January 12
From BR Bullpen
| Stats of players who were born this day | |
| Stats of players who died on this day | |
| Standings on this day | |
| Permanent link to Today's Entry | |
| Sources | |
| Baseball Library Chronology | |
| Today in Baseball History | |
Events, births and deaths that occurred on January 12.
Events[edit]
- 1884 - In a five-inning game played on ice skates in Brooklyn, Chicago White Stockings ace pitcher Larry Corcoran leads his team of mostly amateurs to a 41 - 12 win over a team composed of mostly professionals. Corcoran's team was assembled by veteran sportswriter Henry Chadwick. In four days, the pros will beat Corcoran and another group of amateurs, 16 - 8.
- 1887 - The New York Metropolitans (American Association) buy third baseman Dude Esterbrook from the New York Giants (NL). Although the Mets are no longer owned by the Giants' management, the Giants still seem to get the best of every deal between the two clubs.
- 1893 - National League owners, led by Pittsburgh Pirates manager Al Buckenberger, form the National Cycling Association, hope to build bicycle tracks in at least eight of the twelve NL parks.
- 1900 - Baltimore Orioles manager John McGraw threatens that if the National League drops the Orioles, which are controlled by the owners of the Brooklyn Superbas, he will form an American League team. Two weeks later the NL Circuit Committee recommends buying out Baltimore, Washington, Cleveland, and Louisville and going to an eight-team league. McGraw then organizes a Baltimore club in the AL, which is still a minor league circuit at this point, albeit one with bigger ambitions.
- 1903 - Detroit Tigers pitcher Win Mercer, winner of 15 games in 1902, commits suicide by inhaling gas in a San Francisco hotel. Mercer had recently been named the Tigers' manager.
- 1906 - The owners of the Boston Beaneaters reject a $250,000 offer for the team, which is destined to finish last again.
- 1920 - A plan developed by Charles Ebbets many years ago is finally adopted: the annual drafting of players from the minor leagues will be done in inverse order of the final standings.
- 1921 - Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis takes over his new role as Commissioner of baseball. Landis, who is given wide-ranging powers, replaces the three-man National Commission that had been running the game for nearly two decades.
- 1924 - Outfielder Bobby Veach is sold by the Detroit Tigers to the Boston Red Sox.
- 1946:
- Boston Red Sox star Ted Williams receives his discharge from the U.S. Marine Air Corps after a three-year stint serving in World War II. In spite of the long absence from competitive baseball, Williams will return to the major leagues by hitting .342 with 38 home runs and 123 RBI this season.
- The first official professional game is played in Venezuela, launching the newly-constituted four-team Liga de Beisbol Profesional de Venezuela. The league is composed of four teams: Cervecería Caracas, Magallanes, Vargas and Equipo Venezuela. The inaugural game is won by Magallanes over Equipo Venezuela, 5 - 2, behind the strong pitching from Alex Carrasquel, who gives up 11 hits in a complete game effort.
- 1949 - The New York Giants are fined $2,000, and their manager Leo Durocher $500, for signing Freddie Fitzsimmons as a coach while he was still under contract to the Boston Braves. Fitzsimmons gets a $500 fine and a 30-day spring training suspension.
- 1950 - The New York Yankees sell their Newark Bears franchise to the Chicago Cubs, who will move the team to Springfield, Massachusetts. The once-proud Bears, owned by the Yankees since 1932, finished last in the International League in 1949.
- 1954 - The International League makes two franchise shifts as the Baltimore Orioles team is transferred to Richmond, Virginia, becoming the Richmond Virginians, and the Springfield, Massachusetts team moves to Havana, Cuba, becoming the Havana Sugar Kings.
- 1961 - Charlie Grimm and Verlon Walker are named to the Chicago Cubs College of Coaches. Using this system, a different coach will manage the team each month during the season, and members of the group will move between the major league team and its minor league affiliates.
- 1972:
- Detroit Tigers owner John Fetzer announces that the Tigers have signed a lease to build a $126 million domed stadium along the river in downtown Detroit. The complex will seat 52,000 for baseball, and 60,000 for football. Lawsuits, a failed bond issue, and the construction of the Silverdome in nearby Pontiac will eventually kill the idea.
- In the secondary phase of the January draft, P Tom Hume is picked by the Cincinnati Reds, OF Sam Bowen by the Atlanta Braves, IF Duane Kuiper by the Cleveland Indians, and the Boston Red Sox, with pick 1,653, take IF Roy Smalley, who decides to stay in school.
