BB On this Date ~ Events & Birthdays #2

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6/26
OTD
BIRTHDAYS
1903 Babe Herman right fielder (.324 career average; hit for cycle record x 3; Brooklyn Robins), born in Buffalo, New York (d. 1987)

1907 Debs Garms utility (World Series 1944 St. Louis Cardinals; NL batting champion 1940 Pittsburgh Pirates), born in Bangs, Texas (d. 1984)

1969 Mike Myers pitcher (Detroit Tigers), born in Arlington Heights, Illinois

1970 Nicole Richardson, Australian softball outfielder (Olympic bronze 1996), born in Melbourne, Australia

1974 Derek Jeter shortstop, 1995-2014 (NY Yankees; Rookie of Year 1996), born in Pequannock, New Jersey

1974 Jason Kendall catcher (Pittsburgh Pirates), born in San Diego, California

1980 Chris Shelton (Detroit Tigers), born in Salt Lake City, Utah
1984 Elijah Dukes player (Washington Nationals), born in Homestead, Florida

 

FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1906 Herbert M. Whitney, a catcher for the Burlington Pathfinders, becomes the first professional baseball player to die due to being hit by a pitch. The beaning occurred two days ago in an Iowa State League contest against the Waterloo Microbes.
1913 Covington Blue Sox, citing the lack of fan support, relocate the team to Kansas City, eventually causing organized baseball to 'declare war' on the Federal League for moving the Packers, the club's new name, into American Association territory. In addition, Cincinnati blocked Covington from acquiring a baseball franchise in the Class D Blue Grass League, leading the leaders of the sparsely-populated Kentucky city to accept a franchise in the newly-formed upstart circuit, known as the outlaw league due to the organization's decision not to abide by the National Agreement.
1913 In the nightcap against the A's at Washington's Griffith Stadium, Eddie Ainsmith steals three bases in one inning. But, after safely reaching base on a single in the bottom of the ninth frame, the 23-year-old catcher's thievery of second, third, and home proves to be of little consequence when Philadelphia routs the Nats, 10-3.

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1916 The Indians became the first major league club to field a team with numbered uniforms when they take on Chicago at Cleveland's League Park. However, the use of large numerals on the players' left sleeve and corresponding scorecards last just a few weeks, and, after a brief trial next season, the club abandons the concept.
1920 Lou Gehrig hits his first home run in a major league ballpark, going deep at Wrigley Field, then known as Cubs Park, in a high school championship game between the NYC School of Commerce and Chicago's Lane Tech. The 17-year-old first baseman, who will return to the 'Friendly Confines' in 1932 to hit two homers for the Yankees in Game 3 of the World Series, blasts a ninth-inning grand slam over the right-field wall, sealing a 12-6 victory for the visitors.

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1921 Throwing a scoreless inning against the Yankees, 23-year-old Senator southpaw Nemo Gaines makes his major league debut, becoming the first Naval Academy graduate and only one for the next 94 seasons to appear in a big-league contest. In 2015, right-hander Mitch Harris, another Annapolis alumnus, will appear in 26 games (2-1, 3.67) for the Cardinals during his brief one-year career.
1924 In a matchup at the Polo Grounds, Giants' right-hander Virgil Barnes faces his older sibling, Jesse, marking the first time brothers have started against one another in major league history. Unfortunately, neither Luther and Sade's sons get the victory, but Jesse will be tagged with the loss when New York beats his Braves, 8-1.

 

1935 Pirate center fielder Lloyd Waner sets the major league mark, recording 18 putouts during a doubleheader played at Braves Field. The future Hall of Famer's defense helps the Bucs sweep last-place Boston, 4-2 and 5-1.

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1938 Carl Hubbell goes the distance, beating Chicago, 5-1, at the Polo Grounds to notch his 200th victory. The future Hall of Fame southpaw will finish his 16-year career, all with the Giants, compiling a 253-154 (.622) record and an ERA of 2.98.

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1938 Reds second baseman Lonny Frey collects eight hits during a twin bill against the Phillies at Philadelphia’s Baker Bowl. The 27-year-old Cincinnati infielder goes 3-for-5 in the team’s 10-3 loss in the first game, adding five more hits, including two triples, in an 8-5 victory in the nightcap.

