August 15
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Today in Baseball History |
Events, births and deaths that occurred on August 15.
Events[edit]
- 1886 - Pitcher Guy Hecker has one of the greatest days ever - at the plate - in the second game of a doubleheader between Louisville and Baltimore in the American Association. In seven at-bats, he hits three singles and three homers, accumulating 15 total bases. He scores a record seven runs, as he reaches base on an error in his other at-bat. Louisville wins easily, 22 - 5.
- 1889 - The Cleveland Spiders defeat the Boston Beaneaters, 19 - 8, behind a great hitting performance by Larry Twitchell, who goes 6-for-6 with a walk. He hits for the cycle and accumulates a then-record 16 total bases, thanks to a single, a double, three triples and a homer, and scores five runs. Kid Madden pitches the whole game for Boston, surrendering 27 hits, but Twitchell also takes the mound, relieving Jersey Bakely in the 2nd inning after he has started the frame with four walks and a hit batsman. He then goes back to playing left field in the 3rd and Henry Gruber finishes the game on the mound.
- 1905 - The A's Rube Waddell is the whole show today as he hurls a five-inning no-hitter over the Browns. The A's are ahead, 2 - 0, when the rain starts pouring after the A's bat in the 5th. Waddell strikes out nine batters, and three more bounce out to Waddell. The one runner reaches on Rube's error.
- 1907:
- At the Polo Grounds, Hooks Wiltse edges the Reds for a 4 - 3 Giants win. Christy Mathewson preserves the win with a scoreless 9th.
- Albert Bender wins his 11th straight for the Athletics, 4 - 2, over Cleveland, to tighten the pennant race with the Tigers. Bender is helped by right fielder Socks Seybold who pulls off an unassisted double play. He'll pull off another on September 10th against Boston.
- 1910:
- Chicago coasts to a 14 - 0 pasting of Brooklyn. Three Finger Brown allows 11 hits in the shutout.
- In the battle for second place in the National League, the Pirates and Giants split two, each by 2 - 1 scores. In the opener, Lefty Leifield and Christy Mathewson match goose eggs for ten innings, before the Pirates push across two runs on a double by Fred Clarke. The Giants score in the bottom of the 11th but come up short.
- 1911 - Cy Young, 3-4 at Cleveland, is given his release. He returns to Boston and signs with the National League's Rustlers, where he will close out the year 4-5, and his pitching days with a 511-315 record, 750 complete games and 7,356 innings pitched.
- 1912 - Little-known Guy Zinn, New York outfielder, steals home twice in a 5 - 4 win at Detroit; this will add to last-place New York's major-league record of 18 steals of home for the year.
- 1914:
- At the Polo Grounds, 32,000 watch as Lefty Tyler and Christy Mathewson throw goose eggs for nine innings. In the 10th, Red Smith singles and Hank Gowdy triples him home. Matty then wild pitches Gowdy home for 2 - 0 lead. New York loads the bases in the 10th with no outs, but Tyler slams the door with no Giants scoring. The Braves now trail by 3 1/2.
- Brooklyn's Jake Daubert ties a major-league record by recording four sacrifice bunts in the second game of a doubleheader sweep against Philadelphia, 8 - 4, and 13 - 5. Daubert, who can't run because of an injured ankle, also lays down two sacrifice bunts in the first game.
- 1915:
- Hub Perdue of the Cardinals picks up a win with 2 1/3 innings of relief in the opener with the Giants, then pitches another seven innings of relief in the nitecap to win his second game of the day.
- The Browns' George Sisler pitches a complete game against the Indians, losing, 1 - 0, to Guy Morton.
- 1916 - At Fenway Park, Boston's Babe Ruth outduels Nationals ace Walter Johnson, winning, 1 - 0, in 13 innings. Johnson allows just five hits through 12 innings, while, from the 7th inning on, Ruth surrenders just an infield single by Clyde Milan in the 11th. Milan also robs Ruth of a homer in the 12th by grabbing a ball heading into the right field stands. Ruth is now 3-0 in his meetings with Johnson.
- 1921 - A major-league record streak of ten straight hits by the Browns' George Sisler is stopped by Detroit in the 4th inning, but he goes 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the 6th. The Browns win, 3 - 2.
- 1922 - In a game between Chicago and Boston, 35 singles are hit - 21 by the White Sox, 14 by the Red Sox - an American League record. Chicago wins the hit parade, 19 - 11.
- 1923 - Senators southpaw George Mogridge becomes the only hurler to steal home in extra innings when he scores an insurance run in the 12th in a 5 - 1 win over the White Sox.
- 1925 - Little Dickie Kerr, the southpaw who won two games for the White Sox in the 1919 World Series, makes his first major league appearance since 1921. He has been playing semipro ball rather than accept Charles Comiskey's salary offer. When he relieves Red Faber in the 3rd inning against the Tigers, play is stopped while admirers present him with a floral horseshoe. In two innings, he gives up three hits and walks two. The White Sox go on to win, 12 - 5.
- 1926 - The Braves are at Ebbets Field with Brooklyn's Hank DeBerry on third base, Dazzy Vance on second, and Chick Fewster on first. Babe Herman drives the ball against the right field wall, and DeBerry scores. Vance holds up, then rounds third headed for home. Fewster stops at third base. The RF throws home and traps Vance, who heads back to third. Herman slides into the base as Fewster steps off. Herman is out for passing a baserunner. Fewster, thinking he's out, too, walks off with Babe, and gets tagged out. Vance, still on third base, later admits it was his fault, but Herman, who doubles into a double play, gets the blame.
- 1927 - Leading 1 - 0 and one out from a complete game no-hitter over the Memphis Red Sox, Chicago American Giants pitcher Webster McDonald allows an unearned run to score on errors, tying the game at 1 - 1 in a Negro National League game. McDonald loses the no-hitter in the 10th when he surrenders a single, and he loses the game, 2 - 1, when the Red Sox score in the 11th on back-to-back doubles. McDonald's near-classic just misses being part of the only back-to-back no-hitters in Negro Leagues history, as teammate Willie Powell had no-hit the Red Sox the day before.
- 1931 - Lefty Grove wins his 15th straight, beating the Indians, 4 - 3.
- 1935 - Phillies 3B Johnny Vergez starts four double plays to equal the major-league record set by Pie Traynor.
