Before he becomes a doctor

Moonlight Graham (Tom Forget illustration)

If he were still with us, short-time outfielder Archibald Graham would be celebrating his 148th birthday today.

Graham – better known by his nickname “Moonlight” – is immortalized first in W.P. Kinsella's 1979 novel Shoeless Joe Jackson Comes to Iowa and then again by actor Burt Lancaster in the 1989 movie Field of Dreams.

Dr. Graham at work

Graham appears in only one major league game – and never comes to bat – for the New York Giants on June 29, 1905 at Brooklyn's Washington Park.

Graham, 27 at the time of his debut, enters the game to play right field in the bottom of the eighth inning and is on-deck in the top of the ninth.

Alas, he never has a chance to hit as Claude Elliott flies out to end the inning.

Graham returns to the field for another half-inning as the Giants complete their 11-1 victory before drifting back to the minors for a couple of more seasons in Memphis and Scranton.

Then, just as the movie depicts, Graham moves to Chisholm, Minnesota, and becomes a beloved pediatrician there.

Graham, a native of Fayetteville, N.C., remains in Chisholm until passing away in 1965 at the age of 87.

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