BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

1984 New York's pinch-hitter Rusty Staub becomes only the second player to hit a round-tripper as a teenager and one after his 40th birthday when he blasts a walk-off home run off Larry Anderson to give the Mets a 6-4 victory over Philadelphia at Shea Stadium. Ty Cobb was the first major leaguer to accomplish the feat.

1986 The Orioles suffer the 82nd of their 89 defeats this season, a 9-3 loss to Milwaukee at County Stadium, assuring the Birds will finish below .500 for the first time in 18 seasons. The last time Baltimore lost more games than it won in a campaign was in 1967 when the sixth-place team compiled a 76-85 record under Hank Bauer.

1986 The Astros win the National League West when Mike Scott doesn't yield a hit in his 2-0 complete-game victory over the Giants. The game marks the first time a title has been clinched with a no-hitter, although Allie Reynolds' second no-no of the season assured the Yankees a tie for the 1951 American League pennant.


1987 A’s rookie Mark McGwire sets an Oakland team record for home runs, going deep for the 48th time this season when he connects off Bobby Thigpen in the bottom ninth inning to tie the score in the team’s eventual extra-inning 2-1 loss to the White Sox. The 23-year-old first baseman’s Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum round-tripper breaks the mark Reggie Jackson established in 1969.

1987 Benito Santiago sets the modern (post-1900) major league record for rookies with a first-inning single, extending his streak to 27 consecutive games with a hit. The 22-year-old Padres catcher surpasses the previous standard set in 1943 by White Sox outfielder Guy Curtright and ties James Williams, who established the all-time longest-hitting streak by a freshman while playing for the 1899 Pirates.

1989 The Red Sox announce the team will not exercise its option on 36-year-old Jim Rice, who will retire at the end of the season. Also, Bob Stanley, the club's all-time saves leader with 173, reports he will also call it quits when this year's campaign is over.

1989 Wade Boggs extends his own modern major league record when he collects his 200th hit for the seventh consecutive season. The Red Sox third baseman goes 4-for-5 in Boston's 7-4 victory over the Yankees at Fenway Park.

 

1996 Giants slugger Barry Bonds draws an intentional walk, which gives him the National League record with 149 bases-on-balls in a season. The free pass is issued in the seventh inning by LA's Mark Guthrie with two outs and a runner on third base in the team's 7-5 loss at Dodger Stadium.

1997 NBC's hit TV show "ER" airs live, using the Cubs telecast in the background in various scenes to authenticate the telecast's claim of not being pre-recorded. The medical drama cuts to the game just as Brad Ausmus hits a three-run homer, much to the Astros' catcher's delight, who is taping his favorite program to watch later, not knowing he would be part of the cast.

1997 Eleven years to the day the club won its last title, the Astros clinch the NL Central Division by beating the Cubs, 9-1. Houston manages to capture the flag despite being only five games over .500.

1997 Joe Carter, donning the uniform number 43 to honor recently fired manager Cito Gaston, becomes the Blue Jays' career home run leader, hitting his 203rd round-tripper in a 4-3 victory over Baltimore. George Bell, who spent nine seasons in Toronto, had set the franchise mark in 1990.

1997 Pedro Martinez records his final strikeout for the Expos, fanning Dale Daulton in Montreal's 3-2 victory over Florida at Olympic Stadium. The 25-year-old right-hander, who establishes a franchise record with his 305th strikeout of the season, will be traded to the Red Sox in the off-season for Carl Pavano and Tony Armas.

 

1998 The Bronx Bombers, with a 6-1 win over the Devil Rays at Yankee Stadium, set an American League record with their 112th win to surpass the 1954 Indians. The 1906 Cubs, who finished the season with a 116-36 record, are the only team to end a campaign with more victories than the 1998 New York club, who will finish the campaign with 114.

1998 Sammy Sosa hits #66 and his final round-tripper of the season, a 462-foot blast at the Astrodome, to take the lead in the home run race. Less than an hour later, Mark McGwire will also hit his 66th, en route to his record-setting 70, in the Cardinals' 6-5 victory over Montreal, tying the Cub outfielder in the historic home run race.

1998 Ken Griffey, Jr. hits his league-leading 56th homer of the season and 350th of his career, becoming the youngest player to reach the milestone. The 28-year-old outfielder drives in five runs in the Mariners' 15-4 rout of Texas, who still manages to cop their second consecutive American League West Division title thanks to an Anaheim loss to Kansas City.

1999 For the first time in fifty years, a major leaguer drives in 159 runs when Manny Ramirez gets two RBIs in the Indians' 9-6 victory over the Blue Jays at the SkyDome. The Cleveland right fielder will finish the season with 165 ribbies and matches Ted Williams' and Vern Stephens' output with the Red Sox in 1949.

 

2000 For only the second time since 1900, three teams play in the same twin bill when the Indians beat the White Sox in the opener, 9-2, and then lose the nightcap to the Twins, 4-3 at the Jake. In 1951, at Sportsman's Park, the Cardinals played host to the Giants, winning 6-4 before bowing to the Braves, 2-0.

2001 Richie Sexson and Jeromy Burnitz hit three home runs in the Brewers' 9-4 victory over Arizona at Bank One Ballpark. The teammates' accomplishment marks the first time in major league history that two players on the same team have gone deep three times in the same game.

2003 Surpassing Mel Ott and Willie Mays, Sammy Sosa becomes the first National Leaguer to have at least 100 RBIs for nine straight seasons. The Cubs' right fielder also joins Rafael Palmeiro and Jimmie Foxx as the only players in major league history to hit 35 home runs and 100 RBI for nine consecutive seasons.

