January 4
From BR Bullpen
| Stats of players who were born this day | |
| Stats of players who died on this day | |
| Standings on this day | |
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| Baseball Library Chronology | |
| Today in Baseball History | |
Events, births and deaths that occurred on January 4.
Events[edit]
- 1884:
- The newly-organized Union League changes its name to the Eastern League to avoid confusion with the new Union Association. The EL continues into the 21st century as the AAA International League.
- Pitcher Larry Corcoran, who had signed with the Chicago team of the outlaw Union Association, breaks his contract to re-sign with his old club, the Chicago White Stockings of the National League.
- 1886 - Having waited in vain for the $1,000 check from the Baltimore Orioles club, St. Louis Browns owner Chris Von der Ahe takes $1,000 from the Pittsburgh Alleghenys for the rights to Sam Barkley, ignoring the fact that the infielder has already signed with the Orioles.
- 1889 - The Spalding Baseball Tourists play their final game in Australia, with the Chicagos winning, 5 - 0.
- 1896 - A portion of the fence surrounding the Polo Grounds blows down in a fierce storm.
- 1901 - The Baltimore American League club incorporates, with John McGraw as manager and part owner.
- 1902 - Pitcher Bill Dineen, winner of 36 games for the Boston Beaneaters over the past two years, signs with the cross-town rival Boston Americans, for whom he will win 20 or more for the next three years.
- 1904 - The New York Highlanders announce plans to play on Sundays at Ridgewood Park in Queens, NY, but the Brooklyn Superbas object. Sunday games are legal in Detroit, St. Louis, Chicago and Cincinnati.
- 1915 - Infielder Hans Lobert, well known as the "fastest man" in the National League, is traded by the Philadelphia Phillies to the New York Giants for pitcher Al Demaree, infielder Milt Stock, and catcher Bert Adams. The speedster will injure his knee in a preseason game at West Point.
- 1916 - The St. Louis Browns are the first of two major league franchises awarded to former Federal League owners. Philip de Catesby Ball, ice-manufacturing tycoon and principal stockholder of the Feds' St. Louis Terriers, pays a reported $525,000 for the Browns and replaces manager Branch Rickey with his own Fielder Jones.
- 1918 - The Chicago Cubs acquire Boston Braves pitcher Lefty Tyler in exchange for Larry Doyle, Art Wilson and $15,000. Tyler will win 19 games for the Cubs this year.
- 1928 - The New York Yankees buy shortstop Lyn Lary and infielder Jimmie Reese from the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League for a reported $150,000.
- 1932:
- The Great Depression deepens, and American League costs are cut by dropping an umpire from the AL staff of 11.
- Casey Stengel returns from exile in the minor leagues to become coach for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
- 1936 - As the second part of the December 10 deal for Jimmie Foxx, the Boston Red Sox get Doc Cramer and Eric McNair from the Philadelphia Athletics for Hank Johnson, Al Niemiec, and $75,000. Even with the free spending, and the presence of 20-game winners Wes Ferrell and Lefty Grove, Boston will finish sixth in the AL. However, in six-plus seasons with the Sox, Foxx will hit 222 home runs, bats .300 five times, and be an All-Star six times.
- 1940 - In a trade of pitchers, the Cincinnati Reds send Lee Grissom to the New York Yankees for Joe Beggs, who had to clear waivers from all seven American League teams. This is due to the new rule voted last month barring the AL pennant winner from any trades within the league. Beggs will go 12-3 for the Reds, while Grissom will be sold to the Brooklyn Dodgers on May 15th.
- 1942 - Rogers Hornsby becomes the 14th player selected to the Hall of Fame, getting 78 percent of the vote, while both Frank Chance (58%) and Rube Waddell (54%) miss out. Hornsby's offensive numbers rival those of any player before or since. He and Ted Williams are the only players to win the Triple Crown twice, and Hornsby's .424 mark in 1924 is the highest National League batting average in the 20th century.
- 1943 - A wartime tone for the season is set when Red Ruffing, just months short of his 38th birthday, and minus four toes, is drafted into the Army Air Corp.
