Before there was Mike “Spanky” LaValliere, there was Mike “Spanky” Squires.
Born in Kalamazoo, Mich., Squires was born on March 5, 1952. The White Sox selected him in the 18th round in 1973 out of Western Michigan University.
Squires made his way to the majors, earning Southern League MVP honors in 1975 for the Knoxville Sox, hitting .304 with a .393 on-base percentage. He went 2-for-3 in his MLB debut (with a run and a walk) on Sept. 1, 1975 (in Game 2 of a doubleheader against the Royals). He had 15 hits (all singles) in a 20-game trial to close out the season.