BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

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Baseball Birthdays February 2, 2025
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1908 -Bobby Coombs


1908 -Wes Ferrell, broke into the big leagues on September 9, 1927, with the Cleveland Indians. best ball is his fast ball he also had a most servicable curve, and developed a baffling change of pace."


1923 -Red Schoendienst, according to Hank Aaron calling him 'a Moses come to lead (the Braves) out of the wilderness of bitter disappointment


1937 Don Buford Chicago White Sox,Orioles versatile switch-hitter with speed and a little power, and also the ability to draw walks


1938 -Max Alvis, Cleveland Indians


1954 - Dressler, Giants, Cardinals, Mariners


1962 -Rob Clements, Pat
1968 Scott Erickson pitcher (World Series, MLB All Star, AL wins leader 1991; Minnesota Twins
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This Day in Baseball History
February 2nd​

1876 The National League forms charter teams in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Hartford, Louisville, New York, Philadelphia, and St. Louis. The Hartford Dark Blues will play its second season in Brooklyn as the Hartfords before disbanding in 1877.

1936 Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Walter Johnson, and Christy Mathewson are the first five men elected into baseball's new Hall Fame, scheduled to be open in 1939 as part of the game's celebration of its centennial. A claim made by the former 1905 Mills Commission, which proves to be erroneous, suggests that the national pastime was invented by Civil War hero Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, making the small village in upstate New York the perfect place for the induction of the legendary ballplayers.

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1950 At a Boston sportswriters dinner, infielder Bobby Doerr receives the Fred Hoey Award, given by the scribes in memory of the first full-time broadcaster for both the Red Sox and the Braves. The scrappy second baseman's friend and Boston teammate, Ted Williams, surprises the gathering by attending the event wearing a tie.

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1972 Lefty Gomez, a southpaw best known for his four 20-win seasons with the Yankees, and Ross Youngs, a popular outfielder for the Giants who compiled a lifetime .322 batting average before succumbing to kidney disease at the age of 30, are selected by the Special Veterans Committee to be enshrined in Cooperstown. The group also gives the nod to former American League president William Harridge, initially hired to fill a three-year term as an interim but will hold the position for the next 27 years.

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1976 With his election into Cooperstown, umpire Cal Hubbard becomes the only person elected to the baseball and football Halls of Fame. The big man from Keytesville, Missouri, named the National Football League's all-time offensive tackle, played with the Giants, Packers, and Pirates (Steelers) during his ten-year career in the NFL, and was inducted into the pro gridiron Hall of Fame in 1966.

1976 The Veteran's Committee elect veteran umpire Cal Hubbard, third baseman/outfielder
, and one-time career home run champion Roger Connor to the Hall of Fame. The Waterbury Republican-American, Connor's hometown newspaper, had heavily lobbied for their native son after Hank Aaron passed Babe Ruth'srecord in 1974

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1986 After returning from a three-year absence due to a knee injury, right-hander Dennis Leonard announces his retirement. The 35-year-old, a twenty-game winner in 1977, 1978, and 1980, compiled an 8-13 record and a 4.44 ERA in his comeback attempt with the Royals.

1987 The Braves trade right-handed Craig McMurtry to the Blue Jays for second baseman Damaso Garcia and pitcher Luis Leal. The right-handers will never pitch for the new team, and Garcia will hit .117 in 21 games before being released by Atlanta.

1999 Padres' outfielder Greg Vaughn becomes the first player traded in major league history after hitting 50 home runs the previous season. San Diego deals the slugger and Mark Sweeney to the Reds for Reggie Sanders, Damian Jackson, and Josh Harris.

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2001 Due to the Orioles moving home plate, a fly ball will take approximately seven more feet to clear Camden Yards' fences this season. The field's new alignment will also reduce the amount of foul territory, with the fair poles almost flush against the left- and right-field corners.