- 1957 - The Brooklyn Dodgers buy a 44-passenger twin-engine airplane for $775,000, which they will use to transport the club during the season. The Dodgers are the first major league team to own their own plane.
- 1969 - Attorney Jack Reynolds, administrator of the new umpires union, says an economic agreement has been worked out between the American League and umpires that will avert a strike this year.
- 1976 - Executives of the International Amateur Baseball Association meet in Mexico City to end a long-standing feud between delegations, creating in the process a new organization named the "Asociación Internacional de Beisbol Amateur". With the United States returning to the IABA fold, after an absence of many years, the first AINBA World Championships are scheduled for Cartagena, Colombia. Manuel González Guerra of Cuba is named the first AINBA president.
- 1977 - Mary Shane is hired by the Chicago White Sox as the first woman TV play-by-play announcer.
- 1993 - Free agent outfielder Lonnie Smith is signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
- 1994 - The Chicago White Sox sign free agent outfielder Ellis Burks and the Atlanta Braves sign free agent infielder Bill Pecota.
- 1995 - Five bills aimed at ending the Major League Baseball strike are introduced in the United States Congress as a newly-elected House of representatives begins sitting.
- 1997 - The Texas Rangers sign free agent outfielder Mike Devereaux.
- 1998:
- Toronto Blue Jays catcher Benito Santiago is injured when he loses control of the car he is driving and crashes into a tree in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Toronto also loses first baseman Carlos Delgado to a shoulder injury which he sustains while diving for a ball in a game in Puerto Rico. He will be out until late April.
- Steve Hinton sets the Australian Baseball League record with four home runs in a game. The Brisbane Bandits combine to hit nine, also a record, against the Perth Heat.
- 2000 - San Diego Padres pitcher Carlton Loewer suffers a broken leg after falling from a tree while hunting. At the very least, he will miss spring training. While pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies last year, Loewer missed almost four months due to a stress fracture in his arm, an injury that doctors say could easily have resulted in a situation in which the arm broke while he was throwing a pitch.
- 2001 - Free agent pitcher Ismael Valdez is signed by the Angels.
- 2002:
- In spite of the franchise's uncertain future due to possible contraction, Ron Gardenhire is named to replace Tom Kelly as the Minnesota Twins manager. The Twins' third base coach is given a two-year pact to pilot the team.
- The St. Louis Cardinals announce the team has agreed to a three-year, $27 million deal with starting pitcher Matt Morris. The 27-year-old right-hander, who missed all of the 1999 season due to elbow surgery, finished third in the Cy Young Award balloting this year after going 22-8 with a 3.16 ERA.
- The Cleveland Indians sign pitcher Matthew Haynes, a participant in major league's first-ever Australian Baseball Academy, which included the best 60 players from Australia. The 6' 3", 185 lb. 18-year-old, is a right-hander who the Indians predict will be a starter in the major leagues.
- Tony Tavares resigns as president of the Anaheim Angels. The 52-year-old executive, who until today also was the chairman of the NHL's Mighty Ducks, became Anaheim's president after Disney bought the team from Jackie Autry in 1996. He will be appointed by Major League Baseball as President of the owner-less Montreal Expos in a few weeks, while the Angels will go on to win their first World Series title in October.
- The Colorado Rockies agree to terms with free agent catcher Tony Eusebio on a one-year contract.
- 2005 - Wade Boggs, a five-time batting champion, and Ryne Sandberg, a nine-time Gold Glove Award winner at second base, are elected to the Hall of Fame. Boggs becomes the 41st player elected to Cooperstown in his first year of eligibility, while receiving 474 of the record number of 516 votes cast (92%). Sandberg receives 393 votes, six more that the needed number. Relief pitchers Bruce Sutter (66.7%) and Goose Gossage (55%), and outfielders Jim Rice (59.5%) and Andre Dawson (52%), are the only other players to be named on at least half of the ballots cast. All four will be voted in over the next five years.