- 1981 - The Atlanta Braves sign future Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry to a free agent contract. The 42-year-old Perry will be joining his sixth major league team, after splitting the 1980 season between the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers.
- 1982 - In the January draft, the Blue Jays use the #1 pick on OF Kash Beauchamp and the Cubs follow by taking C Troy Afenir. But the Twins, picking third, strike gold when they take OF Kirby Puckett. Meanwhile, the Reds choose P Randy Myers in the first round while the Mets select OF Kal Daniels in the third round. The 433rd pick overall is OF John Cangelosi, taken by the White Sox.
- 1983 - The Baseball Writers Association of America elects two players to the Hall of Fame: Juan Marichal, the winningest Latin American pitcher in major league history, who won 20 or more games six times and had an ERA of 2.50 or less six times as well, and Brooks Robinson, a winner of 16 straight Gold Gloves and hero of the 1970 World Series, who becomes the 14th player elected in his first year of eligibility.
- 1984 - Free agent relief ace Goose Gossage leaves the New York Yankees and signs with the San Diego Padres. The hard-throwing right-hander will save 25 games this season and help the Padres to their first appearance in the World Series.
- 1988 - Former Pittsburgh Pirates slugger Willie Stargell is the only player elected to the Hall of Fame by the BBWAA. Stargell, leader of two World Championships in Pittsburgh and National League co-MVP in 1979 at age 39, becomes the 17th player to be elected in his first year of eligibility. Pitcher Jim Bunning falls four votes shy of the 321 needed for election in his 13th year on the ballot.
- 1991 - The Detroit Tigers obtain catcher Mickey Tettleton from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for pitcher Jeff Robinson.
- 1993 - The Giants are bought by Peter Magowan and a local group which promises to keep the team in the San Francisco Bay Area.
- 1994 - Steve Carlton, winner of 329 games and four Cy Young Awards, is elected to the Hall of Fame by the BBWAA receiving almost 96% of the vote. Orlando Cepeda falls seven votes short of the 75% required for election.
- 1997 - The San Diego Padres acquire the rights to 27-year-old Japanese hard-throwing pitcher Hideki Irabu from the Chiba Lotte Marines. Irabu says he only wants to play for the New York Yankees and will force a trade to the Bronx Bombers.
- 1998 - Nippon Pro Baseball players Hiroki Kokubo and Hidekazu Watanabe are suspended and fined due to tax evasion.
- 1999 - Setting an all-time record, the ball that Mark McGwire hit for his 70th home run is sold at an auction for $2.7 million by Guernsey's Auction House in Manhattan. The buyer is later revealed to be Todd McFarlane, creator of the Spawn comic books series. The price tag surpasses the record $126,500 which bought a Babe Ruth home run ball last year.
- 2000 - The Milwaukee Brewers obtain pitchers Jaime Navarro and John Snyder from the Chicago White Sox for shortstop Jose Valentin and pitcher Cal Eldred. Navarro, the majors' loss leader (43) the past three seasons, was disgruntled with the Sox. Valentin will compete with Mike Caruso for the SS job.
- 2005:
- In a news conference at Dodger Stadium, general manager Paul DePodesta announces the team has signed former Red Sox starter Derek Lowe to a $36 million, four-year deal. Lowe, who has the second most wins over the past three years, is the first pitcher to win three deciding decisions in postseason history.
- Avoiding salary arbitration, catcher Paul Lo Duca signs a three-year, $18 million deal to remain with the Florida Marlins. Lo Duca was acquired by Florida, along with relief pitcher Guillermo Mota and outfielder Juan Encarnación, in a trading deadline blockbuster trade which sent starter Brad Penny, first baseman Hee Seop Choi and pitching prospect Bill Murphy to the Dodgers.
- 2009 - Rickey Henderson, the all-time major league leader in stolen bases, runs and leadoff home runs, is elected to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot; at the time of his retirement, Henderson also held the all-time walk record. Also elected is Jim Rice, the third player to go in on the 15th and final ballot (after Ralph Kiner and Red Ruffing); Rice's long-time teammate Fred Lynn says stats should be discarded in pushing his case.
- 2010:
- Shinichi Eto, Osamu Higashio and Masayuki Furuta are voted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame. Eto was the first player to win batting titles in both the Central League and Pacific League, while Higashio was a two-time Pacific League MVP. Furuta was an amateur star who never played in the professional ranks. Missing by one vote for the second straight year is Hiromitsu Ochiai, the only three-time Triple Crown winner in Nippon Pro Baseball history.
