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This Day in All Teams History
October 6th

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41 Fact(s) Found
1923 The first unassisted triple play in National League history occurs when Braves' shortstop Ernie Padgett catches Walter Holke's line drive, doubles up James Tierney at second, and then tags Cliff Lee for the third out.
1923 For only the second time in major league history, two 100-loss teams face one another when the 52-100 Braves beat the 50-102 Phillies in the first game of a season-ending doubleheader, 5-4. Boston, then known as the Beaneaters, was also part of the first occurrence of this rare type of matchup when the 50-100 club played the 45-103 team from Brooklyn in 1905.
1926 In a 10-5 Game 4 victory over the Cardinals at Sportsman's Park, Yankee outfielder Babe Ruth becomes the first player to hit three home runs in a World Series game. History will repeat itself in the fourth game of the 1928 Fall Classic when the 'Sultan of Swat' goes deep three times again in St. Louis against the Redbirds.
1933 After pulling on umpire Charlie Moran's bow tie and letting it snap back, Senator outfielder Heinie Manush is ejected from Game 4 of the Fall Classic.
1943 Cardinal batterymates and brothers Mort and Walker Cooper decide to play Game 2 of the World Series on the day their dad, Robert, dies at his home in Independence. After limiting the Yankees to six hits and winning the game, 4-3, Mort heads to Missouri while his younger brother, Walker, who has a 1-for-3 day behind the plate with an eighth inning single, will stay with the club until the Fall Classic is over.
1945 In an effort to promote his nearby Billy Goat Tavern, William Sianis buys tickets to Game 4 of the Fall Classic for himself and Murphy, his pet goat. The bar owner becomes so upset when the Wrigley Field ushers ask his guest to leave, the Greek immigrant places a curse on the team preventing the Cubs from ever winning a World Series again.
1949 In Game 2 of the World Series, only one run is scored again, but Preacher Roe and the Dodgers win this contest at Yankee Stadium, 1-0. Gil Hodges' second inning single drives in Jackie Robinson to even up the Fall Classic at a game apiece.
1957 In Game 4, Eddie Mathews' two-run shot off Bob Grim with one out in the bottom of the tenth inning at County Stadium gives the Braves a 7-5 victory, and knots the Fall Classic at two games apiece. The Milwaukee third baseman becomes the third major leaguer, joining Tommy Henrich (1949) and Dusty Rhodes (1954) to end a World Series game with a walk-off home run.
1959 The largest crowd ever to attend a major league game, 92,706 fans, watches a nail biter as White Sox hurler Bob Shaw beats Sandy Koufax and the Dodgers, 1-0 in Game 5 of the Fall Classic.
1963 The Dodgers complete a four-game World Series sweep of the Yankees as Sandy Koufax wins his second game, 2-1. Frank Howard leads the offense with a home run and a single, the only two hits Whitey Ford gives up, and New York's first baseman Joe Pepitone's error (loses a thrown ball in the white-shirted crowd) leads to the decisive run in the seventh inning.
1965 Sandy Koufax refuses to pitch the first game of the World Series against the Twins because game is scheduled on Yom Kippur, the most sacred of the Jewish holidays. As the Dodgers’ southpaw attends shul and fasts on the Day of Atonement, his teammates lose to Minnesota, 8-2.
1966 Jim Palmer becomes the youngest player to pitch a shutout in the World Series when the 20-year old Oriole right-hander blanks Sandy Koufax and the Dodgers, 6-0. The contest will become more memorable next month when Koufax surprises the baseball world by announcing his retirement making this game his last major league appearance.
1966 In the Game 2 loss to the Orioles at Dodger Stadium, Willie Davis establishes a World Series record by committing three errors in one game. The center fielder's blunders come on two consecutive plays in the fifth inning, the first by losing a fly ball in the sun, then by dropping the next fly ball followed by overthrowing third base.
1978 Despite three solo home runs off Yankees' ace Catfish Hunter by Kansas City's third baseman George Brett, the Bronx Bombers win Game 3 of the ALCS beating the Royals, 6-5.