- 2006:
- Free agent outfielder Preston Wilson signs a one-year $4 million contract by the Houston Astros including a three-year club option that could extend the deal through the 2009 season.
- The minimum salary for players in the major leagues rises $9,000 this year to $327,000.
- 2010:
- The Boston Red Sox sign free agent 3B Adrian Beltre to a one-year deal worth $9 million, with an option for a second year. The deal is motivated by the uncertain state of Mike Lowell's health.
- Catcher Miguel Olivo, who hit 23 home runs for the Kansas City Royals last season, moves to the friendly confines of Coors Field after signing a one-year deal with the Colorado Rockies. He will replace Yorvit Torrealba, who could not come to terms with the Rockies on a new contract.
- 2011:
- The Orioles sign reliever Kevin Gregg, coming off a career-best 37 saves with Toronto, to a two-year contract.
- The Braves and 2B Dan Uggla, acquired from Florida earlier this offseason, come to terms on a five-year contract extension worth $62 million. The Marlins had earlier balked at giving the 31-year-old such a long deal, prompting his trade to Atlanta.
- 2012 - Joe Torre resigns from his position as Vice-President of Major League Baseball after ten months, in order to join a group that is pursuing ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The group is led by real estate developer Rick Caruso, but faces stiff competition as there are now 16 known groups that have expressed interest in buying the team. Initial bids are to be submitted by January 23rd.
- 2013 - The Cincinnati Reds sign Jakub Ižold, the first Slovakian to sign with a MLB club. Ižold had been pitching for Draci Brno in the Czech Republic's Extraliga and had been with the Slovakian national team. He will go 0-1 with a 8.04 ERA this summer with the AZL Reds.
- 2018 - In a three-team trade, the Dodgers send two prospects, P Trevor Oaks and IF Erick Mejia, to the Royals in return for relievers Scott Alexander and Joakim Soria. They then turn around and flip Soria, along with fellow reliever Luis Avilan, to the White Sox for minor league IF Jake Peter.
- 2021 - The Red Sox announce the hiring of Bianca Smith as a minor league coach. While female coaches have been growing in numbers in recent years, Smith is the first African-American woman to occupy such a position. She has previously worked as a coach and Director of baseball operations for a number of college programs and was previously a softball player.
Births[edit]
- 1847 - Jimmy Williams, manager (d. 1918)
- 1856 - Al Dwight, catcher (d. 1903)
- 1858 - Henry Oxley, catcher (d. 1945)
- 1861 - Rex Smith, pitcher (d. 1895)
- 1869 - Tommy Corcoran, infielder (d. 1960)
- 1873 - Ernest Lanigan, researcher (d. 1962)
- 1877 - Bob Spade, pitcher (d. 1924)
- 1883 - Eddie Zimmerman, infielder (d. 1945)
- 1884 - Al Bridwell, infielder (d. 1969)
- 1887 - Klondike Smith, outfielder (d. 1959)
- 1888 - Rex DeVogt, catcher (d. 1935)
- 1890 - Ossie Vitt, infielder, manager (d. 1963)
- 1894 - Claude Johnson, infielder (d. 1965)
- 1896 - George Dixon, catcher (d. 1940)
- 1898 - Jack Harding, college coach (d. 1963)
