BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

1953 In his first major league start, 24-year-old right-hander Al Worthington throws a two-hitter, blanking the Phillies, 6-0. The Giants' rookie, known as 'Red,' will become the first National League freshman to throw consecutive shutouts at the start of a career when he repeats the feat in his next outing, blanking the Dodgers, 6-0.

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1956 Jim Busby hits his second grand slam on consecutive days to beat the A's, 4-2. In a 13-7 loss yesterday, the Indians' outfielder hit a first-inning bases-loaded homer off Detroit's right-hander Frank Lary.

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1958 A day after he walks outfielder Willie Kirkland with the bases loaded to give the Giants a 5-4 victory, Cardinal reliever Larry Jackson hits Jim Davenport with the bases full in the ninth inning to again force in the winning run.

1962 Rod Kanehl, appearing as a pinch-hitter, hits the first grand slam in Mets history, going deep off Bobby Shantz in the eighth inning of the team's 10-3 victory over the Cardinals. The Polo Grounds bases-loaded round-tripper comes in the 79th game of the franchise's existence.

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1962 At the Polo Grounds, Gil Hodges homers off Cardinal hurler Ray Sadecki for the 370th and final home run of his career, finishing tenth on the all-time list and the most ever hit by a right-handed batter in the National League. Eight-year-old Howie Rose, the team's future radio voice at his first major league game, and broadcaster Ralph Kiner, who reminds the first baseman on his show, Kiner's Korner,he established the right-handed NL home run mark in 1954, witnessed the moment.

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1966 Boog Powell, tying an American League record, knocks in 11 runs in a doubleheader. In Game One, the Baltimore first baseman hits two homers, including a grand slam, two doubles, and a sacrifice fly, driving in seven runs in the Orioles' 11-0 victory over the Kansas City A's, adding four more RBIs in the nightcap.

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1970 At Shea Stadium, Mets' center fielder Tommie Agee hits a seventh-inning triple off Frank Linzy, completing the second cycle in franchise history. The lead-off batter's four hits pace the team's 10-3 victory over the Cardinals.

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1970 Ron Santo drives in ten runs, helping the Cubs sweep a doubleheader against Montreal at Wrigley Field. The third baseman's two-run homer in the opener gives the team a 3-2 victory, and his eight RBIs, including another two round-trippers, contribute to the club's 14-2 rout in the nightcap.

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1970 At Atlanta Stadium, Braves' second baseman Felix Millan goes 6-for-6, becoming the first player in franchise history to collect six hits in one game. The 26-year-old infielder, called the Cat by his teammates, contributes to the team's 12-4 victory over the Giants with four singles, a double, and a triple.

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1977 After 1,887 plate appearances without a home run from the start of his career, Cubs outfielder Greg Gross finally goes deep when he homers off Don Stanhouse, a three-run shot to left field with two outs in the sixth inning, in the team's 8-6 victory over the Expos at Wrigley Field. The 24-year-old's homerless drought establishes a new major league record, far surpassing runner-up Duane Kuiper, who recorded his first round-tripper needing 355 fewer trips to the plate to accomplish the feat.

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1983 On the Midsummer Classic's 50th anniversary, Fred Lynn hits the first grand slam in All-Star competition en route to the American League, setting a record for runs scored by one team in a game in their 13-3 victory, including a record seven-run third inning. The Junior Circuit's victory at Chicago's Comiskey Park, the site of the first All-Star Game in 1933, halts the National League's 11-game winning streak.

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1986 At Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, first baseman Bob Horner becomes the eleventh major leaguer to hit four home runs in one game. However, three of the four homers are solo shots, allowing the Expos to beat the Braves, 11-8.

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1989 Mike Schmidt becomes the first retired player to be elected to start an All-Star Game. The Phillies' third baseman, who announced his retirement on May 29th, is hitting only .203 this season and has decided not to participate in the Midsummer Classic.


1991 In a 9-7 loss to Oakland, Danny Tartabull hits three home runs, one off Gene Nelson and two off Bob Welch. The right-fielder becomes the first Kansas City player to accomplish the feat at Royals Stadium.

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1992 Commissioner Fay Vincent, using his 'in the best interest of baseball' power, mandates the National League's realignment next season, forcing teams to be more geographically correct in their respective divisions. The plan, approved by 12 of the 14 NL owners in March, but blocked by Tribune Co., owner of the Chicago franchise, will send the Cubs and the Cardinals to the West Division, with the Braves and Reds moving to the East.