2003 Carlos Delgado becomes the 15th player in big-league history and only the fifth American League player to hit four home runs in one game. The Blue Jays first baseman's first homer was the 300th of his career, and his barrage gives him 41 for the season.

2003 Friends, family, associates, and former players gather at Shea Stadium on Bob Murphy Appreciation Night to honor the long-time broadcaster. Doing play-by-play for the team since the first game of its inaugural season in 1962, the Hall of Famer calls the last of his more than 6,000 Mets games following the pregame ceremonies.

2007 Brewers' first baseman Prince Fielder becomes the youngest major leaguer to hit 50 home runs in a season, going deep twice in the team's 9-1 victory over the Cardinals at Miller Park. The 23-year-old cleanup hitter and his father, Cecil, who hit 51 round-trippers with the Tigers in 1990, are the first father-and-son to accomplish the feat.

2008 The Diamondbacks, defending division champions, lose to St. Louis, 12-3, allowing the Dodgers to clinch the NL West. Unlike his former team, the Yankees, Los Angeles first-year skipper Joe Torre's 13-year postseason streak continues.

2008 In his ninth complete game, Roy Halladay, giving up six hits and two runs, posts his second 20-win season with an 8-2 victory over the Yankees at the Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays right-hander, en route to the Cy Young Award, compiled a 22-7 record in 2003.

2008 Mark Reynolds strikes out for the 200th time, breaking the major league record set last year by Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard. By season's end, the Diamondbacks' third baseman will extend the dubious mark to 204.

2009 In a position where the Mets could not field a reliable everyday player for decades, David Wright establishes a franchise record by starting his 836th game at third base for the Mets, surpassing his hitting coach and friend Howard Johnson. More than 120 players, beginning in 1962 with Don Zimmer, have appeared at the hot corner for the team, but only ten have appeared in as many as 200 games during the club's 47-year history.

2009 New York clears the fence for the 127th time at the new Yankee Stadium to break the franchise record for most home runs hit by the team at home. Alex Rodriguez's third-inning poke off Jon Lester in the Bronx Bombers' 9-5 victory over Boston puts this year's squad ahead of the 2004 and 2005 clubs, who both went deep 126 times in the old stadium.

2010 In the game where he sets a team record for striking out, Brandon Inge drives in the winning run with a walk-off single in the 13th inning of the Tigers' 11-10 victory over Minnesota. With the second of his three whiffs, the Detroit third baseman surpasses the franchise record of 1,099, playing over 1,000 fewer games than Lou Whitaker, who previously held the infamous mark.

2010 Bobby Cox, who will retire after the season ends, earns his 2,500th major league victory as a manager when the Braves blank Washington at Nationals Park, 5-0. The veteran skipper joins Connie Mack, John McGraw, and Tony La Russa as the fourth field boss to reach this milestone.

2010 Limiting the A's to one hit in 1.1 innings of work in the Rangers' 4-3 victory, Neftali Feliz records his 38th save of the season. The freshman closer surpasses Mariners' Kazuhiro Sasaki's mark of 37 in 2000, establishing the record for the most saves by a rookie closer.

2012 With Zack Greinke fanning 13 batters during his five-inning outing and the bullpen adding another seven, the Angels' staff combines for 20 strikeouts in the team's 5-4 victory over Seattle, tying the record for the most ever recorded in a nine-inning game. The Anaheim starter's performance makes him the first hurler since 1920 to whiff 13 opponents in an outing that lasts less than six innings.

2013 In the final game he plays at Coors Field, Todd Helton homers in his first at-bat, a second-inning solo shot in Colorado's 15-5 loss to Boston. The 40-year-old first baseman, who announced his retirement last week, has spent his 17-year career with the Rockies.

2014 "I owe too much to this organization for the next two years to risk getting hurt for an incentive. My outing (Sept. 12) got rained out and the last inning of my last start got rained out, so for whatever reason, it wasn't meant to be. There's a lot bigger problems out there. I'm proud of my season." - PHIL HUGHES, explaining why he turned an offer to pitch for a $500,000 bonus.

Phil Hughes, who finished the final start of his season one out short of reaching 210 innings to receive a $500,000 contract incentive because of yesterday's 66-minute rain delay, is given the opportunity to make a brief relief appearance for the Twins. The right-hander also turns down the club's offer, saying he would not interested in simply being given a half-a-million-dollar bonus.

2014 Derek Jeter makes his last game at Yankee Stadium very memorable when he drives in the winning run in the ninth inning with an opposite-field one-out single off of Evan Meek in the team's 6-5 walk-off win over Baltimore. The Captain's heroics help the Bronx Bombers overcome blowing a three-run lead in the top of the frame.

2017 In the second inning of the Cubs' 10-2 rout of the Cardinals at Busch Stadium, Addison Russell dives into the stands chasing a foul ball, spilling a fan's nachos onto the playing field. In the next frame, the Chicago shortstop hand delivers a fresh order of cheese-covered tortillas to the grateful Redbird fan.


2018 Max Scherzer whiffs Marlins rookie Austin Dean after a ten-pitch at-bat to record his 300th strikeout of the season. In his final appearance of the year, the Washington ace fans ten hitters to precisely reach the plateau in the team's 9-4 win at Nationals Park, becoming just the third pitcher to accomplish the feat in the past 15 years.

2020 Dusty Baker will become the first major league skipper to manage five teams to the postseason as the Astros clinch a spot in the MLB's expanded 16-team Fall Frenzy when the Dodgers beat the Angels. The three-time National League Manager of the Year (1993, 1997, 2000) had previously won a playoff spot with the Giants (1997, 2000, 2002), Cubs (2003), Reds (2010, 2012, 2013), and Nationals (2016, 2017).