2003 Red Sox manager Grady Little, knuckleballer Tim Wakefield, and first-base coach Dallas Williams appear at the Atrium Mall in Newton, modeling the team's new look, including solid red socks. The Red Sox socks have had very little red in recent years and haven't been entirely red for over fifty years.

2005 The Blue Jays announce the three-year corporate contract to rename the SkyDome to the Rogers Centre. The controversial change, revealed by Ted Rogers, President and CEO of Rogers Communications, proves unpopular with many fans, most of whom continue to refer to the Toronto ballpark by its original moniker.

 

2005 The much-heralded Sammy Sosa trade to the Orioles becomes final when Commissioner Bud Selig approves the deal, and the 36-year-old slugger passes a physical. The Cubs exchange 'Slammin' Sammy' for second baseman Jerry Hairston Jr. and two minor-leaguers and agree to pay Baltimore $16.15 million of the remaining $25 million left on a four-year, $72 million contract signed in 2003.

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2008 Filling a tall order, the Nationals avoid arbitration with Jon Rauch, signing the 6' 11" pitcher to a $3.2 million, two-year deal. The right-handed reliever, who led the big leagues with 88 appearances, compiled an 8-4 record with four saves while posting a 3.61 ERA in 87 1-3 innings of work.


2009 According to a report in The Sports Business Journal, MLB tax documents for the fiscal year ending October 31st, show Bud Selig receiving an $18.35 million salary. The compensation package, if correct, would make the commissioner better paid than most of the superstars in the game at the time, except for Jason Giambi, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, and Roger Clemens, all employed by the Yankees.



2011 Alexei Ramirez and the White Sox agree to a four-year, $32.5 million contract extension and a $10 million team option for an additional year. Earlier in the off-season, the Pale Hose picked up his option for 2011, coming to terms with the 29-year-old good-hitting shortstop with a base salary of $2.75 million.

2013 In front of a home crowd of 87 fans, the California Institute of Technology baseball team snaps a 228-game losing streak, beating Pacifica in a non-conference game, 9-7. The CalTech Beavers, whose last victory occurred on February 15th, 2003, haven't won a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest since 1988, a span of 463 games.

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2017 The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame elects Roy Halladay, who posted a 148-76 (.661) record during his dozen seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays, and Vladimir Guerrero, a four-time all-star while playing for the Montreal Expos. Other inductees include past Baseball Canada president Ray Carter, the 2015 Canadian men's team that won gold at the Pan-Am Games, and the late Little League umpire Doug Hudlin.

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2020 The NFL names Patrick Mahomes the MVP of Super Bowl LIV after the 24-year-old quarterback leads a fourth-quarter rally in the Chiefs' 31-20 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. The Kansas City QB's dad, Pat, compiled a 42-39 (.519) record pitching for five major league teams in 11 seasons, including posting an 8-0 record for the 1999 Mets.

 

2021 After failing to sign a slugger in the offseason, the Braves opt to retain Marcell Ozuna, who will return with a four-year, $64 million deal with a $16 million club option for a fifth season and a $1 million buyout. The 30-year-old outfielder plays in only 48 games, going on the injured list with two dislocated fingers on his left hand at the end of May and receiving a retroactive 20-game suspension in November for violating MLB's domestic violence policy.

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2021 In a baffling trade, the Rockies deal five-time All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado to the Cardinals for pitchers Austin Gomber, Tony Locey, Jake Sommers, and infielders Mateo Gil and Elehuris Montero. Colorado's GM Jeff Bridich's relationship with his eight-time Gold Glover, who vocally criticized the front office over the team's direction, deteriorated so quickly that the infielder waived a no-trade clause to go to St. Louis.
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Ernie Banks and Roberto Clemente.
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Josh Gibson
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“The Fordham Flash" Frankie Frisch
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2/3/25
Baseball BIRTHDAYS
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1890 Larry MacPhail Hall of Fame executive (Cincinnati Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Yankees


1947 Joe Coleman pitcher (Washington, Detroit)


1949 (Arnold) "Bake" McBride outfielder, 1973-83, Rookie of the Year; All-Star (St. Louis Cardinals; Philadelphia Phillies, and 1 other team)


1952 Fred Lynn outfielder (Boston, California, Baltimore

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FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+
1886 Former professional baseball player Albert Spalding begins a sporting goods company with $800. The future Hall of Famer will become the manufacturer of the first official baseball, adding tennis, basketball, golf, and football to his product line.