- 1898 - Jess Neely, college coach (d. 1983)
- 1902 - Ted Odenwald, pitcher (d. 1965)
- 1903 - Alex Metzler, outfielder (d. 1973)
- 1906 - Blondy Ryan, infielder (d. 1959)
- 1908 - George Selkirk, outfielder; All-Star (d. 1987)
- 1910 - Gabe Paul, executive (d. 1998)
- 1911 - Izzy Leon, pitcher (d. 2002)
- 1911 - Ralph Shropshire, catcher (d. 1973)
- 1912 - Joe Mack, infielder (d. 1998)
- 1914 - Herman Franks, catcher, manager (d. 2009)
- 1917 - Peter Hardy, executive; Canadian Hall of Fame (d. 1997)
- 1918 - Charles Gelatt, owner (d. 2014)
- 1918 - Luis Villodas, catcher (d. 1994)
- 1919 - Masao Santa, NPB outfielder (d. WWII)
- 1920 - Walter Ockey, pitcher (d. 1971)
- 1925 - Tom Gorman, pitcher (d. 1992)
- 1929 - Corky Valentine, pitcher (d. 2005)
- 1930 - Don McMahon, pitcher; All-Star (d. 1987)
- 1933 - Ramon Monzant, pitcher (d. 2001)
- 1939 - Hsien-Tsung Li, Taiwan national team pitcher; Taiwan Baseball Hall of Fame
- 1940 - Bart Shirley, infielder
- 1943 - Larry Yellen, pitcher (d. 2023)
- 1944 - Earl Brown, minor league outfielder
- 1944 - Tito Fuentes, infielder
- 1944 - Takenori Ikebe, NPB outfielder
- 1944 - Charlie Manuel, outfielder, manager
- 1944 - Tatsumi Yamanaka, NPB pitcher
- 1946 - Dick Bliek, Dutch executive (d. 2021)
- 1947 - Rodger Brulotte, announcer
- 1947 - Ken Reynolds, pitcher
- 1948 - Shigeo Nagai, NPB infielder
- 1949 - Dennis Saunders, pitcher
- 1951 - Jim Pascarella, minor league infielder
- 1955 - Levy Ochoa, scout
- 1960 - Paul Gibson, pitcher
- 1962 - Joe Heeney, minor league infielder
- 1962 - Jay Tibbs, pitcher
- 1963 - Daryl Boston, outfielder
- 1963 - Trey Hillman, manager
- 1965 - Kevin Wickander, pitcher
- 1967 - Bill Wengert, minor league pitcher
- 1967 - Ted Wood, outfielder
- 1967 - Clint Zavaras, pitcher
- 1968 - Bo Kennedy, minor league pitcher
- 1968 - Dong-hee Park, KBO pitcher (d. 2007)
- 1969 - Wei-Ching Cheng, TML pitcher
- 1971 - Chris Michalak, pitcher
- 1976 - Danny Haas, scout
- 1976 - Ted Lilly, pitcher; All-Star
- 1976 - Tom Paciorek Jr., minor league outfielder
- 1976 - Giovanni Samboe, Hoofdklasse catcher
- 1977 - Brian O'Connor, pitcher
- 1977 - Walter Silva, pitcher
- 1978 - Chris Gissell, pitcher
- 1978 - Willie Martinez, pitcher
- 1980 - Riccardo De Santis, Italian Baseball League pitcher
- 1980 - Toru Hosokawa, NPB catcher
- 1981 - Jailen Peguero, pitcher
- 1982 - Jason Bourgeois, infielder
- 1982 - Shawn Yarbrough, college coach
- 1983 - José Aponte, minor league outfielder
- 1984 - John Raynor, outfielder
- 1985 - Timothy Bascom, minor league pitcher
- 1985 - Scott Sizemore, infielder
- 1987 - Yuichiro Utagawa, Japanese national team pitcher
- 1989 - P.J. Francescon, minor league pitcher
- 1989 - Kevin Pillar, outfielder
- 1989 - Chun-Chieh Wang, CPBL catcher
- 1990 - Shijir Ganbaatar, Mongolian national team infielder-pitcher
- 1990 - Jantzen Witte, minor league infielder
- 1991 - Daniel Stumpf, pitcher
- 1992 - Kris Bryant, infielder; All-Star
- 1992 - I-Teng Lin, minor league outfielder
- 1992 - Michael Lorenzen, pitcher; All-Star
- 1992 - Anthony García, minor league outfielder
- 1993 - Maigleth Torres, Venezuelan women's national team infielder
