BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

5/9
OTD
BIRTHDAYS
1927 Ray Katt, baseball player

1936 Floyd Robinson, baseball player (White Sox, Reds, A's), born in Prescott, Arkansas

1939 Herbert Hippauf, baseball player

1953 Ron Jackson, baseball player

1957 John Stuper, baseball pitcher (St Louis Cardinals)
1960 Tony Gwynn, American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (8-time NL batting champion), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2014)

1978 Aaron Harang, American baseball player
1979 Brandon Webb, American baseball player
1981 Bill Murphy, American baseball player
1983 Tyler Lumsden, American baseball player
1984 Prince Fielder, American baseball first baseman (6 x MLB All Star, NL HR leader 2007, MLB RBI leader 2009, Milwaukee Brewers), born in Ontario, California

 

FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1871 Esteban Enrique 'Steve' Bellán becomes the first Hispanic player to appear in a major league game. The 21-year-old Cuban plays the infield for the Troy Haymakers of the National Association in a 9-5 loss to the Boston Red Stockings.
1888 Colonels' right-hander Elton 'Icebox' Chamberlain, a natural right-hander, throws left-handed for the final two innings during his complete-game victory against the visiting Kansas City Cowboys. Louisville wins the American Association contest played in Eclipse Park, 18-6.

1901 Indians' rookie hurler Earl Moore holds the White Sox hitless for nine innings before giving up two hits in the tenth inning to lose, 4-2. 'Crossfire' will compile a 16-14 record in his year in the big leagues.

​

1937 Reds' starter Peaches Davis gives up 15 hits but goes the distance in the Reds' 21-10 rout of Philadelphia. The right-hander's batterymate, Ernie Lombardi, goes 6-for-6 in the Baker Bowl ballgame, collecting five singles and a double.

​

1943 Due to the poor grade of rubber cement used to make baseballs because of wartime rubber shortages, a different type of ball is put into play today, with dramatic results. In eight games, six home runs are hit, compared to a total of nine homers tallied in the season's first 72 games.
1947 Philadelphia manager Ben Chapman, who admits he had been 'kinda loud' in leading his team in verbally abusing Jackie Robinson with racial slurs during yesterday's game, sends word to the Brooklyn clubhouse that he would like to make amends by posing with the Dodger first baseman for the newspaper photographers. The orchestrated gesture, which Robinson agrees to, admitting later that is one of the hardest things he ever had to make himself do, is prompted by the bad press created by the Phillies manager's intolerance and the wrath of Commissioner Chandler.

​

1950 In a 10-5 victory over Brooklyn at Forbes Field, Pirates slugger Ralph Kiner hits two home runs, including his second grand slam in four games. The future Hall of Famer, who will collect eight career homers with the bases juiced, also cleared the bases with a round-tripper on May 6 off Giants' right-hander Clint Hartung.

​

 

1961 In a 13-5 victory over the Twins, Jim Gentile becomes the fourth major leaguer to hit two grand slams in the same game. The Orioles' first baseman, the first to accomplish the feat in consecutive at-bats, goes deep in the first two innings of the contest.

​

1967 Wearing his familiar uniform #9, Roger Maris hits his first National League home run on the ninth day of the month in seat 9 of section 9. The right fielder's sixth-inning round-tripper off Woodie Fryman contributes to the Cardinals' 6-3 victory over Pittsburgh at Forbes Field.

​

1971 A gathering of 43,307 fans watches the Orioles drop a twin bill to the A's at Memorial Stadium, 6-2 and 2-1. The unscheduled doubleheader draws a record walk-in crowd of 31,626 (73%), the largest in Baltimore's history.
1973 For the second time in his career, Johnny Bench hits three homers off Steve Carlton. The Reds' backstop's seven RBIs help Cincinnati beat the Phillies, 9-7.

​

1977 At Exhibition Stadium, the Blue Jays beat the Mariners, 10-4, when the two new American League teams meet for the first time. Toronto will win their inaugural season series with Seattle, taking six of the ten games against their West Coast rival.
1979 At the Astrodome, substitute umpire David Pallone ejects the entire Cardinal bench when the players throw helmets and bats onto the field to protest a call. Due to the umpire strike, the minor league arbitrator works second base the major league game.

 

1984 The first eight-hour major league game, which started last night before being suspended in the 17th inning because of a curfew, finally comes to an end when Harold Baines homers with one out in the 25th inning, giving the White Sox a 7-6 victory over the Brewers. Tom Seaver, who will also start and pitch 8.1 innings in the nightcap, gets the win pitching one inning of relief.
1986 The Phillies release Dave Stewart after the right-hander compiles 6.57 ERA appearing in eight games as a reliever. At the end of the month, the 29-year-old free agent signs with the A's, where he'll average 21 victories a season from 1987-1990.