2020 At Yankee Stadium, the Marlins clinch their first playoff berth since 2003 when they beat the Bronx Bombers, 4-3. Miami finishes second behind the Braves in the NL East, compiling a 31-29 mark in the COVID-19-shortened season, their first winning season in 11 years.

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Today In 1965: In an amazing return to the major leagues, 59-year-old Satchel Paige pitches 3 shutout innings for the Kansas City A's vs. the Boston Red Sox! Carl Yastrzemski is the only player to get a hit!
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The Walter Johnson statue is creative
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Baseball History​

1838-06-04 First baseball-type game in Canada

1845-09-23 1st baseball team, NY Knickerbockers organize, adopt rule code

1846-06-19 First officially recognised baseball game (played by Cartwright Rules) - NY Nines 23 defeat Knickerbockers 1 at Hoboken, New Jersey

1848-09-18 Baseball rules 1st baseman can tag base for out instead of runner

1851-06-03 1st baseball uniforms worn when the NY Knickerbockers wear a uniform of straw hats, white shirts and blue long trousers

1857-03-07 Baseball decides 9 innings constitutes an official game, not 9 runs

1858-07-20 Fee 1st charged to see a baseball game (50 cents) (NY beats Bkln 22-18)

1859-05-31 Philadelphia A's organize to play "town ball" became baseball 20 years later

1859-07-01 1st intercollegiate baseball game, Amherst beats Williams 66-32 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts

1860-02-22 Organized baseball played in San Francisco for 1st time between the Eagles and the Red Rovers

1866-07-23 Cincinnati Baseball club (Red Stockings) forms

1869-03-15 With 10 salaried players, Cincinnati Red Stockings become baseball's first professional team

1869-04-23 1st professional baseball exhibition game - Cincinnati Red Stockings 24, Cincinnati amateurs 15

1869-05-04 Cincinnati Red Stockings play their 1st official baseball game, a win against the Great Western Base Ball Club, 45-9

1869-06-02 Cleveland's Forest City play their 1st baseball game, against the Cincinnati Red Stockings

1870-11-27 The New York Times dubs baseball "The National Game"

1871-10-30 Philadelphia Athletics beat Chicago for 1st National Association baseball pennant

1874-02-27 Baseball 1st played in England at Lord's Cricket Ground

1874-03-02 National Association of Professional Baseball Players officially adopts the batter's box; decide any player betting on his own team will be expelled; any player betting on any other team to forfeit his pay

1874-07-30 1st baseball teams to play outside US, Boston-Philadelphia in British Isles

1876-02-02 Baseball's National League forms at the Grand Central Hotel, NYC with teams in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Hartford, Louisville, New York, Philadelphia, and St Louis

1876-02-03 Albert Spalding invests $800 to start sporting goods company, manufacturing first official baseball, tennis ball, basketball, golf ball and football

1876-04-22 1st official National League baseball game is played; Boston Red Caps beat Philadelphia Athletics, 6-5 at the Jefferson Street Grounds, Philadelphia

1876-04-22 Philadelphia native Tim McGinley of the Boston Red Caps scores baseball National League's 1st run, in Philadelphia

1876-07-15 Baseball's first official no-hitter: George Bradley of the St Louis Brown Stockings no-hits the Hartford Dark Blues, 2-0

1877-04-12 Catcher's mask 1st used in a baseball game

1877-05-07 Cincinnati Enquirer first uses term "bullpen" to indicate baseball field foul territory where late-coming spectators were herded like cattle

1878-02-12 Harvard player Frederick Thayer patents baseball catcher's mask (pat # 200,358)

1879-10-01 Cincinnati Enquirer publishes first report on Baseball's reserve clause; rights to players retained by team upon the contract's expiration; replaced by free agency

1880-09-29 1st pro baseball game at Polo Grounds, NY Metropolitans beat Washington Nationals 4-2 in 5 innings

1882-06-24 National League expels umpire Richard Higham from baseball for dishonesty after his links with gambling on games are confirmed

1882-09-25 1st baseball doubleheader (Providence & Worcester)

1882-10-06 1st World Series Baseball Game 1: Cincinnati Red Stockings (AA) beat Chicago White Stockings (NL), 4-0 at Bank Street Grounds, Cincinnati

1896 In the season finale played at Louisville's Eclipse Park, Cleveland Spider outfielder Jesse Burkett gets three hits in the team's 4-3 victory over the Colonels to finish the year with a .410 batting average. The future Hall of Famer called 'Crab' becomes the first player to hit .400 in consecutive campaigns, having batted .405 last season.