- 1940:
- Chicago ace Claude Passeau tosses a five-hitter and doesn't allow a runner past first base after the 1st inning as he beats the Reds, 1 - 0. Paul Derringer takes the loss.
- Dodger SS Pee Wee Reese fractures his heel bone sliding into second base and is out for the rest of the season.
- 1941 - Because of rain, the game between the Red Sox and the Senators is stopped in the 8th inning, with Washington leading, 6 - 3. After a 40-minute wait the game is called. But because of Washington's failure to cover the field in case play is resumed, Boston manager Joe Cronin protests the game. The protest is upheld by league president Will Harridge and the forfeit goes to Boston.
- 1942:
- With two outs and two strikes in the last of the 9th, Dolph Camilli hits a two-run homer to give the Dodgers a 5 - 4 win over the Braves. With the homer, his 20th, Camilli takes over the National League lead.
- Despite Bill Nicholson hitting three homers, two doubles and a single, the Cubs lose two games to the Pirates, 8 - 5 and 8 - 7, the nitecap in 11 innings.
- At Fenway Park the Sox sweep a pair from the Senators, winning each by one run. In the opening 2 - 1 win, Ted Williams' two-run homer backs Tex Hughson's ninth straight win and 15th overall. The 7 - 6 nitecap win goes to Broadway Charlie Wagner, whose last six wins, since June 7th, have all been by one run, including a pair of 1 - 0 wins. Lou Finney drives in the tying and winning runs with a triple.
- 1945:
- Umpire Ernie Stewart is canned by American League President Will Harridge for "disloyalty." Stewart had complained about the pay and taken his case to Commissioner Happy Chandler. Bill McGowan is the top-paid umpire in the league at $9,000.
- Commissioner Happy Chandler sells World Series radio rights for $150,000 to Gillette. Ford had been the World Series sponsor since 1934, paying $100,000 annually.
- The Cubs rack up 19 hits, including two homers by Paul Gillespie, one with the bases full, to swamp the Dodgers, 20 - 6. Chicago scores eight in the 4th inning with the first eight batters reaching base before an out is recorded. Hank Borowy coasts to the win.
- 1946 - In the first 1946 East-West Game, the East wins, 6 - 3. It is the first East-West Game since Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in organized baseball (he has yet to make his debut in the major leagues). Howard Easterling gets three hits and Barney Brown tosses three perfect innings.
- 1948:
- In the first of two at Philadelphia, Ken Heintzelman tosses a one-hitter to beat the Giants, 8 - 1. The only hit is Whitey Lockman's 7th-inning triple. The Phils take the nitecap, 7 - 5, as Ed Heusser pitches five innings of relief to win. Larry Jansen and Clint Hartung take the losses.
- Before 72,468 - the largest crowd of the season at Yankee Stadium - the A's sweep a pair from the Yanks by 5 - 3 scores and regain second place in the American League. The A's win the opener in ten innings after Joe DiMaggio ties the score with his 20th homer of the year. Joe D also triples home a run in the extra frame but Lou Brissie preserves the win for Carl Scheib. The A's total 20 hits in the two games, including a triple and double by Sam Chapman. New York is now in fourth place, five games back.
- 1949 - Reports of clubhouse troubles trail the Braves all season. Owner Lou Perini prevails on manager Billy Southworth to take a leave of absence. The team spurts briefly under Johnny Cooney but will finish under .500 in fourth place. Braves players vote Southworth only a half-share of last year's Series earnings but Happy Chandler restores the full share.
- 1950:
- The Red Sox defeat the Athletics, 8 - 3 and 9 - 4, to begin a streak in which they reel off 27 of 30, propelling themselves back into the pennant race. Walt Dropo is hospitalized, however, after being beaned by the A's Hank Wyse.
- The last-place Bucs waste one of the longest home runs of Ralph Kiner's career by blowing a 9th-inning lead to the next-to-last Reds, giving up six runs in the top of the frame. However, displaying great resilience, they come all the way back, scoring six and winning, 10 - 9, as Clyde McCullough lines one off pitcher John Hetki to score Wally Westlake with the game-ending tally. Kiner's 5th-inning blast off Ewell Blackwell is estimated at 480 feet.
- 1951:
- Al Rosen belts a 1st-inning grand slam to jump start the Indians to a 9 - 4 win over the Browns, their 13th in a row. For Rosen, it is his fourth slam of the year, just the ninth player to accomplish the feat. Ned Garver gives up seven runs in the 1st inning in losing to Early Wynn.
- At Crosley Field, the Reds' Ken Raffensberger tops the Cubs, 1 - 0, on Ted Kluszewski's home run in the 4th off Cal McLish.
- Giants P Jim Hearn defeats the Dodgers, 3 - 1, as Willie Mays makes a miraculous play in the 8th. With the score 1 - 1 and Billy Cox on third, Mays makes a running catch of a Carl Furillo drive in deep right center field and whirls counterclockwise to throw out the astonished Cox at home. Wes Westrum's two-run homer off Ralph Branca in the 8th provides the two-run margin. Hearn allows just six hits, all singles, as the Giants move to 10 1/2 behind Brooklyn.
- 1952:
- Dick Marlowe of the Buffalo Bisons pitches the second perfect game in the history of the International League, against Baltimore.
- Phil Cavarretta signs his 1953 contract as manager of the Cubs.
- 1953 - 3B Ransom Jackson of the Cubs grounds into three double plays against the Braves as the Cubs lose, 2 - 0. Jackson ties a National League record, later eclipsed by Joe Torre.
- 1955:
- Mickey Mantle homers from both sides of the plate in the same game for the second time in his career, tying the major-league mark. The Yanks beat the Orioles, 12 - 6, in the second game and sweep the doubleheader to move back into first place.
- Brave hurler Warren Spahn hits a home run off Cardinal Mel Wright giving the crafty lefty at least one round tripper in every National League stadium.
- 1956 - The Dodgers and Giants draw 26,385 for a night-game record at Jersey City. A Willie Mays home run is the only scoring as Johnny Antonelli shuts out the Dodgers, 1 - 0.
- 1960:
- In the first of two games at Crosley Field, Frank Robinson and Eddie Mathews exchange punches after Robbie slides in hard at third base in the 7th inning. Robbie comes out on the short end with a swollen eye, bloody nose, and jammed thumb, but comes back in the nitecap with a double and homer to lead the Reds to a 4 - 0 win. Bob Purkey wins the shutout, despite allowing 11 hits.