 

2000 Cardinal rookie Keith McDonald, who homered pinch-hitting in his first big league appearance, hits a round-tripper off Reds' hurler Osvaldo Fernandez, becoming only the second player in history to homer in his first two major league at-bats. Bob Nieman is the other major leaguer to accomplish the feat, having gone deep twice in his 1951 debut with the Browns.

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2000 Vin Scully, 72, is voted the No. 1 sportscaster of the 20th century by members of the American Sportscasters Association. The Dodger veteran broadcaster's 51-year career has included play-by-play of 25 Fall Classics and a dozen All-Star Games.

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2001 The Cubs, playing in the 101st different park since 1876, beat the Tigers in Comerica Park, 15-8. For the first time in 56 years, the Cubs win in Detroit, dating back to Game 3 of the 1945 World Series when Claude Passeau threw a 3-0 shutout in Briggs Stadium.

2002 Daryle Ward becomes the first player in the brief history of Pittsburgh's PNC Park to hit the Allegheny River on the fly, helping the Astros rout the Pirates, 10-2. PGA legend Arnold Palmer, also known for long drives, is on hand to watch the Houston left fielder's fifth-inning towering grand slam, estimated to have traveled 479 feet before making a splash.

2002 During Old Timers' Day ceremonies at Yankee Stadium, the Bronx Bombers dedicate a plaque in Monument Park honoring Reggie Jackson. During his tenuous five-year tenure with the team, the slugging outfielder helped the club reach the postseason four times, including winning two consecutive world championships in 1977 and 1978.

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2003 Devil Rays' skipper Lou Piniella becomes a blonde, keeping his promise to dye his hair if his last-place Devil Rays won three in a row at any point this season. Last night's 3-2 victory over the White Sox gave Tampa Bay their first three-game winning streak since last September.

2004 Recently acquired outfielder Richard Hidalgo establishes a club record, homering in five straight games for the Mets. In 16 games with New York, the former Astro has eight home runs, compared to hitting just four with Houston in 56 games.

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2005 Starting in the third inning, Marlins' hurlers retire 28 consecutive Brewers en route to a 5-4 extra-inning victory over Milwaukee at Dolphins Stadium. The club sets a franchise mark with 22 strikeouts, with A.J. Burnett contributing a career-high of 14, establishing a team record in six innings of work.

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2007 The Twins sweep a twin bill from the White Sox, beating the home team 20-14 and 12-0 at Chicago's U.S. Cellular Field. The 32 runs tallied by Minnesota are the most scored by one club in a twin bill since the Red Sox crossed the plate 35 times in their double victory over the Philadelphia A's on July 4, 1939.

2008 In the ninth inning of a tied game at Yankee Stadium, Manny Ramirez, appearing as a pinch-hitter, upsets the citizens of Red Sox Nation when he strikes out on three consecutive fastballs thrown by Mariano Rivera without swinging the bat. Citing knee pains, proven baseless by MRIs ordered by the team's management, Boston's disgruntled outfielder had asked to be left off the starting lineup for the critical series with New York.

2009 In the most lopsided loss in Reds history, the Phillies rout the team at Citizens Bank Park, 22-1. The previous dubious mark was a 20-run differential, established in 1892 when the Reds lost 26-6 to Philadelphia.

2009 The settlement of a federal lawsuit brought by a fan kicked out of Yankee Stadium by a police officer for allegedly leaving his seat to use the men's room during the playing of 'God Bless America' results in the resident of Queens receiving $10,001 from New York City. The Yankees claim patrons have always had freedom of movement, with ushers blocking some exits in previous years after complaints that spectators showed a lack of respect by leaving their seats during the playing of the patriotic song.

2010 Down six runs in the bottom of the ninth, the Rockies score nine runs in the final frame to beat the stunned Cardinals, 12-9. Seth Smith's two-out, three-run homer off Ryan Franklin deals the fatal blow in Colorado's amazing come-from-behind walk-off victory at Coors Field.

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2013 With a late surge of support from the Nationals fans, Bryce Harper is selected as an All-Star, making the 20-year-old outfielder the youngest National League starter in the history of the Midsummer Classic. Four days ago, the reigning NL Rookie of the Year trailed the Braves left fielder Justin Upton by 15,000 votes for thefinal spot in the outfield​

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2016 In the Marlins' 4-2 loss to the Mets, Giancarlo Stanton's home run in the sixth inning, his second of the game off Jacob deGrom, gives him four homers in four at-bats, with a base on balls between the second and third round-trippers. The Miami masher went deep twice in his last two at-bats in yesterday's contest, contributing to 17 dingers at Citi Field, the most by any visiting player.