1882-10-07 1st World Series Baseball Game 2: Chicago White Stockings (NL) beats Cincinnati Red Stockings (AA), 2-0 at Bank Street Grounds, Cincinnati

1883-05-01 First National League baseball game in Philadelphia since 1876, Providence Greys beat Philadelphia Quakers, 4-3

1883-06-02 1st night baseball under lights, Fort Wayne Indiana

1883-06-16 1st baseball "Ladies' Day" - NY Gothams beat Cleveland Blues 5-2 at the Polo Grounds in NYC

1884-05-01 Catcher Moses Walker is acknowledged as the first African-American to play major league baseball joining the Toledo Blue Stockings

1884-10-22 Sporting Life announces that both pennant winners will meet in 3 game series Oct 23-25 at Polo Grounds NYC to determine baseball champion

1884-10-25 1st "World Championship" Baseball Series, Polo Grounds, NYC: Providence Grays (NL) beat NY Mets (American Association), 12-2 in 6 innings for 3 game sweep; game abandoned because of bitter cold

1885-10-17 Baseball sets all players salaries at $1,000-$2,000 for 1885 season

1885-10-22 John Ward & several teammates secretly form Brotherhood of Prof Base Ball Players, 1st baseball union

1885-10-24 "World Championship" Baseball Series, Cincinnati Base Ball Grounds: St. Louis Browns beat Chicago White Stockings, 13–4 in Game 7; disputed series tied at 3-3-1

1886-10-23 "World Championship" Baseball Series, Sportsman's Park, St. Louis: St.L Browns edge Chicago White Stockings, 4-3 in 10 innings in Game 6 to take series, 4-2

1887-10-26 "World Championship" Baseball Series, Sportsman's Park, Detroit Wolverines (NL) beat St Louis Browns (AA), 10 games to 5 in series played in bitterly cold conditions

1887-12-02 International Baseball League disbands; teams in Syracuse, Toronto, Hamilton, and Buffalo form the International Association; those in Newark, Jersey City, Wilkes-Barre, and Scranton become the Central League

1888-06-03 Baseball poem "Casey at the Bat" 1st published by the San Francisco Examiner

1888-10-20 Chicago and All America baseball teams play exhibition in Auckland, New Zealand

1888-10-27 "World Championship" Baseball Series, Sportsman's Park, St. Louis; St. Louis Browns rout NY Giants, 18-7 in Game 10 but lose series, 6-4

1888-12-25 First indoor baseball game played at fairgrounds in Philadelphia; 2,000 watch the Uptowners beat the Downtowners, 6-1

1889-06-22 Louisville Colonels set ML baseball record with 26th consecutive loss

1889-10-18 First all-NYC "World Championship" Baseball Series; New York Giants (NL) play Brooklyn Bridegrooms (AA); Giants go on to win series, 6-3

1889-10-24 Softball rules adopted by Mid Winter Indoor Baseball League

1889-10-29 "World Championship" Baseball Series, Polo Grounds, NYC: defending champion NY Giants (NL) beat Brooklyn Bridegrooms (AA), 3-2 in Game 9 to claim series, 6-3

1889-11-04 Players League begins, declaring independence from baseball's NL

1905 When Doc White doesn't retire a batter in the first inning during the first game of a twin bill against Boston, the Game 2 starter Ed Walsh enters the contest without warming up and gives up five runs before blanking Boston the rest of the way en route to a 10-5 victory. The Meriden (CT) native wins his scheduled start in the South Side Park nightcap, 3-1, getting credit for two complete-game victories over the Americans.

1906 After setting a major league record of being shut out for 48 consecutive innings, the A's finally score a run thanks to Harry Davis' two-run double. The Mackmen, however, still lose to the Cleveland Naps, 5-3.

1908 Cubs right-hander Ed Reulbach pitches two shutouts on the same day, whitewashing the Brooklyn Superbas in the opener 5-0 on a
five-hitter and 3-0 on three hits in the nightcap. The entire Washington Park doubleheader takes less than three hours to complete.

1926 On his final day in a Tiger uniform, Ty Cobb watches his replacement in centerfield get six hits in a twin bill against the Red Sox. Heinie Manush's perfect performance at the plate places him six points ahead of Yankee slugger Babe Ruth for the American League batting title, .378 to .372.
1926 On the last day of the season, the Browns beat the Yankees 6-1 and 6-2, needing only two hours and seven minutes to sweep the Bronx Bombers. The Sportsman's Park season finale takes only 55 minutes to complete after the teams finished the twin bill's first game in 72 minutes.

1944 At Fenway Park in front of 19,815 paid fans, the Boston Yanks lose their NFL debut, with BC Alumnus Teddy Williams scoring the
squad's only touchdown in the 28-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Owner Ted Collins selected the name 'Yanks' because he initially thought the new franchise would represent New York and play their home games at Yankee Stadium before the football Giants refused to share the New York metropolitan area.

1947 On the final Friday of the season, team broadcaster Mel Allen asks a reluctant Larry MacPhail to appear at a ceremony in front of home plate with his players present before a game against the Senators. The Yankee owner receives a seven-piece silver tea service, a gift from his team with the inscription: TO LARRY MACPHAIL, greatest executive in baseball, whose zealous efforts were a major factor in our 19-game streak and the winning of the American League pennant. - From his Yankees, 1947.

1954 With three hits in the season finale, Willie Mays wins the batting title, finishing the campaign with a .345 average. The 'Say Hey Kid' goes third to first in batting average, with his performance passing teammate Don Mueller (.342) and Dodger center fielder Duke Snider (341).

1954 On the last day of the season against the Giants, Phillies outfielder Richie Ashburn plays in his 730th consecutive game to establish a franchise record. The streak, which began on June 7, 1950, ended on the Opening Day of 1955 due to an injury sustained in spring training.

1954 In the last game the franchise will play representing Philadelphia, the A's defeat the Bronx Bombers at Yankee Stadium, 8-6. After spending the first 54 years of existence in the City of Brotherly Love, Connie Mack's Athletics will play in Kansas City next season, after much legal wrangling, under the new ownership of Arnold Johnson.

1954 With the Yankees eight games behind Cleveland on the last day of the season, Casey Stengel fields a lineup of familiar faces in unfamiliar places in an 8-6 loss to the A's at the ballpark in the Bronx. In his only career game at third base, Yogi Berra handles two chances without a miscue, shortstop Mickey Mantle flawlessly fields eight grounders, and first baseman Bill Skowron makes just one error in his eight opportunities playing at second.