- Behind Art Ditmar's five-hitter and Mickey Mantle's two home runs, off Jerry Walker and Hoyt Wilhelm, New York cops a 4 - 3 win and first place in the American League. The second home run comes after C Clint Courtney drops a Mantle foul pop-up. Baltimore's loss is only its second in the last 15 games. Baltimore and Chicago now trail the Yankees by a half-game.
- 1961:
- Roger Maris hits his 46th homer, off Chicago's Juan Pizarro, for New York's only run in a 2 - 1 loss to the visiting White Sox. Pizarro allows just four hits. Whitey Ford loses in his bid for his 21st win.
- Frank Malzone is 5 for 5 with a pair of homers in the Red Sox's 8 - 0 shellacking of the Indians. Gene Conley throws the shutout and hits a homer. Jackie Jensen and Carroll Hardy hit back-to-back home runs in the 5th.
- At Los Angeles, the second-place Reds' Joey Jay (17-7) gives up three singles and two runs in the 1st and just three hits after that in subduing the first-place Dodgers, 5 - 2. Losing pitcher Sandy Koufax (13-8) almost adds another hit but is thrown out at first base by RF Frank Robinson. Announcer Vin Scully says, "Sandy forgot to run."
- 1962 - Pinch-hit home runs by the Mets' Choo Choo Coleman (6th inning) and Jim Hickman (8th) tie the major-league record for pinch home runs by one club in one game, but the Mets still lose to the Phils, 8 - 7, in 13 innings. Winning pitcher Chris Short singles and scores the winning run. The Phils cop the opener, 9 - 3 behind a Johnny Callison homer and two by Don Demeter.
- 1964 - Mayor Richard Daley declares "Ernie Banks Day" in Chicago and 26,000 fans cheer the Cubs' slugger. Banks then goes hitless as Pittsburgh wins, 5 - 4.
- 1965:
- The Japanese community of San Francisco holds Masanori Murakami Day at Candlestick Park to honor the first Japanese player to have reached the American major leagues. Ordinarily a reliever, Murakami makes his first big league start as the Giants outslug the Phillies, 15 - 9.
- Pinch-hit home runs by Max Alvis in the 9th inning and Leon Wagner in the 11th give Cleveland a 6 - 4 win against Minnesota. Two pinch-hit home runs in one game ties the major league record.
- Washington 3B Ken McMullen ties an American League record by starting four double plays in a 4 - 2 win, as the Senators complete a three-game sweep of Baltimore.
- 1968 - At Oakland, the Yanks edge the A's, 4 - 3. Blue Moon Odom gives up a triple to Tom Tresh, a walk, then serves up a three-run homer to Mickey Mantle for the difference.
- 1969 - Don Sutton (15-11) opens a nine-game eastern swing for Los Angeles with a 9 - 2 win at Montreal. The Dodgers remain two games behind the first-place Reds. Montreal reliever Roy Face makes his final major league appearance, a record 657th consecutive relief effort.
- 1970 - In a 5 - 4 Reds win over the Phillies, Lee May drives in all the runs for Cincinnati. His second homer in the bottom of the 9th ties the game and his single in the 14th wins it. Pete Rose is 0-for-7 with five straight K's. The Phils' Billy Champion is the losing pitcher, but all is not lost for him: Champion picks up a Pacific Coast League win today as Eugene completes a suspended game in which he is the victor.
- 1971 - Vida Blue raises his record to 22-4 as the A's beat the Yankees, 6 - 4. Blue scatters ten hits and scores the tie-breaking run on a wild pitch.
- 1973 - In Pittsburgh, Reds ace Jack Billingham wins, 1 - 0, notching his seventh shutout of the year. This ties the club record set by Hod Eller back in 1919.
- 1975:
- Earl Weaver is ejected twice by umpire Ron Luciano. The fiery Baltimore manager is thrown out in the first game of a doubleheader and is tossed again before the start of the second game.
- Frank Tanana pitches an 8 - 0 shutout as the Angels hand the Tigers their 19th straight loss.
- 1976 - On Bud Harrelson's wedding day, he scores the only run as the Mets nip the Reds, 1 - 0. He gets married a few hours after the game.
- 1977:
- In a 2 - 1 win over Kansas City, Boston's Jim Rice hits a 3rd-inning double and becomes the first Boston player since Ted Williams in 1939 to hit 20 homers, 20 doubles and 10 triples in a season. Between Williams and Rice, only Charlie Keller (1946), Joe DiMaggio (1948 & 1950) and Mickey Mantle (1955) had reached those levels.
- Mike Torrez throws his fifth straight complete game, a 6 - 2 win over the White Sox. New York is now just 4 1/2 games in back of Boston.
- 1978:
- The Phils drop their fourth in a row, losing to the Dodgers, 5 - 2. The loss cuts the Phils' lead to two games as the Cubs beat the Reds and Tom Seaver in an afternoon contest. After Reggie Smith had driven in the game-winner the previous two nights, it is Steve Garvey's turn. His triple in the 8th off Tug McGraw with the bases loaded breaks a 2 - 2 tie.
- The Blue Jays trade DH Rico Carty to the A's for DH Willie Horton and minor league pitcher Phil Huffman.
- 1979 - Eddie Murray, no gazelle, surprises the White Sox with a 12th-inning steal of home to give Mike Flanagan and the Orioles a 2 - 1 win.
- 1980 - Oakland's Rick Langford (13-9) defeats the Mariners, 11 - 3, for his 17th consecutive complete game, the most in the majors since Robin Roberts' 20 in a row in 1953.
- 1982 - En route to an 8 - 0 win at Fenway Park over Baltimore, the Red Sox pick up three intentional walks in the 8th inning, tying the American League record.
- 1983 - The Braves' Bob Horner, who is hitting .303 with 20 home runs and 68 RBI, breaks his right wrist sliding into second base during a 4 - 0 loss to the Padres and will be sidelined for the rest of the season. In Atlanta, the injury is widely attributed to the "Chief Noc-A-Homa Jinx," which seems to strike whenever the Braves remove their mascot's outfield teepee in order to sell more tickets.
