Today in Baseball History -- June 19 -- from Mary Landers ... 1846 -- The very first organized baseball game is played between Alexander Cartwrights New York Knickerbockers and the New York Nine. The contest is proclaimed to be the very first ever game played in public using Cartwrights rules. (Our thanks to Alexander Joy Cartwright IV for sharing this historic fact.) 1903 -- In Manhattan’s East Harlem neighborhood, a baby boy weighing nearly 14-pounds becomes the second child of four born to German immigrants Heinrich and Christina Gehrig. They will name their only surviving child Lou, a future Hall of Fame first baseman, who will be lauded for his durability that results in playing 2,130 consecutive games with the Yankees, and for his courage battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a rare progressive neurodegenerative disease which will come to bear his name. 1927 -- Jack Scott becomes the last pitcher to go the distance in both ends of a doubleheader. The 35 year-old Phillies right-hander, who will compile a 9-20 record, beats Cincinnati in the opener, 3-1, but loses the night cap, 3-0, in the Redlands Field twin bill. 1941 -- Joe DiMaggio goes 3-for-3 against the White Sox to extend his consecutive game hit streak to 32. The Yankee Clippers perfect day at the plate, which includes two singles and a home run, contributes to the Bronx Bombers 7-2 victory over the Pale Hose at Yankee Stadium. 1942 -- Paul Waner singles off Pirate Rip Sewell to collect his 3,000th hit. The Braves outfielder becomes the seventh major leaguer to accomplish this feat and the first to do it since 1925. 1942 -- For the first and only time in a career that spans 1,787 contests, Joe DiMaggio strikes out three times in a game. Indians hurler Mel Harder does the deed in the Tribes 5-4 victory over the Yankees at Cleveland Stadium. 1952 -- Carl Erskine throws a no-hitter against the Cubs in the Dodgers 5-0 victory at Ebbets Field. A third inning walk to the opposing pitcher, which accounts for the only runner to reach base, may have been a result of skipper Charlie Dressen telling the 25 year-old right-hander to speed up his pitches due to an impending storm. 1961 -- Roger Maris homer leading off the ninth inning off Kansas City pitcher Jim Archer puts the Yankees up by a run, but the As will score twice in the bottom of the frame for a 4-3 victory at Municipal Stadium. The Rajahs 25th round-tripper of the season puts him seven games ahead of Babe Ruths record pace. 1963 -- In his first major league at bat, Gates Brown delivers a pinch home run in the Tigers 9-2 loss to Boston at Fenway Park. The homer will the first of 16 pinch round-trippers the Tiger outfielder will hit during his 13-year career in Detroit. 1963 -- At Yankee Stadium, the Mayors Trophy Game is revived with the cellar-dwelling Mets beating the mighty Yanks, 6-2. Prior to leaving for the West Coast, the Dodgers would play the Bronx Bombers in the annual midsummer exhibition contest to raise money for sandlot baseball teams. 1972 -- At Three Rivers Stadium, Roberto Clemente hits a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning to become the Pirates all-time RBI leader. The Pittsburgh right fielders three ribbies in the 13-3 drubbing of the Dodgers gives the future Hall of Famer a total of 1,274 runs batted in for the Bucs. 1973 -- In different games, the Reds Pete Rose and Dodger Willie Davis both collect their 2,000th career hit. The Cincinnati infielder, known as Charlie Hustle, reaches the milestone with a single against San Francisco in the Reds 4-0 victory at Candlestick Park, and the L.A. outfielder, known as 3-Dog, reaches the plateau in front of the home crowd with a two-run home run in the teams 3-0 victory over Atlanta. 1974 -- Steve Busby tosses his second no-hitter in 14 months, giving up just one walk, beating the Brewers, 2-0, in the first ever no-no thrown by a Kansas City hurler at Kauffman Stadium. Last season, the 23-year old Royals right-hander as a rookie held Detroit hitless in a 3-0 complete game victory at Tiger Stadium for the teams first no-hitter in franchise history. 1977 -- With five home runs in an 11-1 win against the Yankees, the Red Sox set a major league mark, hitting 16 round trippers in three games. The power surge at Fenway Park provides the energy needed for a three-game sweep of the Bronx Bombers. 1989 -- With the Mets 5-3 victory over the Expos, Dwight Gooden wins his 100th career game. Docs 100-37 career total at the century mark is second only to Hall of Famer Whitey Fords 100-36 start with the Yankees in 1958. 1990 -- Gary Carter breaks a National League mark when he catches his 1‚862nd career game in the Giants 4-3 loss to San Diego. The Kid surpasses Al Lopez, who had established the record for backstops in 1946. 1990 -- Don Robinson becomes the first hurler to pinch hit a home run since 1971 when he goes deep off Padres southpaw Bruce Hurst, batting for Ed Vosberg in the bottom of the fifth inning. The Giants right-hander does not stay in the Candlestick Park contest to pitch, an eventual 4-3 loss to the Friars. 1994 -- In a 3-1 victory over the Blue Jays at Detroit, the Tigers tie the Yankees major league record by homering in their 25th consecutive game. The 53-year-old record is matched in the second inning when Mickey Tettleton goes deep into the upper deck in right field. 