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This Day in Baseball History
May 22nd

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46 Fact(s) Found
1914 Ben Tincup becomes the first person from the Cherokee tribe to play in the major leagues. The 21-year-old right-hander debuts at Forbes Field in an 8-2 Phillies' loss to the Pirates.
1922 The Yankees, the Giants' tenants in the Polo Grounds since 1913, begin construction on their ballpark in the Bronx. The stadium will become known as the 'House that Ruth Built,' acknowledging Babe's popularity and influence.
1925 Pete Donohue goes 5-for-5 with four singles and a home run when the Reds beat the Phillies at the Baker Bowl, 11-2. In his complete-game victory, the 24-year-old right-hander gives up seven hits, only two more than his performance at the plate.
1930 Babe Ruth ties a major league record, hitting five homers in two games and six in three games when he had a trio of round-trippers in the second game of yesterday's doubleheader, two more in the opener of today's twin bill, adding one more in the nightcap. Teammate Lou Gehrig also goes deep three times in the second game of the doubleheader, a 20-13 Yankee victory over the A's at Philadelphia's Shibe Park.
1933 Yankee third baseman Joe Sewell is struck out for the first time this season, a victim of Cleveland's Wes Ferrell. The 34-year-old infielder, playing in his final season, will strike out only three more times in 524 at-bats.
1938 Ted Lyons records his 200th career win when Chicago beats Washington at Griffith Stadium, 9-2. The future Hall of Famer, nicknamed Sunday Teddy for his success on the Sabbath, winning 52 of 82 decisions on that day of the week from 1939 until 1942, will compile a 260-230 record during a 21-year major league career, all with the White Sox.
1942 Ted Williams is sworn into the U.S. Navy but will remain with the Red Sox until called for active duty. Earlier in the year, a public outcry occurred when the Boston outfielder asked to be reclassified from Class 1-A to 3-A due to being the sole support of his mother, causing the Quaker Oats Company to drop him from their ads.
1952 The Celler congressional committee concludes the need to regulate baseball is unnecessary. The report states that the major leagues can solve their issues and opposes legislation exempting the sport's reserve clause from existing antitrust laws.
1954 The box score for the contest shows left-handed thrower Nino Escalera coming into the game as a shortstop when Reds' manager Birdie Tebbetts implements a four-man outfield against Stan Musial. Escalera replaced infielder Roy McMillian when the rookie skipper stationed him in right-center between Cincinnati outfielders Wally Post and Gus Bell.