- 1984:
- After a 5 1/2 year absence, Pete Rose is reunited with his hometown Cincinnati Reds when the Expos trade him for infielder Tom Lawless. The Reds immediately name him player-manager, replacing Vern Rapp.
- The Tigers cuff Tommy John for ten hits in six innings to beat the Angels, 8 - 3. Dan Petry (15-5) scatters eight hits in eight innings, and Dave Bergman backs him with two triples and three RBIs. With Cleveland beating Toronto twice, the Tigers' lead is now nine games.
- 1987 - At the Pan American Games in Indianapolis, the U.S.A. and Cuba are tied 4 - 4 with two outs in the 9th when Ty Griffin hits a two-run home run off Pablo Abreu with Larry Lamphere aboard to win it. For Cuba it is their first loss in the Pan American Games since 1967.
- 1989:
- In his second start after coming back from cancer surgery, Giant Dave Dravecky suffers a broken arm beating the Expos, 3 - 2. The Youngstown, Ohio native collapses to the ground and clutches his left arm in severe pain after throwing a wild pitch to Tim Raines. The bone will heal but Dravecky will break it again during the Giants on-field celebration when they clinch the pennant later that season. Dravecky will not pitch again in the major leagues.
- The Rangers' Charlie Hough pitches his second career one-hitter and gets his second career one-hit loss, as he loses, 2 - 0, to Seattle. Hough walks five, balks, and throws a wild pitch, while the Rangers collect 13 hits but no runs, one hit shy of the major-league record while being shut out.
- 1990:
- The Phillies' Terry Mulholland spins the major leagues' eighth no-hitter of the season. Mulholland faces the minimum 27 batters in blanking the Giants, 6 - 0, as just one runner reaches base on a throwing error by Charlie Hayes. But Hayes makes the last putout by grabbing a Gary Carter line drive. John Kruk also makes a crucial play by reaching into the stands to pull back a one-out pop-up by Matt Williams in the 8th.
- Mark McGwire hits a game-winning grand slam in the bottom of the 10th to give Oakland a 6 - 2 win over Boston. He becomes the first player to hit 30 home runs in each of his first four seasons.
- 1991 - Yankees 1B Don Mattingly is benched and fined $250 for refusing to cut his shoulder-length hair, but the Yankees still beat Kansas City, 5 - 1. He will get a haircut two days later, and the hair will eventually be auctioned off for $3,000 to benefit a children's charity. Mattingly is not alone; Steve Farr, Matt Nokes, and Pascual Perez have all been told their hair length violates club policy. Mel Hall, who wears his hair in a small ponytail before and after games, is warned his appearance is "borderline."
- 1992:
- Expos P Mark Gardner becomes the first National League pitcher since 1954 to hit three batters in a single inning, as he plunks the Cardinals' Ray Lankford, Andres Galarraga and Luis Alicea. The Cardinals win, 6 - 4.
- Texas P Bobby Witt walks ten Tigers in 4 2/3 innings, as Detroit strolls past the Rangers, 10 - 3. No one has walked this many in this few innings: Randy Johnson walked ten on May 1st of this year and Witt passed ten on September 1, 1990.
- 1993:
- The Twins trade 3B Mike Pagliarulo to the Orioles for P Erik Schullstrom.
- Twins' OF Kirby Puckett gets five hits, including a pair of two-run home runs, in Minnesota's 12 - 5 win over Oakland.
- 1995 - Cincinnati OF Reggie Sanders hits three home runs to lead the Reds to an 11 - 3 victory over the Rockies. He drives home four runs with his blasts which help the Reds increase their lead in the National League Central division to seven games over Houston.
- 1996:
- The Orioles score 15 runs over the final three innings on the way to an 18 - 5 win over the Athletics. Baltimore slugs five homers, including a pair by Chris Hoiles.
- P Bobby Seay, the top pick of the Chicago White Sox in the June draft, is declared a free agent after the team failed to tender him a formal contract within 15 days of the draft, a violation of major league rules. Seay is the first player in the 32-year history of the draft to be declared a free agent in the summer he was selected; three more draftees - Travis Lee, John Patterson and Matt White - will also benefit from the ruling and sign lucrative contracts as a result.
- Frank Thomas hits three homers for the White Sox, becoming the Sox career home run leader, but Boston wins, 9 - 8. Thomas hits his first two off Tim Wakefield to pass Carlton Fisk (214).
- Larry Walker, out two months with a broken collarbone, makes his first start for the Rockies, but it doesn't help as they lose for the tenth straight time at Joe Robbie Stadium, 7 - 6. The Marlins score three in the 8th to win. Gary Sheffield belts his 34th homer for the Fish.
- The first-place Braves top Curt Schilling and the Phils, 8 - 5. Terrell Wade wins his fourth against no losses and collects his first major league hit. Marquis Grissom extends his hitting streak to 20 games with a single and double.
- 1997:
- Mark McGwire cracks a two-run homer in the 9th to tie the game for St. Louis and Delino DeShields hits a leadoff homer in the 12th as the Cards edge the Braves, 3 - 2. For McGwire, who also walks four times, it is his fourth homer in four games.
- The Orioles and Mariners split a day-night twinbill, the O's taking the opener, 4 - 3 and the M's the nitecap, 8 - 3. Randy Johnson drops the first game, despite striking out 13 batters; he has now struck out 32 in two games to tie Luis Tiant (1968), Nolan Ryan (1974) and Dwight Gooden (1984).
- Los Angeles's Mike Remlinger pitches six strong innings and belts a three-run double to beat the Reds, 5 - 3. Before the game, the Dodgers retire Tom Lasorda's uniform number 2, the ninth number retired by the franchise.
- 1998:
- There are seven extra-inning games out of 14 games played today, matching a mark set in 1918.
- Toronto's Roger Clemens strikes out 15 but gets a no-decision, as the Anaheim Angels win, 6 - 3.
- In the Reds-Expos game, two pairs of brothers face each other, and three out of four go deep. Vladimir Guerrero and Wilton Guerrero homer for the Expos while Bret Boone hits a solo shot for the Reds. Aaron Boone follows with a strikeout, but the Reds win, 6 - 4.
- Masahiro Kawai lays down the 452nd sacrifice hit of his career, setting a new NPB record. He will later break Eddie Collins' world record.