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1939 The Yankees play their first night game in franchise history, losing to Connie Mack's A's, 3-2, at Philadelphia's Shibe Park, where the first-ever American League evening tilt took place last month. The Bronx Bombers will not play their first home game under the lights for another seven years.
1944 At the Polo Grounds, with over 50,000 fans looking on, the New York major league teams face each other in a six-inning three-team game (a team played consecutive innings against the other two teams then sat out an inning) to raise money for war bonds. The charity contest, billed as the Tri-Cornered Baseball Game, ends with the Dodgers scoring five times and the Yankees and Giants, tallying one and no runs, respectively.
1946 Giants player-manager Mel Ott decides to stop playing and do only his dugout duties for the team. Southpaw-swinging 'Master Mel's' decision is prompted by a .048 batting average, with the future Hall of Fame right fielder collecting just two hits in 48 at-bats this season.

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1948 Lou Boudreau, the Tribe's player-manager, who will finish the season with 199 hits, has a two-run single taken away when his pitcher Bob Muncrief misses third base in the Indians' 5-0 victory over Washington. However, the right-hander makes up for his base-running gaffe by hurling a three-hit shutout in the Cleveland Stadium contest.

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1957 Twenty-six-year-old center fielder Willie Mays collects four hits, scores three runs while driving in four runs in the Giants' 17-7 victory over the Reds at Cincinnati's Crosley Field. The close game becomes a blowout when New York scores seven runs in the sixth and five more in the seventh.

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1960 With the help of Ron Santo, making his major league debut, the Cubs sweep a doubleheader from first-place Pittsburgh, 7-5 and 7-6. The rookie third baseman, who will be elected into the Hall of Fame posthumously by the Veterans Committee in 2012, goes 3-for-7, driving in five runs during the twin bill at Forbes Field.
1961 In the Yankees' 8-6 victory over the Angels, Yogi Berra collects his 2000th career hit, a fifth-inning two-run single off Ken McBride. A huge cake is rolled out in LA's Wrigley Field to celebrate the Bronx Bombers backstop's milestone, all accomplished while wearing pinstripes.

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1962 At Fenway Park, Earl Wilson, the Red Sox's first black hurler, strikes out five batters and walks four en route to no-hitting the Angels, 2-0. The 27 -year-old right-hander from Ponchatoula (LA) also drives in the first run of the game when he goes deep in the third-inning off loser Bo Belinsky, who pitched a no-hitter against the Orioles last month.

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1963 In a clear message of support for the German people, President John F. Kennedy delivers his iconic "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner) speech from the steps of the Rathaus Schoneberg in front of an audience estimated at 450,000. Large crowds greet JFK with banners during his visit, including one that reads, "Let's Go Mets."
1963 The Colt .45's snap their streak of 30 consecutive innings without scoring a run when Al Spangler goes deep in the sixth frame of a 7-2 victory over Milwaukee. The Houston outfielder's round-tripper is only the second run the team has scored in the last 70 innings.
1964 University of Wisconsin standout Rick Reichardt receives the highest bonus to date when he signs with the Angels for $200,000. The bidding war for the talented Badger outfielder ultimately led the owners to institute a draft, which started in 1965 when Arizona State University's Rick Monday became the first-ever #1 overall selection.
1966 Ron Santo is struck in the face by a pitch thrown by Mets' starter Jack Fisher. The Cubs' third baseman's fractured cheek ends his record consecutive streak at the hot corner at 390 games, but his 27-game hitting streak, one shy of the franchise mark, stays intact with a first-inning single.
1968 Cardinals right-hander Bob Gibson tosses his fifth consecutive shutout as he blanks the Pirates, 3-0, in the first game of a doubleheader played at Busch Stadium. The future Hall of Famer's accomplishment is one shy of the major league mark, set earlier in the month by Don Drysdale of the Dodgers.

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1970 Frank Robinson hits two grand slams in the same game, helping Baltimore beat the Senators, 12-2. The Oriole outfielder, who accomplishes the feat in consecutive at-bats, is the seventh major leaguer to hit two bases-full homers in one game.