1957 At Fenway Park, the Red Sox go deep four times in the sixth inning in an 11-0 rout over Cleveland. Gene Mauch, Ted Williams, Dick Gernert, and Frank Malzone all homer on the first 16 pitches thrown by Cal McLish.
1959 Hoyt Wilhelm one-hits the Yankees in the Orioles' 5-0 victory at Memorial Stadium. Jerry Lumpe's single in the eighth spoils the knuckleballer's bid for a no-hitter.
1962 Los Angeles intentionally walks Roger Maris four times to establish a major league record. Four different Halo hurlers issue the quartet of free passes in New York's 2-1 victory over the Angels in 12 innings at Yankee Stadium.
1963 Once again, Mickey Mantle barely misses becoming the first player to hit a home run out of Yankee Stadium. The monstrous walk-off blast off A's hurler Bill Fischer, giving the Yankees an 8-7 victory, lands just a few feet below the decorative facade down the right-field line.
1968 At Wrigley Field, Pirates' slugger Willie Stargell hits three home runs and barely misses a fourth in a 13-6 rout over the Cubs. 'Pops' also hit a single and a double that bounced off the left-field fence railing back onto the playing field.
1969 With the team routing the Mets 12-0, Braves skipper Lum Harris elects to rest Hank Aaron, making Mike Lum the only major leaguer to pinch-hit for Hammerin' Hank. Coming off the bench, the 23-year-old Hawaiian-born outfielder delivers a two-run double to right field in his seventh-inning plate appearance at Atlanta Stadium.
1976 Reggie Smith drives in five runs in the Cardinals' 7-6 victory over Philadelphia at Veterans Stadium. The St. Louis switch-hitter's third homer of the game, a two-out solo shot in the ninth, proves to be the difference.
1977 The Red Sox (6) and Brewers (5) collectively hit 11 home runs, tying a major league record in Boston's 14-10 victory at Fenway Park. The round-tripper riot equals the total collected by the Yankees/Tigers in 1950 and matched by the Cubs/Mets in 1967.
1981 After an 11-25 (.306) start, the Twins make a managerial change, replacing Johnny Goryl with Billy Gardner. The former major league infielder gets his first opportunity to manage a big-league club after being a very successful minor league skipper, winning six championships in 13 seasons
1982 In his last major league at-bat, Mario Mendoza, who will become a minor league hitting instructor, reaches first on a fielder's choice, ending his nine-year career with a .215 batting average. The Ranger infielder's name will become infamous, as players struggling at the plate will become known as performing below the 'Mendoza Line.'
1983 Cliff Johnson ties Jerry Lynch's major league mark when he hits his 18th career pinch home run. The eighth-inning solo shot comes off Tippy Martinez in the Blue Jays' 5-0 victory over Baltimore at Exhibition Stadium.
1985 Pete Rose becomes the all-time leader in the National League for runs scored when he crosses the plate for the 2,108th time in his career. The Reds' player-manager surpasses Hank Aaron when he tallies a run in the sixth inning of a 7-4 loss to Chicago at Wrigley Field.
1990 During the Cubs' 2-1 victory against the Reds in a 16-inning contest at Wrigley Field, Andre Dawson is walked five times intentionally to set a major league record. Yankees outfielder Roger Maris established the previous mark of four free passes in a game on this date in 1962 and then equaled by Padres shortstop Gerry Templeton in 1985.
1992 Felipe Alou becomes the Expos manager, replacing Tom Runnels, who compiled 68-81 (.456) records during his one-plus seasons at the helm. The new 57-year-old skipper, who will manage the team for a decade, leads the 17-20 Montreal club to an eventual second-place finish in the National League East.
1995 After a brawl between the Durham Bulls and Winston-Salem Warthogs, taking more than 30 minutes to sort out, the umpires eject ten players during 'Strike Out Domestic Violence Night' at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The president of the Carolina League will hand down 124 days of suspensions, including every player in uniform, for a specified amount of time.
1998 Brian Cox enjoys a 6-for-6 performance, including a grand slam in the team's ten-run third inning when Florida State demolishes Delaware 27-6 in the NCAA Atlantic II Regionals. Matt Diaz, a freshman for the Seminoles, contributes three home runs to the routing of the Fightin' Blue Hens.
1998 The Mets send Preston Wilson, Geoff Goetz, and Ed Yarnell to the Marlins for Mike Piazza. Florida had acquired the All-Star catcher last week from the Dodgers and Todd Zeile for Gary Sheffield, Bobby Bonilla, Charles Johnson, Jim Eisenreich, and Manuel Barrios.
1998 At Busch Stadium, Mark McGwire becomes the first player to launch a ball into Big Mac Land, a section of the ballpark in left field named after him due to the frequency of his home runs landing there. Thanks to the Cardinal slugger's sixth-inning two-run poke off Giants' right-hander Mark Gardner, the 47,579 ticket holders attending the game receive a coupon for a free Big Mac at McDonald's restaurants.

1999 Mark McGwire becomes the third player to launch a ball out of Dodger Stadium when one of his two home runs travels 483 feet in the Cardinals’ 10-7 victory at Chavez Ravine. The slugging first baseman joins Willie Stargell, who accomplished the feat twice in 1969 and 1973, and Mike Piazza, whose Ruthian blast cleared the ballpark two seasons ago.
1999 After a stint on the disabled list and a rainout, Yankees' right-hander Roger Clemens finally breaks the American League record for consecutive victories with 18, previously shared by Johnny Allen (Indians, 1936-37) and Dave McNally (Orioles, 1968-69). The somewhat anticlimactic accomplishment includes ten no-decisions.
2000 Scoring seven times in the bottom of the ninth, the Brewers make their biggest comeback in franchise history, knotting the score at nine before only 3,913 fans at County Stadium. Jose Hernandez's solo homer completes the come-from-behind victory in the next inning when Milwaukee beats the Astros, 10-9.
2001 For the second time this season, Barry Bonds homers in six consecutive games, collecting nine to establish a National League mark. In 1968, Senators slugger Frank Howard hit ten homers in six games, setting the major league record.
2002 The A's deal a stunned Jeremy Giambi to the Phillies in exchange for pinch-hitter John Mabry. The former Oakland outfielder is four years younger than the Phillies' utility man, but he doesn't meet the 'Moneyball' approach preached by GM Billy Beane.
2002 Governor Jesse Ventura approves a $120 million financing framework for a $330 million open-air stadium for the Twin Cities. The bill has only lukewarm support because some lawmakers are still determining whether they'll find the required down payment and get a guarantee from major league baseball that a team will play in Minnesota for at least 30 years.
2003 Arturo Moreno purchases the World Champion Angels from Walt Disney for $184 million to become the third owner in the 43-year history of the franchise. The 56-year-old outdoor advertising tycoon, a fourth-generation Mexican-American, is the first Hispanic to have a controlling interest in a major league club.
2004