​

1987 Eddie Murray becomes the first major leaguer to hit home runs from both sides of the plate in consecutive games when he connects off left-handed Bob James in the sixth inning of the Orioles' 9-6 victory over Chicago at Comiskey Park. In yesterday's contest, the Baltimore first baseman also homered off southpaw Ray Searage and righty Jose DeLeon.

​

1988 With the White Sox' 3-0 victory over Baltimore at Memorial Stadium, 38 year-old Jerry Reuss becomes the 86th pitcher to record his 200th major league career win. The southpaw joins Milt Pappas as the only other pitcher to reach the milestone without the benefit of a 20-win season.
1993 During the Cubs' 5-4 loss to the Padres at Wrigley Field, Mark Grace becomes the tenth play in franchise history to hit for the cycle. The 29-year-old first baseman, sometimes called Amazing by his teammates, accomplishes the feat when he blasts a three-run homer with two outs in the bottom ninth inning off Rich Rodriguez.

​

1995 The Indians tie a major league record by scoring eight runs in the first inning before making an out. Seven of the tallies are the results of home runs, including Kenny Lofton's leadoff round-tripper, Paul Sorrento's grand slam, and Carlos Baerga's two-run blast.
1999 In Florida State University 26-2 win over the Maryland Terrapins, 22-year-old college junior Marshall McDougall, hits six home runs in his next six at-bats, after singling in the first inning. The Seminole's second baseman, who plays his brief 18-game major league career with the Rangers, finishes the College Park (MD) contest 7-for-7 with six homers, 16 RBIs and 25 total bases, all of which are NCAA single-game records.

​

1999 After 552 relief appearances, Mike Stanton starts a major league game, breaking Gary Lavelle's record for most appearances before starting a game. The southpaw shuts out Seattle for four innings, giving up two hits, in New York's 6-1 victory at Yankee Stadium.

​

 

2002 Mariano Rivera establish a new franchise record when he saves his 225th game, preserving the Yankees' 3-1 victory over the Devil Rays at Tropicana Field. The right-handed reliever hurls 1.1 innings to surpass the previous mark set in 1990 by Dave Righetti.

​

2006 Ivan Rodriguez, after 1,914 games behind the plate, plays first base, making it the first time in his career he is at a position other than catcher. Later in the season, 'Pudge' also makes an appearance at second base, filling in for injured Tiger infielder Placido Polanco.

​

2006 Delmon Young is suspended for 50 games by the International League for throwing a bat, which hit a replacement umpire in the chest. The Devil Rays' top prospect, the brother of Tiger star Dmitri Young, was selected as the minor league player of the year by Baseball America in 2005.
2010 Dallas Braden, recently made infamous due to his words with Alex Rodriguez when the Yankee third baseman cut across the diamond via the pitcher's mound, throws the 19th perfect game in baseball history, a 4-0 victory over the Rays in Oakland. In attendance for the 26-year-old left-hander's Mother's Day gem is his grandmother, who raised him after his mom died of melanoma during his senior year at Stagg High School in Stockton, California.

​

 

2011 Milton Bradley, playing for his eighth club since his Expos debut in 2000, is cut by the Mariners, who still owe him the remaining part of his $13 million deal for this season. Although no specific incident triggers the team's decision, the 33 year-old slumping outfielder had recently been suspended for a game after bumping an umpire, ejected from another contest for contesting a third strike, and a few days ago he became the target of the Seattle fans' wrath for what they perceived as his lack of hustle.
2015 With runners on second and third, the Pirates turn the first recorded 4-5-4 triple play in baseball history, recording all three outs entirely on the left side of the infield. The oddity occurs when Yadier Molina lines out to second baseman Neil Walker, who throws to third baseman Jung Ho Kang doubling up Jhonny Peralta off the third, and then fields the third baseman's return throw to triple up Jason Heywood at second base.
2019 Albert Pujols, with a solo homer in the top of the third inning in the Angels' 13-3 victory over the Tigers at Comerica Park, joins Hank Aaron and Alex Rodriguez in becoming just the third player in baseball history to record 2,000 career RBIs. Babe Ruth and Cap Anson also reached the plateau, but the runs batted in did not become an official statistic until 1920.

​

************
9,450

 

Today in Baseball History
Home | Contact | Baseball Almanac | Baseball Box Scores | Baseball Fever | Advertise | Support​

Search archives: Historical Events Baseball Birthdays Baseball Deaths
On April 9 in Baseball History...