- A devastating earthquake hits the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, located a few hundred miles off the coast of Florida. Major League Baseball quickly pledges $1 million to UNICEF to help with the relief effort. Teams like the New York Yankees and players such as Miguel Tejada also pledge their support. While Haiti is not a traditional source of players, unlike its neighbor to the east the Dominican Republic, there were 13 Haitian-born players in the minor leagues in 2009 and efforts are now directed to ascertain their well-being.
- 2011 - Diamondbacks minor league OF Alfredo Marte is suspended for 50 games after testing positive for stanozolol, a performance-enhancing substance.
- 2012:
- Luke Scott signs as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays.
- Catcher Gustavo Molina breaks a 4 - 4, 10th-inning tie with a three-run homer as Anzoátegui defeats La Guaira in the Venezuelan League playoffs. Anzoátegui thus maintains its two-game lead over Aragua in the five-team round robin tournament to determine Venezuela's representative in the 2012 Caribbean Series.
- 2014 - In the Cuban All-Star Game, the Oriente team wins, 4 - 3. With the game tied at 3 - 3 in the 8th, Alfredo Despaigne doubles off Leinier Rodríguez, advances on a grounder by Ariel Borrero and scores on a wild pitch by reliever Hector Mendoza. Carlos Juan Viera, last year's losing hurler, gets the win, while Freddy Asiel Álvarez notches a save. Luis la O has two hits for the victors while Yulieski Gourriel and Alexander Malleta get that number for the losers.
- 2015:
- The Arizona Diamondbacks sign Cuban pitching prospect Yoan Lopez to a bonus of $8.27 million, the highest ever for an international amateur signing. The 21-year-old defected from Cuba in 2014 and established residency in Haiti before being declared a free agent by Major League Baseball in November.
- Odubel Herrera is named Venezuelan League MVP, becoming the second player to win Rookie of the Year and MVP the same year. A center fielder for the Tiburones de La Guaira, Herrera led the league with a .372 average and was second in total bases, OBP and OPS.
- 2018 - The Blue Jays sign 3B Josh Donaldson to one-year deal worth $23 million. It is the largest salary ever given to a player eligible for salary arbitration, besting the $21.6 million given to Bryce Harper by the Nationals last May. Donaldson's is not the only record-setting deal signed today: the Cubs offer 3B Kris Bryant $10.85 million, the most ever for a player eligible for arbitration for the first time. Other major deals involve NL batting champion Charlie Blackmon, who re-signs with the Rockies for $14 million, and 3B Manny Machado and Zach Britton who agree to contracts worth $16 million and $12 million respectively with the Orioles.
- 2020 - 23-year old Fausto Segura, a pitching prospect in the Nationals organization, is tragically killed when his motorcycle is struck by an SUV in his hometown of Barahona, in the Dominican Republic.
- 2024:
- The Taiwan Baseball Hall of Fame names its class of 2024: pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, executive Cheng-Hao Peng, college coach Hyotaro Kondo, executive Keng-Yuan Chen and executive Kuei-Hsing Lin are named to the Taiwan Baseball Hall of Fame
- The Yankees are busy today as they reach deals with all ten of their players eligible for salary arbitration. That includes newly-acquired OF Juan Soto who agrees to a record-setting $31 million one-year deal. The Yankees also reportedly sign free agent P Marcus Stroman for two years at $37 million.
Births[edit]
- 1856 - Chub Sullivan, infielder (d. 1881)
- 1859 - Nat Hudson, pitcher (d. 1928)
- 1859 - Ed Swartwood, outfielder; umpire (d. 1924)
- 1860 - Henry Larkin, infielder, manager (d. 1942)
- 1860 - John Waltz, manager (d. 1931)
- 1862 - John Crowley, catcher (d. 1896)
- 1866 - Tom Kinslow, catcher (d. 1901)
- 1868 - Dan Daub, pitcher (d. 1951)
- 1872 - Togie Pittinger, pitcher (d. 1909)
- 1876 - George Browne, outfielder (d. 1920)
- 1877 - Charlie Buelow, infielder (d. 1951)
- 1877 - Ed Murphy, pitcher (d. 1935)
- 1878 - Bill Finneran, umpire (d. 1961)
- 1878 - Admiral Schlei, catcher (d. 1958)
- 1879 - Jim Callahan, outfielder (d. 1968)
- 1879 - Hank Olmsted, pitcher (d. 1969)
- 1879 - Gary Wilson, infielder (d. 1969)
- 1889 - Harry Imlay, pitcher (d. 1948)
- 1893 - Lefty Lorenzen, pitcher (d. 1963)
- 1893 - Charlie Young, pitcher (d. 1952)
- 1895 - Henry Bostick, infielder (d. 1968)
- 1895 - Jack Knight, pitcher (d. 1976)
- 1896 - Albert Briscoe, minor league infielder and manager (d. 1968)
- 1898 - George Knothe, infielder (d. 1981)
- 1898 - Rip Wade, outfielder (d. 1957)
- 1899 - Joe Hauser, infielder (d. 1997)
- 1903 - Silas Rooney, college coach (d. 1981)
- 1910 - Sam Camalo, minor league catcher and manager (d. ????)
