This Day In Baseball History

[ShepCock]

This thread continues a series that I had started on my previous site regarding the history of baseball (mainly MLB, but with a few other significant non-MLB events sprinkled in).
 
It should be noted that I filter a lot of these down to the ones I find most interesting, and hopefully you agree.
 
Therefore, pending any responses this thread will be exactly 366 posts long!

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 9th
 
1971 - Satchel Paige becomes the first Negro League star to be selected to the Hall of Fame. The right-hander, the oldest player in the majors to make his big league debut, became a legend during his professional career, which lasted from the 1920s until 1965, playing in several different Negro Leagues and with the Indians, Browns, and A's.
 
1976 - The Hall of Fame Special Committee on the Negro Leagues selects Oscar Charleston, considered by baseball historian Bill James to be the fourth best ball player of all time. The outfielder made The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players and was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.
 
1980 - The late Yankee catcher Thurman Munson is inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame of Kent State University. The young college outfielder was taught to play backstop by Hal Schoonover, a coach and benefactor of the Golden Flashes baseball program.
 
2009 - Two days after the story breaks on SI.com, Alex Rodriguez admits to and then apologizes for his use of performance-enhancing drugs when he played shortstop for the Rangers from 2001 to 2003. In an exclusive interview conducted on ESPN, the Yankees superstar acknowledges using performance-enhancing drugs hoping to fulfill the expectations after signing a record 10-year, $252 million contract with Texas.
 
2010 - Greg Gagne is selected to be the twenty-second member of the Twins Hall of Fame. During his ten-year tenure with the team, which included the World Championship seasons of 1987 and 1991, the light-hitting shortstop was best known for his defensive prowess, but he will also be remembered for hitting two inside-the-park home runs in the same game in 1986.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 10th
 
1920 - The spitball, shineball, and emeryball are outlawed by the American and National League Joint Rules Committee. Seventeen pitchers, including Burleigh Grimes, who will be the last player to legally throw a doctored pitch, are allowed to keep throwing the banned pitches until they retired.
 
1971 - The Yankees announced Bill White will join Phil Rizzuto and Frank Messer on the WPIX broadcast team becoming the first black to do play-by-play regularly for a major-league baseball team. The former All-Star first baseman will stay in the booth for 18 seasons, leaving in 1989 to served as president of the National League.
 
1982 - The Mets agree to a $10 million, five-year deal with George Foster completing the trade with the Reds which sent Jim Kern, Greg Harris and Alex Trevino to Cincinnati. During his four-and-half year tenure with team, the perennial all-star outfielder proves to be a major offensive disappointment, and will be released outright during the 1986 season after he accuses the club of racism for benching him in favor of Kevin Mitchell, a fellow African-American.
 
2000 - After receiving a ‘hometown’ discount, the Reds trade pitchers Brett Tomko and Jake Meyer, center fielder Mike Cameron, and infielder Antonio Perez to the Mariners in exchange for the services of Ken Griffey, Jr. Cincinnati signs the 30-year old superstar outfielder to the richest package in baseball history, but the nine-year deal worth $116.5 million is considered quite a bargain in the current market.
 
2005 - Curt Schilling donates the blood-stained sock he wore in Game 2 of the World Series to the Hall of Fame. The sock presently is part of a Red Sox memorabilia tour which also includes Derek Lowe's Game 4 jersey, Series MVP Manny Ramirez ‘s bat used to tie a postseason record with a 17-game hitting streak, and Keith Foulke’s spikes worn as he threw the ball for the final out as well as the ball itself on loan from Doug Mientkiewicz.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 11th
 
1974 - The first arbitration ruling in baseball history is decided in favor of Twins' hurler Dick Woodson. The right-hander, the first player to invoke the new free agency clause, is awarded the $29,000 he asked for rather than having to take Minnesota's offer which was $6 thousand less.
 
1977 - The Cubs trade two-time NL batting champ Bill Madlock along with Rod Sperring to the Giants for Bobby Murcer, Steve Ontiveros and a minor leaguer. During the 1979 season, San Francisco will trade the fiercely competitive 'Mad Dog' to the Pirates where he play a major role in the team's world championship that season, and will win two more batting crowns during his seven-year tenure in Pittsburgh.
 