1959 Sam Jones holds the Cardinals hitless for seven innings before the game, with two outs in the top of the eighth, before the umps stop play. Although 'Toothpick' loses his bid for an 'official' no-hitter due to the rain-shortened game, the Giants' right-hander gets his career-high 21st win of the season with the Giants' 4-0 victory over the Redbirds at Busch Stadium.

1961 At Yankee Stadium, Roger Maris ties Babe Ruth's 34-year-old single-season record with his 60th home run of the year, a high drive down the right-field line off on a curveball thrown by Orioles right-hander Jack Fisher. The slugger's homer comes in the 159th game of the expanded season, keeping Ruth as the single-season home run leader according to Commissioner Ford Frick, who ruled for the mark to be shared or broken, the historic round-tripper had to come in the first 154 games of the season.

1961 With an 8-3 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field, the Reds clinch their first National League pennant since 1940. Cincinnati will lose the World Series to the Yankees, four games to 1.

1964 At RFK Stadium, Mel Stottlemyre limits the Senators to just two hits, throwing a complete game en route to a 7-0 shutout. In addition to his outstanding pitching performance, the 22-year-old rookie helps the Yankees win their 11th consecutive game with four singles and a double in five plate appearances.

1965 The Twins, who moved from the District of Columbia to Minnesota in 1961, win their first pennant since 1933, when the franchise represented Washington, DC. Jim Kaat goes the distance, beating the expansion Senators in the nation's capital, 2-1.

1969 Pirates skipper Larry Shepard is fired with five games to play and is replaced on an interim basis by Alex Grammas. Danny Murtaugh, the team's pilot next season, will win the National League Manager of the Year Award after his team finishes with 88 victories, just one more win than this year's squad.

1969 The Senators' 4-1 victory over Cleveland at RFK Stadium is the team's 82nd of the season, guaranteeing the 'expansion Senators' their first-ever winning record. Ted Williams' fourth-place team will finish the season with an 86-76 record, marking the first time Washington has had a winning campaign since the original Senators posted a 78-76 mark in 1952.

1971 Joining Oriole teammates Dave McNally, Mike Cuellar, and Pat Dobson, sometimes referred to as the Four-leaf Clover rotation, Jim Palmer records his 20th victory of the season when he blanks the Tribe at Cleveland Stadium, 5-0. The right-hander's victory makes Baltimore the second team in major league history, along with the 1920 Chicago White Sox, to have four 20-game winners on its staff.

1973 Paul Splittorff becomes the first twenty-game winner in franchise history when the Royals beat Chicago, 6-2. The 26-year-old southpaw will retire in 1984 as the team's all-time leader in victories with 166.

1975 Burt Hooton sets a Dodger record for starting pitchers by winning his twelfth consecutive game. The 25-year-old right-hander, traded to LA in May for Eddie Solomon and Geoff Zahn, accomplishes the feat by beating J.R. Richard and the Astros at Dodger Stadium, 3-2.

1976 The Phillies beat the Expos in the first game of a Jarry Park doubleheader, 4-1, to clinch the National League East title. Dick Allen doesn't play in the nightcap, bolting from the team to protest Tony Taylor not being placed on the postseason roster.

1976 A doubleheader marks the last major league games played at Jarry Park, the home of the Expos, where the team has posted a 554-734 (.431) won-loss record since the team's inception in 1969. The Phillies beat Montreal, 4-1, to clinch the National League East title and then complete the sweep, in a game shortened to seven innings due to inclement weather, by taking the nightcap in the finale of Parc Jarry, 2-1, with the scheduled post-game fireworks displayed during the rain delay.

1978 Gary Alexander's home run with two outs in the ninth inning derails Oriole left-hander Mike Flanagan's potential no-hitter against Cleveland at Memorial Stadium. When the Baltimore starter gives up two additional singles, reliever Don Stanhouse puts out the fire and saves the 3-1 Orioles win.

1979 Frank White becomes the fourth player in the team's 11-year history to hit for the cycle when he triples in the ninth inning of the Royals' 4-0 victory over California at Anaheim Stadium. The Kansas City second baseman joins Freddie Patek (1971), John Mayberry (1977), and George Brett (1979), who also have completed the rare feat playing for the franchise.

1979 Braves knuckleballer Phil Niekro evens his record at 20-20 when he goes the distance for his 20th win of the season, beating Houston in Atlanta, 9-4. 'Knucksie' beats his brother, Joe, who earned his 20th victory four days ago against Cincinnati.

1981 Nolan Ryan becomes the first pitcher to throw five no-hitters when the Astros defeat the Dodgers at the Astrodome, 5-0. The Ryan Express, who will finish his 27-year major league career with a record seven no-hitters, previously has thrown hitless gems against the Royals (1973), Tigers (1973), Twins (1974), and Orioles (1975).

1983 Cardinal Bob Forsch retires the last 22 batters he faces en route to pitching his second career no-hitter when he beats the Expos at Busch Stadium, 3-0. In the same ballpark, the 33-year-old Redbird right-hander first accomplished the feat against Philadelphia in 1978.

1987 Padres' catcher Benito Santiago sets a major league record for rookies by hitting safely in his 28th consecutive contest, a streak the 21-year-old backstop will extend to 34 games. Pirates' third baseman Jimmy Williams had set the previous mark of 27 in 1899 with the Pirates.

