ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, May 8, 1996 TAG: 9605080031
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NEW YORK
SOURCE: Associated Press
CHESTER "RED" HOFF celebrates his 105th birthday today and his status as the oldest of more than 14,000 former major-league players.
When Red Hoff began playing for the New York Yankees, they weren't even the Yankees.
That was 1911. Babe Ruth was a mere teen-ager, Fenway Park hadn't been built, Cy Young was still pitching.
``We were the Highlanders back then, that's true,'' Hoff recalled by telephone Tuesday. ``We played up on a hill in those days.''
Hoff, who played bits of four seasons, knows his baseball history. Already the oldest of the 14,000-plus big leaguers ever, the only surviving member of the Highlanders turns 105 today.
``I guess the good Lord is with me,'' he said. ``No doubt, I've been around a long time.''
Though his eyes and ears aren't quite what they used to be, Hoff climbs one flight of stairs three times a day at the retirement home where he lives in Daytona Beach, Fla.
One of only eight major leaguers to make it to 100, he manages to follow the game he loves on radio.
``Yes, I do keep up with baseball. Today's game is a great game,'' he said. ``Of course, it's different than in my day. There's the lively ball and they play at night. I never played at night.
``But, they don't have stars like they did when I played. There's no one like Cobb. Ty Cobb was the greatest ballplayer I ever saw. He could do everything,'' he said. ``He was better than Ruth, if you ask me. He was a real All-Star.''
Never mind that baseball didn't have an All-Star game until two decades later.
Chester ``Red'' Hoff was born in Ossining, N.Y., in 1891, and was 20 when he broke into the majors with the Highlanders. Cobb, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Honus Wagner and Home Run Baker were the top hitters and Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Smoky Joe Wood and Grover Cleveland Alexander were the best pitchers in the majors that season.
That, by the way, was a year before the Titanic sank.
The Highlanders first played at Hilltop Park in Manhattan, but then moved to the Polo Grounds and changed their nickname to the Yankees in 1913. In 1923, they moved into Yankee Stadium.
``I remember when they changed the name,'' he said. ``That was the year we had to find a new place to play.''
Hoff pitched a total of 23 games in the majors, going 2-4 with a 2.49 ERA. He was 0-1 for the Highlanders in both 1911 and 1912, and had no record in two games for the Yankees in 1913.
He was out of the majors in 1914. He returned in 1915, going 2-2 in 11 games for the St. Louis Browns, managed by Branch Rickey.
Hoff moved from Ormond Beach, Fla., to Daytona Beach about 11 years ago. These days, he can sometimes be found outside the retirement home, listening to the ballgames.
``I'm feeling pretty good, I guess,'' he said. ``They're having a big birthday party for me tomorrow. I'm the oldest living player, you know.''
LENGTH: Medium: 64 linesby CNB