- 1910 - Herbert North, NPB pitcher (d. ????)
- 1910 - Buster Haywood, catcher, manager; All-Star (d. 2000)
- 1915 - Lee Allen, broadcaster (d. 1969)
- 1915 - Roy Easterwood, catcher (d. 1984)
- 1916 - Jose Burgos, minor league infielder
- 1916 - Willie Burns, pitcher (d. 1966)
- 1917 - Edgar Chatman, pitcher
- 1918 - Bill Burch, college coach (d. 2008)
- 1921 - Tsutomu Kimura, NPB outfielder (d. ????)
- 1925 - Ed Stevens, infielder (d. 2012)
- 1929 - Doug Cossey, umpire (d. 2001)
- 1934 - Kentaro Ogawa, NPB pitcher (d. 1995)
- 1934 - Toshiaki Sakai, Japanese national team catcher (d. 2007)
- 1935 - Bob Thorpe, pitcher (d. 1960)
- 1938 - Tsuneo Takabayashi, NPB outfielder
- 1940 - George Kernek, infielder (d. 2022)
- 1944 - Alfredo Ortiz, minor league pitcher; Salon de la Fama
- 1944 - William Parlier, minor league outfielder (d. 2007)
- 1944 - Ron Polk, college coach
- 1945 - Paul Gilliford, pitcher
- 1945 - Bob Reed, pitcher
- 1947 - Leon Everitt, pitcher (d. 2016)
- 1947 - Gene Martin, outfielder
- 1947 - Paul Reuschel, pitcher
- 1950 - Randy Jones, pitcher; All-Star
- 1951 - Bill Madlock, infielder; All-Star
- 1953 - Terry Whitfield, outfielder
- 1955 - Doug Heinold, minor league pitcher
- 1956 - Chuck Porter, pitcher
- 1958 - Rod Craig, outfielder (d. 2013)
- 1960 - Rob Derksen, scout (d. 2004)
- 1960 - Tim Hulett, infielder
- 1960 - Mike Marshall, outfielder; All-Star
- 1960 - Mike Trujillo, pitcher
- 1961 - Casey Candaele, infielder
- 1964 - Taek-jae Kwon, South Korean national team infielder
- 1967 - Mike Simms, outfielder
- 1968 - Steve Phillips, minor league outfielder and manager
- 1969 - Billy Nicholson, scout
- 1970 - Nigel Wilson, outfielder
- 1971 - Sam Ali, minor league pitcher
- 1971 - Scott Burrell, minor league pitcher
- 1971 - Andy Fox, infielder
- 1972 - Rich Loiselle, pitcher
- 1974 - Jeff Guiel, minor league outfielder
- 1975 - Somsak Sarnwit, Thai national team catcher
- 1975 - Jorge Velandia, infielder
- 1976 - Shigeyuki Furuki, NPB infielder
- 1977 - Yoandy Garlobo, Cuban national league player
- 1977 - Reggie Taylor, outfielder
- 1978 - Luis Ayala, pitcher
- 1978 - Bong-kyu Kang, KBO outfielder
- 1978 - Matt Siegel, minor league manager
- 1979 - Matt Bruback, minor league pitcher
- 1979 - Takehito Kanazawa, NPB pitcher
- 1980 - Josh Adams, minor league pitcher
- 1980 - Bobby Crosby, infielder
- 1981 - Da-Hung Cheng, CPBL catcher
- 1981 - Markus Gienger, Bundesliga catcher
- 1981 - Juan Sandoval, minor league pitcher
- 1982 - Chris Ray, pitcher
- 1982 - Dontrelle Willis, pitcher; All-Star
- 1983 - Dong-hyon Lee, KBO pitcher
- 1984 - Scott Olsen, pitcher
- 1985 - Casey Craig, minor league outfielder
- 1985 - Chris Hatcher, catcher/pitcher
- 1986 - Edgar Bruzual, minor league infielder
- 1986 - Michael Dubee, minor league pitcher
- 1987 - Mathieu Brau, Division Elite utility man
- 1987 - Ivan Nova, pitcher
- 1987 - Daniel Shimura, Peruvian national team outfielder
- 1988 - Hyun-soo Kim, outfielder
- 1988 - Justin Marks, pitcher
- 1990 - Noel Argüelles, minor league pitcher
- 1990 - Manuel Campos, minor league pitcher
