended to mean the modern post-1903 World Series. Since I didn't make that clear in the original post, everyone who sent in Holliday's name was entered in the drawing along with those who answered with McCullough.
A couple of other answers I received warrant an explanation. Some mentioned Chet Trail, a New York Yankees minor leaguer who was recalled in 1964 and placed on their World Series roster. However, Trail did not play in that World Series (and never at all in the big leagues), and the question clearly stated that I was looking for someone who actually appeared in a World Series.
Mark Kiger, an Oakland Athletics minor leaguer, appeared in two postseason games for the A's without ever playing a regular-season MLB game. However, Kiger's postseason experience was in the 2006 ALCS against the Tigers, and again, the question specifically asked for a player with World Series experience.
There were 19 correct answers entered into the drawing. I used a number generated by random.org to randomly select the winner.
Ben Roeschley is the winner. Ben, email me with your address and I'll get your prize sent to you. Thanks again to all who entered.
Once again, if you're interested in buying one of these, they're $35 each and are available at Elias Stein's online store. There's a special code you can use at checkout for $5 off: SBNATION.