Willie Stargell windmills his bat before blasting a three-run HR in the top of the 11th to give the Pittsburgh #Pirates a 5-2 lead over the Cincinnati Reds in Game 1 of the '79 NLCS
3/8/25 BASEBALL BIRTHDAYS 1922 Carl Furillo outfielder (NL Batting Champ 1953; MLB All-Star 1952, 53; World Series 1955, 59; Brooklyn/LA Dodgers), born in Stony Creek Mills, Pennsylvania (d. 1989) 1930 Bob Grim pitcher 1934 Marv Breeding 1939 Jim Bouton Pitcher, 1962-70 and 1978 (New York Yankees and 3 other teams; All-Star, 1969), author ("Ball Four"), and broadcaster 1942 Dick Allen infielder (7 × MLB All-Star; NL Rookie of the Year 1964, Philadelphia Phillies; AL MVP 1972, Chicago White Sox) ***********
This Day in Baseball History March 8th1900 The National League decides to downsize to eight teams for the upcoming season by eliminating the circuit's franchises in Baltimore, Cleveland, Louisville, and Washington. The remaining eight cities will stay the same for more than half a century until the Braves leave Boston, moving to Milwaukee in 1953. 1913 John Powers, the founder of last year's failed mid-western Columbian League, organizes the Federal League in Indianapolis. The upstart league will operate independently with franchises in Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis, avoiding agreement with the National Commission.
1923 Commissioner Landis allows pitcher Rube Benton to return to the major leagues despite the left-hander admitting to having prior knowledge of the 1919 World Series fix. The 32-year-old southpaw, who spent 6+ seasons with the Giants before sitting out the 1922 campaign, returns to the Reds for three years, compiling a 30-29 record during his second tour with the team. 1930 Babe Ruth inks a two-year deal for $160,000 with the Yankees, keeping him the highest-paid player of all time. The team's general manager Ed Barrow predicts at the time that "No one will ever be paid more." 1941 Phillies right-hander Hugh Mulcahy becomes the first major league player drafted into the Armed Forces, joining the 101st Artillery at Cape Cod's Camp Edwards. The 27-year-old, known as 'Losing Pitcher,' lost 22 games last season and 20 in 1938 to lead the National League in defeats both years. 1946 Tucson's Hi Corbett Field hosts Arizona's first spring training game. The Indians, behind the pitching of Bob Lemon, beat the Giants, 3-1, in the inaugural Cactus League contest. 1947 In front of 5,000 fans at Havana's new Gran Estadio de La Habana, the Yankees lose to the Dodgers in extra innings, 1-0, with Snuffy Stirnweiss's tenth-inning single accounting for the Bronx Bombers' only hit. Pete Reiser's long double on a 3-2 pitch off Spec Shea scores Carl Furillo, giving Brooklyn the walk-off victory in Cuba.
1966 In a pregame ceremony before an intrasquad contest in St. Petersburg in a pregame ceremony, the Mets announce the election of their former manager Casey Stengel to the Hall of Fame. The 75-year-old 'Old Perfessor' benefitted from a new rule by the Baseball Writers Committee on Veterans that makes any manager, umpire, or executive 65 or older eligible for induction six months after retiring, bypassing the traditional five-year wait rule for players. 1985 Dave Stieb agrees to a $25 million, 11-year deal with the Blue Jays, the richest in baseball history. Although considered lucrative at the time, Toronto, in recognition of his years of service to the team, will voluntarily increase the value of the last three seasons of the contract, considering that some players will make several times the money annually than their right-hander. 2001 In a press release, the Orioles announce Albert Belle "has been found to be disabled and unable to perform as a Major League baseball player," due to a degenerative right hip. The Orioles will place the 34-year-old outfielder on the 60-day disabled list, thus beginning the process which conforms to the procedure set forth by Major League Baseball in the case of a disabling and permanent injury to a player. 2006 A Canadian team comprised mostly of minor leaguers stuns the baseball world by beating a highly-favored Team USA in the first round of the WBC, 8-6. Thanks to Adam Stern's inside-the-park homer, four RBIs, and a pair of sensational catches, along with southpaw Adam Loewen, who keeps the American all-stars scoreless for 3.2 innings, the Canadians post their most significant victory in its national history of baseball. 2008 In hopes of a more lucrative deal in the future, Ryan Zimmerman inks a new one-year contract to play infield with the Nationals. After the third baseman homers and drives in four runs during a 12-10 split-squad victory over the Astros, he agrees to a $465,000 deal, slightly improving his present salary. 2011 The MLB names Kim Ng their Senior Vice-President of baseball operations, making her the highest-ranking woman in the major leagues. The Dodger Assistant General Manager, a post she held since 2001, will report to Joe Torre, who managed in LA during the last three years of her tenure. 