BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

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On March 5 in Baseball History...

• • 1936 - The St. Louis Cardinals without the Dean brothers, who are once again holdouts visit Cuba and are beaten by the Cuban all-stars. Luis Tiant, Sr., whose son will win 229 ML games, is the starting pitcher for the Cubans.
    
  • 1964 - Atlanta Mayor Ivan Allen, Jr., says he has a verbal commitment from a major league baseball club to move there if a stadium is ready by 1965. Funding for a $15M stadium is approved the next day by the city Board of Aldermen.
    
  • 1966 - Player representatives elect Marvin Miller, assistant to the president of the United Steelworkers, as Executive Director of the Major League Players Association.
    
  • 1973 - Yankees teammates Fritz Peterson and Mike Kekich arrive at spring training and announce they have swapped their wives and families. Even the family dogs were traded.
    
  • 1982 - Needing just three wins to reach 300 for his career, Gaylord Perry signs a one-year contract with the Seattle Mariners.
    
  • 1996 - Fiery manager Earl Weaver, who had a .583 winning percentage in 17 seasons as manager of the Orioles, and Jim Bunning, who won 100 games and pitched no-hitters in both leagues, are elected into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee. Also chosen are turn-of-the-century manager Ned Hanlon and Negro Leagues pitcher Bill Foster.
    
    
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Baseball Birthdays on March 5...

• • 1860 - Thompson, Sam
  • 1882 - Robinson, Rabbit
  • 1888 - Northrop, Jake
  • 1889 - Tesreau, Jeff
  • 1891 - Alexander, Walt
  • 1896 - Hungling, Bernie
  • 1897 - Blue, Lu
  • 1897 - Pertica, Bill
  • 1897 - Barnes, Virgil "It's possible to get the ball to break several feet by pitching a roundhouse curve, but that wouldn't deceive any smart batter. It's the sudden, sharp dart to one side and down that fools the batter." - Virgil Barnes in Baseball Magazine (September 1926)
  • 1898 - Grevell, Bill
  • 1903 - Autry, Chick
  • 1904 - Rosenberg, Lou
  • 1911 - Browne, Earl
  • 1912 - Gleeson, Jim
  • 1912 - Errickson, Dick
  • 1915 - Bradford, Vic
  • 1915 - Shuman, Harry
  • 1915 - Ferens, Stan
  • 1919 - Savage, Don
  • 1921 - Valo, Elmer"The enthusiasm he showed for the game including climbing fences and crashing into outfield walls — made Elmer Valo a favorite in Philadelphia, where fans are notorious for demanding the best from their professional athletes." - Zbick, Jim. Staff Writer. Times News
  • 1924 - Garcia, Ramon
  • 1930 - Crandall, Del "I think the most complete catcher during my time in the league was Del Crandall. He was sound defensively. He could catch the bad pitch and block the plate. He didn't have a strong arm, but he made up for it with a quick release and accuracy." - John Roseboro in Glory Days with the Dodgers, and Other Days with Others (Roseboro, John. Atheneum Publishing.
  • 1936 - Davis, Jacke
  • 1938 - Elliot, Larry
  • 1941 - Roof, Phil
  • 1945 - Bakenhaster, Dave
  • 1946 - Rohr, Les
  • 1947 - Tekulve, Kent
  • 1950 - Bird, Doug
  • 1952 - Squires, Mike
  • 1955 - Burke, Steve
  • 1957 - Ujdur, Jerry
  • 1959 - Rincon, Andy
  • 1961 - Ontiveros, Steve
  • 1966 - Brown, Kevin
  • 1971 - Lesher, Brian
  • 1971 - Hammonds, Jeffrey
  • 1971 - Fonville, Chad
  • 1971 - Hunter, Brian
  • 1971 - Mercedes, Jose
  • 1973 - Franklin, Ryan
  • 1973 - Crespo, Felipe
  • 1976 - Konerko, Paul
  • 1977 - MacDougal, Mike

Copyright � 2001-2007. All Rights Reserved.
Part of the Baseball Almanac family: 755 Home Runs | Around the Horn | Baseball Box Scores | Baseball Fever | Today in Baseball History.​

 

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BIRTHDAYS
1900 Robert "Lefty" Grove, HOF pitcher (6 × MLB All-Star; World Series 1929, 30; AL MVP 1931; Triple Crown 1930, 31; Philadelphia A's, Boston Red Sox), born in Lonaconing, Maryland (d. 1975)


1915 Pete Gray [Wyshner], MLB one-armed outfielder (St Louis Browns), born in Nanticoke, Pennsylvania (d. 2002)


1933 Ted Abernathy (d. 2004)


1939 Cookie Rojas


(1940-2001 Willie Stargell Hall of Fame outfielder/1st baseman (7 x MLB All Star; World Series 1971, 79 [MVP]; Pittsburgh Pirates), born in Earlsboro, Oklahoma