1982 - Two months after the trade was announced, the Ozzie Smith deal for Gary Templeton is finalized. An outside arbitrator will determine 'the Wizard of Oz's' Cardinal salary.
 
1985 - Kent Hrbek signs a new contract making him the Twins' first million dollar player. The Minnesota first baseman was the runner-up for the American League Most Valuable Player last season after batting .311 along with 27 homers and 107 RBIs for the second-place club.
 
1987 - After refusing the Mets' $800,000 one-year offer, World Series MVP Ray Knight signs with the Orioles for $475,000 plus incentives and an option for an additional year.
 
1997 - General Mills, the makers of Wheaties, unveils three new Jackie Robinson cereal boxes to be sold in stores nationwide. Robinson will be the first athlete to be honored on all three varieties of Wheaties; Original Wheaties, Honey Frosted Wheaties, and Crispy Wheaties 'n' Raisins.
 
2001 - As thousands cheer, Three Rivers Stadium, 30-year-old home of the Pirates, is imploded. Roberto Clemente's 3,000th hit as well as Mike Schmidt's 500th career home run are part of the historic park's legacy.
 

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 12th
 
1878 - After designing the device last season to protect his team's promising catcher James Tyng, Fredrick Thayer receives a patent for his innovative invention, the catcher's mask. The Harvard captain, who will never play in a major league game, uses an oblong wire frame that supports a series of strategically-placed pads made from animal skins.
 
1924 - The National League announces it will join the AL in awarding a thousand dollars to the player selected by writers as the league's Most Valuable Player. Dazzy Vance, who posts a 28-6 record along with an ERA of 2.16 for the Dodgers, easily outpoints Rogers Hornsby to become the Senior Circuit's first MVP.
 
1942 - Former Texarkana outfielder Gordon Houston is the first professional ballplayer to be killed in WW II. The minor league batting champion, who became a full-time fighter pilot following the attack on Pearl Harbor, dies at the age of 25 when his Republic P-43 Lancer crashes at Washington's McChord Field, after leading a sortie along the West Coast, looking for Japanese submarines.
 
1980 - Charlie Finley's plan to sell his A's to oil man Marv Davis is thwarted when the American League offers to buy out the Oakland Coliseum lease. Davis had hoped to move the franchise to Denver.
 
2002 - For the first time in its history, Major League Baseball will own a team after acquiring the Expos from Jeffrey Loria. The former Montreal owner sells the Expos for $120 million, then buys the Florida Marlins for $158.5 million with the difference being made up with a loan from major league baseball.
 
2003 - Federal Judge James Holderman has given the Cubs and the owners of rooftop bleachers which provide fans a view of Wrigley Field a year to settle their dispute. The team believes the seating provided above the field via rooftops directly compete with the club for ticket sales revenue and the surrounding neighbors, in turn, have not been sympathetic to team's expansion plans.
 
2007 - The Major League Baseball Players Association asks 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider its 2-1 decision which would allow the names and urine samples of more than 100 players who tested positive for performance enhancing drugs to be made available to authorities investigating the use of steroids in baseball. The 1993 samples were collected by MLB in an effort to gauge the prevalence of steroid use with players and owners agreeing the results would be confidential.
 
2007 - After a year of negotiations, an agreement is reached on the sale of the Braves from Time Warner to Liberty Media. Seventy percent the owners must approve the deal which includes the retention of general manager John Schuerholz and manager Bobby Cox.
 
2009 - Three days after Alex Rodriguez apologizes for using steroids, commisioner Bud Selig chastises the Yankee superstar, and all the other players who used such substances, for bringing shame to the game. The third baseman's apology followed a SI.com report that he was one of 104 players who tested positive in tests taken in 2003 to determine the extent of steroid use in the national pastime.
 
