TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

1925       Entering the bottom of the eighth inning trailing the Indians, 15-4, the A’s cross the plate 13 times in the frame. Philadelphia will hold on to the lead in the top of the ninth to defeat Cleveland in an incredible 17-15 come-from-behind victory at Shibe Park.

1938       In the first night game played in New York City, Johnny Vander Meer pitches his second consecutive no-hitter, beating the Dodgers at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field, 6-0. Four days ago, the Reds’ southpaw held the Braves hitless in a 3-0 victory at Crosley Field.

1940       In the Giants’ 12-1 rout of the Pirates at the Polo Grounds, Harry Danning hits for the cycle, becoming the last player to have an inside-the-park as part of this rare feat. The Giant catcher circles the bases when the 460-foot fly ball gets stuck behind the Eddie Grant Memorial, and Pittsburgh center fielder Vince DiMaggio cannot free it in time.

1948       The Tigers play their first home game under the lights, defeating the Philadelphia A’s, 4-1. Detroit played a night game at Bennett Park on September 24, 1896, but the results of George Vanderbeck’s Western League’s team exhibition against the Reds never made it into the books as an official game.

1949       Shortly after 1 a.m., Ruth Ann Steinhagen shoots Eddie Waitkus in the chest with a rifle at Chicago’s Edgewater Beach Hotel, after luring him to her room with an urgent note delivered by the bellhop. The obsessed fan, who had become infatuated with the first baseman when he played in Chicago, apparently is upset and agitated because the Cubs traded the All-Star infielder to the Phillies.

1951       The Cubs trade Andy Pfako along with Johnny Schmitz, Wayne Terwilliger, and Rube Walker to the Dodgers for Bruce Edwards, Joe Hatten, Eddie Miksis, and Gene Hermanski. The deal, which prevents the coveted ‘Handy Andy’ from going to the rival Giants, is the first of many to be made by Buzzy Bavasi, Brooklyn’s new general manager.

1952       The Cardinals, trailing 11-0 after three innings against Sal Maglie, overcome the double-digit deficit to defeat the Giants at the Polo Grounds, 14-12. The Redbirds score seven runs in the top of the fifth and another seven in the last three frames of the game to accomplish the biggest rally in National League history.

1955       After striking out against the Amarillo Gold Sox, 22 year-old Albuquerque Dukes outfielder Larry Segovia kicks a water fountain in the dugout, breaking a pipe that creates a 50-foot high cascade of water which soaks his teammates and nearby fans. The West Texas-New, Mexico League contest, will be delayed as the grounds crew shuts off the water, repairs the damages, and removes the puddles from the playing field.

1957       Red Schoendienst, who was unexpectedly traded to the Giants last season by Cardinals GM Frank Lane, is dealt a year and a day later by New York to Milwaukee for Ray Crone, Danny O’Connell, and Bobby Thomson. The nine-time All-Star, who hit .301 during his two partial seasons in the Big Apple, will play a vital role in the Braves’ World Championship, leading the league with 200 hits and finishing third in the NL MVP balloting.

1958       In a move that is perceived to be a prelude to a second deal with the Yankees, the A’s trade Woodie Held and Vic Power to the Indians for southpaw Dick Tomanek, utility player Preston Ward, and right fielder Roger Maris. Already under pressure for allowing Kansas City to become a farm club for the Bronx Bombers, owner Arnold Johnson is warned by American League president Will Harridge not to send the outfield slugger to New York for at least 18 months.

1958       Identical twins are split up by the Pirates when Eddie O’Brien stays with Pittsburgh, but his brother Johnny, along with third baseman Gene Freese, is traded to the Cardinals for infielder Dick Schofield. Eddie, who appeared in April for the Bucs as a defensive replacement, will finish his tenure with the team that signed him as a bonus baby in 1953 without playing another game this season.