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1938 The University of Illinois suspends Lou Boudreau for taking illegal payments from the Indians. The 19-year-old hoopster goes on to have a 15-year Hall of Fame baseball career in the big leagues as a player-manager for Cleveland and the Red Sox, and, as a broadcaster, he will be traded to the Cubs by radio station WGN to become the team's skipper.
While still at Illinois, Cleveland Indians general manager Cy Slapnicka paid him an undisclosed sum in return for agreeing to play baseball for the Indians after he graduated. His father complained to the Big Ten Conference, and league officials ruled him ineligible for collegiate sports. During his senior year at Illinois, he played pro basketball with the Hammond Ciesar All-Americans of the National Basketball League.

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1942 At a meeting to determine new guidelines necessitated by the US involvement in WWII, the major league owners vote to allow each club to play 14-night games, allocating the Senators 21 contests due to the many government workers in the Washington, DC Metro area. The regulation includes a provision that no inning will start after 12:50 am during the evening tilts.

 

1957 At a New York BBWAA meeting, Walter O'Malley passes a note to Cubs owner Phil Wrigley, who controls LA's territorial rights, offering Brooklyn's Texas League team in Fort Worth in return for the Cubs' Los Angeles PCL minor league franchise. The swap of farm teams will be announced on February 21st, clearing the Dodgers' path to move to the West Coast.

1961 Charlie Finley douses an old school bus bearing the sign "the Kansas City-to-New York shuttle" with gasoline and sets it on fire in the left field parking lot of Municipal Stadium. As the vehicle becomes engulfed in flames, the new owner of the A's tells reporters the stunt symbolizes the team's end of sending talented young players to the Yankees in exchange for major leaguers well past their prime, a practice deeply resented by the Kansas City fans.

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1975 The special Veterans Committee selects second baseman Billy Herman (Cubs, Dodgers, Braves, and Pirates), skipper Bucky Harris (Senators, Tigers, Red Sox, Phillies, and Yankees), and outfielder Earl Averill (Indians, Tigers, and Braves) to the Hall of Fame. An outspoken Averill had informed his family about declining the honor if he was an inductee posthumously; fortunately, eight years before his passing, he will be enshrined in Cooperstown.

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1977 The Hall of Fame's Special Committee on the Negro Leagues selects Cuban natives John Henry Lloyd and Martin Dihigo, previously acknowledged in Mexico, Cuba, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic, for their outstanding accomplishments that included playing all nine positions. Pop Lloyd ended his 27-year career with a batting average of .343 while building a reputation as the greatest shortstop in the history of the Negro Leagues.
John Henry Lloyd Martin Dihigo


1978 Under the financial reorganization of the club, FJ 'Steve' O'Neill, a lifelong resident of Cleveland, becomes the principal owner of the Indians. The trucking magnate was once a limited partner of the Tribe but sold his Indians' interest in the team in 1973 to become part of George Steinbrenner's syndicate that bought the Yankees.


1979 The Twins trade perennial All-Star and batting champ Rod Carew to the Angels for outfielders Ken Landreaux and Dave Engle and pitchers Paul Hartzell and Brad Havens. The future Hall of Famer will hit .314 during his seven seasons with the Halos.

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1982 The National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues suspends minor league catcher Angel Rodriguez for a year. The Alexandria backstop, who maintains his innocence, is penalized for tipping off opposing Latin American batters in Spanish of the upcoming pitch about to be thrown in Carolina League contests.