1980 In the 163rd game of the season, 35-year-old knuckleballer Joe Niekro earns his 20th victory, going the distance to defeat the Dodgers, 7-1, in the winner-take-all contest for the NL West. With the win, the Astros hold on to capture their first title in the 19-year history of the franchise after losing a season-ending three game series to LA, (3-2, 2-1, and 4-3) that forced the one-game playoff.
Courtesy of the Houston Astros network via
Astrosdaily.com
1981 In Game 1 of the ALDS in Kansas City, Mike Norris throws a six-hit complete game blanking the Royals, 4-0. Oakland’s appearance in the playoffs makes Billy Martin the first skipper in baseball history to manage four franchises (Twins-1969, Tigers-1972, A's-1981 and Yankees 1976-78) into postseason play.
1983 In the second game of the ALCS, Oriole hurler Mike Boddicker throws a five-hitter and strikes out a playoff record 14 batters beating the White Sox, 4-0.
1985 On the last day of the season, Yankee knuckleballer Phil Niekro becomes the 18th and oldest player in major league history to win his 300th victory when he blanks the Blue Jays, 8-0. The forty-six year and 188 days old, who will win 318 games, also surpasses Satchel Paige (46 yrs, 75 days) to become the oldest pitcher to throw a shutout in the big leagues.
1986 Steve Garvey's two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning gives the Padres a 7-5 walk-off win over the Cubs in Game 4 of NLCS. After losing the first two contests of the best-of-five NLCS, the victory brings the series to a decisive fifth game that San Diego will win to capture the National League pennant.
1991 David Cone ties a National League mark for strikeouts as he fans 19 Phillies en route to a 7-0 victory in the season's finale. The Mets right-hander finishes the campaign with a league-leading 241 strikeouts, making it second straight season he has lead the circuit.
1991 On Fan Appreciation Day at Shea Stadium, Howard Johnson drives in a run with a seventh-inning single to finish the season with a league-leading 117 RBIs. 'HoJo' is the first switch-hitter to lead the National League in runs batted in and the first Mets player to accomplish the feat.
1995 In Game 3 off the ALDS, Bernie Williams becomes the first major leaguer to hit a home run from each side of the plate in a postseason game. The Yankee outfielder's second round-tripper, an eighth-inning shot batting left-handed off Bill Risley, is tossed back onto the field by a Mariner fan who is apparently unaware of the historic value of the the souvenir.
2000 Reds' officials announce games at Cinergy Field during the final two seasons will be on played natural grass. The surface in Cincinnati has been artificial turf since in 1970 when the ballpark made its debut as Riverfront Stadium.
2000 Chief executive officer John Harrington puts the Red Sox up for sale. Since the death of Jean Yawkey in 1992, the team has been owned by the Jean R. Yawkey Trust.
2001 With their 116th win, the Mariners tie the 1906 Cubs as the winningest team in major league history. Bret Boone's 37th home run of the season, and the shut out pitching of five Seattle pitchers prove to be the difference in the 1-0 historic win over the Rangers.
2001 At Camden Yards in front of a full house including Orioles notables Frank Robinson, Jim Palmer and Earl Weaver as well as Commissioner Bud Selig and former President Bill Clinton, Cal Ripken plays his 3,001st and final game. After a hitless night for the 41-year-old, the final out of the 5-1 loss to Red Sox is made as Cal watches from the on deck circle.
2001 With his 151st pinch hit, Lenny Harris breaks the major league mark for career pinch hits established by Manny Mota. Coming off the Met bench to bat for Rey Ordonez, he lines a 1-2 pitch off Expo starter Carl Pavano for a single to become the career leader in pinch hits.
2003 Defeating the A's, 5-4, the Red Sox become the seventh team to win the last three games to win a best-of-five playoff series. Other teams to overcome an 0-2 deficit include the 1981 Dodgers (Astros-NLDS), 1982 Brewers (Angels-ALCS), 1984 Padres (Cubs-NLCS), 1995 Mariners (Yankees-ALDS), 1999 Red Sox (Indians-ALDS), and the 2001 Yankees (A's-ALDS).