2009 - Jose Offerman, a former All-Star major league infielder with the Red Sox and Dodgers, is sued by John Nathans for his bat-wielding attack at a minor league game in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Bluefish catcher is seeking $4.8 million in damages against the Long Island Ducks player claiming the 2007 incident left him with career-ending injuries which include inner ear damage, vertigo, headaches and post-concussion syndrome.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 13th
 
1935 - Former major league journeyman Gus Dugas, a French-Canadian obtained from by the Montreal Royals from Albany of the International League in November, signs his contract while visiting relatives in his native province of Quebec. The contract is totally written in French, a first in the history of professional baseball.
 
1953 - In honor of their longtime owner and manager, the A's rename their Philadelphia ballpark from Shibe Park to Connie Mack Stadium. During his 50-year tenure as Athletics skipper, the 'Tall Tactician' guided the team to nine American League pennants and appeared in eight World Series, winning five of the Fall Classics.
 
1964 - At the age of twenty-two, Cubs' second baseman Ken Hubbs dies when the red and white Cessna 172 plane he is piloting crashes in Provo, Utah during a winter storm. The 1962 National League Rookie of the Year took flying lessons in the past two off-seasons, obtaining his license last month, to overcome his fear of flying.
 
1987 - Jack Morris is awarded the highest salary ever given to a pitcher by arbitration when the Tigers must pay the hurler $1.85 million for his services next season. The 31-year old right-hander will not disappoint posting an 18-11 record along with an ERA of 3.38 for the AL East Division champions.
 
1995 - The Dodgers sign five-time Japanese all-star pitcher, Hideo Nomo. 'Tornado Boy' is the first player to move directly from the majors in Japan to the North American majors.
 
2002 - The Red Sox sign 43-year-old Rickey Henderson to a minor-league contract. Last season with the Padres, the future Hall of Famer got his 3000th career hit and broke the all-time records for walks and runs.
 
2005 - After 19 years at shortstop for the Reds, Barry Larkin, announces his retirement as an active player, to become special assistant to Nationals' general manager Jim Bowden. The 40-year-old former Gold Glove infielder spent his entire career in Cincinnati, his hometown.
 
2008 - In a much anticipated congressional hearing, Roger Clemens and his former personal trainer, Brian McNamee, testify for 4-1/2 hours concerning the allegations of the Rocket's use of performance-enhancing drugs. Although no definitive conclusions are reached, Republicans appear to believe the seven-time Cy Young Award winner while Democrats seem to favor his chief accuser's account of events.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 14th
 
1887 - For a record price of $10,000, the Cubs, then known as the White Stockings, sell future current NL batting champ and future Hall of Famer Mike Kelly to the Beaneaters. The popular box office draw, who will earn his nickname King while playing in Boston, will continue to be productive hitting .311 for a three-year span during his first tenure with the team.
 
1928 - The American Legion baseball program, on the brink of bankruptcy, receives a pledge of $50,000 from Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis and the MLB Advisory Council to continue its development a national championship program for teenagers. With the much-needed funding, Legion Baseball will continue in 1928, and the following season, teams from every state and the District of Columbia will participate in the youth tournament.
 
1934 - After playing 19 years with the Senators, Sam Rice ends his career playing one season with the Indians. He will amass 2,987 career hits in his two decades as a player.

 
1957 - Ten years after the integration of major league baseball, the Georgia Senate unanimously approves a bill which prohibits blacks from playing baseball with whites except at religious gatherings. Less than a decade later, the Braves will move its franchise from Milwaukee to Atlanta, the state's capital.
 
1996 - Kevin McClatchy and his group of investors purchase the Pirates from the Pittsburgh Associates. The deal includes the condition of having to build a baseball-only ballpark in Pittsburgh within five years.
 
2001 - According to the Detroit Free Press major league baseball is informing umpires to remove pitchers from the game, without warning, who deliberately throw a beanball at a batter's head. The crackdown, according to officials, is a clarification and reinforcement of an existing rule.
 
2002 - The Tigers sign Dmitri Young (.302, 21, 69) to a four-year contract with two team options. The Tigers traded outfielder Juan Encarnacion (.242, 12, 52) and minor league right hander Luis Pineda in December to acquire the first baseman/outfielder from the Reds.
 
