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This Day in Baseball History
August 16th

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39 Fact(s) Found
1890 Bill Phillips becomes the first pitcher to allow two grand slams in the same inning when Tom Burns and Malachi Kittridge take the Alleghenys' right-hander deep in the same frame of an 18-5 loss to the Chicago Colts. In 1999, Chan Ho Park will match the dubious feat, having the distinction of giving up both bases-full homers to the same batter, Fernando Tatis of the Cardinals.
1909 Red Murray's spectacular grab of Dots Miller's long drive becomes an electrifying catch on a gloomy, overcast day at the newly-opened Forbes Field. Just as the Giants' outfielder snags the ball on a full run in deep right-center field, lightning illuminates the play, creating an eerie but unforgettable split-second image.
1920 On a dreary afternoon at the Polo Grounds in New York, popular Indians shortstop Ray Chapman suffers a fractured skull when hit in the head by a fastball thrown by Yankee right-handed submariner Carl Mays. The 29-year-old newlywed will die before daybreak tomorrow, becoming the first on-field player fatality in major league history.
1927 Babe Ruth, teeing off on a Tommy Thomas fastball, becomes the first player to hit a homer out of Comiskey Park. The Bambino's 37th homer traveled over the new double-deck roof in right field, powering the Bronx Bombers past the Pale Hose at the Chicago Southside ballpark, 8-1.
1947 At Forbes Field, the Pirates beat the Cardinals 12-7 thanks to Ralph Kiner's three home runs, solo shots in the third and eighth, and a three-run blast in the fourth inning. The future Hall of Famer is the first Pirate player to accomplish this feat in the 65-year history of the franchise.
1948 With his wife Claire and his two adopted daughters at his side, Babe Ruth, 53, dies of throat cancer at Memorial Hospital in New York City. The Bambino made his final public appearance at the premiere of The Babe Ruth Story three weeks ago in New York.

NYT Babe Ruth's New York Times Obituary

1950 At the Polo Grounds, Hank Thompson's two inside-the-park home runs off Don Bankhead and Carl Erskine contribute to the Giants' 16-7 drubbing of the Dodgers. The 24-year-old third baseman will hit 129 round-trippers in his 9-year career, three of which will be of the IPHR variety.
1951 At Dunn Field in Elmira (NY), Dodger farm hand Don Zimmer marries Soot Bauerle, whom he had started dating in tenth grade, under a canopy of bats at home plate. Their storied marriage will last for over sixty-two years until Zim passes away due to heart and kidney failure in 2014 at the age of 83.

(Ed. Note: After the ceremony, the newlywed infielder enjoys a 3-for-4 night at the plate for the Class A Pioneers. - LP)

1954 The first issue of Sports Illustrated is available at the newsstands. The inaugural cover of the innovative new magazine features a Mark Kauffman photo of Braves slugger Eddie Mathews at-bat, Giants catcher Wes Westrum behind the plate, and umpire Augie Donatelli calling balls and strikes in Milwaukee County Stadium.

1961 Roger Maris hits two home runs off White Sox hurler Billy Pierce, giving the slugger 48 in his quest to break Babe Ruth's single-season mark. The Yankee outfielder has gone deep in six consecutive games, tying an American League record.
1964 St. Louis outfielder Curt Flood collects eight consecutive hits during a doubleheader against Dodgers pitching. The Cardinals split the twin bill in Los Angeles, losing the opener to Sandy Koufax, 3-0, but take the nightcap when Curt Simmons tosses a six-hitter to give the Redbirds a 4-0 victory.
1966 In the Giants' 3-1 win over the Cardinals, Willie Mays hits his 534th career home run. The Say Hey Kid's third-inning round-tripper ties him with Jimmie Foxx for most career home runs hit by a right-handed batter in major league history.
1967 After retiring the first 19 Pirates he faces, Reds' starter Jim Maloney needs to leave the game when he hurts his ankle stepping in a hole in the Forbes Field turf. Billy McCool finishes the contest, giving up two hits in Cincinnati's 4-0 victory over the Pirates.
1968 En route to 31-6 record, Denny McLain extends his undefeated decisions on the road to 16-0 when he blanks the Red Sox at Fenway Park, 4-0. The Detroit right-hander will finish 17-2 with an ERA of 1.44 in the 21 games he pitches away from Tiger Stadium.
1969 The Phillies post their fourth consecutive shutout, blanking the Astros at Connie Mack Stadium, 7-0. Rick Wise's four-hitter follows the complete-game performances by teammates Jerry Johnson, Woodie Fryman, and Grant Jackson.


