By Rene Torres
Did you know that one of Mexican general Santa Anna’s artificial legs was used as a baseball bat? He had two: one that was elaborately constructed, and another, a simple peg leg.
The tale goes that while the Mexican army was engaged in battle against the United States in 1847, his artificial leg disappeared.
As the story goes, while the action was at a distance, the commander took a break to enjoy a chicken lunch. Before he could take his last bite though, he and his troops were surprised by a group of Illinois soldiers.
He hated to forsake his roasted bird, but in his eagerness to escape, he left the chicken behind, along with his artificial leg.
The soldiers took possession of the trophy along with the second leg which was found later and eventually made its way to the sandlot and was used as a bat.
The story goes that Abner Doubleday, who was attached to Zackery Taylor’s army, was there to witness the event. After the Mexican War, Doubleday, who was given credit for inventing baseball, served as a quartermaster officer for three months at Brownsville’s Fort Brown.
Texas has tried to recover what the state deems rightfully belonging to the state, but to no avail. Even the roasted chicken is long gone. The Illinois boys had a feast on that day.
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