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43 Fact(s) Found
| 1890 | John Reilly becomes the first major leaguer to hit for the cycle in different leagues when the Reds, who moved to the National League this season, beat Pittsburgh at League Park, 16-3. The Cincinnati first baseman hit for two cycles in 1883, also a first, when the team played in the American Association and were known as the Red Stockings. |
| 1890 | Cy Young wins in his major league debut when the Cleveland Spiders beat the Colts in Chicago's West Side Park, 8-1. During his 22-year career, the 23-year-old right-hander will average more than 23 victories per season en route to a major league record of 511, a mark believed by many to be unbreakable. |
| 1906 | At Cleveland's League Park, the Boston Americans are shut out for the fourth consecutive time, bowing to the Indians, 4-0. Combined with a scoreless three-game sweep by the White Sox, the team establishes a new American League record. |
| 1908 | Detroit outfielder Ty Cobb gets married, having departed the Tigers three days ago to attend the ceremony without the team's permission. Club co-owner Frank Navin considers the 21-year-old Georgia Peach's six-day defection during a pennant race the most arrogant act he had ever heard of in baseball. |
| 1930 | Gene Rye hits three homers in one inning, blasting a solo homer, a three-run shot, and a grand slam in the Waco Cubs' 18-run eight-inning eruption in their eventual 20-7 Texas League victory over the visiting Beaumont Exporters at Katy Park. The 24-year-old diminutive southpaw-swinging outfielder, called Half Pint by his teammates, will be signed by the Red Sox, spending the first two months of next season with the team before being released, hitting just .179 in 17 games. |
| 1937 | The Braves become the first National League team to lead off a game with back-to-back homers. At Wrigley Field, Roy Johnson and Rabbit Warstler go deep to start the first inning off Tex Carleton, but Boston's quick start isn't enough when Chicago wins the contest, 12-6. |
| 1939 | The West wins the first of two Negro League East-West All-Star Games this season, defeating the East 4-2 behind a strong outing by Ted 'Doubleduty' Radcliffe in the Comiskey Park. The estimated crowd of 40,000 is more than double the 18,198 fans at Wrigley Field, watching the Cubs lose to the Bees, 9-8. |
| 1941 | Al Benton becomes the first major leaguer to have two sacrifice bunts in one inning. The Tiger right-hander accomplishes the feat in the top of the third inning, a frame that features 17 batters coming to bat, in an 11-2 rout of the Indians at Cleveland's League Park. |
| 1947 | Skeeter Webb is inserted into the game to run for Fred Hutchinson and scores a run in the Tigers' nine-run eighth inning in Detroit's 13-6 victory over Cleveland. Later in the frame, he comes to the plate and delivers an RBI sac fly, an unusual accomplishment for a pinch-runner. |
| 1952 | At approximately 46, Satchel Paige becomes the oldest pitcher in major league history to hurl a complete-game shutout, beating Virgil 'Fire' Trucks and the Tigers, 1-0, when Bobby Young scores the game's only run in the 12th inning. The Browns' hurler will extend his record at 46 years and 75 days by throwing another scoreless complete game against the White Sox next month. |
| 1962 | For the fifth time, a team record, Willie Mays collects five hits in a game. In the Giants' 9-2 victory over Philadelphia at Candlestick Park, the 'Say Hey Kid' hits a pair of two-run homers in the first and second innings and follows up with singles in the fourth, fifth, and eighth. |
| 1967 | Orioles' third baseman Brooks Robinson hits into his fourth career triple play, setting a major league record. The fifth-inning around-the-horn triple killing (5-4-3) doesn't hurt the club when the Birds beat the White Sox at Memorial Stadium, 4-0, to complete a twin bill sweep. |
| 1969 | In an alley behind a Detroit bar, Twins' manager Billy Martin intervenes in a scuffle between his starting pitcher Dave Boswell and outfielder Bob Allison, which leaves the right-hander unconscious and in need of 20 stitches after being pummeled by his skipper. Although he will miss several starts because of the incident, the 24-year-old Maryland native will finish the season 20-12 for the first-place Minnesota club. |
| 1972 | The postponement of the second game of the Midland Cubs and Amarillo Giants doubleheader becomes necessary when thousands of grasshoppers, swarming from their nests behind the center-field wall, invade Christensen Stadium. The massive cluster of insects emerges when the ballpark's lights turn on, making play impossible when infielders can't see their outfielders through the hordes of fluttering invaders. |
| 1972 | With his 660th and 661st career homers, Hank Aaron breaks Yankee legend Babe Ruth's record for hitting the most home runs with one team. Hammerin' Hank's second round-tripper of the day, a 10th-inning blast, enables the Braves to beat Cincinnati at Riverfront Stadium, 4-3. |
| 1973 | Roberto Clemente becomes the first Latin-born player inducted into the Hall of Fame when baseball waives the mandatory five-year waiting period. The late Pirates outfielder, who died tragically on New Year's Eve in a crash carrying relief supplies to the earthquake victims in Nicaragua, was elected posthumously |
| 1979 |
After delivering the eulogy at Thurman Munson's funeral in Ohio, Bobby Murcer, a teammate and close friend of the deceased Yankee catcher, drives in all the runs in the Yankee 5-4 comeback victory over the Orioles at Yankee Stadium. With a bat he will never use again, the New York outfielder hits a three-run home run and wins the game with a two-run single in the ninth inning.
