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This Day in Dodgers History
September 17th

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6 Fact(s) Found
1912 At Brooklyn's Washington Park, Casey Stengel makes an impressive major league debut when he collects four hits, drives in two runs, and swipes a pair of bases in the Dodgers' 7-3 victory against the Pirates. The likable outfielder from Kansas City finishes the season with a .316 batting average (18/57) in his first 17 games with Brooklyn.
1947 Not waiting for the end of the season, The Sporting News, in a full-page splash in today's issue, names Dodger Jackie Robinson as the publication's Rookie of the Year. Although the Brooklyn infielder faced the challenges of being the century's first black big-leaguer, 'The Bible of Baseball' makes the selection based on his hitting, running, defensive play, and value to the team, according to the article written by legendary publisher J.G. Taylor Spink.
1963 Dodger ace Sandy Koufax tosses a four-hitter, blanking St. Louis at Sportsman's Park, 4-0. The southpaw's scoreless effort establishes a National League record for shutouts thrown by lefties in a season with 11, five shy of Grover Cleveland Alexander's major league mark set in 1916 with the Phillies.
1981 Dodgers southpaw Fernando Valenzuela ties White Sox freshman Ewell Russell's 1913 rookie record when he hurls his eighth shutout of the season, blanking Atlanta on three hits. The 20-year-old Mexican's 2-0 victory breaks the previous National League mark shared by Irving Young (Braves, 1905), Grover Cleveland Alexander (Phillies, 1911), and Jerry Koosman (Mets, 1968).
1996 Dodger right-hander Hideo Nomo no-hits the Rockies, 9-0, at Coors Field, becoming the only big-league hurler to accomplish the feat in the thin air of Denver. Tornado Boy's performance in Colorado is the best-attended no-no and is the only hitless game with a paid attendance of more than 50,000 fans.

2010 Joe Torre, who will compile a 2326-1997 (.538.) managerial record during his 30 seasons as a skipper with Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees, and the Dodgers, announces he will be retiring at the end of the month. Los Angeles immediately hires the team's hitting coach, Don Mattingly, to replace the 70-year-old, who will accept a position in February to assist Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig as the new Executive Vice President for Baseball Operations.

6 Fact(s) Found