- 1999:
- The Angels defeat the Tigers, 10 - 2, as Chuck Finley becomes the first pitcher in history to strike out four batters in an inning twice in his career. Finley previously fanned four Yankees in Anaheim's game with the New Yorkers on May 12th. Both instances occurred in the 1st inning.
- The Mets defeat the Giants, 12 - 5, behind Kenny Rogers' complete game victory. It is the first complete game of the year for the Mets, who have gone 139 consecutive games without a complete game. They fall one short of the major-league record of 140 set by the Angels earlier this season.
- 2000 - Club owner Ted Turner and two-time National League MVP Dale Murphy are inducted into the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame joining Hank Aaron, Eddie Mathews, Phil Niekro and Warren Spahn.
- 2001:
- OF Shawn Green hits three home runs and drives home seven runs to pace the Dodgers to a 13 - 1 victory over the Expos.
- The Tigers defeat the Angels, 5 - 1, as Detroit OF Roger Cedeno leads the team with five hits.
- The Cardinals defeat the Reds, 8 - 4, for their seventh straight win. St. Louis 1B Mark McGwire singles in the 5th inning, marking his first hit other than a home run in 72 at bats. McGwire's last 11 hits had been homers, a run unprecedented in the last 25 years. Cleveland's Albert Belle had eight straight hits for home runs in 1995.
- The Mets lose their fifth straight game, falling to the Padres by a score of 2 - 1. San Diego's Trevor Hoffman gets the save, becoming the 14th pitcher in history to reach the milestone of 300 saves. He also ties John Wetteland as the second-fastest to reach the mark.
- 2002:
- The Yankees top the Royals, 7 - 5, as Bernie Williams gets five hits, including a double.
- The Mets trade P Shawn Estes to the Reds for minor leaguers Pedro Feliciano and Elvin Beltre, and two players to be named.
- 2005:
- Randy Winn becomes the 21st player in Giants history to hit for the cycle. The fleet flychaser, obtained from the Mariners two weeks earlier, singles in the 1st, homers in the 3rd, doubles in the 4th and completes the feat with a triple in the 6th inning.
- Felix Hernandez becomes the first teenager to strike out at least ten batters since Doc Gooden accomplished the feat with the Mets in May of 1984. The 18-year-old Mariner rookie righty K's 11 batters as the Mariners maul the Royals, 11 - 3.
- 2007 - Yankees slugger Shelley Duncan hits a dramatic three-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning to tie the game, but the Orioles rally with three runs of their own in the 10th off Mariano Rivera to win, 6 - 3.
- 2008:
- Two games in the 2008 Olympics are decided by the new IBAF rule regarding extra innings: starting in the 11th inning, each team starts with men on first and second. Thanks to the new rule, China upsets Taiwan, 7 - 6. China does not score until the 8th but wild pitching from reliever Chia-Jen Lo and a two-run double by Wei Wang put China into the game. After Taiwan scores three in the top of the 12th, China rallies for four. A two-out, two-run single by Fenglian Hou is the big hit and an error by RF Chien-Ming Chang lets in the winning run. Kuo-Hui Lo reaches base six times in the loss.
- In the other game played under the IBAF's new rules, Cuba tops the USA, 5 - 4. 3B Michel Enríquez drives in two in the 11th against Jeff Stevens, who falls to 0-2 in the Olympics. Jayson Nix, the 2007 Baseball World Cup MVP, is injured in the 11th when he bunts a Pedro Luis Lazo fastball back into his face.
- South Korea edges Team Canada, 1 - 0. Hyun-jin Ryu goes the distance for a five-hit shutout and Keun-woo Jeong homers off Mike Johnson for the game's lone run.
- Japan beats the Netherlands, 6 - 0, behind Toshiya Sugiuchi and two relievers. The Netherlands, despite two ex-major leaguers and lots of internationally-experienced players, has yet to score after three games. A three-run triple by Takahiro Arai off Alexander Smit is the big hit.
- 2009:
- Julio Borbon collects four hits and four stolen bases, out of a team record eight steals, as the Rangers beat Boston, 7 - 2. Elvis Andrus swipes three bases and Ian Kinsler one in what is the second time Boston has allowed eight stolen bases to an opponent this year.
- Closer Brad Lidge's difficult season continues, after his heroics of 2008. He commits two errors on one play and pick up his eighth blown save of the year in a 4 - 3 Phillies loss to the surging Atlanta Braves.
- Kazuo Matsui collects the 2,000th hit of his combined Major League Baseball and Nippon Pro Baseball career, earning him entry into the meikyukai.
- 2010:
- Kevin Slowey of the Twins pitches seven no-hit innings against the Oakland A's, but is taken out of the game having reached his pitch count limit. Slowey skipped his last start because of elbow tendinitis and manager Ron Gardenhire is being careful with him. The Target Field crowd boos when Jon Rauch comes out to start the 8th, and the second batter Rauch faces, Cliff Pennington, breaks up the no-hit bid with a double. The Twins still come out ahead, 4 - 2, thanks to a three-run homer by Jim Thome in the 7th.
- Albert Pujols becomes the first player to hit 30 homers in his first ten seasons with a 1st-inning shot off Ryan Dempster of the Cubs, but the Cardinals lose, 9 - 7, in spite of scoring five runs in the 9th. Pujols has also hit over .300 and driven in over 100 runs each season he has played so far, and is on pace to reach those totals once again. Meanwhile, the Reds complete a three-game sweep of the Marlins with a 2 - 0 win and retake first place by a game over the Cards in the NL Central.
- 2011:
- The Minnesota Twins trade OF Delmon Young to the Detroit Tigers for Class A pitcher Cole Nelson and a player to be named later.
- Jim Thome hits two home runs for the Twins in their 9 - 6 win over Detroit to become the eighth player to reach 600 home runs. Thome hits a two-run homer off Rick Porcello in the 6th for number 599, then a three-run shot against Daniel Schlereth in the 7th to reach the mark.
- The Brewers turn the sixth triple play in team history in the 2nd inning of their 3 - 0 win over the Dodgers. With two on and none out, James Loney hits a ground ball up the middle that 2B Josh Wilson ranges to his right to field, and then flips to SS Yuniesky Betancourt with his glove for the first out. Betancourt throws to 1B Prince Fielder for the second out. Prince then sees Matt Kemp trying to score from third base and fires to C George Kottaras who tags out Kemp to end the inning. "You find weird ways to win when you're hot", comments winning pitcher Randy Wolf after the game.
