BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

1992 A's first baseman Mark McGwire hits his 200th career home run when he goes deep in the second inning off Chris Bosio in the team's 5-2 victory over Milwaukee at County Stadium. The 28-year-old slugger will end the season with 42 round-trippers en route to a career total of 583.

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1995 Jeff Manto hits his fourth consecutive home run over three games, equaling Johnny Blanchard's 1961 accomplishment. The Orioles' third baseman, who hit two homers against the Angels last night and one the previous night off of the Mariners' Rafael Carmona, goes deep in the bottom of the second inning during Baltimore's 6-2 victory over the Halos at Camden Yards.

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1995 Legendary Hall of Fame announcer Lindsey Nelson, who for 17 years, along with Bob Murphy and Ralph Kiner, made up the original broadcast team for the expansion Mets in 1962, dies of complications of Parkinson's disease at 76. In addition to doing play-by-play for the San Francisco Giants from 1979 to 1981, the colorfully attired announcer also called football games, including 26 Cotton Bowls, five Sugar Bowls, four Rose Bowls, and announced syndicated Notre Dame gridiron contests for 14 years.

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1997 Marlins' hurler Kevin Brown no-hits the Giants at Candlestick Park, 9-0. The right-handed sinkerballer, who faces 28 batters, misses a perfect game when he barely grazes Marvin Benard with a 1-2 pitch with two outs in the eighth inning.

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2000 In a pregame ceremony at Kauffman Stadium, the Royals commemorate David Glass's new ownership of the team. The former Wal-Mart executive, who became Kansas City's interim CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors in 1993, had his $96 million offer to buy the team approved by the Board in April, despite a competing bid of $120 million by New York-based attorney Miles Prentice.

2000 Darin Erstad's second-inning two-run double off Arizona's Omar Daal is the Angels' leadoff hitter's 100th hit of the season. The two-bagger, coming in the Halos' 61st game, makes the 26-year-old left fielder the fastest major leaguer to reach the milestone since Hall of Famer Heinie Manush accomplished the feat with the Senators in 1934.

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2002 Former Japanese Orix Blue Wave teammates Ichiro Suzuki and So Taguchi play against each other when the Mariners blank the Cardinals, 10-0. The Safeco Field contest marks the first time two Japanese position players have played in the same major league game.

2002 In front of 45,698 fans at Yankee Stadium, Marcus Thames becomes the 17th player in history to hit a home run on the first pitch he sees in the major leagues. The New York rookie, who hit his two-run dinger off four-time Cy Young winner Diamondback southpaw Randy Johnson, joins John Miller (1966) as the second Yankee to homer in his first at-bat.

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2003 In a game against the Orioles at Camden Yards, Sammy Sosa becomes the target of a man who runs onto the field throwing corks. Last week, the umps discovered the Cubs' slugger used the illegal substance after breaking his bat in a game against the Devil Rays.

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2005 The document, believed to be the precursor to the 'Curse of the Bambino,' is acquired for $996,000 when Gotta Have It Collectibles submits the winning bid for the 1919 contract, signed by owners Harry Frazee of the Red Sox and Jacob Ruppert of Yankees, which sold Babe Ruth to New York. The cost of the five typed pages is nearly ten times the value the 'Bronx Bombers' paid to get the emerging 'Sultan of Swat.'

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2005 For the first time in nearly 90 years, the Red Sox play the Cubs in Chicago, making their first visit to Wrigley Field. The two teams that had their fates influenced by curses last met at Comiskey Field, the more spacious home of the White Sox, in the 1918 World Series, won by Boston in six games behind the solid pitching of Babe Ruth.

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2006 Using a fishing rod with a baseball attached to the hook at the end of a heavy-duty line he designed, Pro Bass Angler Kevin Wirth throws out the ceremonial "First Cast" from the pitcher's mound before the Louisville Bats take on the Indianapolis Indians at Slugger Field. The catcher uses a fishing net to capture the CITGO Bassmaster Elite Series Angler toss at home plate.

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2006 Reggie Sanders, in the Royals' 9-5 loss to Tampa Bay at Kauffman Stadium, hits his 300th career home run off Chad Harville. The Kansas City outfielder becomes just the fifth player in major league history to hit 300 home runs and steal 300 bases, joining Barry and Bobby Bonds, Andre Dawson, and Willie Mays.

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2007 Masumi Kuwata becomes the first Japanese player in Pirates' history, making his major league debut in the team's 13-6 loss to the Yankees in the Bronx. The 39-year-old Osaka native, the oldest person to start a big-league career in the post-World War II era except for Satchel Paige and Diomedes Olivo, gives up two runs in two innings when Alex Rodriguez takes him deep.