1992 For the first time in the franchise's 30-year history, the Mets use a position player as a pitcher. Eighth-inning pinch-hitter Bill Pecota takes the mound in the bottom of the inning, and the infielder gives up only a home run to Andy Van Slyke when the Pirates pummel New York, 19-2.

1993 Randy Johnson becomes the 12th pitcher this century to strike out 300 batters in a season, whiffing 13 in 10 innings in the Mariners' 3-2 loss to Oakland at the Kingdome. The Seattle southpaw, en route to 4,875 career strikeouts, the most all-time for a lefthanded pitcher, second only to Nolan Ryan's 5,714, will also reach the milestone five additional times spanning the 1998-2002 seasons.

1995 Adam Sisk becomes the first player signed by the expansion Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The 19-year-old Edison Community College student, who was 24-2 at Riverdale Baptist High School, was drafted by San Diego last year; however, the right-hander chose to go to college, developing tendinitis in his right elbow after making just two appearances.

1997 Dodger slugger Mike Piazza, in the team's 10-4 win over the Rockies, hits the longest home run in the history of Coors Field. The 28-year-old catcher's sixth-inning blast off Darren Holmes travels 496 feet and hits the left-center field billboard between the scoreboard and the Rockpile.

1998 David Cone sets a new major league record for the most years between 20-win seasons when New York beats the Devil Rays at Yankee Stadium, 3-1. The 33-year-old Coney, who was 20-3 in 1988 with the Mets, surpasses the mark set by Jim Kaat, who won twenty in 1966 and 1974.

1998 Dennis Eckersley, making his final major league appearance, pitches in his 1,071st game, breaking Hoyt Wilhelm's major league mark for the most career pitching appearances. The 'Eck' finishes his 24-year career, tossing a one-run ninth inning in the Red Sox' 5-2 loss to Baltimore at Fenway Park.

1998 Rickey Henderson finishes the campaign with a league-leading 66 stolen bases, swiping second and third in the bottom of the third inning of the A's 4-3 victory over the Angels at Network Associates Coliseum. The 39-year-old 'Man of Steal' becomes the oldest player to lead the league in purloined bags.

2000 The Braves, who will finish the season with a 95-67 record, beat the second-place Mets at Shea Stadium, 7-1, to clinch the NL East title. Atlanta has captured a record nine-consecutive division crowns but will be swept in the NLDS by St. Louis.

2007 Albert Pujols becomes the first player in big-league history to hit 30 homers and have 100 RBIs in his first seven seasons when he drives in the first run of the Miller Park contest. The Cardinal first baseman's first-inning homer, his 32nd of the season, helps St. Louis beat the contending Brewers at Miller Park, 7-3.

2007 According to an internet poll conducted by Marc Ecko, who owns the record-breaking 756th home run ball belted by Barry Bonds, the Baseball Hall of Fame receives the historic horsehide as a donation branded with an asterisk. On the Today Show, the fashion designer reveals that 47% voted for the marked ball, with another 34% voting to donate it unchanged, and 19% elected to send the unique sphere into outer space.


2007 After a 50-homerless at-bat drought, Brandon Phillips hits his 30th home run of the season, becoming the 31st member of the 30-30 club that includes Mets third baseman David Wright and Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins, who also accomplished the feat this season. The 26-year-old infielder joins Alfonso Soriano (Yankees, 2002) as the only second baseman to reach the plateau and the third Reds player (Eric Davis, 1987, Barry Larkin, 1996) to hit 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in the same season.

2007 "Well, you know, I've worried about that because I think given the Cubs' record -- which of course I hope it happens, but it could very well be a sign of the coming apocalypse were that ever to occur -- it would be so out of history that you'd have the Cubs versus the Yankees. Then, I'd be really in trouble. "- HILLARY CLINTON, commenting on the potential World Series with Cubs and Yankees as opponents.
At a Democratic candidate presidential debate at Dartmouth College, moderator Tim Russert asks junior New York Senator Hillary Clinton, a Chicago native, who she would root for in a potential Cubs vs. Yankees World Series. The presidential hopeful responds diplomatically, "I would probably have to alternate sides." C-Span Clip from 2007 Democratic debate at Dartmouth

2007 Michael Young joins Wade Boggs and Ichiro Suzuki as the third players since 1940 to collect 200 hits in five consecutive seasons. The Ranger shortstop reaches the plateau with two singles among his three hits in the 16-2 rout of the Angels at Ameriquest Field.

2008 Although they suffer a 6-4 defeat to the Tigers, the Rays win their first American League East title when the Red Sox lose to the Yankees later in the evening. Skipper Joe Maddon and a few players remained in the Comerica Park clubhouse to watch the rain-delayed contest in Boston end, bringing the title to Tampa Bay.

2009 Bronx native Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court's newest member, throws the ceremonial first pitch at Yankee Stadium, a strike right down the middle of the plate, before watching her team defeat the Red Sox, 3-0. In 1995, as a U.S. District Judge, Justice Sotomayor issued an injunction that helped to end the nearly eight-month-long baseball strike.

2010 The Tigers beat Minnesota, 5-1, in the last game played in Detroit this season to establish a Comerica Park record with their 52nd victory at home, one more win than in the ballpark's inaugural season in 2000. However, the club cannot contend this year due to its poor performance on the road, presently 19 games below .500.

2011 Vladimir Guerrero, with a single up the middle, becomes the all-time career hit leader among players born in the Dominican Republic. The 36-year-old Orioles DH's 2,587th career hit puts him ahead of Hato Mayor del Rey native Julio Franco.