- With 23 of 33 first round picks in the 2011 amateur draft still unsigned when the last day to sign drafted players begins, there is a flurry of signings today. Both the top and second picks in the draft, Gerrit Cole and Danny Hultzen, accept deals. Cole gets $8 million from the Pirates in what becomes the largest minor league contract in history, and Hultzen agrees to $8.5 million from the Mariners and a major league contract. When the dust settles, only Tyler Beede, picked 21st by Toronto, has failed to sign.
- 2012:
- Felix Hernandez tosses the first perfect game in Seattle Mariners history, and the record third perfect game in the majors this year. He dispenses of the Tampa Bay Rays, 1 - 0, using 113 pitches, while striking out 12, including five of the last six batters he faces. It is the third no-hitter - and the second perfect game - thrown in Safeco Field this season, the first time that one stadium had seen two perfect games in a season. Coming into 2012, there had never been a no-hitter at the ballpark.
- All-Star OF Melky Cabrera of the Giants sees his outstanding season come to a crashing end with a 50-game suspension for testing positive for testosterone, a performance-enhancing drug. Cabrera is hitting .346 with a league-leading 159 hits, but will not be eligible to return to play this year unless the Giants make it to the second round of the postseason; the Giants will indeed make it all the way to the World Series, but will have cut off all remaining ties with their disgraced star by then. Without Cabrera, the Giants lose, 6 - 4, to the Nationals and fall out of first place in the NL West when the Dodgers defeat Pittsburgh, 9 - 3.
- 2013 - At the quarterly owners meeting held in Cooperstown, NY, Commissioner Bud Selig announces a plan to expand video review, which is now limited to home runs, significantly. Under the proposal, a manager will have the right to request up to three reviews per game - one in the first six innings and two in the last three - and will not otherwise be allowed to argue such "reviewable" calls. A number of decisions will remain non-reviewable, however. The plan still needs to be fleshed out, in particular by defining which calls are reviewable and which are not, before being submitted for formal approval at the next winter meetings. The Player's Union and Umpires Association will also need to agree to the changes.
- 2014:
- The Tampa Bay Rays shut out the Yankees, 5 - 0, behind Alex Cobb, to reach the .500 mark at 62-62. What is remarkable is that they were 18 games below .500 on June 10th, making them only the fourth team in history to return to parity from such a deficit. The 1899 Louisville Colonels were 22 games below before reaching .500 for the all-time record.
- In the first game of the 2014 Italian Series, Fortitudo Bologna scores four runs in the 1st off former major leaguer Enrique Gonzalez and carry a 5 - 1 lead into the top of the 9th. Raul Rivero, who had a 0.40 ERA in the regular season, promptly blows it by giving up a walk and five singles. In the 11th, Leonardo Zileri homers off Manauris Baez to give ASD Rimini the comeback 6 - 5 win.
- Mo'ne Davis of Philadelphia, PA strikes out eight in a two-hitter to beat Nashville, TN, 4 - 0, in the 2014 Little League World Series. She is the first girl to throw a shutout at a Little League World Series. Sports Illustrated will make her the first Little Leaguer to appear on its cover as a result.
- 2015 - The Red Sox put up a football score in defeating the Mariners, 22 - 10, at Fenway Park. The two teams combine for seven homers and 39 hits. The Red Sox chase Felix Hernandez with ten runs in 2 1/3 innings, then both teams go wild in their last two turns at bat, with seven runs for Boston and eight for Seattle. Jackie Bradley has a game for the ages, with three doubles, two homers, five runs and seven RBIs, while Blake Swihart has four hits, four runs and three RBIs and Xander Bogaerts also has four hits. Lost in all the scoring, Boston starter Wade Miley has a solid game, giving up only two runs in seven innings to earn the win. The Sox are the first big league team to have 15 runs and 20 hits in back-to-back games since they had done so in 1950, while the Mariners allow the most runs in team history.
- 2018 - Jose Urena of the Marlins decides that the only way to stop Ronald Acuna, who has led off his last three games with a homer and has homered in five straight, is to hit him with his first pitch of the game. He plunks the Braves' 20-year-old budding superstar on the elbow, prompting a bench-clearing brawl. Urena is immediately ejected, as is Braves manager Brian Snitker. Most commentators call for exemplary punishment for a stupid and dangerous gesture that even manager Don Mattingly refuses to defend. The Braves go on to win again, 5 - 2, but Acuna has to leave in the 2nd inning with a bad bruise. Urena will be suspended six games and fined an undisclosed amount for his antics.
- 2019 - A game between the Athletics and Astros turns into a impromptu Home Run Derby as the two teams combine for ten homers in a 7 - 6 Oakland win. Four players hit a pair of long balls: Matt Chapman and Matt Olson for Oakland, and Michael Brantley and Carlos Correa for Houston, only the fifth time this has happened in the majors. The ten homers are a record for the Oakland Coliseum.
- 2021 - The Tenerife Marlins win the Spanish Baseball League for their seventh title in nine years. In Game 5, they beat the host and defending champ Astros Valencia to take the series, three games to two. The win is 14 - 8, as Ricardo van Grieken drives in five and fellow Venezuelan Julio Torrealba gets the win over Cuban Yosvani Torres. Emmanuel Febles goes 4 for 4 in a losing cause.
- 2022 - The Rangers fire manager Chris Woodward. While the club is in third place in the AL West after two consecutive last-place finishes, it is still 12 games below .500 and 23 games out of first after having spent some $500 million on free agents in the off-season. He is replaced on an interim basis by coach Tony Beasley.
- 2023 - The Braves and Yankees, who were both pre-seasons favorites to make it far this year, are headed in opposite directions. Today, the Braves consolidate their position as the owners of the best record in the majors with a 5 - 0 win over the Yankees, who fall to .500 on the season and are in last place in the AL East. Bryce Elder, A.J. Minter and Kirby Yates combine on a one-hit shutout with D.J. LeMahieu's 2nd-inning single the only safety. Homers by Marcell Ozuna and Ronald Acuna account for all the runs.
- 2024 - Rookie Weston Wilson achieves the tenth cycle in franchise history in leading the Phillies to a 13 - 3 win over the Nationals.