2013 Allen Craig (.307, 22, 92) and the Cardinals agree to a five-year, $31 million contract extension valued at $43 million over six seasons. The 28-year-old first baseman played a vital role in the 2011 St. Louis World Championship, contributing three go-ahead RBIs, including a clutch eighth-inning line drive in Game 6 that sparked the start of an unforgettable rally for the Redbirds. 2016 A meeting today (3/08) at 3:08 p.m at Clemens Field, with a .308 gate and a 308 right-field foul pole, a .309 suite, and a monument depicting a .309 batting average, will help solve a mystery surrounding a not-so-well-known resident, former National League first baseman Jake Beckley. The purpose of the gathering is to decide which number to use in commemorating the Hall of Fame infielder's batting average, .308 as listed by Baseball-Reference.com and many other resources, or the .309, engraved on his plaque at Cooperstown. 2017 "When Moses Fleetwood Walker walked onto a field in Toledo, he did more than play a game. He was more than just an athlete. He did more than throw, catch, or hit. That day and every day he played, he started a conversation." - CRAIG BROWN, an adjunct professor at Kent State University. By a vote of 93-1, the Ohio House passes Bill 59, setting aside October 7 each year in honor of Moses Fleetwood Walker, the first-openly African American to play under contract in the major leagues. In 1884, the bare-handed backstop caught for the American Association's Toledo Blue Stockings until a rib injury and the team's excessive payroll led to his release late in the season. ************************************************ 174,299
Today In 1939: New York #Yankees outfielder Joe DiMaggio makes a running catch during #SpringTraining in Florida!
3/9 BASEBALL BIRTHDAYS 1893 Billy Southworth HOF manager (World Series 1942, 44 St. Louis Cardinals; Boston Braves) and outfielder (World Series 1926 NY Giants), born in Harvard, Nebraska (d. 1969) 1912 Arky Vaughan HOF shortstop (9 × MLB All-Star; NL batting champion 1935; NL stolen base leader 1943; Pittsburgh Pirates, Brooklyn Dodgers), born in Clifty, Arkansas (d. 1952) 1927 Jackie Jensen (AL MVP 1958), born in San Francisco, California (d. 1982) 1934 Jim Landis outfielder, 1957-67, 5X Gold Glove, 2X All-Star (Chicago White Sox, and 5 other teams), born in Fresno, California (d. 2017) 1942 Bert Campaneris (Oakland A's), born in Pueblo Nuevo, Cuba 1963 Terry Mulholland pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies), born in Uniontown, Pennsylvania 1965 Benito Santiago player (Philadelphia Phillies), born in Ponce, Puerto Rico 1981 Clay Rapada born in Chesapeake, Virginia *******************************************
FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+ 1897 The Cleveland Spiders sign Penobscot Indian Louis Sockalexis. Although the former Holy Cross star plays only three seasons due to alcoholism, the fans admire his outstanding skills and refer to the team as the 'Indians'- in 1915, the name will become official. 1922 Rogers Hornsby, coveted by John McGraw of the Giants, signs a three-year contract with Cardinals' owner Sam Breadon. The 25-year-old second baseman, who will hit .404 over the three years of the deal, agrees to $18,500 per season, making him the highest-paid player in National League history. 1943 The Dodgers trade first baseman Babe Dahlgren to the Phillies for outfielder Lloyd Waner and infielder Al Glossop. Philadelphia's new 31-year-old infielder will enjoy an all-star season during his only year in the City of Brotherly Love, hitting a solid .287 for the seventh-place team. 1948 "Golf is a game of coordination, rhythm, and grace; women have these to a high degree." - BABE DIDRIKSON ZAHARIAS, commenting on women's ability to play golf. Ted Williams accepts Babe Didrikson Zaharias's challenge to compete in a driving contest at a local range. The former Olympic track star, turned golf champion, playfully teases the Red Sox superstar, giving him pointers when the 'Kid' slices most of his drives as her shots go straight, and usually, longer. 1960 The police find Arnold Johnson en route to his Palm Beach home after watching his A's play a spring training intrasquad game semi-conscious and slumped behind the wheel of his car. The 53-year-old club owner will die early tomorrow morning due to a cerebral hemorrhage. 1961 The Yankees announce the team will be leaving its spring training home in St. Petersburg to move to Fort Lauderdale by 1963. The Yankee owners also encourage the new yet unnamed National League New York franchise to play its home games at the Polo Grounds and not consider Yankee Stadium. 1963 Songwriters Ruth Roberts and Bill Katz introduced the official Met theme song, Meet the Mets, to the public. The tune will be modernized in 1984, adding Long Island, New Jersey, Brooklyn, Queens, Uptown and Down, to the team's East Side, West Side geographical realm. 