- 1991 - Alex Wood, pitcher; All-Star
- 1992 - Chun-Kai Liao, Taiwan national team infielder
- 1993 - Aramis Garcia, catcher
- 1993 - Lucas Tancas, minor league infielder
- 1994 - Andres Aguilar, minor league outfielder
- 1996 - Nelson Mieles, Ecuadorian national team pitcher
- 1996 - J.C. Rodríguez, minor league utility man
- 1997 - Daigo Kamikawabata, NPB infielder
- 1998 - Harold Chirino, minor league pitcher
- 2000 - Francisco Acuña, minor league infielder
- 2000 - Blake Dickman, Israeli national team infielder
- 2002 - Anthony Molina, pitcher
- 2003 - Hsiang-He Yang, CPBL infielder
Deaths[edit]
- 1903 - Win Mercer, pitcher (b. 1874)
- 1910 - Harry Staley, pitcher (b. 1866)
- 1915 - Jimmy Whalen, minor league pitcher (b. 1880)
- 1917 - Jim Garry, pitcher (b. 1869)
- 1926 - Michael Campbell, infielder (b. 1850)
- 1931 - Mose Herring, infielder (b. 1895)
- 1937 - Joe McCarthy, catcher (b. 1881)
- 1938 - Dupee Shaw, pitcher (b. 1859)
- 1940 - Ed Keas, pitcher (b. 1863)
- 1943 - Bill Webb, infielder (b. 1895)
- 1957 - Victor Starffin, NPB pitcher; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (b. 1916)
- 1958 - Lefty Webb, pitcher (b. 1885)
- 1960 - Jimmy Lavender, pitcher (b. 1884)
- 1970 - Doc Bass, pinch hitter (b. 1898)
- 1970 - Andy Bruckmiller, pitcher (b. 1882)
- 1971 - Cy Malis, pitcher (b. 1907)
- 1974 - Jim Middleton, pitcher (b. 1889)
- 1974 - Joe Smith, catcher (b. 1893)
- 1975 - Frank Kalin, outfielder (b. 1917)
- 1982 - Curtis Henderson, infielder; All-Star (b. 1911)
- 1986 - Eddie Solomon, pitcher (b. 1951)
- 1988 - John Johnson, minor league executive (b. 1921)
- 1989 - Clise Dudley, pitcher (b. 1903)
- 1993 - Earl Browne, outfielder (b. 1911)
- 1993 - Fred Koenig, minor league infielder and manager (b. 1931)
- 1993 - Joe Orrell, pitcher (b. 1917)
- 1995 - Hi Simmons, college coach (b. 1905)
- 1996 - Garnett Blair, pitcher (b. 1921)
- 1997 - Joe Scott infielder (b. 1918)
- 2006 - Larry Ensminger, college coach (b. ~1939)
- 2009 - Henry Centeno, scout (b. 1970)
- 2010 - Hillis Layne, infielder (b. 1918)
- 2012 - Lindy Lauro, college coach (b. 1921)
- 2013 - Bubba Harris, pitcher (b. 1926)
- 2013 - Sean Toerner, minor league infielder (b. 1959)
- 2015 - Kenneth Kenny, minor league pitcher (b. ~1913)
- 2015 - Carl Long, minor league and Negro League outfielder (b. 1935)
- 2018 - Rudy Arias, pitcher (b. 1931)
- 2018 - Keith Jackson, broadcaster (b. 1928)
- 2019 - Larry Koentopp, college coach (b. 1936)
- 2020 - Fausto Segura, minor league pitcher (b. 1996)
- 2021 - Chung-Nan Tu, CPBL catcher (b. 1959)
- 2023 - Calín Rosales, Nicaraguan national team outfielder (b. ~1944)
- 2023 - Ted Savage, outfielder (b. 1936)
- 2023 - Lee Tinsley, outfielder (b. 1969)
We're Social...for Statheads
Every Sports Reference Social Media Account
Site Last Updated:
Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction?
Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter
Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE
Your All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database
Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Find out more.