Births[edit]
- 1853 - Billy West, infielder (d. 1928)
- 1856 - John Fischer, pitcher (d. 1942)
- 1857 - Walter Hackett, infielder (d. 1920)
- 1859 - Charlie Comiskey, infielder, manager; Hall of Famer (d. 1931)
- 1861 - Elmer Foster, outfielder (d. 1946)
- 1864 - Doggie Miller, catcher, manager (d. 1909)
- 1869 - Tom Morrison, infielder (d. 1902)
- 1871 - Bill Kissinger, pitcher (d. 1929)
- 1872 - Lew Carr, infielder (d. 1954)
- 1872 - Silk O'Loughlin, umpire (d. 1918)
- 1872 - John Warner, catcher (d. 1943)
- 1875 - Bob Becker, pitcher (d. 1951)
- 1877 - Willie Mills, pitcher (d. 1933)
- 1881 - Jimmie Heffernan, minor league pitcher and manager (d. 1940)
- 1885 - Ed Moyer, pitcher (d. 1962)
- 1887 - Joe Casey, catcher (d. 1966)
- 1888 - Ben Van Dyke, pitcher (d. 1973)
- 1888 - Sid Keener, writer (d. 1981)
- 1889 - Harry Smith, pitcher (d. 1964)
- 1891 - Tim Bowden, outfielder (d. 1949)
- 1895 - Don Jefferson, catcher (d. 1994)
- 1896 - Ben Rochefort, infielder (d. 1981)
- 1896 - Bill Sherdel, pitcher (d. 1968)
- 1901 - Les Sweetland, pitcher (d. 1974)
- 1906 - Red Peery, pitcher (d. 1985)
- 1908 - Bernie Walter, pitcher (d. 1988)
- 1911 - Mort Flohr, pitcher (d. 1994)
- 1914 - Dizzy Royal, pitcher (d. 1991)
- 1916 - Cecil Garriott, pinch-hitter (d. 1990)
- 1916 - Van Patrick, announcer (d. 1974)
- 1919 - Ted Pawelek, catcher (d. 1964)
- 1922 - Jim McDonnell, catcher (d. 1993)
- 1923 - Herman Purcell, pitcher (d. 2005)
- 1924 - Thomas Hodges, minor league pitcher (d. 2012)
- 1924 - Frank Whitman, infielder (d. 1994)
- 1925 - Herb Gluck, author
- 1925 - Chick Leahey, college coach (d. 2016)
- 1926 - Elmer Dashiell, minor league pitcher (d. 2009)
- 1926 - Jim Goodwin, pitcher (d. 2008)
- 1926 - Barney Schultz, pitcher (d. 2015)
- 1927 - Robert Baumler, minor league infielder (d. 2009)
- 1928 - Tony Wesoloski, minor league pitcher
- 1929 - Sammie Taylor, Negro League catcher (d. 1963 or 2019)
- 1930 - Bob Martyn, outfielder (d. 2015)
- 1932 - Jim Snyder, infielder, manager (d. 2021)
- 1933 - Aad Vuik, Hoofdklasse umpire (d. 2024)
- 1934 - Seth Morehead, pitcher (d. 2006)
- 1935 - Joey Jay, pitcher; All-Star (d. 2024)
- 1936 - John Hagemann, scout (d. 2017)
- 1937 - Kenshiro Saga, NPB pitcher (d. 2011)
- 1937 - Bill Thom, minor league pitcher
- 1940 - Arlo Brunsberg, catcher
- 1940 - Jose Santiago, pitcher; All-Star
- 1941 - Tommie Reynolds, outfielder
- 1942 - Cap Peterson, outfielder (d. 1980)
- 1944 - Mike Compton, catcher
- 1944 - John Matias, outfielder (d. 2020)
- 1945 - Duffy Dyer, catcher
- 1945 - Bobby Trevino, outfielder (d. 2018)
- 1946 - Joe Lis, infielder (d. 2010)
- 1946 - Ernie McAnally, pitcher
- 1947 - Billy Conigliaro, outfielder (d. 2021)
- 1948 - Ben de Brouwer, Hoofdklasse pitcher (d. 1996)
- 1950 - Tom Kelly, infielder, manager
- 1953 - Nino Espinosa, pitcher (d. 1987)
- 1955 - Tom McGough, minor league pitcher
- 1955 - Marty Scott, minor league infielder and manager (d. 2022)
- 1956 - Masao Tokunaga, college coach
- 1958 - Joe Cowley, pitcher
- 1958 - Tom Dodd, designated hitter
- 1958 - Bob James, pitcher
- 1958 - Randy Johnson, designated hitter
- 1960 - Hisashi Ono, NPB outfielder
- 1961 - Chris Brown, infielder; All-Star (d. 2006)
- 1961 - [{Gavin Erasmus]], South African national team pitcher
- 1962 - Bubby Brister, minor league outfielder
- 1963 - Eric Fox, outfielder
- 1964 - Jeff Huson, infielder
- 1964 - Kent Willis, minor league pitcher
- 1966 - Scott Brosius, infielder; All-Star
- 1966 - Rafael Cruz, minor league infielder
- 1966 - Dan Walters, catcher (d. 2020)
- 1967 - Mike James, pitcher
- 1967 - John Kuehl, scout
- 1968 - Chad Allen, minor league player
- 1968 - Tomoyuki Uchiyama, NPB pitcher
- 1970 - Tony Rodriguez, infielder
- 1972 - Chris Singleton, outfielder
- 1973 - Jen-Wen Hsiao, CPBL pitcher
- 1973 - Yoshihiro Seo, NPB pitcher
- 1974 - Jason Davis, minor league pitcher
- 1974 - Ramon Morel, pitcher
- 1974 - Elvis Pena, infielder
- 1975 - Angel Espada, minor league infielder and manager
- 1975 - Ben Ford, pitcher
- 1975 - Aaron Scheffer, pitcher
- 1976 - Kazuhiko Iijima, NPB pitcher
- 1976 - Randy Meadows, minor league infielder
- 1976 - Enrique Ramirez, minor league pitcher
- 1977 - Takeshi Hidaka, NPB catcher
- 1977 - Allen Levrault, pitcher
- 1977 - Fulgencio Rances Jr., Philippines national team utility man
- 1978 - Santiago Ramirez, pitcher
- 1979 - Ryan Budde, catcher
- 1979 - Zafar Iqbal, Pakistani national team pitcher
- 1979 - Roberto Novoa, pitcher