1994 -- Wally Kaname Yonamine, three-time batting champ and former Central League MVP, becomes the first American to be inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame as a player. The Hawaiian native, who also played in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers, was the first American to join a team in Japan after World War II. 1995 -- Darryl Strawberry signs a one-year contract with the Yankees despite the fact he is under a sixty-day suspension for drug abuse. During his five seasons in the Bronx, the southpaw-swinging slugger will contribute to the teams tremendous success in the late 90s. 1996 -- Cardinals infielder Ozzie Smith, considered the best all-time defensive shortstop, announces he will retire at the end of the season. The 15-time All-Star infielder will be elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. 1996 -- In the first game played by a minor league affiliate of Tampa Bays new expansion team, the GCL Devil Rays lose to the GCL Yankees 10-1. A record crowd of 7,582 is in attendance at Al Lang Stadium to see 18-year-old right-hander Pablo Oretga throw the first pitch in franchise history. 1996 -- Copper Kings infielder Jim Kerr hits the first home run in Devil Rays history. The 21-year old former Yankees farmhand goes deep in the Buttes Pioneer League opener against Idaho Falls. 1999 -- Ted Double Duty Radcliffe becomes the oldest player to ever appear in a professional baseball game. At the of age 96 in a Northern League game, the former Negro League takes the mound for the Schaumburg Flyers and throws one pitch to Fargo-Moorhead DH Matt Faulken, before leaving the game to a standing ovation at Alexian Field. 2001 -- At Jacobs Field, Ellis Burks hits three solo home runs, beginning with one in sixth, follow by an eighth inning round-tripper, and then delivers once more in the bottom of the twelfth. The Indians DHs home run heroics prove not to be enough when Minnesota beats the Tribe, 10-9, in 12 innings. 2003 -- During a College World Series contest against Stanford, a pitch strikes Cal State Fullerton shortstop Justin Turner on the left side of his face as he attempts to bunt. Adding insult to injury, the future Mets infielder also suffers a broken ankle on the play when he unsuccessfully tries to avoid getting hit by the 87-mph fast ball thrown by Matt Manship. 2003 -- Reds hurler Paul Wilson, who is trying to lay down a sacrifice bunt, takes exception to a pitch that moves inside and glances off the catchers glove of the catcher. As the ball is retrieved he starts jawing with Kyle Farnsworth and then charges the mound, where he is pummeled by the Cubs reliever igniting a bench-clearing brawl. 2007 -- On the bus ride to Shea Stadium to take on the Mets in an inter-league contest, Twins color commentator Bert Blyleven says he will have his head shaved if the tonights starter, Johan Santana, throws a complete-game shutout. The left-hander from Venezuela will shave the broadcasters head after going the distance in Minnesotas 9-0 victory over New Yorks National League team. 2008 -- John McLaren is fired as the manager by the Mariners after getting off to a 25-47 start in a season which began with playoff potential. Jim Riggleman, the teams bench coach, becomes the club’s fifth manager in the past six seasons. 2008 -- The Braves set a major league mark when they drop their record 22nd straight one-run decision on the road when Texas rallies for a 5-4 victory at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The previous record of 21 was established by the Royals during a stretch spanning over the 2000-01 seasons. 2008 -- In his first minor league appearance, 22-year old Staten Island Yankee ambidextrous hurler Pat Venditte Jr., facing the Brooklyn Cyclones at KeySpan Park in Coney Island, pitches a scoreless ninth inning that includes striking out a very frustrated Ralph Henriquez to end the game. The unhappy switch-hitter, after delaying the game to adjust his shin guard each time he changed batter boxes to gain the advantage of the pitcher throwing with both hands, is told by the umpiring crew he must first select from which side of the plate he intended to hit, and that the pitcher would then be allowed to declare with which arm he would pitch. 2010 -- The Pirates fire one of the mascots who participates in the in-game pierogi race, due to the criticism of the teams upper management posted on his Facebook page. The 24-year old, who will be reinstated by Pittsburgh, is offered a position by the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League, an independent baseball organization, to become one of its racing hot dogs. 2011 -- After less than one season in the dugout, Edwin Rodriguez unexpectedly resigns as the manager of the struggling last-place Marlins, who have dropped 17 of 18 contests this month. During his brief tenure with Florida, the first Puerto Rican-born manager in major league history compiled a 78-86 record with the team. 2013 -- Mark Appel, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 first-year player draft, is introduced by the Astros at a Minute Maid Park press conference. The Stanford right-hander, a Houston native and a fan of the team growing up, will receive a $6.35 million signing bonus, which is significantly less than the assigned slot value of $7.8 million.
Posted on: Thu, 19 Jun 2014 18:31:58 +0000
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