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| 1981 | The players approved a split-season format necessitated by the seven-week strike. The Yankees, A's, Phillies, and Dodgers are declared the first-half champions, automatically qualifying for the divisional series. |
| 1983 | Eric Rasmussen throws a 4-0 shutout against the Red Sox in his first American League outing. The Royals starter, who also blanked the Padres as a Cardinal in his first-ever major league game in 1975, becomes the first pitcher to toss a shutout in his National League and American League debuts. |
| 1985 | As announced three weeks ago, the Players' Association follows through on its threat to strike. The second midseason baseball work stoppage lasts only two days, with the owners abandoning their plan for a salary cap, a concept also vehemently opposed by baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth. |
| 1986 | In the game that establishes a new record for bases-full homers in one game, Texas beats Baltimore, 13-11. Rangers' infielder Toby Harrah hits a second-inning grand slam, and Larry Sheets and Jim Dwyer go deep with the bases loaded in the Orioles' nine-run fourth frame. |
| 1988 | Jim Gott balks three times in the eighth inning, allowing two runners to score from third base. The Pirates' relief pitcher's poor form on the mound proves to be the difference in the Mets' 5-3 victory over the Bucs at Three Rivers Stadium. |
| 1988 | Goose Gossage becomes the second player in major league history to record 300 career saves when he faces one batter and gets the final out in the Cubs' 7-4 victory over Philadelphia at Wrigley Field. The future Hall of Fame right-handed reliever joins Rollie Fingers, who reached the milestone in 1982. |
| 1988 | Jose Canseco became the 11th player in major league history to hit 30 homers and steal 30 bases in a season. The A's outfielder, with 31 homers, joins the 30-30 club, taking second base with one out in the ninth inning for his 30th as Oakland beat the Mariners, 5-4. |
| 1988 | The dedication of a plaque takes place behind the home plate of the former Braves Field in remembrance of the departed National League team and the many historical events occurring in the ballpark. The historical marker, made possible through the efforts of Boston University, the Society for American Baseball Research, and the New England Sports Museum, includes references to the three World Series and one All-Star Game played there, as well as the longest game ever to take place in major league history. |
| 1989 | In a pregame ceremony at Fenway Park, the Red Sox retire Carl Yastrzemski's #8. 'Yaz,' recently inducted into the Hall of Fame, becomes only the fourth player in franchise history, joining Joe Cronin (4), Bobby Doerr (1), and Ted Williams (9), to be honored by having his uniform number retired by the club. |
| 1992 | Following a brief shouting match with Willie Wilson in the previous frame after the Oakland outfielder had tripled off him, Rangers right-hander Nolan Ryan hits him on the leg with a pitch with two outs in the eighth inning. The incident causes a ten-minute delay with benches emptying and fans littering the field with paper, resulting in the future Hall of Famer being ejected from a game for the first and only time during his 27-year major league career. |
| 1993 | Raising his average to .348, San Diego outfielder Tony Gwynn collects his 2000th career base hit, a single off Colorado hurler Bruce Ruffin in the team's 6-2 victory at Jack Murphy Stadium. Mr. Padre will reach the 3,000 hit milestone on the same date in 1999. (Ed. Note: Our thanks to Tom Lane for sharing this event. -LP) |
| 1998 | Kevin McClatchy's vision of a baseball-only stadium in Pittsburgh becomes more of a reality when PNC Bank strikes a deal with the Pirates, naming the Bucs' new home PNC Park. The highly-touted new ballpark will host its first game in 2001. |
| 1999 | After Tony Gwynn singles off Expos' Dan Smith in the first inning to get his 3000th hit, ump Kerwin Danley, a college teammate, Vendella Gwynn, his mom on her 64th birthday, and 13,540 Olympic Stadium fans celebrate the milestone. The Padres outfielder finishes the night 4-for-5, passing Roberto Clemente into 21st place on the all-time career hit list. |
| 2001 |
Boston's backstop Scott Hatteberg hits into a triple play, but the catcher redeems himself in his next at-bat by hitting a grand slam, putting the Red Sox ahead in a 10-7 win over the Rangers. The triple killing, the third in Texas history, occurs when Hatteberg lines to shortstop Alex Rodriguez, who flips to second base, doubling up the runner on second, with second baseman Randy Velarde tagging the runner arriving from first.