Oakland retires Reggie Jackson jersey number 9, honoring the slugger who played his first nine Hall of Fame seasons with the A's, helping the team capture three consecutive World Series (1972-74). The former Athletics' right fielder, who had his #44 retired by the Yankees in 1993, becomes the eighth player to have his digits retired by two or more teams.

2006 In a 3-1 loss to the Braves at Petco Park, Jake Peavy fans 16 batters to set a Padres regular-season record for strikeouts, helping the team reach a franchise mark for a nine-inning game with 18 Ks. The 24-year-old right-hander, striking out every batter in the starting lineup at least once, loses the game when the only fly ball he allows is Ryan Langerhans' second-frame two-run homer.
2008 J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell hit grand slams when the Red Sox beat Kansas City, 11-8. Daisuke Matsuzaka, who gives up three runs in 5⅓ innings, remains unbeaten with the Fenway Park victory, improving his record to 8-0.
2008 Blue Jays southpaw Jesse Carlson, entering the game at the bottom of the seventh with the bases loaded, whiffs Sean Rodriguez, Maicer Izturis, and Gary Matthews in the eventual 4-3 victory over the Angels at the Rogers Centre. The 27-year-old Berlin (CT) native becomes the first pitcher since Jack Sanford in 1960 to come into a game with the bases full, then strike out the side.
2009 With a broken-bat triple in the sixth inning, Michael Cuddyer completes the cycle in the Twins' 11-3 victory over Milwaukee at the Metrodome. In his first three turns at-bat, the Minnesota right-fielder hit a three-run home run in the first inning, doubled to the gap for a ground-rule two-bagger in the third, and singled in the fourth frame.

2010 After setting the mark in his previous game, Mike Redmond's major league record errorless streak behind the plate ends when his throw to second base, trying to thwart a would-be base stealer, skips past Mark Grudzielanek. The Indians catcher's spotless performance started on July 22, 2004, covering 253 games.
2010 Matt Stairs ties a major league mark when he homers for his eleventh team in San Diego's 2-1 interleague victory in Seattle. The Padres designated hitter's fourth-inning homer off Ian Snell ties Todd Zeile's record, who accomplished the feat by going deep in an Expo uniform in 2003.
2012 Ricky Nolasco becomes the franchise leader in career wins when Miami beats Colorado at Marlins Park, 7-6. The 29-year-old right-hander, who hit a double to put his team ahead, surpasses Dontrelle Willis for the most team victories, improving his record to 69-53 for the South Florida squad.
2014 Barack Obama becomes the first U.S. president to visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown. During his visit, the Commander in Chief, a White Sox fan, holds FDR's green-light letter and a pair of spikes worn by Chicago's "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, who was one of the eight players banned from the game for their alleged role in fixing the 1919 World Series.

2019 Josh Bell, for the second time in two weeks, reaches the Allegheny River on the fly, hitting PNC Park's fifth 'splash' home run since the ballpark opened in 2001. The Pirates' first baseman accomplishes the feat when he blasts a second-inning Jon Gray changeup 454 feet over the Clemente Wall in right field in the team's 9-3 loss to the Rockies.
2021 In his major league debut, Taylor Walls collects a pair of two-baggers, doubling as a righty in the fifth and then as a lefty in the ninth in the Rays' 3-1 victory over the Blue Jays at TD Ballpark. The 24-year-old switch-hitting shortstop joins Rich Becker (1993 Twins, two doubles) and George Wright (1982 Rangers, double/home run) as the third player to break in with an extra-base hit from both sides of the plate.
2022 In his tenth career start, Reid Detmers becomes the 25th rookie to throw a no-hitter, blanking the Rays at Angel Stadium, 12-0. The 22-year-old southpaw out of the University of Louisville throws 108 pitches, the most in his professional career, completing the 12th no-no in franchise history.
46 Fact(s) Found