1970 Scott Stahoviak, infielder (Minnesota Twins), born in Waukegan, Illinois


1971 Roger Salkeld, pitcher (Cincinnati Reds), born in Burbank, California


1973 Terry Adams, pitcher (Chicago Cubs), born in Mobile, Alabama

1977 Marcus Thames player

1979 Erik Bedard player

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FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1884 High winds tear off the grandstand roof of Manhattan's Southeast Diamond, but the one-year-old ballpark will be ready for the Gothams' National League home opener on May 1st. The team, renamed the Giants next season, will win their first dozen games at the repaired facility, located at 5th Avenue and 110th street, commonly referred to as the Polo Grounds because the sport of kings took place in the 1870s at the site.

1907 The courts formally acquit Phillies' owner A.J. Reach and John Rogers from damages resulting from the 1903 Baker Bowl disaster. A balcony had collapsed at the Broad Street and Lehigh Avenue ballpark, killing 12 and leaving 232 fans injured.

1923 The Cardinals announce that players will wear numbers on their uniforms' sleeves, with the digits corresponding to their place in the batting order. The Redbirds strongly disapproved of the concept implemented by St. Louis manager Branch Rickey, who acted on a suggestion from sportswriter John Sheridan.

1938 The Phillies trade first baseman Dolph Camilli to the Dodgers for utility player Eddie Morgan and $45,000. The heavy-hitting infielder will spend six seasons in Brooklyn, having his best year in 1941 when he wins the National League MVP after leading the circuit in home runs and RBIs.

DOLPH & JOE
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1945 In some of the fiercest fighting of World War II, Harry O'Neill is killed in the battle for Iwo Jima. In 1939, the fallen Marine played one game in the major leagues, appearing with the A's as a catcher.

1948 The Braves acquire All-Star second baseman Eddie Stanky from the Dodgers for Bama Rowell and $60,000. This season, the 32-year-old hard-nosed infielder, known as the Brat, will play a pivotal role in Boston's National League championship.

BAMA
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1951 Perennial loser Charlie Brown, who made his debut in Charles Schultz's Peanut comic strip last October, appears in his first baseball game. The team's pitcher and the manager usually fielded the following lineup first baseman - Shermy, second baseman - Linus, third baseman - Pig-pen, shortstop - Snoopy, right fielder - Lucy, center fielder -Patty, left fielder -Violet, and catcher - Schroeder.

 

1971 Joe Cronin, the AL president, defers to A's owner Charlie Finley's request to allow three balls, rather than four, to constitute a base on balls during an exhibition game against the Brewers. The experiment, designed to add offense and speed up the game, proves tedious for both teams when 19 walks are issued and six homers clear the fence during the 13-9 spring training victory for Oakland.

1973 In a spring training game against the Pirates, Larry Hisle becomes the first designated hitter in major league history. The contention that the new American League rule will add more offense to the game appears correct when the Twins' DH hits two homers and drives in seven runs.

1976 Before the return of natural grass is in place for Opening Day, approximately a thousand people show up at Comiskey Park to get a piece of the 18,000 square feet of artificial turf covering the infield that Bill Veeck made available to the fans. The new White Sox owner, sensing a lack of public interest during the work stoppage, decided to stage the promotion to spark interest in the upcoming season, reminding fans, "when you go to the ballpark, you are entitled to the smell of freshly cut grass."

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1987 Free agent Andre Dawson signs a blank contract to join the Cubs. The former player for the Expos will win the National League MVP, making him a bargain at $500,000, the amount Chicago decided to pay the All-Star outfieldeR

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2001 The dedication of two sculptures, located 60 feet, six inches apart, depicting Johnny Podres pitching to Roy Campanella during the seventh game of the 1955 World Series, takes place on the south lawn of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. The life-sized bronze statues, designed by figurative sculptor Stanley Bleifeld, were donated by an ardent Dodger fan Sheldon Fireman.

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2001 Bill Mazeroski, the 1960 World Series hero who compiled a .260 batting average during his 17 seasons with the Pirates, is elected into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee. The group, who met in closed sessions and cast multiple classified ballots, also selected six-time All-Star right-hander Hilton Smith, a pitching standout with the Kansas City Monarchs, often overshadowed by his teammate Satchel Paige.

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2005 Suzyn Waldman, making her debut with John Sterling on WCBS-AM (880), the Yankees radio flagship, becomes the first woman in big-league history to be a full-time color commentator. The former radio-talk host on WFAN, the first all-sports radio station in the country, was the first female to broadcast on a nationally telecast baseball game and the first local TV (Yankees) major league play-by-play announcer.

