BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

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On March 17 in Baseball History...

• • 1871 - The National Association of Professional Baseball Players is founded setting the stage for the future National League (1876). The entry fee for a National Association franchise is set at $10.
  • 1936 - Much-heralded rookie Joe DiMaggio makes his debut with the Yankees, collecting four hits, including a triple. The day is marred when the Cardinals win 8-7.
  • 1946 - In Daytona Beach, the Dodgers take the field against their minor-league farm team, the Montreal Royals. With Jackie Robinson in the lineup for Montreal, the game marks the first appearance of an integrated team in organized baseball in this century. More than 40 years later, the field will be renamed Jackie Robinson Ballpar
  • 1953 - Bill Veeck says that he will accept an offer of $2.475 million for his 80 percent of the St. Louis Browns' stock. Baltimore Mayor D'Alesandro seeks a syndicate to buy Veeck out. The group will eventually purchase 206,250 shares at $12 per share.
  • 1976 - Commissioner Bowie Kuhn orders teams to open spring training camps as soon as possible. All teams will comply within 48 hours.
  • 1977 - Federal Judge Frank McGarr rules in favor of Bowie Kuhn, saying that the commissioner acted within his authority in voiding the 1976 player sales engineered by A's owner Charlie Finley.
  • 1978 - For the St. Patrick's Day exhibition game, the Reds don green uniforms, rather than their traditional red, starting an annual ritual. The Cardinals and other teams will follow suit.

Baseball Birthdays on March 17...

• • 1860 - Pfeffer, Fred
  • 1863 - Hagan, Art
  • 1867 - Beam, Ernie
  • 1869 - Hogriever, George
  • 1871 - Fraser, Chick
  • 1876 - Kostal, Joe
  • 1876 - Gammons, Daff
  • 1881 - Fairbank, Jim
  • 1883 - Stanage, Oscar
  • 1885 - Pearce, Ducky
  • 1885 - Mayes, Paddy
  • 1888 - Klepfer, Ed
  • 1894 - Shafer, Ralph
  • 1895 - Lamb, Lyman
  • 1897 - Riconda, Harry
  • 1899 - Root, Charlie
  • 1906 - Vandenberg, Hy
  • 1912 - Ock, Whitey
  • 1917 - Sauer, Hank
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  • 1919 - Reiser, Pete
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  • 1923 - Seerey, Pat
  • 1938 - Hall, Jimmie
  • 1944 - Gaston, Cito
  • 1952 - Tabb, Jerry
  • 1956 - Lollar, Tim
  • 1956 - Scurry, Rod
  • 1956 - Lisi, Rick
  • 1959 - Ainge, Danny
  • 1965 - Smiley, John
  • 1968 - Gomez, Pat
  • 1968 - Masteller, Dan
  • 1969 - Brow, Scott
  • 1971 - Mueller, Bill
  • 1973 - Wilson, Vance
  • 1976 - Downs, Scott

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3/18
OTD
BIRTHDAYS
1874 Jimmy 'Nixey' Callahan pitcher, outfielder and manager (Chicago WS; first AL no-hitter 1902), born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts (d. 1934)

1926 Dick Littlefield player (d. 1997)

1965 Geronimo Berroa, outfielder (Oakland A's), born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

1976 Tomokazu Ohka baseball player

1976 Scott Podsednik baseball player

1977 Terrmel Sledge baseball player
1977 Fernando Rodney baseball player
1982 Chad Cordero baseball player, born in Upland, California
1983 Andy Sonnanstine baseball player

 

FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1937 Ending his holdout, Lou Gehrig, who had initially asked for $50,000, agrees to sign with the Yankees for $36,000 and a $750 signing bonus. The new deal for the Bronx Bombers' first baseman, last season's American League MVP, makes him baseball's highest-paid player.

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1942 During spring training, Jackie Robinson and Nate Moreland work out with the White Sox in Pasadena, California. Manager Jimmie Dykes, who reluctantly granted their request for a walk-on tryout, dismisses the black players without making an offer for their services.

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1943 Due to wartime travel restrictions, spring training camps begin opening in northern locations. Some of the locales include Bear Mountain, NY (Dodgers), French Lick Springs, IN (Cubs and White Sox), Asbury Park, NJ (Yankees), Medford, MA (Red Sox), and Wallingford, CT (Braves).

 

1953 "Braves Win Last Game for Boston, Milwaukee Loses It." - BOSTON GLOBE, headline lamenting the city’s National League franchise move to Milwaukee. When the Braves' move from Boston is officially approved unanimously by the National League owners, the team is on the field, beating the Yankees in the fifth inning, 3–0. The club now representing Milwaukee, as of 2:33 PM, blows the lead, dropping a 5-3 decision to the Yankees in the Bradenton, Florida exhibition game. The Braves end their 77-year-old association with Boston, becoming the first major league club to move since Baltimore shifted to New York in 1903. After listening to Lou Perini's hour-long impassioned plea, the National League owners unanimously approved the franchise's change of venue to Milwaukee, where the club will stay for dozen seasons, setting attendance records before moving again in 1966 to Atlanta.

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1957 Indian general manager Hank Greenberg turns down the Red Sox' million-dollar offer for pitcher Herb Score. The former slugger says the Tribe is building for the future and not into selling its premier players.

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1958 The Dodgers, playing their first season in LA, do not renew the contract of Emmett Kelly, the team's resident 'tramp' in Brooklyn. The veteran circus performer believes the size of the Coliseum, the club's new venue on the West Coast, is just "too big for one clown."

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1981 After being declared a free agent because the Red Sox mailed his contract one day past the contractual deadline, Carlton Fisk signs a $3.5 million deal with the White Sox. On Opening Day, the 33 year-old catcher will hit an eighth-inning three-run home run to tie the score, 3-3, which proves to be the difference in Chicago's eventual 5-3 victory over his old team at Fenway Park.

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1985 Commissioner Peter Ueberroth reinstates Hall of Famers Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays. Major League Baseball banned the two Hall of Famers from associating due to their employment with Atlantic City casinos.

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1990 The players and owners reach an agreement on a four-year contract after a 32-day lockout. Although the season will start a week later, teams plan to play a complete schedule, including the 78 games canceled by the work stoppage.