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2017 At Busch Stadium, Ichiro Suzuki becomes the all-time major league hits leader for foreign-born players when he collects an eighth-inning single in the Marlins' 4-3 loss to the Cardinals. The Miami right fielder's 3,054th hit surpasses Rod Carew, who hails from Panama.

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2019 Andrew Heaney, making his first start since the untimely death of fellow Angel southpaw and close personal friend, Tyler Skaggs, delivers a slow overhand curveball as his first pitch, the signature toss of his late buddy. Before lining out to deep right field on a 3-1 court, George Springer intentionally takes the offering, leading off in the Astros' 4-0 loss at Minute Maid Park.

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BIRTHDAYS
1902 Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe (d. 2005)


Satchel Paige (1906-1982) HOF pitcher (6 x Negro League, 2 x MLB All Star; World Series 1948 Cleveland Indians), born in Mobile, Alabama


1909 Billy Herman HOF second baseman (10 x MLB All Star; Brooklyn Dodgers, Chicago Cubs), born in New Albany, Indiana (d. 1992)


1955 Len Barker born in Fort Knox, Kentucky


1963 Lance Johnson outfielder (NY Mets), born in Cincinnati, Ohio


1966 Hector Burba pitcher (Cincinnati Reds), born in Dayton, Ohio

1966 Jeff Shaw pitcher (Cincinnati Reds), born in Washington Court House, Ohio

1968 Chuck Knoblauch shortstop (NY Yankees, Minnesota Twins), born in Houston, Texas

1973 Matt Mantei born in Tampa, Florida

1980 John Buck catcher, 2004-14 (Kansas City Royals, and six other teams), born in Kemmerer, Wyoming

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FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1900 By defeating the Cubs, 11-4, Beaneaters' hurler Kid Nichols takes only nine seasons to get his 300th victory. The 30-year-old righty will amass 361 wins during his 15-year career and remain the youngest player to accomplish the feat.

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1909 In a 15-3 blow-out of the Browns, the White Sox collect 12 stolen bases. The thievery at Chicago's South Side Park includes the theft of home plate three times.

1920 After he appears in 55 games, the Giants trade Benny Kauff and cash to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the International League for Vern Spencer. Although acquitted of the charges, the New York outfielder, slated to rejoin the team in 1921, is banished from baseball for life by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis after being implicated in a car theft ring during the offseason.

1923 Lefty O'Doul, who will become an outstanding major league hitter later in his career, gives up 13 runs in the sixth inning as the Indians rout the Red Sox, 27-3. The San Francisco native will finish his 11-year stint in the majors with a lifetime batting average of .349.

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1923 The Indians become the first American League team to score a run in every inning when they rout Boston, 27-3, in the first game of a doubleheader at Cleveland's Dunn Field. The Tribe tallies nearly half their runs in the sixth frame, crossing the plate 13 times, in a contest that takes only two hours and ten minutes to complete.

 

1931 The White Sox outlast and outslug the Browns, beating St. Louis in 12 innings, 10-8. During the Sportsman's Park contest, the five pitchers who take the mound do not record a strikeout, making it the longest game in major-league history without a strike three.

1936 The Senior Circuit wins its first All-Star game, edging the American League at Braves Field in Boston, 4-3. The Junior Circuit had taken the first three contests of the Midsummer Classic.

1936 Joe DiMaggio becomes the first rookie to appear in an All-Star Game when he starts in right field and bats third for the Junior Circuit in the team's 4-3 loss to the National League at Boston's Braves Field. The 21-year-old Yankees outfielder doesn't fare well in the fourth edition of the Midsummer Classic, committing an error and making the last out of the game with a man in scoring position to finish his day 0-for-5 at the plate.

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1937 With Franklin D. Roosevelt in attendance at Griffith Stadium in Washington, Yankees' first baseman Lou Gehrig drives in four runs with a home run and a double to lead the AL to an 8-3 victory over the National League in All-Star action. FDR, who tosses the ceremonial first pitch, is the first U.S. president to attend an All-Star Game.