BaseballReference
1970 In late June, Milt Mason, who vowed not to leave his team-sponsored trailer on top of the County Stadium scoreboard until the Brewers drew a home crowd of 40,000, ends his 40-day boycott by descending from a 30-foot rope when 44,387 fans attend Bat Day. As a tribute before he died in 1973, the team recognized the retired aviation engineer as the original Bernie Brewer, the costumed character with the same name that Milwaukee will introduce as the team's official mascot the same year.

1973 At the major league's annual summer meetings in Milwaukee, American League owners vote "yes," and National League owners vote "no" on introducing interleague play next season. Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, favoring a limited number of interleague contests, does not cast a vote that could have broken the impasse, citing the possibility of doing so when the legality of his ballot, presently challenged by the Senior Circuit, is resolved.
1975 After a frustrating 9-1 loss in Minnesota, Indians manager Frank Robinson chews out his 52-65 team. The fiery skipper appears to have gotten the players' attention when the Tribe wins 27 of the remaining 42 contests, finishing the season just one game under .500.
1996 Due to a conflict with the Republican National Convention in San Diego, the first major league game ever played outside of the United States or Canada takes place in Monterrey, Mexico, with the 'home team' Padres out-slugging the Mets at Estadio de Beisbol, 15-10. Fernando Valenzuela, a native of the Mexican city of Navojoa, opens the three-game series and goes six innings to get the victory for the first-place Friars.
2000 The Astros, who clout six homers for the second time in four days in their 11-10 victory over Pittsburgh, set a National League record by hitting 18 home runs in four consecutive games. Enron Field will become known as 'Ten-Run' due to Houston's new ballpark's hitter-friendly dimensions, especially in left field.
2001 Despite numerous injuries to key players, the Red Sox dismisses Jimy Williams after he pilots the team 13 games above .500 . The club's well-respected pitching coach, Joe Kerrigan, replaces the ousted skipper, who finishes the season with a 17-26 record for the second-place club.
2001 Barry Bonds' second home run of the game and 53rd of the season breaks the franchise record established by his godfather, Willie Mays. With his first homer, the left fielder eclipses the National League record for home runs by a left-handed batter, established in 1947 by another Giant, Johnny Mize.
2002 Curt Schilling wins his 20th game of the season, striking out 12 Cubs in the Diamondbacks' 2-1 victory at Wrigley Field. The 35-year-old right-hander, who will finish the season with a 23-5 record, reaches the milestone for the second consecutive year, which teammate Randy Johnson will also accomplish next month.
2002 After four days of delaying the decision, the Major League Players' Association executive board votes 57-0 to set an August 30 strike date. All eight previous negotiations since 1972 have resulted in work stoppages in the national pastime.
2002 At the opening ceremonies of the Little League Baseball World Series at Volunteer Stadium, the 1955 Little League team from Charleston (SC) is honored when fourteen players from the Cannon Street YMCA Little League, 47 years after being banned from their own state's postseason tournament due to the color of their skin, are invited to Williamsport to be recognized. At the time of their banishment, Little League officials informed the other 61 all-white South Carolina leagues that the winner of their state finals would not be permitted to participate in the tournament because they refused to play against a duly franchised team.