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1976 After tossing a one-hit 1-0 ten-inning gem for the Rangers five days ago, Bert Blyleven again blanks his opponents for ten innings in the team's 1-0 victory against the White Sox. Pinch-hitter Jim Fregosi ends the Arlington Stadium pitching duel when he singles off Ken Brett, plating Toby Harrah with the game's lone run.

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1977 Pete Vukovich pitches the first shutout in Blue Jay history, blanking Baltimore at Memorial Stadium, 2-0. The victory also marks the 24-year-old's first scoreless complete contest, a feat he will accomplish eight times during his 11-year career.

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1977 On Rod Carew Night, the Twins' first baseman goes 4-for-5 en route to scoring five runs and collecting six RBIs in Minnesota's 19-12 victory over the White Sox at Metropolitan Stadium. The 31-year-old Panamanian's offensive output, which includes a double and home run, raises his season's batting average to .403.

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1983 Rusty Staub ties the single-season record with his eighth consecutive pinch-hit. 'Le Grand Orange' equals the 1958 mark established by Dave Philley of the Phillies when he singles in the ninth inning off reliever Ron Reed in the Mets' 8-4 loss to Philadelphia at Shea Stadium.

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1985 At Jack Russell Stadium, umpire Keith O'Connor ejects the organist from a Class A Florida League game for playing Three Blind Mice following a close call against the Clearwater Phillies. After NBC's Today show weatherman Willard Scott and syndicated radio host Paul Harvey report the incident, the self-taught musician becomes famous, signing autographs, "Wilbur Snapp, Three Blind Mice organist."
1987 Although the Red Sox has a 9-0 second-inning advantage, Roger Clemens cannot hold the lead, with the Yankees coming back to win in ten innings, 12-11. Boston's third baseman Wade Boggs, who is walked intentionally twice during the Bronx ballpark contest, sees his 25-game hitting streak come to an end.

 

1993 Hall of Fame (1969) catcher Roy Campanella passes away at 71 after suffering a heart attack in Woodland Hills (CA). The wheel-chair-bound former backstop, permanently disabled in a 1958 traffic accident in 1958, ended his ten-year career, which included three NL MVP seasons, with the Brooklyn Dodgers with 242 home runs, 856 RBIs, and five World Series appearances.

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1995 Before rejoining the Yankees to start in Chicago, Columbus Clipper starter Mariano Rivera pitches a five-inning no-hitter against the IL's Rochester Red Wings in Ohio's Cooper Stadium. During his tenure in the minor leagues, Mo, the future major league leader in career saves, is used primarily as a starter, starting 68 games, including seven complete contests, en route to compiling a 27-18 record and a 2.35 ERA.
1999 At Candlestick Park, Todd Hundley's second homer of the day, a ninth-inning three-run shot to deep right field off Giants' closer Robb Nen, sparks the Dodgers' 7-6 comeback win. Ellis Burks had put San Francisco ahead in the bottom of the eighth, 6-4, with a three-run homer off Alan Mills.
2000 ,Alex Cabrera homers in his first major league at-bat hitting a two-run pinch-hit round-tripper off Yorkis Perez in Arizona's 6-1 victory over the Astros at Bank One Ballpark. The 28-year-old minor league veteran of nine seasons becomes the first player in the franchise's three-year history to accomplish the feat.
2001 Not known for being a base thief during his playing days, Pittsburgh manager Lloyd McClendon, ejected for arguing a close play in the team's eventual 7-6, 12-inning come-from-behind victory over the Brewers at PNC Park, literally steals first base. "I told him (first base ump Rick Reed) he wasn't using it, so I thought I'd take it," explains the Bucs' skipper after pulling the bag out of the ground and carrying it into the Pirates' dugout.

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2003 Edgar Martinez, who already holds the Mariners records for games played, at-bats, hits, doubles, total bases, extra-base hits, walks, and runs scored, passes Ken Griffey Jr.'s franchise mark for RBIs. His two-run homer in the team's 10-6 victory over the Angels gives the All-Star designated hitter 1,153 RBIs, one more than Junior.