1963       At Candlestick Park, Juan Marichal no-hits Houston, 1-0, to become the first Giants hurler since Carl Hubbell accomplished the feat in 1929 and the first since the franchise moved to San Francisco, to throw a no-no. The 25 year-old Dominican native outduels Colt .45’s right-hander Dick Drott, who tosses a complete-game three-hitter, yielding the game’s only run in the eighth inning, giving up doubles to Chuck Hiller and Jimmy Davenport. (Our thanks to Richard J. Drake, who attended the game as a nine year-old with his grandfather, for reminding us about this outstanding achievement).

1964       In a six-player transaction, Chicago deals unknown outfielder Lou Brock, who will become a fixture with the Redbirds for the next fifteen years, amassing 3,023 career hits, to St. Louis for right-hander Ernie Broglio. The trade, believed to be a steal for the Cubs, will become infamous when the former 20-game winner pitches poorly for his new team, posting a 7-19 record during his brief two and half seasons with the team, and the 24 year-old they gave up enjoys a Hall of Fame career.

1965       At Tiger Stadium, Denny McLain enters the game in the first inning in relief and strikes out the first seven batters he faces to set a major league record. The Detroit right-hander will whiff 14 batters during his 6.2 innings as a reliever in the team’s 6-5 victory over Boston.

1967       Jimmy Wynn becomes the first Astro to hit three homers in one game, becoming the first of only two Houston players to have accomplished the feat in the 34-year history of the Astrodome. In 1994, ‘Toy Cannon’s’ performance will be matched by future Hall of Fame first baseman Jeff Bagwell.

1968       The Phillies fire manager Gene Mauch and replace him with Bob Skinner, skipper of the team’s farm club in San Diego. ‘The Little General,’ best remembered for being at the helm during the club’s infamous collapse in 1964, compiled a 646-684 (.486) record during his 8+year tenure with Philadelphia.

1969       The Mets acquire Donn Clendenon from the Expos in exchange for right-hander Steve Renko, infielder Kevin Collins along with two minor league prospects. The 33 year-old first baseman, who will be named the MVP of this season’s Fall Classic, plays a pivotal role, both on the field and in the clubhouse, in the team’s world championship.

1969       En route to setting the National League record of playing in 1,117 consecutive games, Billy Williams hobbles to the plate as a pinch-hitter at Crosley Fieldafter fouling a pitch off his foot in yesterday’s contest. The appearance marks the first time “Sweet Swingin’ Billy” has not been in the starting lineup during the 878 games of the streak.

1976       In a ten-player trade between the Orioles and Yankees, both teams exchange four pitchers and a catcher. Baltimore sends moundsmen Ken Holtzman, Doyle Alexander, Jimmy Freeman, and Grant Jackson along with backstop Elrod Hendricks to New York for hurlers Tippy Martinez, Rudy May, Scott McGregor, and Dave Pagan, and catcher Rick Dempsey.

1976       Massive flooding in the Houston metropolitan area prevents the umpiring crew from reaching the Astrodome and causes the first ‘rainout’ in the enclosed ballpark’s history. The Pirates and Astros players, who had arrived early for practice, share their clubhouse meal on the field with the few die-hard fans who braved the elements hoping to see a game.

1977       The Mets deal Tom Seaver, known as the Franchise, to the Reds for pitcher Pat Zachary, second baseman Doug Flynn, and minor leaguers Steve Henderson and Dan Norman. New York also trades Dave Kingman to the Angels for Bobby Valentine and a minor league player.

1982       Red Sox reliever Jeff Reardon, pitching one scoreless inning to protect a 1-0 lead, breaks Rollie Fingers’ career save mark of 341. The Dalton, Massachusetts native, who will finish his 16-year major league tenure with 367 saves, will be surpassed as the all-time leader next season by Lee Smith.

1983       The Cardinals trade former MVP Keith Hernandez to the Mets for a pair of right-handed hurlers, Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey. The righties will compile a 21-22 record for the Redbirds, and the Gold Glove first baseman will spend seven seasons in New York, batting .297, playing an instrumental role in the club’s World Championship in 1986.

