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This Day in Baseball History
January 27th

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21 Fact(s) Found
1933 Joe Judge, who compiled a .299 lifetime BA in his 18 seasons with the Senators, is released by the team and will sign with the Dodgers. The veteran first baseman will hit just .214 in 42 games with Brooklyn before getting rereleased and returning to the American League with Boston, where he'll retire next season.
1937 Cincinnati experiences the worst flood in its history when Mill Creek overflows its banks, resulting in the Crosley Field's lower grandstand under 21 feet of water. As a publicity stunt, Reds pitcher Lee Grissom and the team's traveling secretary, John McDonald, are photographed as they entered the ballpark over the left-field fence and rowed to the area of the pitcher's mound.

1943 The Reds trade pitcher Paul Derringer to the Cubs for cash. The 36-year-old right-hander, known as Oom Paul due to his 6-foot-3 height and 205+ pound frame, will post a 33-38 (.465) record with an ERA of 3.71 during his three-year tenure with Chicago, but in his final season, the right-hander goes 16-11, helping the team clinch the National League pennant.
1944 Lou Perini, Guido Rugo, and Joe Maney, known as the 'Three Steam Shovels' due to their ties to the construction industry, gain control of the Boston Braves. The new ownership will immediately relieve Casey Stengel of his duties as manager of the second-division place club, who finished in sixth place with a record of 67-85.
1956 The New York football Giants will be leaving the Polo Grounds, their home since its inception in 1925, playing their home games at Yankee Stadium. The NFL squad's decision to play in a different venue fuels speculation that the National League Giants will also depart the Coogan's Bluff ballpark.


1956 New York Football Giants Logo
1982 The Cubs trade Ivan DeJesus to the Phillies in exchange for Larry Bowa and a promising youngster named Ryne Sandberg. Dallas Green, the team's new GM, had seen the potential of the future Hall of Fame second baseman while managing in Philadelphia.
1997 After stints with the Rangers and Red Sox, Jose Canseco returns to his first major league team when Boston trades the slugger to the A's for pitcher John Wasdin and cash. The 32-year-old DH/outfielder will bat .235 and hit 23 home runs for Oakland, and Boston's new right-hander will post a 4-6 record with a 4.40 ERA.
1999 Former Mets infielder Carlos Baerga signs a one-year free-agent contract with the Cardinals. The second baseman, who did not meet the fans' expectations in New York, will be released by the Cardinals during spring training and sign with the Reds, who will release him at the beginning of June.
2005 After failing to sign free-agent first baseman Carlos Delgado, the Mets quickly fill the void at first base by trading minor league prospect Ian Bladergroen and a player to be named (or cash) to Boston for Gold Glover Doug Mientkiewicz. The Red Sox, who acquired the 30-year-old infielder from the Twins at the non-waiver trade deadline to solidify their defense, plan to use heavy-hitting, light-fielding Kevin Millar at first.
2005 Lance Berkman (.316, 30, 106), the team's 2004 team MVP, and the Astros avoid arbitration when they agree on a one-year, $10.5 million deal. The 28-year-old All-Star outfielder suffered a serious off-season knee injury (anterior cruciate ligament tear) playing flag football.
2006 The Cubs and Mark Prior (11-7, 3.67) agree on a one-year $3.65 million contract, making his salary $900,000 more than the right-hander would have earned under the $3.3 million contract offer he voided in November. The fireballer's previous contract gave him the right to terminate the deal once he became eligible for salary arbitration.
2006 The multi-player deal between Boston and Cleveland becomes a reality when Commissioner Bud Selig gives his needed approval of any transaction worth at least $1 million. Eight players are exchanged, with Indians outfielder Coco Crisp, reliever David Riske, and backstop Josh Bard going to the Red Sox for recently acquired third base prospect Andy Marte, catcher Kelly Shoppach, and a player to be named later (minor league right-hander Randy Newsom).
2006 Nobuhiko Matsunaka agrees to a seven-year contract, making the deal the longest ever signed by a Japanese professional baseball player. The 32-year-old Softbank Hawks slugger will earn an estimated 500 million yen a year plus additional incentives based on performance.
2006 Featuring a more traditional look, the Royals unveiled their new 2006 uniforms with the two home uniforms featuring the word "Royals" in script. The two road uniforms also use longhand to spell out Kansas City. The new outfit will return to the crown logo on the left sleeve, replacing the circular logo used during the past few seasons.

2009 Ubaldo Jimenez agrees to a four-year guaranteed deal worth $10 million, which could be increased to $22 million if the Rockies exercise their options for 2013 and 2014. In his first full season, the 25-year-old Dominican right-hander led the pitching staff with 172 strikeouts while posting a 12-12 record with an ERA of 3.99.
2009

"But immortality is nontransferable. The papers said that the other players, and even the umpires on the field, begged him to come out and acknowledge us in some way, but he never had and did not now. Gods do not answer letters." - JOHN UPDIKE, author of Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu, published in the New Yorker.

John Updike, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and lifelong Red Sox fan, dies of lung cancer at 76. The Massachusetts native penned Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu, ending the famous 1960 essay with "Gods do not answer letters," explaining why the 41-year-old superstar did not acknowledge the fans after homering in his final major league game.

2010 Joining Honus Wagner, Willie Stargell, and former teammate Roberto Clemente, former Pirates second baseman Bill Mazeroski will have a statue of himself, designed by Pittsburgh sculptor Susan Wagner, placed outside PNC Park. The 12-foot statue depicts the Hall of Famer rounding second base with his batting helmet raised high in his right hand after hitting the homer that beat the Yankees in the 1960 Fall Classic, commemorating the only Game 7 World Series walk-off round-tripper in the history of the game.

Bill Mazeroski and the SuperMoon
2012 Ron Washington garners the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum's C.I. Taylor Award, being honored with the one organization's Legacy Awards as the top skipper in the American League. The Rangers' skipper led the team to a franchise-best 96 victories and their second consecutive AL pennant last season.
2015 Five Marlins executives travel to Japan to officially ink Ichiro Suzuki to a one-year deal worth approximately $2 million. Florida expects the 41-year-old outfielder to play a pinch-hitting role when not filling in for injured outfielders.
2020 The Reds sign Nick Castellanos to a $64 million, four-year deal, matching the richest free-agent contract in franchise history. The 28-year-old former Tiger and Cub slugger joins infielder Mike Moustakas, who agreed a similar agreement in December with the club that has yet to have a winning record in six seasons.
2021 The Blue Jays trade pitchers Sean Reid-Foley, Yennsy Diaz, and Josh Winckowski to the Mets for southpaw Steven Matz, a second-round pick who posted a disappointing 31-41 (.431) record during his six seasons with New York. The 29-year-old compiles a 14-7 mark for his new team before joining the Cardinals as a free agent in November.
21 Fact(s) Found