2007 In addition to the Reds wearing a dark patch with the word "NUXY" printed in white on their uniform, the team honors broadcaster Joe Nuxhall, Marty Brennaman, and Waite Hoyt, with replica microphones to hung on the wall near the radio booth. The recognition commemorates the 63rd anniversary of the 'ol' left-hander' becoming the youngest person to play in the major leagues in the modern era.

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2008 Tiger general manager Dave Dombrowski announces the team is optioning Dontrelle Willis, acquired in an off-season blockbuster trade, to their Class A minor league team in Lakeland. The former Marlin southpaw, the 2003 National League Rookie of the Year, compiled a 22-10 record with the Fish just two years later and recently signed a three-year deal worth $29 million with Detroit.

 

2010 White Sox third baseman Omar Vizquel becomes the fourth player to hit a home run in four different decades when he goes deep off Max Scherzer in the first inning of the team's 3-0 victory over Detroit at U.S. Cellular Field. The 43-year-old Venezuelan infielder, who made his major league debut in 1989, joins Ted Williams (1939-1960), Willie McCovey (1959-1980), and Rickey Henderson (1979-2003) on the shortlist of big leaguers who have accomplished the rare feat.

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2011 Tony La Russa manages his 5,000th major league game, a disappointing 8-0 Cardinal loss to Milwaukee at Miller Park. The 66-year-old skipper, whose 33-year managerial career includes stints with the A's and White Sox, is the second manager to reach the milestone but remains far behind Connie Mack's record of 7,755 contests.

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2011 Michael Acosta, a longtime Twins fan, gets a chance to manage the team for a day, thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. ESPN SportsCenter's "My Wish" episode features the testicular cancer survivor's big day at Target Field.

2012 The Orioles win their ninth straight extra-inning game when Matt Wieters lines a one-out RBI double in the 10th to give the club a 5-4 walk-off victory over Philadelphia at Camden Yards. The streak of overtime victories, which includes yesterday's 12-inning win, breaks the team's previously twice-accomplished record of eight.

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2012 Bobby Abreu, tied with Mickey Mantle for 109th place on the all-time hit list, surpasses the Yankee legend with a second-inning double in L.A.'s 8-2 interleague victory over Seattle at Safeco Field. The 38-year-old outfielder has collected 2,416 hits playing for the Astros, Phillies, Yankees, Angels, and Dodgers.

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2012 The Red Sox pass the NBA's Portland Trailblazers for the most consecutive sellouts for a North American pro franchise with their 745th straight capacity crowd at Fenway Park. The streak, featuring an average paid attendance of 36,544 fans, started on May 15, 2003, a year after the team's new ownership bought the Boston ball club.

2019 The Diamondbacks (8) and Phillies (5) hit the most combined home runs in a single game, collectively going deep 13 times in Arizona's 13-8 victory at Citizens Bank Park. The Tigers and White Sox, accomplishing the feat twice, first on May 28, 1995, and then on July 2, 2002, set the previous mark of 12.
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6/11
BIRTHDAYS
1879 Roger Bresnahan Hall of Fame catcher, outfielder and manager (World Series 1905 NY Giants; St. Louis Cardinals; first shin guards and batting helmet), born in Toledo, Ohio (d. 1944)


1911 Russ Hodges sportscaster (NY Mets, SF Giants; Wednesday Night Fights), born in Dayton, Tennessee (d. 1971)

1929 Frank Thomas outfielder (3 x MLB All-Star; Pittsburgh Pirates), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (d. 2023)


1970 Bill Selby infielder (Boston Red Sox), born in Monroeville, Alabama

1977 Odalis Pérez pitcher (MLB All Star 2002; Atlanta Braves, LA Dodgers, KC Royals), born in Las Matas de Farfán, Dominican Republic (d. 2022)


1980 Yhency Brazobán (Los Angeles Dodgers), born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

1983 José Reyes born in Villa González, Santiago, Dominican Republic

1988 Brock Holt (only player to hit for the cycle in postseason - Boston Red Sox, 2018), born in Fort Worth, Texas

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FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1904 After pitching 9.1 innings of no-hit baseball, Cubs' hurler Bob Wicker settles for a 1-0, twelve-inning, one-hit victory over the Giants when Sam Mertes, for the second time in his career, breaks up an extra-inning no-hitter. The light-hitting outfielder also spoiled Indians right-hander Earl Moore's 1901 bid for a no-no when he started the game-winning rally for the White Sox with a one-out single in the top of the tenth inning.

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1911 At Chicago's West Side Grounds, Heinie Zimmerman of the Cubs drives in nine runs to set a team record, tied by Sammy Sosa in 2002. The Windy City infielder hits two home runs, a triple, and two singles in the 20-2 rout of the Braves.

