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On April 14 in Baseball History...

• • 1910 - William Howard Taft becomes the first president to throw out the first ball at a baseball opener in Washington. Walter Johnson catches it, then pitches the first of his 14 Opening Day games. An easy fly hit into the overflow crowd becomes a ground-rule double, marring a 3-0 Big Train pitching gem.
    
  • 1915 - The Athletics' Herb Pennock comes within one out of pitching the first Opening Day no-hitter. A scratch single by Harry Hooper is the only Red Sox hit in a 5-0 loss.
    
  • 1917 - Eddie Cicotte of the Chicago White Sox pitched an 11-0 no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns.
    
  • 1925 - In the first regular-season Cubs game to be broadcast on the radio, Quin Ryan announces the contest from the grandstand roof for WGN. Grover Alexander wins for the Cubs 8-2 over the Pirates and adds a single, double, and home run.
    
  • 1925 - The Cleveland Indians opened the season with a 21-14 victory over the St. Louis Browns, the most runs scored by one team on opening day. The Indians scored 12 runs in the eighth inning when the Browns made five errors, four of them by first baseman George Sisler.
    
  • 1925 - Two future Hall of Famers make their major league debuts for the A's in the same game. Lefty Grove starts against Boston and leaves in the fourth after walking four and striking out nobody. He gives up five runs on six hits. In the eighth, Mickey Cochrane pinch-hits for catcher Cy Perkins, singles, and stays in behind the plate while the A's go on to score nine runs in the last four innings to win 9-8 in ten innings. Grove, known as Groves in Baltimore, is also listed that way in the New York Times box score. Grove will become the first pitcher to lead the A.L. in strikeouts and walks in the same year.
    
  • 1946 - Manager Mel Ott of the Giants hits his 511th and final home run on Opening Day, an 8-4 home victory over the Phillies. The next day Ott will injure his knee diving for a ball and play only occasionally thereafter.
    
  • 1955 - Elston Howard becomes the first black to wear a Yankees uniform. He singles in his first at-bat, against the Red Sox, as the Yanks win 8-4.
    
  • 1964 - Sandy Koufax throws his ninth complete game without allowing a walk as he beats St. Louis 4-0 in his only start as an Opening Day pitcher.
    
  • 1967 - Red Sox rookie Billy Rohr debuts at Yankee Stadium. He startles everyone by taking a no-hitter to the ninth inning, but Elston Howard lines a 3-2 pitch for a single to right-center with two outs. Carl Yastrzemski had kept the no-hitter alive with a spectacular grab of a Tom Tresh drive to deep left field to open the ninth. Rohr wins the game 3-0, but he will pitch only once more for Boston before returning to the minors.
    
  • 1968 - Jim Bunning's first win with Pittsburgh, 3-0 at Los Angeles, is his 40th career shutout and includes his 1,000th N.L. strikeout, making him the first pitcher since Cy Young with 1,000 in each league.
    
  • 1969 - The first major league game outside the United States was played in Montreal's Jarry Park with the Expos defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 8-7.
    
  • 1990 - Bret Saberhagen gets the win and Mark Davis earns the save as Kansas City beats Toronto 3-1. It is the first time ever that two reigning Cy Young Award winners have figured in the same victory.
    
  • 1991 - Nolan Ryan becomes the 12th pitcher to surpass 5,000 innings pitched and gets plenty of hitting help as Texas whips Baltimore 15-3.
    
  • 1993 - The first-ever Australian battery comes from Milwaukee. Left-hander Graeme Lloyd and backstop Dave Nilsson, who make up half of the total number of Australian players to ever make the major leagues, make history in the Brewers' 12-2 loss to the Angels.
    
  • 1998 - Mark McGwire hits three home runs, breaking an eight-game homerless drought, as the Cardinals rout the Arizona Diamondbacks 15-5. After tying Willie Mays' major league record by homering in the first four games of the season, McGwire had not homered since April 4.
    

