On this day in 1939, the New York Knights, who had started the Major League Baseball season in last place, completed a historic comeback by beating the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 on a two-run homer by outfielder Roy Hobbs to win the National League pennant.

Twelve years later, Hobbs would play a critical role in another famous comeback drive as third base coach for the Leo Durocher-managed Giants team that overtook the Brooklyn Dodgers for the National League championship.

On this day in 1948, newly hired Giants manager Leo Durocher wrote to former New York Knights outfielder Roy Hobbs offering him the job of Giants third base coach.      

On this day in 1948, the New York Giants officially introduced Roy Hobbs as their third base coach.

On this day in 1951, the New York Giants beat the Brooklyn Dodgers 5-4 to cap off a historic late-season comeback drive and win the National League pennant. The Giants' win came on a one-out ninth inning home run by infielder Bobby Thomson; Thomson in turn credited the homer to batting tips he'd learned from his third base coach, former Knights outfielder Roy "The Natural" Hobbs.

On this day in 1954, Giants outfielder Willie Mays made what may have been the greatest catch of his career, grabbing a fly ball over his shoulder to rob Cleveland Indians slugger Vic Wertz of what otherwise would have been a sure home run in the first game of the 1954 World Series.

That catch paved the way for a four-game New York sweep of Cleveland and cemented the reputation of Giants third base coach and former Knights outfielder Roy Hobbs as an outstanding finder of and mentor to up-and-coming talent.

When Hobbs finally retired from his coaching position at the end of the 1965 baseball season, Mays organized the farewell party for "The Natural"; Mays also gave the induction speech at Hobbs' posthumous admission to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989.

On this day in 1965, San Francisco Giants players and managerial staff held a going-away party at the city's largest hotel for retiring third base coach Roy "The Natural" Hobbs.

On this day in 1976, former New York Knights outfielder and San Francisco Giants third base coach Roy "The Natural" Hobbs died of heart failure at the age of 79.