- 1980 - Ubisney Bermúdez, Cuban league pitcher
- 1980 - Brandon Powell, minor league infielder
- 1980 - Mel Stocker, outfielder
- 1981 - Oliver Perez, pitcher
- 1981 - Shaun Boyd, minor league infielder
- 1982 - Fujia Zhang, Chinese national team infielder
- 1983 - Juan Ciriaco, minor league infielder
- 1983 - Michel Korzeniewski, Hoofdklasse catcher
- 1983 - Takeya Nakamura, NPB infielder
- 1984 - Tyson Brummett, pitcher (d. 2020)
- 1984 - Bambang Rachmat Dwitama, Indonesian national team infielder
- 1984 - Jarrod Dyson, outfielder
- 1984 - Chris Pettit, outfielder
- 1984 - Ryan Sterling, Bundesliga coach
- 1985 - Matt McSwain, minor league pitcher
- 1985 - Rámesis Rosa, Puerto Rican national team pitcher
- 1986 - Marin Farkas, Croatian national team pitcher
- 1986 - Beau Mills, minor league infielder
- 1986 - Ho-seong Lee, KBO outfielder
- 1987 - Jorge De Leon, pitcher
- 1990 - Kyle Arnsberg, coach
- 1990 - Adam Cimber, pitcher
- 1990 - Mason McVay, minor league pitcher
- 1991 - Felipe González, minor league pitcher
- 1991 - Joel McKeithan, coach
- 1991 - Jon Moscot, pitcher
- 1992 - Tom Bailey, Australian national team pitcher
- 1992 - Jacques Boucheron, French Division I outfielder
- 1992 - Zach Regier, drafted outfielder
- 1992 - Yorman Rodriguez, outfielder
- 1992 - Haoyue Zhang, China Baseball League infielder
- 1993 - Nick Gardewine, pitcher
- 1993 - Jacob Webb, pitcher
- 1994 - Miwa Naraoka, Japanese women's national team outfielder
- 1995 - Luis Rico, Bolivian national team infielder
- 1996 - Gédéon Coste, French Division I pitcher
- 1996 - Jose Martinez, minor league infielder
- 1996 - Lukas Ray, minor league manager
- 1996 - Marcus Wilson, outfielder
- 1997 - Isaiah Campbell, pitcher
- 1997 - Karl Kauffmann, pitcher
- 1998 - Jordan Leasure, pitcher
- 2000 - Brooks Baldwin, infielder
- 2000 - Ho-Ki Bryan Tam, Hong Kong national team catcher
- 2001 - Robert Hassell, minor league outfielder
- 2001 - Titus Von Kapff, Bundesliga pitcher
Deaths[edit]
- 1885 - Louis Henke, minor league player (b. ????)
- 1901 - Gene Begley, catcher (b. 1861)
- 1901 - Milt Whitehead, infielder (b. 1862)
- 1912 - Lou Polchow, pitcher (b. 1880)
- 1916 - John Dyler, outfielder; umpire (b. 1852)
- 1923 - Marty Hogan, outfielder (b. 1869)
- 1925 - Arthur Soden, owner (b. 1843)
- 1929 - Jack Manning, outfielder, manager (b. 1853)
- 1930 - Guy Tutwiler, infielder (b. 1889)
- 1936 - Lew Richie, pitcher (b. 1883)
- 1941 - Jacob Doyle, infielder (b. 1855)
- 1943 - Art Whitney, infielder (b. 1858)
- 1947 - Bill Hall, pitcher (b. 1894)
- 1947 - Carlton Lord, infielder (b. 1900)
- 1957 - Ed Baecht, pitcher (b. 1907)
- 1960 - Ed Wheeler, infielder (b. 1878)
- 1963 - Karl Drews, pitcher (b. 1920)
- 1965 - Stan Pitula, pitcher (b. 1931)
- 1966 - George Burns, outfielder (b. 1889)
- 1967 - Karl Meister, outfielder (b. 1891)
- 1969 - James Washburn, minor league infielder (b. 1894)
- 1969 - Howie Williamson, pinch hitter (b. 1904)
- 1970 - Ray Bates, infielder (b. 1890)
- 1972 - Jeff Pfeffer, pitcher (b. 1888)
- 1973 - Wild Bill Luhrsen, pitcher (b. 1884)
- 1976 - Jim Henry, pitcher (b. 1910)
- 1976 - Dick Lajeskie, infielder (b. 1926)
- 1978 - Ed Chaplin, catcher (b. 1893)
- 1984 - Tom Gee, catcher (b. 1900)
- 1986 - Young-shin Kim, KBO catcher (b. 1961)
- 1990 - Bob Garbark, catcher (b. 1909)
- 1992 - Oran Frazier, infielder (b. 1908)
- 1994 - Joe Brovia, pinch-hitter (b. 1922)
- 1997 - Les Treitel, umpire (b. 1950)
- 1998 - Jack Brickhouse, broadcaster (b. 1916)
- 1998 - Dan Parra, minor league pitcher (b. 1920)
- 1999 - Greek George, catcher (b. 1912)
- 2002 - Arnie Moser, pinch hitter (b. 1915)
- 2002 - Kyle Rote, minor league outfielder (b. 1927)
- 2003 - Red Hardy, pitcher (b. 1923)
- 2007 - Toshiaki Sakai, Japanese national team catcher (b. 1934)
- 2008 - Darrin Winston, pitcher (b. 1966)
- 2010 - Joe Brown, general manager (b. 1918)
- 2010 - William Lander, minor league pitcher (b. 1923)
- 2014 - Jerry Lumpe, infielder; All-Star (b. 1933)
- 2014 - Mark Owings, minor league infielder (b. 1960)
- 2014 - Michihiro Sugawara, NPB outfielder (b. 1930)
- 2015 - Doc Daugherty, pinch hitter (b. 1927)
- 2015 - Bud Thomas, infielder (b. 1929)
- 2016 - Choo Choo Coleman, catcher (b. 1935)
- 2018 - Peter Box, Australian national team player (b. 1932)
- 2018 - Roy Chapman, Negro League pitcher (b. 1929)
- 2018 - Aaron Cox, minor league pitcher (b. 1994)
- 2022 - Bob Locker, pitcher (b. 1938)
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