Free of charge for the discerning reader.
Happy birthday to Ryne Sandberg*, and a mighty host of others.
Today in baseball history, in 1909 – Before 35,409, the largest paid baseball attendance ever, Charles Bender beats Bill Donovan and the Tigers, 2 – 0, at Philadelphia. Ty Cobb is the Triple Crown winner with a .377 BA, 9 home runs (all inside-the-park), and 107 RBI. He also will lead the American League with 216 hits, 116 runs, and 296 total bases. His 76 stolen bases make him the only player ever to win a “quadruple crown”, and other stories as well.
Today in baseball history:
- 1908 – The largest crowd in the history of the National League – 35,000 – cheer as the Giants shove the Pirates to five games off the pace by sweeping a doubleheader. Christy Mathewson shuts out the Bucs in the first game, 7-0, for his 11th shutout and his 33rd win. Then the Giants collect 18 hits to take the nitecap, 12-7, as Hooks Wiltse and Joe McGinnity combine for the win. The other hitting occurs in the first game when Mike Donlin tires of a heckler and punches him in the eye. Police quickly move in.
- 1922 – George Sisler‘s 41-game hitting streak is stopped by New York’s Joe Bush, the same pitcher he had started the streak against on July 27th.
- 1931 – Lefty Grove wins his 30th game, beating the White Sox, 3-1, on five hits. He is the first to win 30 since Jim Bagby of Cleveland in 1920 and will be the last American League hurler to do so until Denny McLain in 1968.
- 1937 – Pittsburgh OF Paul Waner establishes a 20th-century National League record with his eighth year of 200 or more hits.
- 1950 – At Ebbets Field, the Dodgers’ Tommy Brown hits three home runs in his team’s losing effort. He is the third Dodger this year to clout three homers in one game. The Cubs’ Ron Northey hits his third lifetime pinch grand slam – a record – to give Chicago a 9-7 win.
- 1976 – In his last major league at-bat, future Hall of Fame Cleveland player-manager Frank Robinson strokes a pinch-hit single against the Orioles.
- 1986 – For the second time in his career, Reggie Jackson belts three homers in a game in an 18-3 Angels laugher over Kansas City. At the age of 40 years, four months, Reggie joins Stan Musial and Babe Ruth as the only players to accomplish the feat after turning 40. Reggie scores four times and has seven RBIs.
- 1992 – Pittsburgh’s Barry Bonds hits his 30th home run of the season off Philadelphia’s Terry Mulholland in the Pirates’ 5 – 2 win over the Phillies. Bonds thus becomes the fifth player in history to have a pair of 30-HR, 30-stolen bases seasons. The others include his father, Willie Mays, Howard Johnson, and Ron Gant.
- 1998 – Frank Thomas notches his 100th RBI – the eighth straight year he’s reached that level – by clouting a two-run home run in Chicago’s 11-9 win over Boston. Thomas’s home run is one of seven in the game in which 32 hits are registered.
- 2025 – All-time pitching legend Clayton Kershaw, who in July became just the 20th pitcher to record 3,000 strikeouts, announces that he will retire following the season after 18 years in the majors, all with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Today in Cubs history:
- 1903 – The Cubs beat the Phils, 6-5, in the first game of a twinbill. In the second game, Chick Fraser no-hits Chicago, 10-0, for the Phils. Peaches Graham, normally a catcher, is the loser in his only major league decision, while Fraser K’s five and walks four.
- 1928 – The Braves and Cubs combine for National League-record eight double plays between them, but the Cubs win the game, 8-3. Sheriff Blake is the winner over Johnny Cooney.
- 1935 – With 30,000 fans watching at Wrigley Field, first-place Chicago tallies 20 hits in thrashing the Giants, 15-3. Charlie Root picks up the win, Chicago’s 15th straight.
- 1960 – Don Zimmer, Ron Santo, and George Altman hit 6th-inning home runs as the Cubs beat the Dodgers, 5-2, at Wrigley Field. Chicago’s biggest home run threat, Ernie Banks, sets a record by drawing his 27th intentional walk of the year.
- 1965 – Larry Jackson of the Cubs beats the Mets, 4-3, for his 11th straight win over New York.
- 1970 – The Cubs sweep a pair from Montreal, winning 3-2 and 5-4. Fergie Jenkins wins his 20th in the opener, helped by Billy Williams‘ 40th homer of the year. Phil Regan is the victor in the nitecap.
- 1977 – After losing five of his last six decisions, Chicago’s Rick Reuschel notches his 20th victory, beating the Mets, 6-5. Reuschel leaves after six innings because of a blister, but racks up two hits and three ribbies at the plate.
- 1999 – Slammin’ Sammy Sosa becomes the first player in major league history to hit 60 homers twice. The Cub outfielder hits his milestone round-tripper off Brewer hurler Jason Bere.
Cubs Birthdays: Brent Lillibridge, Jody Gerut, Ozzie Timmons, Ryne Sandberg HOF*, Ed Hanyzewski, Paul Gillespie, Bob Collins.
Today in history:
- 1793 – US President George Washington lays the cornerstone of the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.
- 1812 – Great Fire of Moscow burns out after five days, destroys 75% of the city and kills 12,000 people.
- 1837 – Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B. Young co-found a “stationery and fancy goods emporium” in New York City, renamed in 1853 as “Tiffany & Co.”
- 1899 – Scott Joplin is granted copyright for his “Maple Leaf Rag,” the most famous ragtime composition, by the US Copyright Office.
- 1946 – Joe Louis KOs Tami Mauriello in the first round for the heavyweight boxing title.
- 1947 – Central Intelligence Agency officially comes into existence after being established by President Truman in July.
- 1971 – Momofuku Ando markets the first Cup Noodles, packaging them in a waterproof polystyrene container.
- 1975 – American publishing heiress-turned-bank robber Patty Hearst captured by FBI in San Francisco, California.
*pictured.
Espace publicitaire · 300×250