1992       The NY-Penn Minor League Erie Sailors beat the Jamestown Expos in 13 innings at College Stadium, 6-5, marking the first-ever game played by a team representing the National League’s new expansion team, the Florida Marlins. The first pitch of the franchise is thrown by John Lynch, who will leave baseball to eventually become a safety for the NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Denver Broncos.

1993       At the Kingdome, Ken Griffey, Jr. hits his 100th career home run, leading off the eighth inning against Billy Brewer in the Mariners’ 6-1 victory over the Royals, becoming the sixth-youngest player to reach the milestone. The 23 year-old future Hall of Fame outfielder was only older than Mel Ott, Tony Conigliaro, Eddie Matthews, Johnny Bench, and Hank Aaron when he hit the century mark.

1996       With runners on first and second, in the first inning of their 6-2 victory over the Braves, the Dodgers turn their first triple play in forty-seven years. After making a running back-to-the-plate grab of Chipper Jones’s popup to short left, Juan Castro throws to second baseman Delino Deshields to double up Marquis Grissom, with the ball then relayed to first baseman Eric Karos to get Mark Lemke.

1999       Brewers’ pitcher Jim Abbott, born without a right hand, gets the first hit in his 11-year career when he connects in the fourth inning for a rbi-single off Jon Lieber in the team’s 11-4 victory over the Cubs at County Stadium. The southpaw didn’t bat playing for the Angels and the Yankees due to the designated hitter rule in the American League.

1999       Baltimore first baseman Will Clark gets his 2,000th career hit, a 10th-inning single in the team’s 6-5 walk-off victory over the Royals at Camden Yards. The 35 year-old ‘Thrill’ will end his 15-year big league career next season with a .303 batting average, collecting 2,176 hits with the Giants, Rangers, Orioles, and Cardinals.

2003       Blue Jay rookie Reed Johnson becomes the fourth major leaguer to end a game with a walk-off homer after having hit a round-tripper to start the contest for his team. The 26 year-old right-fielder drilled Shawn Estes’ 3-2 pitch over the left-centerfield fence leading off in the bottom of the first frame and then ended the 4-4 stalemate with a tenth-inning solo shot off Cubs’ reliever Mark Guthrie.

2005       Joining Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Governor George Pataki, and team officials, George Steinbrenner announces plans for a new ballpark in the Bronx. The Yankee-financed $800 million facility, to be built north of the current stadium in Macombs Dam Park, will seat at least 51,800 and will mirror ‘The House that Ruth Built,’ including limestone walls and the familiar copper frieze.

2009       Matt Dermody, a Norwalk (IA) High School senior, strikes out every South Tama High batter who steps to the plate in a game shortened to six innings due to the state’s mercy rule, invoked when a team leads by ten or more runs after five frames. The 6-foot-5 recently drafted southpaw (Pirates’ 26th round) will attend the University of Iowa, playing for the Hawkeyes, before signing with the Blue Jays in 2013.

2016       “I’m not trying to take anything away from Ichiro, he’s had a Hall of Fame career, but the next thing you know, they’ll be counting his high-school hits.” – PETE ROSE, as quoted in USA Today. Ichiro Suzuki’s ninth-inning double in the Marlins’ 6-3 loss to the Padres at Petco Park raises his professional hit total to 4,257, surpassing Pete Rose’s all-time major league mark. The 42 year-old outfielder’s total includes the 1,278 hits he collected for Orix in Japan’s Pacific League.

1956 WORLD SERIES

Once again, the eyes of the baseball world were on the bright lights of New York City (for the fourth time in five years) as the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees met on familiar ground for the coveted World Series championship. The “Bronx Bombers” had bested “the Bums” in three out of the four meetings, but it was the Dodgers who had the last laugh by winning their first title off a dominant Game 7 in ’55. Things seemed to pick up right where they had left off for Games 1 and 2 as eleven different members of the Yankees pitching staff were crushed by Brooklyn’s bats. The result was a devastating 6-3 opener and an equally crippling 13-8 loss that put the defending champions up two games to none. However as sports often shows us, adversity and pride can turn a sinking ship around. Amazingly the Yankees aces rebounded for five consecutive complete-game performances from five pitchers who combined to allow the Dodgers six runs and twenty-one hits in 45 2/3 innings. In Game 3, a three-run homer by late-August acquisition Enos Slaughter and eight-hit pitching by “The Chairman” Whitey Ford had rallied the Yankees to their first victory, while Tom Sturdivant’s six-hitter and homers by both Hank Bauer and Mickey Mantle highlighted the American Leaguers’ triumph in Game 4.