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2005 At Oklahoma City's SBC Bricktown Ballpark, the public address announcer informs the Red Hawks fans of a lineup change, "now batting for Nashville, pinch-hitting for Corey Hart, Corey Hart." The Sounds, who already had an outfielder named Corey Hart on a Triple-A injury rehab assignment on their roster, recently acquired an infielder also called Corey Hart from the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League.
2011 Three days after Jim Riggleman's sudden resignation, the Nationals name senior advisor Davey Johnson as the team's manager for the remainder of the season. The 68-year-old former skipper compiled an 1148-888 (.564) record during his 14 years in the dugout with the Mets, Dodgers, Reds, and Orioles, finishing lower than third place only on three occasions.
2012 In the Bronx, third-base umpire Mike DiMuro rules Yankees' outfielder Dewayne Wise made a clean catch of Indians' Jack Hannahan's pop fly, reaching in the stands to end the seventh inning. Replays, however, clearly show the empty-handed left fielder never made the catch, and Vinnie Pellegrino, a fan from West Islip, NY, has the ball.
2015 Prince Fielder hits his 300th career home run when he goes deep to right field off Mark Buehrle in the first inning of the Rangers' 12-2 loss to Toronto at the Rogers Centre. The Texas Ranger first baseman's milestone round-tripper makes him and his dad, Cecil (319), the second son-father combo to hit 300-plus homers, joining Barry and Bobby Bonds.

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2018 The A's extend the record for home runs to 27 consecutive road games when Chad Pinder hits a two-run round-tripper off Blaine Hardy in the top of the fifth inning in team's 9-7 victory over the Tigers at Comerica Park. The 1994 Orioles established the previous mark with homers in 24 straight away games.
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Today in Baseball History
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On June 26 in Baseball History...

• • 1916 - Cleveland players, in a game with the White Sox, wear numbers on their sleeves, marking the first time players are identified by numbers corresponding to those on the scorecard.
  • 1920 - Lou Gehrig gets his first national mention when, as a high school junior for New York City's School of Commerce, he hits a grand slam in a high school championship game against Lane Tech in Chicago. Scouts sit with open mouths as the ball sails out of the N.L. park (later known as Wrigley Field).
  • 1935 - Lloyd Waner sets a major-league record with 18 putouts in center field in a doubleheader as the Pirates take a pair from the Braves at Boston.
  • 1944 - More than 50,000 pack the Polo Grounds to watch the Yankees, Dodgers and Giants play each other in a six-inning contest to raise money for war bonds. Each team plays successive innings against the other two teams, then sits out an inning. The final score is Dodgers 5, Yankees 1, Giants, 0.
  • 1960 - Hoping to speed up the election process, the Hall of Fame changes its voting procedures. The new rules allow the Special Veterans Committee to vote annually, rather than every other year, and to induct up to two players a year. The BBWAA is authorized to hold a runoff election of the top 30 vote getters if no one is elected in the first ballot.
  • 1968 - The major league Executive Council decides that both the A.L. and N.L. will play 162-game schedules in 1969 and operate two six-team divisions.
  • 1971 - Last year's A.L. batting king, Alex Johnson, is suspended by the Angels following a series of incidents (including five benchings and 29 fines) resulting from failure to hustle.
  • 1994 - Kirby Puckett becomes Minnesota's all-time hits leader by getting three safeties to pass Rod Carew with his 2,088 hit as a Twin.
  • 1997 - Tony Gwynn of the Padres breaks a seventh-inning tie with an inside-the-park grand slam as San Diego beats Los Angeles, 9-7. The opposite-field hit not only puts Gwynn back over the .400 mark, but is also the first N.L. inside-the-park grand slam in six years.

Baseball Birthdays on June 26...