Baseball Birthdays on April 14...

• • 1863 - Nicholson, Parson
  • 1867 - Cotter, Dan
  • 1870 - Niland, Tom
  • 1880 - Merritt, George
  • 1881 - Bracken, Jack
  • 1882 - Barthold, John
  • 1884 - Luhrsen, Wild Bill
  • 1886 - Young, Herman
  • 1898 - Doyle, Jess
  • 1913 - Radtke, Jack
  • 1916 - Hutchings, Johnny
  • 1916 - Lynn, Jerry
  • 1927 - Mueller, Don
  • 1928 - Adams, Herb
  • 1931 - Segrist, Kal
  • 1931 - Minnick, Don
  • 1935 - Keough, Marty
  • 1935 - Hayden, Lefty
  • 1941 - Rose, Pete
  • 1941 - Cipriani, Frank
  • 1944 - Bertaina, Frank
  • 1947 - Lahoud, Joe
  • 1953 - Bomback, Mark
  • 1954 - Mitchell, Craig
  • 1954 - Parsons, Casey
  • 1955 - Welsh, Chris
  • 1956 - Sprowl, Bobby
  • 1960 - Hodgson, Paul
  • 1961 - Aldrich, Jay
  • 1966 - Myers, Greg
  • 1966 - Justice, David
  • 1966 - Maddux, Greg
  • 1967 - Trombley, Mike
  • 1968 - Levis, Jesse
  • 1969 - Pennington, Brad
  • 1969 - Ausmus, Brad
  • 1970 - Avery, Steve
  • 1971 - Perez, Carlos
  • 1971 - Zaun, Gregg
  • 1972 - Mejia, Roberto
  • 1976 - Hoover, Paul
  • 1976 - Farnsworth, Kyle

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.​

 

4/15
BIRTHDAYS

(1940-2010) Willie Davis center fielder (LA Dodgers), born in Mineral Springs, Arkansas


1945 Ted Sizemore infielder, 1969-80, Rookie of the Year (Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, and 3 other teams), born in Gadsden, Alabama


1968 Billy Brewer pitcher, 1993-99 (NY Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, and 2 other teams), born in Fort Worth, Texas


1969 Jeromy Burnitz outfielder (MLB All Star 1999; Milwaukee Brewers), born in Westminster, California


1978 Milton Bradley


1978 Tim Corcoran


1982 Michael Aubrey Cleveland Indians, Baltimore Orioles), born in Shreveport, Louisiana
1985 Aaron Laffey
1985 John Danks

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FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1876 The Alleghenys bring professional baseball to Allegheny, a municipality that will be annexed into Pittsburgh in 1907, when they defeat the Xanthas at Union Park, 7-3. In February, the team, losing its bid to become part of the newly established National League, plays as an independent club this year before joining the minor league International Association next season, competing in the circuit for two campaigns until it disbands in 1878.

1909 On Opening Day, 26-year-old Giants starter Red Ames keep the Superbas hitless until one out in the 10th inning when second baseman Whitey Alpermann doubles to left-center. The Polo Grounds contest, featuring Brooklyn's Kaiser Wilhelm tossing a complete game, goes thirteen frames, with the New York right-hander dropping a 3-0 decision to start the season.

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1911 At the age of 24, Grover Cleveland Alexander makes his major league debut, losing a 5-4 decision to the Rustlers on an unearned run in the tenth inning at Boston's South End Grounds. The Phillies rookie, who will become known as 'Old Pete,' will post a 28-13 (.683) record, including seven shutouts and 31 complete games.

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1915 After being called the Naps since 1903, Cleveland's American League ballclub plays its first game known as the Indians, a moniker selected from a contest to re-name the team run by a local newspaper. The franchise's former name, which honored their once-popular player-manager Nap Lajoie, needed to be changed when the 40-year-old second baseman was sold back to A's after feuding with the team's current skipper, Joe Birmingham.