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1915 At the Polo Grounds, in the Yankees' 10-9 victory over the White Sox, Ray Caldwell, batting left-handed, becomes the first major leaguer to hit a home run in consecutive pinch-hit appearances. The New York right-hander, an eventual 19-game winner this season, hit the first of his two round-trippers against Chicago as a pinch-hitter yesterday.

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1938 In the first of his two consecutive no-hitters, Johnny Vander Meer keeps the Boston Bees hitless in Cincinnati's 3-0 victory at Crosley Field. The Reds' southpaw continues his no-no mojo four days later by beating the Dodgers, 6-0, without giving up a hit in the first night game in Brooklyn.

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1952 At Wrigley Field, 35-year-old Hank Sauer, the NL's eventual MVP, hits three solo shots off Phillies southpaw Curt Simmons. The Cubs All-Star outfielder's trio of round-trippers accounts for all of Chicago's offense when the team beats the visiting Phillies, 3-2.

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1957 The Dodgers' Roy Campanella surpasses former Cub and Giant backstop Gabby Hartnett to establish a new National League mark when he hits his 237th career round-tripper as a catcher. Campy's historic home run comes off Ray Crone in the seventh inning of Brooklyn's 7-2 loss to the Braves at Ebbets Field.

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1961 In Game 1 of a twin bill at Tiger Stadium, Norm Cash becomes the first Detroit player to hit a fair ball over the right-field roof. The first baseman's prodigious poke off Joe McClain is to no avail when the Tigers lose to the Senators, 7-4.

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1963 After Brock Davis is intentionally walked to load the bases, third baseman Bob Aspromonte blasts a tenth-inning walk-off grand slam off Lindy McDaniel, lifting the Colt .45s to a 6-2 victory over the Cubs. Chicago had tied the Colt Stadium contest in the top of the ninth on a triple by Dick Bertell, a walk to Bob's brother Ken, and Don Landrum's RBI single.

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1968 The Reds trade Milt Pappas, who had been feuding with former teammate and now team broadcaster Joe Nuxhall, along with Ted Davidson and Bob Johnson, to the Braves for Clay Carroll, Tony Cloninger, and Woody Woodward. The 2-5 right-hander became expendable after complaining the team was violating the contract by players not flying first-class and being critical of the front office's refusal to cancel the game on the day of assassinated Senator Robert F. Kennedy's funeral.

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1969 The Cubs trade Adolfo Phillips and right-hander Jack Lamabe to the Expos for Paul Popovich, acquired today by Montreal, along with Ron Fairly from the Dodgers in exchange for Maury Wills and Manny Mota. Chicago's latest infielder, a solid switch-hitting utility player, will play a prominent role for his new team, filling in for injured second baseman Glenn Beckert and batting .312 overall in 60 games.

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1972 LA outfielders Manny Mota and Willie Davis hit inside-the-park homers down the foul lines at Dodger Stadium off Bucs' starter Bruce Kison. Roberto Clemente's seventh-inning home run over the fence proves to be the difference in Pittsburgh's 7-5 victory, their 21st win in the last 26 games.

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1972 Graig and Jim Nettles become the tenth different pair of brothers to homer in the same game when they both go deep in the Cleveland Stadium contest. Graig's blast in the bottom of the seventh matches his younger brother, the Twin center fielder, solo shot in the top of the sixth inning of Minnesota's 5-3 victory over the Indians.

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1981 The Mariners' 8-2 victory over the Orioles played in the Kingdome will be the last game played before the major league players strike over compensation for free agents. Baseball's fifth work stoppage results in 713 games not played and lasts fifty days.

1985 At Veterans Stadium, Von Hayes becomes the first player to hit two home runs in the first inning of a game. The outfielder's leadoff homer and a grand slam in the Phillies' nine-run first frame contribute to Philadelphia's 26-7 rout of the Mets.

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1988 Yankee skipper Billy Martin decides to use starting pitcher Rick Rhoden as his designated hitter due to a shortage of right-handed hitters to face southpaw Jeff Ballard, making the right-hander the first hurler to start at the position. In his lone plate appearance, the right-handed hurler hits a sacrifice fly before being lifted for a pinch-hitter in the fifth inning of the Yankees' 8-6 victory over the Orioles.

1989 Dwight Evans plays in his 2,293rd game wearing a Red Sox uniform, surpassing Ted Williams' total to become second on the all-time list for games played with the team. Carl Yastrzemski holds the franchise mark, playing in 3,308 contests before he retired in 1983.