2003 - After much speculation, the Chunichi Dragons return Kevin Millar to the Marlins for an undisclosed amount of money for relinquishing its rights. After reconsidering an offer from the Red Sox, the outfielder had a change of heart and didn't want to play for the Japanese Central League team.
 
2005 - The Twins sign Johan Santana (20-6, 2.61), who was eligible for arbitration, to a four-year deal. Last season, the 25-year-old southpaw became the first Venezuelan to win the Cy Young Award.
 
2007 - For first time at Wrigley Field, the Cubs will allow ads on the green doors which are located in the ivy in the left- and right-field bleachers according to Jay Blunk, director of marketing and sales. Although the team has been approached by other companies, Under Armour, whose company spokesman is newly acquired outfielder Alfonso Soriano, is the "right fit" for the 7-by-12 foot signage featuring the performance apparel’s signature logo.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 15th
 
1931 - The Yankees rename their spring training site in St. Petersburg Miller Huggins Field in honor of their late manager.
 
1934 - Radio broadcast rights are granted to Boston, Chicago, Detroit and Cincinnati.
 
1946 - Hank Greenberg signs a Tiger contract for $60,000. Three days later he will marry New York department store heiress, Coral Gimbel.
 
1973 - In a national poll, Phillies' southpaw Steve Carlton beats out golf legend Jack Nicklaus to win the $15,000 diamond-studded gold buckled Hickok Belt, an award given to the top "Professional Athlete of the Year". Last season's National League Cy Young Award winner joins an elite list of a previous recipients that include Willie Mays, Sandy Koufax, Jim Brown, Rocky Marciano, and Arnold Palmer.
 
1990 - A thirty-two day lockout begins as major league owners refuse to open spring training camp without reaching a new Basic Agreement with the players. The season will be delayed one week due to the lock-out.
 
2003 - After the Dragons released him for an undisclosed payment, the Red Sox acquire Kevin Millar (.306, 16, 57) from the Marlins. The 31-year-old first baseman-outfielder, who had originally agreed to a two-year, $6.2 million deal to play in Japan, had a change of heart after at first rejecting Boston's waiver claim for him made in January .
 
2006 - According to Adam Katz, Sammy Sosa's agent, the 37-year old slugger will probably retire eleven homers shy of becoming the fifth major leaguer to hit 600 round-trippers. Earlier, the Dominican outfielder rejected a non-guaranteed contract from the Nationals that included performance bonuses.
 
2011 - Stan Musial receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom, an award in which the honorees are selected by the sitting president, from Barack Obama. The Cardinals' legend, who benefitted from local grass-root efforts on his behalf, joins major leaguers Hank Aaron, Moe Berg, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente and Ted Williams, as a recipient of the most prestigious honor given to a United States civilian.
 

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 16th
 
1924 - Boston Braves' third baseman Tony Boeckel becomes the first major leaguer to be killed in an automobile accident when he dies from injuries received as a passenger yesterday in San Diego. Yankee outfielder Bob Meusel, also a passenger of the car driven by L.A. theater man Bob Albright, escapes without any serious injuries.
 
1950 - The BBWAA does select any players for the Hall of Fame this season with former Giants Mel Ott (69%) and Bill Terry (63%) being the top vote getters, but falling short on being named on 75% of the writers' ballots that is required for induction. 'Master Mel' will get the nod next season, and 'Memphis Bill' will be enshrined in 1954.
 
1952 - After 39 years in the major leagues, 21 as a player with the Colonels and Pirates and 18 years as coach with Pittsburgh, Hall of Fame shortstop Honus Wagner retires. The 'Flying Dutchman' won eight batting titles, the most in National League history until tied by Tony Gwynn in 1997, and he also led the league in stolen bases for five seasons.
 
1953 - Brooklyn, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia participate in a four-way trade that sends five players to new clubs. Joe Adcock (Reds) and Jim Pendleton (Dodgers) will now play for the Braves, Earl Torgeson (Braves) goes to the Phillies, Rocky Bridges (Dodgers) is now a Red, with Russ Meyer (Phillies) joining the Dodgers.
 