1915 In his first start of the season, the Giants' southpaw Rube Marquand no-hits the Brooklyn Robins, the team that will select him off waivers at the end of August. In his 2-0 complete-game victory, the 28-year-old faces 30 batters, striking out two and walking two in the 85-minute contest at the Polo Grounds.

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1921 At Redland Field, Pirates' right-hander Chief Yellow Horse makes his major league debut against the Reds. The Pittsburgh hurler, a member of a North American Plains Indian tribe called the Pawnees, is believed by many baseball historians to be the first full-blooded American Indian to play in the big leagues.

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1930 On Opening Day, Phillies' southpaw Les Sweetland throws a three-hitter at Ebbets Field. The 28-year-old southpaw doubles and scores the lone run in the eighth inning of his 1-0 complete-game victory over Brooklyn.

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1933 In his major league debut, Tigers rookie Schoolboy Rowe tosses a six-hitter, blanking the White Sox, 3-0. During his 15-year career, also playing with the Dodgers and Phillies, Lynwood will compile a 158-101 record, posting an ERA of 3.87.

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1942 At Sportsman's Park in St. Louis, Hiram 'Hi' Bithorn becomes the first Puerto Rican to play major league baseball. The Cubs' right-hander from Santurce makes a relief appearance, allowing no runs or hits during his two innings of work in Chicago's 4-2 loss to the Redbirds.

1947 A year before President Truman desegregated the military, Jackie Robinson debuts for the Dodgers, becoming the first black player to participate in a major league game this century. In front of 25,623 Ebbets Field fans, the 28-year-old first baseman is hitless in three at-bats but scores a run in the 5-3 Opening Day victory over the Braves.

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1947 In his National League debut, Hank Greenberg has the lone RBI in the Pirates' 1-0 win when his sixth-inning double off Cubs right-hander Hank Borowy plates Billy Cox from second base in the Forbes Field contest. Pittsburgh bought the slugging first baseman from the Tigers in the off-season for $75,000.

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1954 In front of 46,354 fans, big-league baseball returns to Baltimore after a 51-year absence when the Orioles beat Chicago in the first game played in Memorial Stadium, 3-1. A Baltimore ownership group, including Clarence Mills, Jim Keelty, Jerry Hoffberger, and Zanvyl Krieger, bought the former St. Louis Browns and brought the franchise to the Charm City.

1957 Before the Senators' 7-6 loss to Baltimore in 11 innings at Griffith Stadium, President Dwight Eisenhower throws the traditional ceremonial first pitch of the season. The horsehide Ike tosses is billed as the 10th millionth Spalding baseball used in a major league game.

1958 On Opening Day, the transplanted New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers play the first major league game on the West Coast. The California contest sees Ruben Gomez blanking Los Angeles and Don Drysdale at San Francisco's Seals Stadium, 8-0.

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1959 Cardinal right-hander Bob Gibson makes his major league debut at LA Memorial Coliseum, tossing the final two innings in a 5-0 loss to the Dodgers. The 23-year-old rookie becomes the first future Hall of Fame hurler to give up a home run to the first batter he faces in the major leagues when third baseman Jim Baxes takes him deep in the seventh inning.

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1962 With the Mets ahead 2-0 in the fifth game of their winless existence, snow begins to fall bottom of the fourth at the Polo Grounds. The umps call the game in the next frame before the Pirates complete their needed at-bats to make it an official contest, thus prolonging the expansion team's losing streak, eventually dropping their first nine decisions.

1967 At the age of 18, Gary Nolan makes his major league debut, striking out the side in the first frame en route to his first career victory when the Reds beat Houston at Crosley Field, 7-3. The hard-throwing teenager, who will give up six hits and three runs in 6.1 innings in his first outing, will be the runner-up to Tom Seaver and Dick Hughes for the Rookie of the Year honors this season.