2012 David Wright, the franchise leader in doubles, extra-base hits, walks, RBIs, and runs scored, breaks the record for the most hits in Met history when he beats out a slow grounder down the third-base line for an infield single in the team's 6-0 victory over Pittsburgh at Citi Field. The 29-year-old third baseman's 1,419th career hit surpasses Ed Kranepool, a first baseman/outfielder, who played for New York from 1962-1979.

2012 After 63 years of doing play-by-play, Milo Hamilton calls his final game, painting the word picture of his Astros beating St. Louis at Minute Maid Park, 2-0. The Hall of Fame broadcaster, who also worked for the Browns, Cardinals, Cubs, White Sox, Braves, and Pirates before starting his 28-year tenure with Houston, gives an inspirational farewell speech during the seventh-inning stretch, receiving a standing ovation from the fans at the ballpark.

2013 Derek Jeter and Andy Pettitte, with two out in the ninth inning, emerge from the dugout to take out legendary closer Mariano Rivera, giving the sold-out crowd at Yankee Stadium one last chance to cheer their beloved reliever. The unexpected visit to the mound, the brainchild of manager Joe Girardi, who asked permission from the umpires to implement the unorthodox move, triggers an emotional encounter between the remaining Core Four teammates that renders Mo speechless as he weeps from the admiration of his friends and fans.

2013 Commissioner Bud Selig announces his intention to retire upon completing his contract at the end of next year. The 79-year-old chief executive of baseball has held the position since 1992, first on an interim basis, before being named to the post nearly six years later.

2014 The Royals clinch their first postseason berth in nearly three decades with a 3-1 win over the White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field. The Cinderella American League Wild Card team will win three postseason series, beating Oakland, Los Angeles, and Baltimore, to make it to the Fall Classic before losing to San Francisco in seven games.

2015 Unbeknownst to the Blue Jays at the time, the team technically clinched a postseason spot yesterday when the Toronto fans, crunching numbers, discover an oversight in the standings. The new math officially confirms the end of the longest playoff drought in North American professional sports, ending Toronto's 22-year absence from the postseason, with the team celebrating the accomplishment in a champagne-soaked clubhouse at the Roger Centre after today's 10-8 victory over Tampa Bay.

2015 The Mets clinch their first NL East title and first postseason berth since 2006, when the team routs Cincinnati at the Great American Ball Park, 10-2. New York, needing only an 88-67 record to capture the flag, took advantage of the heavily favored Nationals' season-long woes.

2016 The Marlins, each wearing the number 16, host the Mets in a game without any walk-up music, advertisements, or fan-interactive activities at a solemn ballpark in tribute to Miami right-hander Jose Fernandez, a victim of a tragic boating accident only 36 hours ago. Dee Gordon, a left-handed hitter, begins his at-bat from the right side wearing the late starter's helmet and weeps as he rounds the bases, pointing to the sky when he crosses the plate to honor his friend and teammate after hitting a leadoff home run to start the game.

2019 In their final game this season at Comerica Park, the Tigers drop a 10-4 decision to the Twins, tying the major league mark for the most home losses in baseball history. Detroit's 59th defeat in the Motor City matches the record set by the St. Louis Browns, who accomplished the dubious feat at Sportsman's Park in 1939.

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SEPTEMBER 27 BASEBALL BIRTHDAYS
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1890 Willie Adams

1935 John Stanford college baseball coach/administrator (Middle Tennessee)


1935 Mamie "Peanut" Johnson pitcher (1st female pitcher to play in the Negro Leagues)


1949 Mike Schmidt HOF 3rd baseman (World Series MVP 1980; NL MVP 1980-81, 86; 12 x MLB All Star; 10 x Gold Glove; Philadelphia Phillies)


1979 Jon Garland baseball pitcher (World Series & MLB All-Star 2005 Chicago White Sox)

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This Day in Baseball History
September 27th​

1877 With their 19th victory in the last 20 games, the Red Caps, aka the Red Stockings, clinch the National League pennant, beating the Hartford Dark Blues, 13-2. James 'Deacon' White, the league's leading hitter, paces Boston's attack with a 4-for-4 performance.

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1898 Reds' first baseman Jake Beckley handles a record 22 chances, making 21 putouts and one assist without committing any errors. The Cincinnati infielder's defensive abilities contribute to the home team's 9-2 victory over the Cleveland Spiders League Park.

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1904 Cleveland Naps' hurler Bob Rhoads holds Boston hitless until Chick Stahl singles with two outs in the ninth. In four years, the right-hander will become the first pitcher to no-hit the Red Sox.

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1905 Boston Pilgrim hurler Bill Dinneen pitches the season's fourth no-hitter, beating the White Sox, 2-0. The right-hander, who will become an American League ump 17 days after he retires in 1909, is the only person in major league history ever to pitch a no-hitter and call one as an umpire.


1914 Nap Lajoie joins Cap Anson and Honus Wagner as the only major leaguers to record 3,000 career hits, doubling off off Marty McHale in the Indians' 5-3 victory over New York at League Park. The Cleveland infielder will end his 21-year Hall of Fame career in 1916 with 3,243 hits.

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1919 In a complete-game effort at Shibe Park, Yankee right-hander Bob Shawkey establishes a franchise record when he strikes out 15 batters in a 9-2 victory over Philadelphia. In 1978, Ron Guidry will fan 18 batters, breaking the 59-year-old record, also shared by Whitey Ford, who had tied the mark in 1959 in a 14-inning game against Washington.

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1920 An article in the Philadelphia North American quotes local gambler Bill Maharg saying he and former major league pitcher Billy Burns offered eight White Sox players $100,000 to throw the 1919 World Series. The team will become infamously known as the Black Sox.