• • 1858 - Deagle, Ren
  • 1858 - Sullivan, Denny
  • 1872 - Stafford, Bob
  • 1873 - Schmidt, Henry
  • 1874 - Hartsel, Topsy
  • 1891 - Huenke, Al
  • 1893 - Ponder, Elmer
  • 1900 - Yoter, Elmer
  • 1903 - Herman, Babe
  • 1903 - Milstead, George
  • 1908 - Garms, Debs
  • 1910 - Henry, Jim
  • 1913 - Lyon, Russ
  • 1915 - Brown, Willard
  • 1918 - Singleton, Elmer
  • 1920 - Roy, Jean-Pierre
  • 1921 - Pollet, Howie
  • 1929 - Tettelbach, Dick
  • 1933 - Albanese, Joe
  • 1933 - Green, Gene
  • 1941 - Garrido, Gil
  • 1943 - Robinson, Bill
  • 1950 - Rosello, Dave
  • 1952 - Bowling, Steve
  • 1955 - Seoane, Manny
  • 1957 - Griffin, Mike
  • 1957 - Barrios, Jose
  • 1960 - Dalena, Pete
  • 1969 - Myers, Mike
  • 1969 - Myers, Rodney
  • 1971 - Blosser, Greg
  • 1974 - Kendall, Jason
  • 1974 - Jeter, Derek
  • 1975 - Middlebrook, Jason

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6/27
OTD
BIRTHDAYS
1931 Eddie Kasko infielder (MLB All Star 1961, 1961; Cincinnati Reds) and manager (Boston Red Sox), born in Linden, New Jersey (d. 2020)

1943 Rico Petrocelli (Boston Red Sox), born in Brooklyn, New York

1966 Jeff Conine outfielder (Florida Marlins), born in Tacoma, Washington

1970 Ricardo Jordan pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies), born in Boynton Beach, Florida

1973 Jennifer Brundage, softball infielder (Olympic gold 1996), born in Orange, California

1975 Daryle Ward (Houston Astros), born in Lynwood, California

1976 Johnny Estrada player, born in Hayward, California

 

FROM MLB's This Day in Baseball History+​

1911 At the start of the seventh inning at Boston's Huntington Avenue Grounds, Stuffy McInnis hits Ed Karger's warm-up pitch into short center field, leading to an inside-the-park home run against the out-of-position Red Sox outfielders. American League president Ban Johnson upholds the play on appeal, but the event causes a change in the no-warm-up rule implemented due to his concern that some games were taking over two hours to play.

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1930 At Philadelphia's Shibe Park, Jack Quinn becomes the oldest player to hit a home run in major league history. The A's relief pitcher is nine days shy of his 47th birthday when he connects off Chad Kimsey for a solo shot, leading off the sixth inning in the team's 8-3 victory over the Browns.

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1939 In front of 2,457 fans at Braves Field, the Dodgers, with Whit Wyatt pitching the first 16 frames, and Boston plays 23 innings in a game that ends in a 2-2 tie when plate umpire Babe Pinelli called the five-hour and 15-minute contest at 8:15 pm due to darkness. The same teams at the same field played 26 innings to a 1-1 tie in 1920.

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1940 To honor the lyricist of Take Me Out to the Ballgame, the Dodgers celebrate Jack Norworth Day at Brooklyn's Ebbets Field. The songwriter and his partner Albert Von Tilzer, who wrote the music, had never seen a game when they created the song in 1908.
1958 At Comiskey Park, White Sox hurler Billy Pierce retires 26 consecutive batters before pinch-hitter Ed Fitzgerald doubles weakly inside the right-field line for the Senators' only hit. The 31-year-old southpaw goes on to strike out Albie Pearson on three pitches to one-hit Washington, 3-0, en route to completing his third consecutive shutout.

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1962 Monroe High School standout Ed Kranepool, an Opening Day guest seated in the owners' box with Mrs. Joan Payson and M. Donald Grant, signs a contract that includes an $85,000 bonus as an amateur free agent with the Mets. The 17-year-old Bronx teenager will spend his entire 18-year career with the expansion team, establishing franchise records for hits, plate appearances, and games played.