- 1994 - Reynaldo López, pitcher; All-Star
- 1996 - Blake Cederlind, pitcher
- 1996 - Keniel Ferráz, Cuban league pitcher
- 1997 - Clayton Andrews, pitcher
- 1997 - Davis Martin, pitcher
- 2000 - Valente Bellozo, pitcher
- 2001 - DJ Herz, pitcher
- 2002 - Ryan Bruno, drafted pitcher
Deaths[edit]
- 1890 - Dave Sullivan, umpire (d. 1856)
- 1893 - Jim Halpin, infielder (b. 1863)
- 1896 - Tom Foley, outfielder (b. 1847)
- 1898 - Charlie Byrne, manager (b. 1843)
- 1924 - John Peters, infielder (b. 1850)
- 1931 - Roger Connor, infielder, manager; Hall of Famer (b. 1857)
- 1933 - Hal Deviney, pitcher (b. 1893)
- 1938 - Frank Sexton, pitcher (b. 1872)
- 1942 - Harry Juul, pitcher (b. 1893)
- 1943 - Jack Rafter, catcher (b. 1875)
- 1948 - Biff Schlitzer, pitcher (b. 1884)
- 1949 - Joe Evers, pinch runner (b. 1891)
- 1952 - Jack Ridley, outfielder (b. 1905)
- 1956 - John Beckwith, infielder, manager (b. 1900)
- 1963 - Sam Covington, infielder (b. 1894)
- 1965 - Ellis Johnson, pitcher (b. 1892)
- 1967 - Estel Crabtree, outfielder (b. 1903)
- 1970 - Charlie Culver, minor league pitcher/infielder (b. 1892)
- 1970 - Brad Springer, pitcher (b. 1904)
- 1978 - Joe Dawson, pitcher (b. 1897)
- 1979 - Bobby Murray, infielder (b. 1894)
- 1980 - Foster Edwards, pitcher (b. 1903)
- 1985 - Yuji Kubodera, NPB outfielder (b. 1958)
- 1986 - Dave Morey, pitcher (b. 1889)
- 1987 - Tony Rensa, catcher (b. 1901)
- 1990 - Bobby Balcena, outfielder (b. 1925)
- 1990 - Bonnie Hollingsworth, pitcher (b. 1895)
- 1991 - Bill Byrd, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1907)
- 1991 - Tommy Harris, catcher (b. 1923)
- 1991 - Eric Rodin, outfielder (b. 1930)
- 1994 - Billy Sullivan, catcher (b. 1910)
- 1994 - Willie Wells Jr., infielder (b. 1922)
- 1995 - Harry Gumbert, pitcher (b. 1909)
- 1995 - Ralph Onis, catcher (b. 1908)
- 1998 - Ken Kirby, umpire (b. 1925)
- 2000 - John Milner, infielder (b. 1949)
- 2001 - Joe Zapustas, outfielder (b. 1907)
- 2002 - Adrian Zabala, pitcher (b. 1916)
- 2003 - Gip Dickens, minor league outfielder (b. 1928)
- 2003 - Tom Farrell, minor league pitcher (b. 1934)
- 2005 - Anne Georges, AAGPBL pitcher (b. 1923)
- 2005 - Jack Sanford, infielder (b. 1917)
- 2008 - Bill Ramsey, outfielder (b. 1920)
- 2010 - Rory Markas, broadcaster (b, 1955)
- 2012 - Paul Fauks, minor league executive (b. 1924)
- 2013 - Sam Amoriello, minor league pitcher (b. 1924)
- 2014 - Gabe Gabler, pinch hitter (b. 1930)
- 2015 - Delton Dunnack, minor league catcher (b. 1925)
- 2015 - Stu Miller, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1927)
- 2015 - Hank Peters, General Manager (b. 1924)
- 2017 - Art Pennington, outfielder; All-Star (b. 1923)
- 2018 - Carmen Cozza, minor league outfielder (b. 1930)
- 2018 - Senichi Hoshino, NPB pitcher and manager; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (b. 1947)
- 2018 - Huan-Hsun Song, CPBL manager; Taiwan Baseball Hall of Fame (b. 1930)
- 2021 - Tom Acker, pitcher (b. 1930)
- 2022 - Jim Corsi, pitcher (b. 1961)
- 2022 - Carl Linhart, pinch hitter (b. 1929)
- 2022 - Tom Matchick, infielder (b. 1943)
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