2005 As skipper of the Fort Worth Cats of the Central League, Bobby Bragan becomes the oldest person to manage a professional baseball game. The 87-year-old's one day of employment, shortened by being ejected in the third inning for arguing balls and strikes, finds him eight days older than Connie Mack, who managed his last game for the 1950 Philadelphia A's.
2006 Before the Red Sox and Tigers game, the Red Sox honored Bruce Froemming during an on-field ceremony at Fenway Park. The 66-year-old home plate umpire works the 5,000th major league game of his 36-year career, behind only Bill Klem, who arbitrated 5,374 games from 1905-40.
2007 Jose Reyes becomes the first infielder and tenth player overall in the modern era (post-1898) to steal sixty bases in three consecutive seasons. The Mets shortstop, who will swipe 78 sacks this season, steals second base in the second inning for the second time in a 10-7 loss to the Pirates at PNC Park.
2007 With nine minutes left to the signing deadline, the Orioles and their top draft choice, fifth overall, come to terms when Georgia Tech standout Matt Wieters agrees to a minor league contract, including a $6 million signing bonus. The switch-hitting catcher's deal ranks second behind Justin Upton, who received $6.1 million in 2005 to play with the Diamondbacks.
2008 Francisco Rodriguez ties his own team record when he picks up his 47th save in the Angels' 4-3 win over Cleveland. After yielding a single to Johnny Peralta, the right-handed closer records three quick outs, two with strikeouts, matching the mark he established in 2006.
2009 With his 3-for-4 performance in the Yankees' 10-3 loss in Seattle, Derek Jeter passes Luis Aparicio for the most hits ever compiled by a major league shortstop. The New York infielder, collecting career hits #2,673 and #2,674 in his first two at-bats, surpasses the Hall of Famer's total, who spent his 18-year career, ending in 1973, with the White Sox, Orioles, and Red Sox.

2011 Rangers president Nolan Ryan announces a bronze artwork depicting Shannon Stone and his six-year-old son attending a game that will most likely reside outside the home plate entrance to the Arlington ballpark at the start of next season. The 39-year-old firefighter died after falling more than 20 feet while attempting to catch a ball tossed by Texas outfielder Josh Hamilton during a game in July.

The Ballpark in Arlington
2011 With one out and an 0-2 count with the bases loaded, Brian Bogusevic goes deep off Cubs reliever Carlos Marmol, giving the Astros a 6-5 victory at Minute Maid Park. The converted outfielder, drafted as a southpaw pitcher, becomes the 26th player in MLB History to hit an ultimate grand slam, a walk-off home run that wins the game by one run.
2012 Clay Buchholz strikes out Adam Jones (looking), Matt Wieters (looking), and Chris Davis (swinging) on nine pitches in the bottom of the sixth inning of the Red Sox's 6-3 victory over Baltimore at Camden Yards. The immaculate inning thrown by the Red Sox right-hander marks the 47th occurrence of the feat in major league history and the first for a Boston hurler since Pedro Martinez turned the trick in 2002.
2012 With a unanimous vote, the Major League owners approve the transfer of the San Diego Padres from John Moores, who had owned the team for 18 years, to a group headed by longtime local businessman Ron Fowler. The new ownership group, the fifth in franchise history, also includes pro golfer Phil Mickelson, a San Diego native.
2013 The Phillies name Ryne Sandberg as the team's interim manager, replacing Charlie Manuel, the winner of more games than any other skipper in franchise history. During his nine seasons in the Philadelphia dugout, the 69-year-old, never selected as the NL Manager of the Year, led the club to five consecutive division titles and a world championship in 2008.
2020 Keibert Ruiz becomes the seventh player in the 131-year history of the Dodgers to homer in his first major league at-bat and the first since Garey Ingram accomplished the feat in 1994. On his first swing, the 22-year-old Venezuelan catcher deposits Julio Teheran's 1-1 fastball over the right-field fence in the team's 8-3 victory at the Angel Stadium of Anaheim.
2020 In a 7-2 victory over the Cardinals at Guaranteed Rate Field, the White Sox hit four consecutive home runs against Roel Ramirez, a 25-year-old right-hander making his major league debut. The quartet of round-trippers, with Yoan Moncada, Yasmani Grandal, Jose Abreu, and Eloy Jimenez all going deep in the six-run fifth inning, marks the tenth time in a team homers in four straight at-bats, including the Southsiders accomplishing the feat for the first time in 2008.

2020 After striking out his first hitter, Cardinals' right-hander Roel Ramirez, making his major-league debut, gives up a single, another single, and a walk to the next three White Sox batters before allowing four consecutive home runs. The 25-year-old Redbird rookie reliever becomes the ninth pitcher since at least 1901 to allow four or more round-trippers in his first visit to a big-league mound, but the only one of those to allow the homers consecutively.
39 Fact(s) Found