• • 1913 - With league approval, the Dodgers play the first regular-season game at Ebbets Field a day ahead of the rest of the league. Cold weather keeps the Opening Day crowd down to about 12,000 as the Phils' Tom Seaton beats Nap Rucker 1-0.
  • 1947 - Commissioner Happy Chandler suspends manager Leo Durocher of the Brooklyn Dodgers for the entire season for consorting with gamblers.
  • 1959 - In the fifth inning against Washington, the Orioles become the first team in history to turn a triple play on Opening Day. Vice President Richard Nixon, a right-hander, substitutes for President Dwight D. Eisenhower and watches the Senators breeze to a 9-2 win.
  • 1962 - President John F. Kennedy throws out the first ball to open the 1962 baseball season at new District of Columbia Stadium. Despite rain, a record Washington crowd of 42,143 shows up to see Bennie Daniels stop Detroit with a five-hit, 4-1 win.
  • 1965 - President Lyndon B. Johnson joins 47,878 fans for the opening of Harris County Domed Stadium (the Astrodome). The Astros win an exhibition with the Yankees 2-1 in 12 innings. Mickey Mantle hits the first-ever indoor home run in the new park.
  • 1969 - Billy Williams of Chicago hit four consecutive doubles to lead the Cubs to an 11-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
  • 1974 - New Padres owner Ray Kroc, watching his team lose 9-2 in the home opener, takes to the public address system in the eighth inning and says: Ladies and gentlemen, I suffer with you...I've never seen such stupid baseball playing in my life. While he is speaking a streaker runs across the field. San Diego scores three runs but loses to Houston 9-5. Hearing of the incident, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn will make Kroc apologize to the fans.
  • 1978 - The Brewers complete a stunning season-opening, three-game sweep of the Orioles by scores of 11-3, 16-3, and 13-5. Sixto Lezcano, Gorman Thomas, and Cecil Cooper provided the Brewers with a grand slam in each game to set a major-league mark.
  • 1981 - Pressed into service on Opening Day when scheduled starter Jerry Reuss pulls a calf muscle, Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela shuts out the Astros 2-0 on five hits in his first major league start and goes on to win eight consecutive games.
  • 1985 - Chicago's Tom Seaver made his 15th opening-day start to break Christy Mathewson's record. Seaver pitched 6 2/3 innings and was credited with the victory as the White Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-2.
  • 1989 - Rickey Henderson steals his 800th career base in a 4-3 Yankees loss to the Indians.
  • 1990 - Houston's Glenn Davis ties a major league record when he is hit by pitches three times in an 8-4, 11-inning loss to the Reds. For the Reds, it is just their third road opener since 1876.
  • 1993 - The Colorado Rockies beat the Montreal Expos 11-4 for their first win ever and set a National League record for attendance in their home debut. The crowd of 80,227 broke the record of 78,672 set on April 18, 1958, by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
  • 1994 - Recently retired basketball legend Michael Jordan makes his professional debut by going hitless for Double-A Birmingham. Chattanooga is a 10-3 winner over the White Sox farm club.
  • 1997 - A hearty but paltry gathering of 1,677 comes out to see the Blue Jays blank the White Sox at Comiskey Park. The game was originally scheduled at night, but was moved to daylight because of extreme cold. The only thing lower than the attendance (the paid take was just 746) was the temperature, which was 34 degrees at game time. It is the smallest crowd to see the Sox in 27 years.

Baseball Birthdays on April 9...

• • 1859 - Toole, Steve
  • 1870 - Pickering, Ollie
  • 1872 - Rogers, Jim
  • 1875 - Hendricks, Jack
  • 1879 - Townsend, Happy
  • 1879 - White, Doc
  • 1888 - McDonald, Joe
  • 1888 - Vaughn, Hippo
  • 1890 - Willis, Joe
  • 1890 - Jantzen, Heinie
  • 1893 - Osborne, Tiny
  • 1893 - Morrell, Bill
  • 1901 - Sorrell, Vic
  • 1904 - Cantrell, Guy
  • 1904 - Frankhouse, Fred
  • 1905 - Caldwell, Earl
  • 1907 - Groskloss, Howdy
  • 1909 - Passeau, Claude
  • 1915 - Shemo, Steve
  • 1921 - Mead, Charlie
  • 1922 - Sutherland, Dizzy
  • 1936 - Jones, Hal
  • 1943 - Gleason, Roy
  • 1944 - Hinsley, Jerry
  • 1946 - Colbert, Nate
  • 1949 - Ewing, Sam
  • 1952 - Plank, Ed
  • 1961 - McCaskill, Kirk
  • 1961 - Dorsett, Brian
  • 1963 - Guzman, Jose
  • 1963 - Brumley, Mike
  • 1964 - Ilsley, Blaise
  • 1965 - Morris, Hal
  • 1967 - Lloyd, Graeme
  • 1975 - Nunnari, Talmadge

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.​

 

​

 

​

 

​