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12 Fact(s) Found
| 1921 |
The New York American League franchise purchases a ten-acre plot of land for $675,000 from William Waldorf Astor's estate as the site of the future Yankee Stadium. The club's new ballpark on the west side of the Bronx will sit directly across the Harlem River from the Polo Grounds, the team's current home for the past ten years as tenants of the Giants.
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| 1934 | New York news reporter and broadcaster Ford Frick is named the National League's public relations director. In November, the DePauw University graduate will be elected as the president of the Senior Circuit, succeeding John A. Heydler, who resigned due to poor health. |
| 1935 | Cardinal right-hander Dizzy Dean, who posted a 30-7 record last season for the Gashouse Gang, becomes a holdout when the team refuses to meet his demand for a yearly salary of $25,000. The 23-year-old future Hall of Famer, the NL's reigning MVP, quickly comes to terms with the Redbirds the following day, signing for $18,500, including a thousand-dollar bonus. |
| 1956 | Dodger owner Walter O'Malley, showing his support for the Wagner-Cashmore plan to build a $30-million downtown Brooklyn sports center, promises to buy four million dollars worth of bonds for the project. The proposed legislation, which will be passed and signed by New York Governor Averill Harriman in April, becomes irrelevant due to a lack of funding from the city's Board of Estimates. |
| 1958 |
The Red Sox sign Ted Williams for reportedly $135,000, making him the highest-paid player in major league history, surpassing his annual salary of a hundred grand he's collected since 1949. The 39-year-old outfielder, starting his 18th season with the club, led the major leagues with a .388 batting average last year. (Ed. Note: The Pirates agreed to give Hank Greenberg a six-figure contract after being traded from the Tigers in 1946, and Joe DiMaggio also signed $100,000 contracts with the Yankees in 1949 and 1950. -LP) |
| 1962 |
 The Phillies announce the team will retire Robin Roberts' uniform #36 when his new club, the Yankees, visits Clearwater to play Philadelphia in a March exhibition game. The team's tribute to future Hall of Famer marks the first time a uniform number has been retired in the franchise's 79-year history.
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| 1986 | The Yankees sign well-traveled free-agent Al Holland, who saved a total of five games for three different teams last season. The one-year contract has a clause that requires the 33-year-old southpaw reliever, one of the players granted immunity in exchange for their testimony in last year's Pittsburgh cocaine trials, to submit to drug tests. |
| 1992 | Jeff Innis (0-2, 2.66, 84 IP) loses his arbitration bid against the Mets, awarded the team's offer of $355,000 (more than double his 1991 salary) rather than the $650,000 he sought. During the season, the 29-year-old middle-reliever with a submarine delivery became the first major league pitcher to appear in 60 or more games without recording a win or a save, a stat that worked against winning his case. |
| 1998 |
The Yankees trade southpaw Eric Milton, shortstop Cristian Guzman, Brian Buchanan, and Danny Mota to the Twins for second baseman Chuck Knoblauch. The Yankees' newest infielder will spend four solid seasons with the club, batting .272, but is best remembered for having difficulty making accurate throws to first base, a condition commonly known as the 'yips.'
(Ed. Note: New York won the American League pennant every year Chuck Knoblauch was with the team, winning three World Series championships. - LP) |
| 2008 | The Rangers hire Nolan Ryan as team president during a pivotal point in club history, according to club president Tom Hicks. The 61-year-old Hall of Fame hurler, who retired with the Rangers in 1993 after playing a record 27 major league seasons, is introduced at The Ballpark in Arlington with much fanfare, including a video highlight package featuring many of the right-hander's milestones. |
| 2010 | After Seattle declined to offer him salary arbitration, oft-injured free agent Erik Bedard agrees to stay a part of the Mariners' pitching rotation, inking a one-year deal with a mutual option for 2011. The 30-year-old southpaw, who is rehabilitating after surgery on his pitching shoulder last August, will not have to continue his disappointing role as the team's ace with the off-season trade for Cliff Lee and the emergence of Felix Hernandez. |
| 2012 | An arbitration panel rules in favor of 27-year-old Anibal Sanchez (8-9, 3.67), awarding the Marlin right-hander with a record-breaking $8 million salary this season. The decision, which puts aside the team's counteroffer of $6.9 million, represents the most substantial amount ever given to a starting pitcher who went to arbitration. |
12 Fact(s) Found