2005 Reds’ outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. (.301, 35, 92) and Yankee first baseman/DH Jason Giambi (.271, 32 , 87) are voted the Comeback Players of the Year in their respective leagues. For the first time, the winners of the award are determined by the fans voting on MLB.com.
2006 After failing to advanced past the first round of the American League playoffs in their previous five postseason appearances, the A's beat the much-favored Twins, 8-3, to complete a three-game ALDS sweep. The victory, which was the team's tenth opportunity to win a clinching game, puts Oakland in the ALCS for the first time since 1992.
2007 In Game 2 of the ALDS at Jacobs Field, the Indians score the tying run on a wild pitch thrown by a bug-covered Joba Chamberlain. A rare infestation of insects (midges), which appeared en masse in the eighth inning, impacts the usually reliable rookie Yankees reliever who suffers his first blown save of the season.
2007 At Wrigley Field, the Diamondbacks beat the Cubs, 5-1, to complete the three-game sweep of their National League division series. The loss for Chicago means the franchise has played for the last 99 years in the Windy City without winning a World Series championship.
2007 With their 17th win in 18 games, the Rockies beat the Phillies at Coors Field, 2-1, completing a NLDS three-game sweep of Philadelphia to advance to their first-ever National League Championship Series. The Wild Card team will have to beat the Diamondbacks, their Western division foe, to win the pennant and earn a trip to the World Series.
2009 Joe Mauer wins his third batting title becoming the first player to accomplish the feat in consecutive seasons since Nomar Garciaparra lead the league in 1999-2000. The Twins catcher's .365 mark establishes a major league record for the highest batting average by a backstop.
2009 With one out in the bottom of the 12th inning in the AL Central tiebreaker, the Twins beat the Tigers, 6-5, when Alexi Casilla's single plates Carlos Gomez from second base with the winning run. The Metrodome victory finishes an amazing comeback by Minnesota, going 17-4 in the final month to close a seven-game deficit and completes a colossal collapse for the Tigers, who become the first team in big league history to surrender a three-game lead with only four contests to play.
2010 Rays' hurler David Price is this year's recipient of the Oklahoma Sports Museum's Warren Spahn Award given annually to the best left-handed pitcher in the big leagues. The honor, named after the winningest southpaw in the history of the game, is awarded based on a point system which evaluates performance based on their wins, strikeouts and earned run average.
2010 The Cardinals exercised their $16 million option for next season with first baseman Albert Pujols. The 30-year-old superstar, a three-time NL MVP, led the circuit with 42 home runs and 118 RBIs.
2010 At Citizens Bank Park, Phillies right-hander Roy Halladay throws the second no-hitter in postseason history when he beats the Reds, 4-0, in Game 1 of the NLDS. Don Larsen became the first hurler to accomplish the feat by throwing a perfect game in the Yankees' victory over Brooklyn in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series.
2011 Robin Ventura, seen by many as a surprise choice, is hired by general manager Ken Williams as the White Sox's new manager. The former all-star infielder, who played ten seasons in Chicago after being selected as the team's first round pick in 1988, replaces a vocal and often-controversial Ozzie Guillen who left the Wind City to be the Marlins' new skipper.
2012 With a year remaining on his contract, Jim Tracy resigns as the manger of the Rockies, a position he has held since his promotion from the club's bench coach in May of 2009. During his four-year tenure with Colorado, the 2009 NL Manager of the Year compiled a 294-308 record, going a 64-98 last season, a franchise mark for losses.
2012 The Orioles eliminate the two-time AL champion Rangers, 5-1, in the American League's first win-or-go-home wild-card playoff game. The victory sends the surprising Baltimore team into the playoffs for the first time in 15 years, a best-of-five division series against New York.
41 Fact(s) Found