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1968 The Astros defeat the Mets in 24 innings, 1-0, making it the longest scoreless game in major league history. The six-hour and six-minute contest, where each team had 79 at-bats and 11 hits, ends when Bob Aspromonte's grounder goes through the legs of shortstop Al Weis, scoring Norm Miller from third base with one out.

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1972 On Opening Day in Oakland, A's outfielder Reggie Jackson becomes the first player in fifty-eight years to wear a mustache during the regular season. The last time facial hair appeared in a major league game was in 1914 when Wally Schang had hair above his lip catching for Philadelphia Athletics.

1976 In the debut of the 'new' Yankee Stadium, 52,613 fans watch the Bronx Bombers shell Minnesota on Opening Day, 11-4. Bob Shawkey, the winner of the 1923 Stadium opener, throws out the ceremonial first pitch in the ballpark that has been completely rebuilt from top to bottom, replacing the fences, the seats, the roof, and the original grandstand.

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1983 With two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Jerry Hairston's clean pinch-hit single to center field spoils Milt Wilcox's bid for a perfect game. The 32-year-old Tigers right-hander retires the next batter, settling for a one-hit 6-0 victory over the White Sox at Comiskey Park.

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1985 In a 2-1 loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, Mike Schmidt plays in his 1,795th game wearing a Phillies uniform, breaking Richie Ashburn's franchise record. The first-ballot Hall of Famer will extend the streak to 2,404 contests before retiring in 1989.

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1987 Juan Nieves becomes the first Brewer to toss a no-hitter, walking five batters and striking out seven en route to a 7-0 victory over the Orioles at Memorial Stadium. The 22-year-old Santurce native's no-no makes him the first Puerto Rican and second-youngest major leaguer to accomplish the feat.

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1990 ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball makes its debut, with Jon Miller and Joe Morgan behind the microphones, a broadcasting team that will remain in the booth for the next 21 seasons. The early stages of the sports network's coverage on Sunday evenings call for every ballpark to host a game, assuring each team at least one appearance on national television throughout the season.

1994 With only 115 fans in attendance on a cold and rainy night at Pohlman Field, Kelly Wunsch becomes the third player and first starting pitcher to strike out five batters in one inning in professional baseball. The Beloit Brewer hurler, Milwaukee's first-round pick (26th overall) of the 1993 amateur draft, makes this possible when two of those victims reached first base on wild pitches during a 7-3 loss to Springfield (IL) of the Midwest League.

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1997 At Shea Stadium, with President Clinton and Rachel Robinson in attendance, Commissioner Bud Selig announces Jackie Robinson's No. 42 will be retired throughout Major League Baseball, an unprecedented tribute to the player who broke the color barrier fifty years ago on this date. There are presently 13 active players still wearing the number who will be allowed to keep it, including Mariano Rivera, who in 2013 will become the last player to don the digits.

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2000 Orioles infielder Cal Ripken, in the 2,800th game of his career, lines a base hit to center off the Twins' Hector Carrasco, becoming the 24th player to reach the 3000th hit milestone. The single also makes the 'Iron Man' only the seventh player to get 3,000 hits and 400 home runs in major league history.

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2001 A swarm of bees nesting in the Coors Field's right-field auxiliary scoreboard makes their presence known when Todd Hollandsworth steps into the batter's box to start the bottom of the fourth frame. After a nine-minute delay, the game continues without incident to the players, fans, or the bees, with the Rockies' outfielder getting the crowd buzzing by hitting three home runs following the stoppage of play, including a three-run walk-off round-tripper in the tenth inning of Colorado's 10-7 victory over Arizona.

2004 Major league baseball begins the tradition of Jackie Robinson Day, an annual celebration commemorating the day in 1947 when the Dodger infielder broke the color line. Ceremonies occur across the country to honor the ground-breaking historical event, including baseball commissioner Bud Selig and Jackie's widow Rachel Robinson attending the Shea Stadium's festivities.