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1963 Tigers' first baseman Norm Cash plays an entire game without recording a put out in the team's 10-6 loss to the Twins at Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium. Six strikeouts, sixteen balls caught in the air, and two fielder choices account for the 24 outs made by the home team.
1964 Max Alvis is stricken with a bout of spinal meningitis, which will sideline the Indians' everyday third baseman for six weeks. The Jasper, Texas native will rebound nicely, making the American League All-Star team next season and 1967.
1967 At Tiger Stadium, 32-year-old Al Kaline breaks his hand as he slams his bat into the bat rack after being struck out by Sam McDowell in the sixth inning of Detroit's 8-1 loss to the Indians. The future Hall of Famer (1980) will miss 28 games for the second-place team.
1972 Making his last career start, Wade Blasingame's American League debut for the Yankees is an inauspicious one when the Tigers go deep three consecutive times in the bottom of the first inning. The first frame fireworks by Aurelio Rodriguez, Al Kaline, and Willie Horton power Detroit over New York, 5-2.
1973 In the Cardinals' 15-4 rout of the Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium, Joe Torre hits for the cycle. The St. Louis first baseman accomplishes the feat with a first-inning double, a home run in the third, a triple in the fourth, and a single with two outs in the ninth.

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1973 In the opener of a twin bill at Shea Stadium, Buzz Capra pitches four innings of no-hit relief against the Phillies to get the save for starter George Stone as the Mets beat the Phillies, 7-6. A few hours earlier, the 25-year-old right-handed reliever had attended his dad's funeral in Illinois.
1973 Twenty days after pitching his high school team to a state championship, Rangers' rookie David Clyde pitches five innings, strikes out eight, and allows just one hit in his first major league start as Texas defeats the Twins, 4-3. A crowd of 35,698 fans, the first sellout at Arlington Stadium, sees the debut of the 18-year-old phenom, $125,000 bonus baby.

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1977 Willie McCovey becomes the first major leaguer to hit two homers in the same frame twice in his career when he smashes a solo shot and a grand slam in the Giants' ten-run sixth inning at Riverfront Park. The San Francisco first baseman, who also accomplished the feat in the first week of the 1973 season, home run heroics contributes to the team's 14-9 victory over Cincinnati.

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1977 After offering the job to Twins legend Harmon Killebrew, the Rangers hire Billy Hunter as the team's manager, making him the club's fourth skipper this week. Texas had replaced the fired Frank Lucchesi with Eddie Stanky, who left after one game due to homesickness, resulting in third base coach Connie Ryan, who refused to assume the position full-time, becoming the interim manager for six games.

 

1980 Dodger southpaw Jerry Reuss, facing only 28 batters, no-hits the Giants at Candlestick Park, 8-0. Shortstop Bill Russell's errant throw on Jack Clark's grounder with two outs in the first inning deprives the 31-year-old left-hander of tossing a perfect game.

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1982 The Braves tie a major league mark with seven double plays in the team's 2-0 victory over Cincinnati. Atlanta turns four twin killings in the first four frames of the 14 inning Riverfront Stadium contest.
1984 After swiping second and third base, Dusty Baker, who had pilfered only one bag this season, completes his stolen base cycle when he steals home in the Giants' 14-9 victory over Cincinnati at Candlestick Park. The San Francisco right fielder's third-inning thievery comes off three different hurlers pitching to Reds' catcher Brad Gulden.

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1986 The Reds catch Robby Thompson four times trying to steal a base, setting a major league record for nailing the same player in one game. The second baseman's futile attempts don't matter when the Giants beat Cincinnati, 7-6, in the 12-inning contest played at Riverfront Stadium.
1987 Freshman first baseman Mark McGwire hits three homers and drives in five runs, helping the A's defeat the Indians, 13-3. 'Big Mac' will finish the season with 49 round-trippers, far surpassing the rookie record of 38, once shared by Frank Robinson and Wally Berger.

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1993 Anthony Young sets a major league record when he drops his 24th straight decision, a 5-3 Mets loss to St. Louis at Shea Stadium. The hard-luck New York right-hander, who surpasses the mark established by Boston Dove hurler Cliff Curtis in 1911, will extend the dubious streak to 27 consecutive defeats before winning a game.
1999 The Mariners beat the Rangers, 5-2, in the 1,765th and last major league game at the Kingdome. The final contest, attended by 56,530 fans in 'the Accident on the Occidental,' features a three-run home run at the bottom of the first inning by Ken Griffey, Jr., who also makes a great over-the-fence catch to rob Juan Gonzalez of a three-run round-tripper.

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