1967 - Red Ruffing, the former Yankee pitcher who authored 273 major league wins, is selected to be in the the Hall of Fame by getting the most votes on the second ballot made necessary as a result of the BBWAA failing to choose a player in January. Former Cardinal outfielder Joe Medwick also received 75% of the writer's votes that is necessary for election, but under the rules votes of the special run-off election only the top vote-getter gets the nod.
 
1996 - General Mills announces a special edition of a Wheaties cereal box honoring the 75th Commemorative Year of the Negro Leagues that will feature superstars Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson and 'Cool Papa' Bell. In 1934, Yankee first baseman Lou Gehrig became the first athlete depicted on a box of the Breakfast of Champions.
 
2003 - Although banned by major league baseball for a Cooperstown induction, Pete Rose becomes a member of the Ted Williams Hitters Hall of Fame. 'Charlie Hustle' joins 1998 inductee Shoeless Joe Jackson, who is also banned from becoming a member of the Hall of Fame.
 
2004 - After leaving the team in 2007 to join Texas as a free agent, Doug Glanville returns to Philadelphia when he signs a one-year contract with the team. The 31-year old outfielder, who will retire at the end of the season after compiling a lifetime batting average of .277 during his nine-year tenure in the major leagues, leaves with a 293-game errorless streak intact.
 
2004 - The Rangers trade Alex Rodriguez along with cash to the Yankees in exchange for Alfonso Soriano and a player to be named later, Joaquin Arias. The deal comes on the heels of the Red Sox's inability to land the AL MVP in a swap with Texas for Manny Ramirez due to the players' association's objection because of the need to restructure A-Rod's existing contract as a result of the tentative transaction.
 
2007 - Baseball’s Playing Rules Committee approves several changes making it the first time since 1996 that the rules of the game have been altered. A ten game suspension for a player who scuffs a baseball, elimination of tie games which must be halted (after the fifth inning) due to weather by resuming the game before the next scheduled start at the same ballpark, players may no longer go into a dugout to make a catch, and allowing pitchers to wear undistracting multicolored gloves are among new rules which will start this season.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 17th
 
1891 - The American Association withdraws from the National Agreement thus starting a war with the National League. The AA moves its Chicago team to Cincinnati to compete with the NL team.
 
1900 - In lieu of unpaid alimony, Mary H. VonDerbeck becomes the owner of the American League franchise in Detroit. Her ex-husband will later regain control of the team.
 
1937 - The Yankees purchase Red Sox first baseman Babe Dahlgren, the player who replaces Lou Gehrig. During his 4-year tenure with the Bronx Bombers, the California native will compile a .248 batting average before being bought by the Braves prior to the 1941 season.
 
1943 - Without notifying the team, Joe DiMaggio enlists in the United States Army Air Forces and will not play for the Yankees again until 1946. Although the Bronx Bomber outfielder asked for no special treatment, he will spend most of his time out of harm's way playing baseball in America.
 
1964 - White Sox shortstop Luke Appling is elected to the Hall of Fame. 'Old Aches and Pains' holds the single-season highest average for his position hitting .388 in 1936.
 
1976 - Future National League Cy Young Award winner Mike Scott of Pepperdine pitches a perfect game for Pepperdine against California Lutheran University. The right-hander, who will throw a no-hitter as a major leaguer for the Astros, will be selected by the Mets in the second round in the June draft.
 
1987 - Yankee first baseman Don Mattingly wins his $1.975 arbitration case breaking the record for the largest amount ever awarded to a player set by Jack Morris just four days ago.
 
1995 - Unwilling to be part of an inferior product placed on the field and as a show of support for his players, Tigers skipper Sparky Anderson is suspended without pay when he refuses to manage replacement players in spring training during the 1995 work stoppage. The popular pilot will resume his duties when the strike is resolved, but will 'retire', some believe not voluntarily, at the end of the season.
 
2003 - After his body temperature soars to 108 degrees

Orioles pitching prospect Steve Belcher dies of multi-organ failure following a spring training workout in Fort Lauderdale. Early speculation is the 23-year old expectant father's death may have been caused by ephedrine, the dietary supplement linked to heatstroke and heart attacks.
 