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2004 In the Astros' 6-2 loss to the Brewers at Minute Maid Park, Brandon Backe strikes out the three batters he faces in the eighth inning on nine pitches. The 26-year-old right-handed reliever retires Bill Hall and Scott Podsednik looking with Craig Counsell swinging at a third strike to end the frame.

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2005 Right-hander Ben Sheets, who agreed to a one-year deal worth $6 million during the offseason to avoid salary arbitration, signs a $38.5 million, four-year contract to stay with Milwaukee. The contract is the richest in the history of the Brewers.

2005 The Dodgers, to commemorate the 58th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first game in the big leagues, wear replicas of the old road uniforms worn by the 1947 team, which played in Brooklyn. Right-hander Derek Lowe throws a three-hitter, blanking the Padres in San Diego, 4-0.

2005 In the first major league game in Washington, D.C., since September 30th, 1971, the Nationals beat Arizona at RFK Stadium, 5-3. President George W. Bush throws out the ceremonial first pitch after receiving the ball from Joe Grzenda, the former Washington reliever who threw the final pitch before the new Senators moved to Texas.

2005 A Fenway fan is ejected from the game after taking what appeared to be a swipe at Gary Sheffield as the Yankee outfielder fields a ball hit by Jason Varitek. The right fielder's response, which includes shoving the fan, making a fist, and exchanging words, will be investigated by major league baseball.

2007 In honor of the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's debut, Ken Griffey, Jr. wears the Dodger Hall of Fame infielder's retired uniform #42 after getting permission from Commissioner Bud Selig, who gives all major leaguers the option to wear the number individually. In 2009, all uniformed personnel will start wearing #42 every year on April 15th, the date designated annually as Jackie Robinson Day.

2007 The Indians become the first team in almost 55 years to notch a victory, getting their only hit in the team's first at-bat when Grady Sizemore doubles, leading off the first inning in Tribe's eventual 2-1 win over Chicago at Jacobs Field. The Tribe won with just one hit or less in 1992, posting a 2-1 victory in a no-hitter thrown by Red Sox right-hander Matt Young.

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2007 To honor Jackie Robinson, major-league players, including Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter and Braves outfielder Andruw Jones, wear the Dodger immortal's uniform No. 42 on the 60th anniversary of his historic breaking the color barrier in baseball. In the Cardinals and Brewers contest at Busch Stadium, every player and coach on both teams dons Jackie's revered number.

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2009 Texas infielder Ian Kinsler, having already collected a single, double, and home run, admits he was trying for a triple when he batted in the sixth inning of Baltimore's 19-6 rout. The Rangers' second baseman gets his three-bagger en route to a 6-for-6 cycle performance.

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2010 Jorge Cantu establishes a major league record when he gets at least one hit and drives in one or more runs during the season's first ten games. The Marlins' infielder start also proves to be the longest streak at any point of the campaign.

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2011 The Rangers tie an American League mark shared with 15 teams by turning six double plays in a nine-inning game, including a record-tying five DPs by Elvis Andrus for the most by a shortstop, in the team's 5-3 victory at Yankee Stadium. The first six batters in the Bronx Bombers' lineup, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Andruw Jones, and Nick Swisher, bounce into Texas twin killings.

2011 With a 7-6 defeat to Toronto at Fenway Park, the Red Sox lose their tenth game of the new campaign, making their 2-10 record the worst start in franchise history. Despite its record-setting first dozen contests, Boston will still be in contention for a playoff spot until the last day of the season.

2022 Angel manager Joe Maddon orders reliever Austin Warren to walk Corey Seager intentionally with the bases loaded, scoring Charlie Culberson and followed by Mitch Garver's sacrifice. The last time a deliberate free pass that scored in run occurred was when Maddon, then the Rays' skipper, gave Texas slugger Josh Hamilton first base with the bases full in 2008.

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Today in Baseball History
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Search archives: Historical Events Baseball Birthdays Baseball Deaths
On April 15 in Baseball History...