Despite their back-to-back comebacks, Game 5 is the most notable Yankees performance of the ’56 Series (and perhaps one of the most notable in all of baseball). The 64,000+ fans in attendance that day could never have predicted that they were about to witness the birth of a record that would stand into the next millennium or that their ticket stubs would mature into a $2,000.00 piece of sports memorabilia. The Dodgers couldn’t have predicted the beating they were about to take either. During the first inning, the Yankees’ twenty-seven-year-old right-hander Don Larsen went to his first and only “ball three” count on Pee Wee Reese. From then on, the modest pitcher and his pinstriped teammates worked together on both sides of the plate to deliver an instant classic. In the second inning, Jackie Robinson smashed a line drive that was deflected by Yankees third baseman Andy Carey to shortstop Gil McDougald, who threw out Robinson at first. In the fouth inning, Mickey Mantle hit a low line drive into the right field seats (just inside the foul pole) giving New York the 1-0 lead. In retrospect, “home field advantage” and a little luck sometimes pays off big. If the game had been at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field, “The Mick’s” hit would have likely been off the right field screen for a mere double.

In the top of the fifth, Gil Hodges (a thirty-two home run man during the regular season) drove a pitch deep into left-center field and right into the outstretched glove of a sprinting Mantle. The spectacular effort has been christened by some as “The Catch” and has been replayed in countless highlight films throughout the years. The next batter, Sandy Amoros, almost spoiled the masterpiece with a line drive toward the right field corner but it curved foul and just missed being a home run. It was a sign of the inevitable as the Dodgers would not get any other opportunities. As the game progressed, so did the anticipation of the crowd and the superstition of the players. Most of the Yankees avoided the pitcher completely in the dugout and even the Yankees’ skipper got involved in attempting to preserve Larsen’s marvelous momentum. As the ninth inning came to a close, Larsen got a called third strike on pinch-hitter Dale Mitchell to end the game and set off a wild celebration that began with catcher Yogi Berra leaping high into his arms for one of baseball’s most photographic moments.

Brooklyn’s Clem Labine went against Bob Turley for Game 6 and had his team’s revenge with an “almost as impressive” 1-0, ten-inning shutout that ended after an Enos Slaughter error turned Robinson’s bottom-of-the-tenth drive into a game-winning single. Don Newcombe, a standout on the Dodgers’ staff and Johnny Kucks, a Yankee sophomore, matched for the decisive Game 7. Newcombe had just become the first recipient of the Cy Young Award after his twenty-seven victory season in ’56, but still had yet to dominate a single postseason outing. Nothing changed in Game 7 as the veteran was knocked for a pair of two-run homers by Berra (who hit a grand slam off him in Game 2) and a bases-empty home run by Elston Howard. Bill Skowron stepped up to the plate in the seventh and finished the job with a grand slam of his own off of Roger Craig who had replaced Newcombe in relief. Kucks returned the favor and held the defending champions to just three-hits in a 9-0 triumph that completed the revival of the New Yorkers’ pitching staff and returned the Yankees to post season glory.

No game would compare to Game 5 though and no other pitcher would even come close to Larsen’s numbers. The Yankee ace pitched another three years in New York before bouncing from team to team over the final seven seasons of a fourteen year career. He retired in 1967 with a forgettable career record of 81-91, failing again to ever approach the heights he achieved on that October afternoon in 1956. Still, he is mainly remembered for being perfect where perfection is simply not possible and his record stands to this very day.