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1920 At Chicago's Comiskey Park, 33-year-old Joe Jackson's sixth-inning double off Tiger hurler Hooks Dauss breaks a scoreless tie, putting the White Sox ahead, 2-0. 'Shoeless' Joe's game-winning hit is the last of his 13-year career when he indefinitely suspended for the rest of the season due to the investigation of the 1919 World Series fix.

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1928 Lefty Grove is the first pitcher to strike out the side on nine pitches for the second time in his career. Last month, the A's southpaw also accomplished the feat, becoming the only hurler to do it twice in one season.

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1928 At the Polo Grounds, the Giants unveil bronze tablets in memory of two former players, Christy Mathewson and Ross Youngs. The future Hall of Famers were much-beloved and respected by their manager, John McGraw, a tyrant known to be critical to his ballplayers in the dugout.

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Power returns!​

1930 In a 13-8 victory over the Reds at Wrigley Field, Hack Wilson hits two home runs, establishing a new National League mark for homers. The Cub outfielder's total of 56 for the season will stand until Mark McGwire breaks the record in 1998.

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1931 Nick Altrock becomes the first player to appear in major league games in five decades. The 54-year-old former left-hander accomplishes the feat as a pinch-hitter when he walks before being picked off at first base in the Senators' 4-2 loss to Boston at Griffith Stadium.


1935 The Cubs clinch their 14th National League pennant when the team beats the second-place Cardinals in the first game of a doubleheader sweep at Sportsman's Park, 6-2. The victory marks Chicago’s 20th consecutive win, a streak extended to the National League record of 21 with a 5-3 triumph in the nightcap.

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1936 Replacing Johnny Mize, tossed by an ump for arguing, Cardinal rookie first baseman Walter Alston makes an error in handling two chances and strikes out in his only major league at-bat. However, 'Smokey' will win seven pennants and four World Series in his 23-year Hall of Fame career as Dodger manager from 1954 to 1976.

1938 In Detroit's 10-2 rout of St. Louis in the nightcap of a twin bill, Hank Greenberg hits two home runs, both off Bill Cox, to extend his major league-leading total to 58. The pair of round-trippers gives the Tiger first baseman 39 at Briggs Stadium, establishing a major league record for the most round-trippers hit at home in one season.

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1938 An ailing Lou Gehrig hits his 493rd and final major league home run off Senators' right-hander Dutch Leonard. On the same date 15 years earlier, the Yankee first baseman had gone deep off Bill Piercy at Fenway Park for his first career home run.

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1940 On the last day of the season at Cleveland Stadium, some Indian fans shower the field with fruit and vegetables, delaying the game against the Tigers. The visitors' bullpen proves not to be a safe haven when an unruly fan drops a basket of green tomatoes on Birdie Tebbetts' head.


1940 The Tigers clinch the American League pennant, beating the Indians, 2-0. Rookie right-hander Floyd Gieball gets his second and final big league win to seal the deal.

1942 On the last day of the regular season, the Cardinals clinch the National League pennant as sore-armed hurler Ernie White throws a five-hit complete-game, beating the Cubs in the first game of a twin bill, 9-2. The Redbirds also win the nightcap to finish the season with 11 victories in their final 12 games.

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1946 In Detroit's Briggs Stadium, Indian fireballer Bob Feller ties Rube Waddell's major league mark with his 343rd K of the season. Future research, however, will show the future Hall of Famer had struck out 349 in 1904.

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1951 Bill Sharman, recently called up from Fort Worth, is one of 15 Dodgers ejected by umpire Frank Dascoli for bench jockeying after a close call at home plate. The future basketball Hall of Famer will never play in the big leagues, and thus, he will become the first player ejected from a major league game without ever appearing in one.

1952 After striking out in the first inning, Boston third baseman Eddie Matthews becomes the first National League rookie to hit three home runs in a game. The 20-year-old freshman’s round-trippers in the third, sixth, and eighth innings contribute to the Braves’ 11-3 victory over the Dodgers at Ebbets Field.

1952 In the Braves' 11-3 rout in Brooklyn, Eddie Mathews becomes the first rookie to hit three home runs in a game. The 20-year-old first baseman's offensive output helps the team break a ten-game losing streak in a game that will become the last victory for the National League franchise representing the city of Boston.

1953 In a fitting finale that draws only 3,174 fans at Sportsman's Park, St. Louis plays their last game as the Browns, losing their 100th game of the season, an 11-inning, 2-1 loss to Chicago. Next season, the team will move to Baltimore and become the Orioles.

1954 The first episode of NBC's The first episode of NBC's Tonight Show, featuring Steve Allen as the host, announcer Gene Rayburn, and bandleader Skitch Henderson, airs nationally for the first time. Giants center fielder Willie Mays, the NL's leader in batting and eventual MVP of the circuit, appears as one of the first guests on the 90-minute innovative broadcast that will become a staple of late-night television., featuring Steve Allen as the host along with announcer Gene Rayburn and bandleader Skitch Henderson, airs nationally for the first time. Giants center fielder Willie Mays, the NL's leader in batting and eventual MVP of the circuit, appears as one of the first guests on the 90-minute innovative broadcast that will become a staple of late-night television.

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1959 In addition to being thrown out trying to steal a base, Phillies' second baseman Sparky Anderson goes 0-for-3 in a 5-2 loss to Milwaukee at County Stadium. The season finale marks the end of the 25-year-old infielder's playing career, but the future Hall of Fame manager's participation in 152 contests will establish a record for the most games ever played by someone who spent only one year in the major leagues.