• • 1909 - Before an Opening Day crowd of 30,000 at New York, Red Ames pitches a no-hitter for nine innings against the Brooklyn Superbas, surrenders a hit with one out in the tenth, then loses the game 3-0 in the 13th. The Giants outfield has no putouts.
    
  • 1918 - The A.L. season opens with Babe Ruth pitching a four-hit 7-1 victory over the A's. Red Sox manager Ed Barrow will start Ruth's conversion to slugger by working him into 72 games in the outfield and first base.
    
  • 1947 - Jackie Robinson goes hitless in three trips in his debut but handles 11 chances at first base, a new position for him, in a 5-3 Brooklyn win over the Boston Braves. Coach Clyde Sukeforth, interim manager and the man credited with first scouting Robinson, guides the team to two wins before stepping down.
    
  • 1954 - Clint Courtney of the Orioles hits the first major league home run in Memorial Stadium. The Birds draw an Opening Day record crowd of 46,354 in a 3-1 afternoon win against the White Sox.
    
  • 1958 - The San Francisco Giants defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first major league game played at Seals Stadium, with Ruben Gomez pitching an 8-0 shutout. Giants shortstop Daryl Spencer hits the first home run. The Giants set an attendance record for Seals Stadium by drawing 23,192 fans.
    
  • 1966 - Bob Gibson's 9-2 win at Forbes Field is the 18th straight for St. Louis in Pittsburgh. St. Louis ties the major league record (set by the Dodgers against the Phillies in 1945-46) for consecutive road wins against one club.
    
  • 1968 - Three records are smashed when the Astros score an unearned run in the 24th inning to squeeze by the Mets 1-0 after six hours and six minutes. It sets the mark as the longest N.L. game played to completion, the longest major league night game, and the first 23 innings are the longest major league scoreless game. The game ties the A.L.'s longest complete game (A's 4, Red Sox 1 in 24 innings on September 1, 1906).
    
  • 1972 - Reggie Jackson sports a mustache as the A's top the Twins 4-3 in 11 innings. Jackson is reported to be the first major league player with facial hair since Wally Schang in 1914.
    
  • 1976 - Newly remodeled Yankee Stadium is jammed with 52,613 fans for Opening Day ceremonies. The 1923 Yankee team is honored, and Bob Shawkey, winner of the 1923 Stadium opener, throws out the first ball. The Yankees beat the Twins 11-4 on 14 hits, but the only home runs are two hit by Minnesota's Dan Ford.
    
  • 1983 - Detroit pitcher Milt Wilcox is one out away from a perfect game when pinch hitter Jerry Hairston singles, and Wilcox settles for a 6-0 one-hitter over the White Sox. This is only the third time in major league history a perfect bid has been stopped with one out to go.
    
  • 1987 - Juan Nieves throws the first no-hitter in Brewers history, winning 7-0 against Baltimore. Milwaukee runs its record to 9-0.
    
  • 1993 - Andre Dawson became the 25th player to hit 400 home runs as the Boston Red Sox beat the Cleveland Indians 4-3.
    
  • 1993 - Sparky Anderson got his 2,000th victory as a manager in the Detroit Tigers' 3-2 win over the Oakland Athletics.
    
  • 1997 - The 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's breaking the color barrier in baseball is celebrated before 54,047 at Shea Stadium during a game between the Mets and the Dodgers. President Bill Clinton and Jackie's widow, Rachel Robinson, both speak during the 35-minute presentation, but the surprise of the evening occurs when acting commissioner Bud Selig announces that the number 42 will be retired in perpetuity for every team. On the field, the Mets beat the Dodgers 5-0.
    
  • 1998 - The first-ever American League-National League doubleheader ends up a good day for New York. The Yankees are forced to come to Shea Stadium after a beam falls into the stands at Yankee Stadium on April 13. The Yankees earn their first victory in Queens in 22 years as they defeat the Angels 6-3. Former Mets star Darryl Strawberry, the all-time home run leader at Shea, adds to his total with a shot into the left field bleachers. In the regularly-scheduled night game, the Mets beat the Cubs 2-1. The Yankees, who played at Shea in 1974-75 while Yankee Stadium was renovated, are the winner in the attendance department (40,743 to 16,012).