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1948 On his 42nd birthday, Negro League legend Satchel Paige signs a contract to pitch with the Indians. Though viewed by many as another publicity stunt by team owner Bill Veeck, the crafty right-hander will finish the season 6-1 for the eventual world champs.

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1951 Hoot Evers strokes four singles and a double in the Tigers' 13-3 rout of the Indians. The Detroit outfielder's 5-for-5 day is productive when he scores five times in the Briggs Stadium contest.

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1951 At Fenway Park, Yankee manager Casey Stengel replaces Joe DiMaggio with rookie Jackie Jensen after the Red Sox score six runs in the first frame. The skipper's second-inning decision to 'rest' aging superstar after the Clipper takes his position in the outfield strains an already acrimonious relationship.

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1953 The Dodgers set a major league mark for the most consecutive games with a home run by a team with a least one round-tripper in their 24 contests. Brooklyn starter Preacher Roe hits the record-breaking homer with a third-inning blast in the team's 9-5 victory over Pittsburgh at Forbes Field.

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1953 The Browns, with their 6-3 loss to the Indians at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis, set a major league record, losing their 20th consecutive home game. The non-winning streak dates back to June 3.

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1959 At Forbes Field, Hank Aaron's eighth-inning single ties the score, and a triple hit by Willie Mays plates Aaron with the winning run in the 5-4 All-Star victory in the first of the two Midsummer Classics to be played during the season.

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1964 In the only All-Star Game ever played at Shea Stadium, the National League evens the all-time series at 18 victories for each circuit by beating the AL, 7-4, with a dramatic ninth-inning rally that includes a three-run homer by Phillies slugger Johnny Callison. Home team second baseman Ron Hunt becomes the first Mets player selected as a starter in the Midsummer Classic.

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1968 Throwing just nine pitches, Tom Seaver earns the only save of his 20-year major league career when the Mets beat the Phillies at Connie Mack Stadium, 4-2. Tom Terrific strikes out Dick Allen on three pitches and then quickly dispatches Johnny Callison and Tony Taylor on outfield flies.

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1970 Rico Carty, the National League's leading hitter, becomes the first player voted to play in the All-Star Game as a write-in candidate. The ballot, drawn up by managers and general managers before spring training, did not list the Braves outfielder's name.

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1970 Lew Krausse tosses the first shutout in Brewers' history, blanking the White Sox at Milwaukee’s County Stadium, 1–0. The game’s lone run scores from second base on Joe Horlen's errant throw fielding a sacrifice bunt, plating Mike Hegan, who had doubled to lead off the seventh inning.

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1971 After the first plan of placing the new inductees in a separate wing creates a storm of controversy, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn and Hall of Fame president Paul Kirk announce former Negro League players will have full membership in the Cooperstown shrine. Last month, the HOF created a committee to select players annually who played at least ten years in the Negro Leagues and were ineligible for induction into the regular Hall.

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1974 The Cubs snap Buzz Capra's nine-game winning streak when the team beats the Braves at Wrigley Field, 4-3. The 26-year-old All-Star right-hander establishes a franchise mark for consecutive victories, finishing the season with a 16-8 record, posting a major league-leading ERA of 2.28.

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1975 During an 8-6 loss to the Cardinals at Busch Stadium, Giants outfielders Gary Thomasson, Bobby Murcer, and Chris Arnold each nail a baserunner trying to score. The rare feat last occurred in 1905 when Cubs flycatcher Jack McCarthy accomplished the feat with his three outfield assists.

 

1982 Harold Baines hits three consecutive home runs, including a grand slam, to lead the White Sox over the Tigers, 7-0. The Chicago right fielder hits solo round-trippers leading off the fifth and seventh frames before going deep in the eighth with the bases full to seal the deal in the Comiskey Park contest.

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1998 In a game remembered more for 'Glory,' a patriotic-colored Beanie Baby souvenir given to the fans, the American League beats the senior circuit, 13-8, in the thin air at Coors Field in Denver. The 21-run total surpasses the previous record set in 1954, when the AL beat the National League in Cleveland's Municipal Stadium, 11-9.

1998 Jeff Shaw becomes the first player to participate in an All-Star Game wearing a uniform for a team he hasn't yet played for when he allows three hits and a run pitching an inning for the National League squad before appearing in a regular-season game for the Dodgers. The 32-year-old closer, who posted a 1.81 ERA and 23 saves in the first half of the season for the Reds, was traded three days ago by Cincinnati to Los Angeles for Paul Konerko and Dennys Reyes.