1979 Fearing legal consequences, Bowie Kuhn gives female reporters access to major league locker rooms. The commissioner's unpopular ruling puts the players in an awkward position in their once-all-male domain. 1994 After being hit in the groin by an errant pickoff throw from teammate Mitch Williams that breaks his protective cup, John Kruk will be diagnosed with testicular cancer. The Phillies' first baseman/outfielder will make a full recovery after surgery. 1995 At a meeting in West Palm Beach (FL), the major league owners vote unanimously, 28-0, to add their 13th and 14th expansion teams, officially granting franchises to Phoenix and Tampa Bay. The new cities, selected over municipalities that included bids from Orlando and two by groups from Washington, DC, will be assigned leagues in January of 1997. 1995 Tampa Bay's new expansion team will be known as the Devil Rays, a name that will prove unpopular due to its un-Christian reference after being selected from more than 7,000 entries submitted by the public. The club's owner Vince Naimoli preferred his team be called the Sting Rays, but he refused to pay the $35,000 needed to buy the trademark from a club in the Hawaiian Winter League, which owned the nickname's rights. 2005 Current and former big-league players and baseball executives are issued subpoenas to appear on March 17 by the House Committee on Government Reform. The eleven 'invitees' to the congressional hearing on steroid use include Sandy Alderson, Jose Canseco, Donald Fehr, Jason Giambi, Rob Manfred, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Curt Schilling, Sammy Sosa, Frank Thomas, and Kevin Towers. 2005 Nikko Smith, Ozzie's son who made it to the third round of the American Idol semi-finals, is voted off the popular reality show. Days later, the young entertainer will be asked back by the producers to replace contestant Mario Vazquez, prompting judge Paula Abdul to call him "The Comeback Kid" after his performance of West Side Story's "One Hand, One Heart." 2006 At Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, a "Down with Fidel" sign, seen by millions of television viewers, including those watching the WBC contest in Cuba, creates an international incident. A Cuban official attending the game confronts the sign-holder, with local police quickly intercede, taking Angel Iglesias to a nearby police station, where authorities remind the vice president of Cuba's National Institute of Sports that Puerto Ricans enjoy the right to freedom of speech. 2009 Alex Rodriguez undergoes an 80-minute arthroscopic surgical procedure to repair torn cartilage in his right hip. The Yankee's third baseman, who will need a more extensive operation in the offseason, expects to return to the lineup in May. 2010 Amidst much hoopla, former San Diego State right-hander Stephen Strasburg throws two scoreless innings against Detroit in his much anticipated first exhibition start for the Nationals this spring. The recipient of the Golden Spikes Award as the best amateur baseball player in the nation was selected as the number one overall pick in last year's draft, signing a record $15.1 million, four-year deal with Washington. 2011 A helicopter airlifts Luis Salazar from just outside Champion Stadium in Kissimmee (FL) to Orlando Regional Medical Center after being struck in the face by a line drive pulled into the dugout by Brian McCann in the first inning of a Braves exhibition game. The 54-year-old minor league manager sustains a concussion and will lose his left eye due to the injury.
2014 BARRY BONDS returns to the Giants as a special spring training instructor for the young Giants' hitters, a role the organization believes will benefit the club for years to come. The much-maligned former superstar, who played in his last major league game in 2007, has a ten-year personal services contract with San Francisco, which has yet to commence. Kris Bryant (.292, 39, 102), who made $652K in his rookie year, becomes the highest-paid second-year player when he comes to terms with the World Champion Cubs on a contract reportedly worth $1.05 million. The Chicago third baseman’s deal surpasses the previous record major league record of one million dollars, given to sophomore outfielder Mike Trout in 2014 by the Angels.
2017 "Major League Baseball’s greatest responsibility is to ensure that today’s youth become active participants in our game as players and fans. The ‘MLB Little League Classic’ exemplifies our entire sport’s commitment to building a stronger connection between young people and the National Pastime" - ROB MANFRED, Commissioner of Baseball. Major League Baseball announces Williamsport's BB&T Ballpark, the second-oldest minor league ballpark in the United States, formerly known as Bowman Field when it opened in 1926, will host the first "MLB Little League Classic." The regular-season game between the Cardinals and Pirates on August 20, originally scheduled to be played at PNC Park, will occur in conjunction with the Little League World Series that will be taking place in nearby Howard J. Lamade Stadium. *********************************