Baseball Birthdays on April 15...

• • 1862 - Sutcliffe, Sy
  • 1864 - Collins, Hub
  • 1865 - Lehane, Mike
  • 1867 - O'Brien, Darby
  • 1871 - Grey, Bill
  • 1877 - Abbaticchio, Ed
  • 1886 - Cole, King
  • 1890 - Sweeney, Buck
  • 1893 - Sheehan, Jack
  • 1893 - Hughes, Vern
  • 1894 - Gunkel, Red
  • 1896 - Distel, Dutch
  • 1897 - Lynch, Walt
  • 1910 - Mayo, Eddie
  • 1915 - Hoover, Joe
  • 1917 - Gedeon, Elmer
  • 1926 - Pierro, Bill
  • 1928 - Stewart, Bill
  • 1931 - Bailey, Ed
  • 1934 - Hartman, J.C.
  • 1936 - Posada, Leo
  • 1940 - Fryman, Woodie
  • 1940 - Davis, Willie
  • 1945 - Sizemore, Ted
  • 1949 - Bare, Ray
  • 1950 - Sharon, Dick
  • 1956 - Cort, Barry
  • 1960 - Diaz, Mike
  • 1968 - Brewer, Billy
  • 1969 - Burnitz, Jeromy
  • 1972 - Otero, Ricky
  • 1978 - Bradley, Milton

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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4/16
BIRTHDAYS
1903 Paul Waner HOF right fielder (NL MVP 1927; NL batting champion 1927, 34, 36; MLB All-Star 1933–35, 37; Pittsburgh Pirates), born in Harrah, Oklahoma (d. 1965)


1938 Rich Rollins third baseman, born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania


1942 Jim Lonborg pitcher (AL Cy Young 1967), born in Santa Maria, California


1944 Bob Montgomery, last Major League Baseball player to bat without a helmet (1979), born in Nashville, Tennessee


1955 Bruce Bochy player and manager (San Francisco Giants), born in Landes de Boussac, Bussac-Forêt, France


1969 Fernando Viña infielder (Milwaukee Brewers), born in Sacramento, California

1983 Cat Osterman, American softball pitcher, born in Houston, Texas

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FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1895 The name Detroit Creams, inspired by owner George Vanderbeck who boasted the Western League team would be the "cream of the league," lasts only a season. The club becomes known as the Tigers after Detroit Cost-free Press editor Philip Reid headlines a story, Strouthers’ Tigers Showed Up Very Nicely.

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1928 Braves' pitcher Charlie Robertson has his glove removed from the game by umpire Charley Moran after the Brooklyn Robins (Dodgers) complain the ball is acting strangely. The Boston hurler still manages to win, 3-2.

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1929 In a 5-4 Opening Day victory over Detroit at League Park, Indians' rookie center fielder Earl Averill homers on a 0-2 pitch off Detroit's hurler Earl Whitehill, becoming the first American Leaguer to hit a home run in his first major league at-bat. The 'Earl of Snohomish' will also be the first future Hall of Famer to accomplish the feat.

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1929 On Opening Day, the Indians become the first team to permanently wear numbers on their jerseys when they edge Detroit at League Park, 5-4. The Tribe beat the Yankees in becoming the first team to regularly don digits when rain postpones the earlier-scheduled Bronx Bombers' contest against Boston in New York.

1935 With the band playing Jingle Bells at Boston's Braves Field on a snowy day with near-freezing temperatures, Babe Ruth makes his National league debut, hitting a homer and a single off Giants' legend Carl Hubbell. The Braves beat New York, 4-2, but the team will win only 37 more games this season.