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1995 Mark McGwire ties a major league record by hitting five homers in back-to-back games, becoming the 15th player to accomplish the feat and the first American Leaguer to do it twice. Big Mac's three homers in consecutive at-bats, all solo shots against Zane Smith that cleared the Green Monster, help the A's defeat the Red Sox at Fenway Park, 8-1.

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1995 Angels' closer Lee Smith sets a major league record, nailing down his 16th consecutive save in 16 appearances in the team's 5-4 victory over the Orioles at Camden Yards. Doug Jones had previously set the mark in 1988, recording 15 straight saves in 15 appearances with the Indians.

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1995 Yankee starting pitcher Mariano Rivera, allowing five runs on seven hits in 2.1 innings in the team's eventual 10-7 victory over Seattle, is sent back to the minor leagues. The Bombers' starting shortstop, a 20-year-old infielder named Derek Jeter, will also be demoted after the Bronx ballpark contest.

1997 After 11 straight wins starting on Opening Day, Roger Clemens gets beat for the first time wearing a Blue Jays uniform when the Mariners defeat Toronto at the Skydome, 5-1. The 34-year-old will lead the American League in victories with 21 en route to winning his fourth Cy Young Award.

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1999 At County Stadium, Milwaukee retires Paul Molitor's uniform number 4. During the ceremony, the 21-year major league veteran, who also played with the Blue Jays and the Twins, announces if he goes into the Hall of Fame, he will do so as a Brewer, fulfilling a 2004 promise.

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2002 In the top of the ninth inning during the Indians and Phillies interleague game at Jacobs Field, an explosive device thrown from the upper deck explodes in a lower-level smoking area, causing minor injuries to two people. The police hold three young men suspected of causing the blast heard throughout the ballpark on suspicion of felonious assault and aggravated arson.

2002 Rays' first baseman Jared Sandberg goes deep twice on the first pitch in his two at-bats in the fifth frame in the team's 11-2 victory over the Dodgers Tropicana Field. The 24-year-old rookie, the nephew of Hall of Fame second baseman Ryan Sandberg, becomes the 39th player in baseball history to hit two home runs in one inning, a feat his uncle never accomplished.

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2003 For the first time since 1958, the Yankees are no-hit when the Astros keep them hitless with a record-setting six pitchers combining to stop the Bronx Bombers' streak of 6,980 games with at least one hit. Orioles' knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm was the last hurler to accomplish the feat, with a 1-0 victory in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium.

2008 At Dolphin Stadium during a 6-2 Marlins victory over the Phillies, the best play of the night is made in Section 253 as a fan catches a foul ball in his beer cup. After removing the prized possession, the happy patron continues to drink his adult beverage.

2008 With the score knotted at two at Dolphin Stadium, Marlins' second baseman Dan Uggla hits a walk-off grand slam to beat the first-place Phillies, 6-2. It's the second time in franchise history a game has ended with a bases-loaded dinger, with Bobby Bonilla accomplishing the feat against the Rockies in 1997.

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2009 Umpire Don Briggs throws the entire crowd, approximately 100 fans in attendance at Winfield-Mount Union High School (IA) for a contest against West Burlington, out of the game following his controversial call in the fifth inning. The incident occurs when the home team coach refuses to remove any of the unruly local fans, causing the ten-year veteran scholastic arbitrator to take action by borrowing a cell phone to call the police to help with the ejections.

 

2010 Andy Pettitte joins Whitey Ford and Red Ruffing as the only Yankees hurlers to notch 200 victories. The 37-year-old southpaw, who also reaches the 3,000 career inning plateau in the first frame of the game, gets his historic win when New York beats Houston, his former team, in an interleague contest in the Bronx, 4-3.

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2013 In a much-anticipated major league debut, Gerrit Cole throws six scoreless six innings in the Pirates' 8-2 victory over San Francisco at PNC Park. A larger-than-average Tuesday night crowd of 30,614, which includes over 10,000 walk-ups, is on hand to watch the overall 2011 First-Year Player Draft No. 1 selection earn his first big league career victory.

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2014 The Royals become the first team since the 1980 Expos to score four runs in one game, all on sacrifice flies. Kansas City, the first winning team to accomplish the feat, beat the Indians, 4-1, with their quartet of long balls in the Kauffman Stadium’s afternoon contest.

2019 Yordan Alvarez becomes the twenty-third player since 1908 to hit a homer in each of his first two career games, going deep in the Astros' 10-8 victory over the Brewers at Minute Maid Park. The 21-year-old Astro freshman, who homered in his second major league at-bat two days ago, will be named the American League Rookie of the Year, finishing the season with 27 round-trippers while playing in 87 games for the AL champs.

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