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| 2001 | A group made up of the Hall of Famers (61), recipients of the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for writers (13), Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasters (13), and Veterans Committee members (3) replaces the Hall of Fame Veterans Committee. The new members will select players every two years and executives, umpires, and managers only once every four years. |
| 2002 |
In his major league debut, former NBA player Mark Hendrickson allows five runs and three hits in one-third of an inning in relief of Roy Halladay in the Blue Jays' 14-12 victory over the Mariners at the SkyDome. The 28-year-old southpaw played for the Nets, 76ers, Kings, and Cavaliers, leaving the hardwood in 2000 to play baseball after a lackluster season with Cleveland.
(Ed. Note: The 6-foot-9 rookie left-hander becomes the tenth major leaguer to have appeared in an NBA contest, joining Danny Ainge, Gene Conley, Dave DeBusschere, Dick Grat, Frankie Baumholtz, Cotton Nash, Ron Reed, Chuck Connors, and Steve Hamilton. - LP) |
| 2002 |
Robb Nen becomes the 16th major leaguer to record his 300th career save when he closes the Giants' 11-10 win over the Cubs at Pacific Bell Park. The 32-year-old reliever, who will not pitch again after this season due to multiple surgeries for a torn rotator cuff, is the youngest closer to reach the milestone.
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| 2003 | Three weeks after trading for Armando Benitez with the crosstown Mets, the Yankees swap the much-maligned reliever to the Mariners. In return, the Bronx Bombers get back 36-year-old Jeff Nelson for his second tour with the team. |
| 2005 |
 The Rangers posthumously retire jersey #26 in honor of their former skipper Johnny Oates, who led the team to its first three division titles in 1996 and 1998-99. The 1996 Manager of the Year (an award shared with Joe Torres of the Yankees) compiled a 506-476 (.515) record, stepping down 28 games into the 2001 season after 6+ seasons with Kansas City. |
| 2006 | The Mets continue to commit to their young players, signing 23-year-old David Wright to a $55 million, six-year contract extension. The third baseman joins shortstop Jose Reyes, also 23, who inked a long-term contract extension deal with the club three days ago worth $23.25 million over four years. |
| 2007 | Batting eighth in Tony La Russa's batting order, Cardinals' starting pitcher Braden Looper collects two hits in the fifth inning when St. Louis ties a big-league record with ten straight hits. The Redbirds' consecutive safeties score all their runs when they beat the visiting Padres, 10-5. |
| 2010 |
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In a 15-minute pregame ceremony delayed by rain at Turner Field, the Braves retire Tom Glavine's uniform number 47. The southpaw, who won 244 of his 305 career victories with the organization, including five seasons with 20 or more wins, was inducted into the team's Hall of Fame at a luncheon earlier in the day.
| 2013 | Ryan Lavarnway ties a major league record, shared by Ray Katt (1954 Giants) and Gino Petralli (1987 Rangers) when he allows four passed balls in the first inning of the Red Sox's 15-10 victory over the Astros at Minute Maid Park. The Boston backstop, whose woes in corralling Steven Wright's knuckleballer allows three runs, makes up for his first-frame failings with a two-out double in the fifth, putting the team ahead for keeps, 8-7. |
| 2016 |
 The Mariners retire jersey #24 worn by Ken Griffey Jr., who spent 13 of his 22 seasons with Seattle, earning 10 of his 13 All-Star berths and all 10 of his Gold Glove Awards while with the team. The Kid, elected to the Hall of Fame in a landslide this year, becomes the first player to have his digits immortalized by the club.
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| 2016 |
Giancarlo Stanton drives a pitch thrown by Rockies starter Chad Bettis deep into the Rockpile seats, a 504-foot blast that becomes the longest round-tripper in the 21-year-old history of Coors Field. The Miami Marlins slugger's fifth-inning solo shot in the team's 12-6 loss surpasses the 496-footer hit in 1997 by Dodger catcher Mike Piazza off current Colorado bullpen coach Darren Holmes.
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| 2019 | Blue Jays' shortstop Bo Bichette becomes the first player to collect ten extra-base hits in his first nine major league games when he doubles off Ryan Yarbrough in the team's 7-6 loss to the Rays at Tropicana Field. Tomorrow, the 21-year-old rookie shortstop will hit another two-bagger, becoming the only major leaguer to stroke a double in eight-straight contests, breaking the mark established in 2000 by former Toronto first baseman Carlos Delgado. |
43 Fact(s) Found