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2020 Twenty-eight-year-old outfielder Chris Yelich signs the most extended and richest deal in Brewers' history, agreeing to a seven-year, $187.25 million contract extension. The agreement most likely keeps the 2018 National League Most Valuable Player, who won the National League's batting title last two seasons in Milwaukee for the remainder of his career.

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Today in Baseball History
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Search archives: Historical Events Baseball Birthdays Baseball Deaths
On March 6 in Baseball History...

• • 1906 - Rookie owner Charles W. Murphy puts the last pieces of a Cubs dynasty in place, trading rookie infielder Hans Lobert and lefthander Jake Weimer to the Cincinnati Reds for third baseman Harry Steinfeldt. Not a heavy hitter, Steinfeldt completes the Tinker-Evers-Chance infield with more than adequate defense.
    
  • 1922 - Babe Ruth signs for three years at $52,000 a year. The next-highest-paid New York player is Frank Home Run Baker at $16,000.
    
  • 1923 - The Cardinals announce that their players will wear numerals on their uniforms. The numerals will be assigned according to the batting order.
    
  • 1962 - St. Louis voters approve a bond issue that will fund the improvements necessary to build a new downtown stadium for the Cardinals.
    
  • 1973 - In an exhibition game against the Pirates, Larry Hisle of the Twins becomes the first designated hitter in major league history. Hisle makes the new A.L. rule look good by collecting two home runs and driving in seven runs.
    
  • 1985 - The Special Veterans Committee elects Enos Slaughter and Arky Vaughan to the Hall of Fame. Slaughter batted .300 over 19 seasons. His base running skills were legendary, despite just 71 career steals. Vaughan batted .300 or better 12 times in 14 seasons, including 1935, when he led the N.L. in batting average, slugging, and on-base percentage with the Pirates.
    
  • 1987 - Free agent Andre Dawson signs a one-year contract with the Cubs for the bargain-basement price of $650,000. Dawson had offered to sign a contract with the dollar amount left blank just so he could play on the natural grass at Wrigley Field and save his fragile knees. He will hit 49 home runs, lead the majors in RBIs, and win the 1987 N.L. MVP Award.

Baseball Birthdays on March 6...

• • 1863 - Coleman, John
  • 1869 - Mauck, Hal
  • 1871 - Gatins, Frank
  • 1878 - McMakin, John
  • 1878 - Husting, Bert
  • 1886 - Sweeney, Bill
  • 1891 - Fletcher, Frank
  • 1891 - Garrett, Clarence
  • 1892 - Mohart, George
  • 1892 - Davies, Chick
  • 1897 - Brady, Cliff
  • 1898 - Hansen, Roy
  • 1900 - Grove, Lefty "He (Lefty Grove) didn't have a curve. All he had was a fastball. Everybody knew what they were going to hit at, but they still couldn't hit him. He was fabulous." - Doc Cramer
  • 1915 - Swift, Bob
  • 1915 - Gray, Pete "If they (his teammates) insulted me, I didn't pay attention. I mostly kept to myself. That's why I got the reputation of being tough to get along with. But, I've mellowed." - Pete Gray in The Citizens' Voice (1995
  • 1917 - Cress, Walker
  • 1924 - Mierkowicz, Ed
  • 1924 - Podbielan, Bud
  • 1933 - Abernathy, Ted "With the unique underhand motion, (Ted) Abernathy's curveball rises and his fastball sinks. He's almost impossible to hit when you only get one shot at him. You see the overhand stuff all the time, then this guy comes in there throwing the ball from out of the ground." - 1971 Kansas City Royals Yearboo
  • 1939 - Rojas, Cookie
  • 1940 - Stargell, Willie "Sometimes I hit him (Steve Carlton) like I used to hit (Sandy) Koufax, and that's like drinking coffee with a fork. Did you every try that?" - Willie Stargell in Baseball Illustrated (11th Edition, 1975) [Willie Stargell Quotes]
  • 1952 - Rodriguez, Eduardo
  • 1953 - Hannahs, Gerry
  • 1959 - Best, Karl
  • 1960 - Behenna, Rick
  • 1966 - Telford, Anthony
  • 1966 - Hall, Joe
  • 1970 - Stahoviak, Scott
  • 1971 - Salkeld, Roger
  • 1973 - Adams, Terry
  • 1973 - Duran, Roberto
  • 1974 - Alvarez, Gabe
  • 1974 - Lofton, James
  • 1975 - Ramos, Edgar

Copyright � 2001-2007. All Rights Reserved.
Part of the Baseball Almanac family: 755 Home Runs | Around the Horn | Baseball Box Scores | Baseball Fever | Today in Baseball History.​

 

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