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2000 The Butte Copper Kings' John Rocker Awareness Night promotion' is a huge success when the Angel rookie-league club offers free admission to anyone belonging to a group insulted by the Atlanta reliever in his Sports Illustrated interview. The 672 fans in attendance for the Pioneer League contest, one of the team's largest crowds of the season, include single moms with multiple children, people with purple hair, 'foreigners', and people with alternative lifestyles.

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2003 Shea Hillenbrand becomes the sixth player to homer in three consecutive innings, tying a big-league record. The third baseman's fourth, fifth, and sixth inning round-trippers account for half of the runs the Diamondbacks score in their 14-6 victory over Colorado at Bank One Ballpark.

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2004 Blanking the Royals, 12-0, Twins' hurler Kyle Lohse helps establish a club record, throwing the team's third consecutive shutout. Johan Santana (Royals, 4-0) and Brad Radke (Royals, 9-0) started the streak of 27 scoreless innings, which is also a franchise record.

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2004 Kazuhisa Ishii tosses a one-hitter in the Dodgers' 11-0 defeat of Arizona. The 30-year-old Japanese southpaw retires the first 12 batters he faces before issuing a leadoff walk to Luis Gonzalez and a single by Shea Hillenbrand, but the left-hander proceeds to set down the next 15 D-Backs to finish his masterpiece.

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2006 John Lackey retires the next 27 A's batters after leadoff batter Mark Kotsay doubles to start the bottom of the first inning on a 3-0 count and after falling behind Nick Swisher on the same count. The 3-0 Angel victory, which takes 2 hours and 1 minute to complete, also halts LA shortstop Orlando Cabrera's streak of reaching base safely in 63 consecutive games, twenty-one shy of Ted Williams' record of 84 straight games established in 1949.

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2006 Travis Hafner hits his fifth grand slam of the season when he clears the bases in the second inning of the Indians' 9-0 win over Baltimore at Jacobs Field. The Cleveland DH becomes the first player in major league history to accomplish the feat before the All-Star break and surpasses the franchise record of four baggers established in 1951 by Al Rosen.

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2007 Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki records the first inside-the-park home run in All-Star Game history when he hits Chris Young's fastball into deep right-center field at San Francisco's AT&T Park. The fifth-inning blast caroms off the park's quirky configuration, getting past NL center fielder Ken Griffey Jr., allowing the American League leadoff hitter, who will be named the game's MVP, to complete his way around the bases for the historic round-tripper.

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2008 After taking a nine-run lead into the sixth inning, the Mets hold on to beat the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park, 10-9. The game is eerily similar to a 1992 contest, also played in Philadelphia, that caused Hall of Fame announcer Bob Murphy to remark after the final out, "they win the damn thing by a score of 10 to 9!"

2008 To reach the postseason for the first time since 1982, the Brewers trade four highly touted farm hands to the Indians to obtain CC Sabathia. Milwaukee sends last year's first-round draft pick, Matt LaPorta, minor league pitching prospects Zach Jackson and Rob Bryson, and Taylor Green (player to be named later), the team's minor league player of the year, to Cleveland for last season's American League Cy Young Award winner.

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2009 Without throwing a pitch, Alan Embree is credited with the win when Colorado scores the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth inning to beat the Nationals at Coors Field, 5-4. After entering the tied contest with two outs in the top of the frame, the Rockies reliever picks off Austin Kerns off first base (caught stealing/PO --> P-1B-SS-P) for the third out of the frame without facing a batter.

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2010 With the score tied at seven in the bottom of the ninth at Coors Field, Rockies catcher Chris Iannetta makes Evan MacLane's major league debut memorable when he leads off the inning, hitting a walk-off home run off the 27-year-old rookie. The Cardinals' southpaw is the first hurler to surrender a game-winning homer to the first major league batter he faces since Padres' right-hander J.J. Trujillo accomplished the dubious deed, allowing Baltimore's Tony Batista to end a game with a round-tripper in 2002.

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2010 Adam Dunn becomes the second Washington Nationals player to hit three home runs in a game and the first major leaguer to accomplish the feat at the three-year-old Nationals Park. The first baseman's offensive output, which matches Alfonso Soriano's performance in 2006, helps the home team edge San Diego, 7-6, on a hot night in the nation's capital.

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