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1938 The Cardinals deal a declining Dizzy Dean to Chicago for RHP Curt Davis, LHP Clyde Shoun, outfielder Tuck Stainback, and $185,000. During his four years in the Windy City, the future Hall of Fame right-hander will compile a 16-8 record for the Cubs.

Diz & Satch
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1940 On a chilly day, the White Sox team batting average does not change when Indian fireballer Bob Feller hurls an Opening Day no-hitter, beating Chicago at Comiskey Park, 1-0. Each Pale Hose batter starts and ends the game with a .000 BA.

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1940 On Opening Day at Griffith Stadium, Franklin D. Roosevelt's errant ceremonial first pitch smashes a Washington Post camera. After the Chief Executive tosses his wild throw, Red Sox hurler Lefty Grove shows more control, blanking the Senators, 1-0.

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1946 Before the Senators' 6-3 loss to the Red Sox at Griffith Stadium, Harry Truman becomes the first President to throw the ceremonial first pitch left-handed. On Opening Day in 1950, the southpaw Commander-in-Chief will make two tosses, one left-handed and one right-handed.

1946 On Opening Day, Mel Ott hits his 511th and final home run of his career in the Giants' 8-4 victory over Philadelphia at the Polo Grounds, a ballpark in which he has hit 63% of his round-trippers. The 37-year-old player-manager, who has two hundred more homers than any other National Leaguer, will retire third on the all-time list, trailing only Babe Ruth (714) and Jimmie Foxx (534).

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1946 "An Apology to Braves Fans - The management will reimburse any of its patrons for any expense to which they might have been put for necessary cleansing of clothing as a result of paint damage." - LOCAL NEWSPAPER AD As a result of the newly painted grandstand seats not yet wholly dried, about 5,000 fans attending Boston's home opener against the Dodgers left Braves Field with green paint covering much of their clothing. The team takes out newspaper ads to apologize to the affected patrons, agreeing to reimburse any expense caused by the mishap, an offer costing the team $6,000, after generating nearly 13,000 claims, including some from as far away as California and Nebraska.

1948 The future superstation WGN-TV televises a baseball game for the first time. With Jack Brickhouse doing the play-by-play, the White Sox beat the Cubs 4-1 in the first game of the Windy City Classic played at Wrigley Field.

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1953 In a Forbes Field contest in which Pittsburgh will prevail, 14-12, the Phillies score nine times, and the Pirates tally six runs in the fifth inning, tying the National League record when 15 batters cross home plate during the frame. Philadelphia's second baseman Connie Ryan establishes a new team record with six hits, four singles, and two doubles in six at-bats.

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1954 The Tigers refuse to play a game against Detroit scheduled for Good Friday, a somber Holy Day observed by many Christian fans. The contest will be made up on August 19, setting up a rare Thursday afternoon doubleheader, one of ten twin bills the Tribe will play at Cleveland Stadium this season.

1957 Andre Rodgers becomes the first Bahamian to play in the major leagues, grounding into a 6-4 force play in the top of the second inning of the Giants' 9-2 loss at Pittsburgh's Forbes Field. The 22-year-old shortstop's roommate and fellow Caribbean, Valmy Thomas, entering the game in the sixth to replace catcher Wes Westrum, also becomes the first native of the Virgin Islands to play in a big-league game.

1957 Before the Phillies' home opener, the team dedicates a statue of eight-foot statue of Connie Mack as part of the Opening Day ceremonies. The 'Tall Tactician,' which depicts the A's long-time owner and manager with one foot in the dugout and one foot on the top step of it, waving his trademark scorecard to position his players, was created by well-known sculptor Harry Rosin.

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1959 Dave Philley, who established a big-league mark by getting his eighth straight pinch-hit on the campaign's final day last year, extends the remarkable streak when he doubles off Lew Burdette in his first pinch-hitting appearance this season. Although Rusty Staub of the Mets will tie his single-season mark in 1983, the Phillies' premier pinch-hitter will remain the leader for consecutive hits coming off the bench with nine, albeit over two years.

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