2006 - White Sox skipper Ozzie Guillen issues an apology for his comments published in Sports Illustrated criticizing Alex Rodriguez’s indecision concerning which country the Yankee All-star would represent in the World Baseball Classic. A-Rod, who was born in the United States, thought at first he would play for the Dominican Republic due to his parents’ heritage, then decided he was not going to play at all before choosing to play for Team USA.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 18th
 
1943 - New York entrepreneur William D. Cox purchases the bankrupt Phillies from the National League. The 33 year-old new owner will be banned from baseball in November by commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis when he admits to making some "sentimental" bets on his team during the season.
 
1944 - After getting permission from his parents and high school principal, 15-year old Joe Nuxhall, a Hamilton, Ohio native, signs a contract with the Reds a day after playing in a high school basketball game. The not so old "Ol' Left-hander" will become the youngest player ever to appear in a major league game, tossing 2/3 of an inning for Cincinnati in June, 49 days before his sixteenth birthday.
 
1954 - In their first major trade since moving from St. Louis, the Orioles, formerly known as the Browns, exchange outfielders with the Senators sending Roy Sievers to Washington for Gil Conan. Sievers will spend five solid seasons in the nation’s capital, making the All-Star squad twice, and Conan playing less than two seasons in Baltimore, compiles a .266 batting average with three home runs appearing in 155 games.
 
1960 - Walter O'Malley completes the purchase of land just north of downtown Los Angeles as the site of a new ballpark for his transplanted Brooklyn club. The Dodger owner paid a reported $494,000 for the property at Chavez Ravine, believed to be worth $92,000 at the time.
 
1967 - During a special softball exhibition game, pitcher Eddie Feigner strikes out six consecutive major leaguers, a group that includes five future Hall of Famers. The victims include Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Brooks Robinson, Harmon Killebrew, Roberto Clemente and Maury Wills.
 
1998 - Long time baseball announcer Harry Caray dies at the age of 84 after suffering a heart attack four days earlier while having Valentine’s Day dinner with his wife, Dutchie. The colorful "Mayor of Rush Street" started his career in 1945 with the Cardinals and also did play-by-play for the A’s, White Sox, and the Cubs during his 52 years in the broadcast booth.
 
2005 - After five months of captivity in a Venezuelan jungle surrounded by explosives to keep her from escaping, Ugueth Urbina’s mother, Maura Villarreal, is rescued during a daring eight-hour police raid. The kidnappers had demanded $6 million ransom from the Tigers’ relief pitcher for his mom’s freedom.
 
2009 - After considering to play for Atlanta, a location which is closer to his family, Ken Griffey Jr. agrees to a one-year deal with the Seattle Mariners. The 39-year old outfielder joins a list of superstars, Babe Ruth (Boston), Willie Mays (New York), and Hank Aaron (Milwaukee), to choose the city where they played with their first team as the place to end their major league career.
 
2009 - At 11:25 a.m., the last remaining piece of Shea Stadium, the ramp to section 5, is demolished marking the end of the New York ballpark where the Mets played for 44 years. The space will become a parking lot for the team’s new home, the $800-million Citi Field, which will open in April.
 
2011 - In the first game of the season, Garrett Wittels goes 0-for-4 against Southeastern Louisiana, leaving the Florida International University junior two games short of Robin Ventura's Division l record of hitting in 58 consecutive games established by the former major leaguer in 1987. The overall NCAA mark is 60 straight games set by Damian Costantino playing for Division III Salve Regina from 2001-03.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 19th
 
1935 - Lou Gehrig signs a one-year deal with the Yankees for $30,000. Last season, the All-star first baseman hit .363 with 49 homers and led the American League with 165 RBIs.
 
1946 - Danny Gardella becomes the first major league player to jump to the Mexican League. The outfielder goes south of the border lured by a salary of $10,000, more than double the amount offered by the Giants.
 
1953 - After being hit by enemy fire during a Korean combat mission, Ted Williams safely crash lands his Pather jet.
 
1970 - Effective April 1st, Tiger pitcher Denny McLain is suspended for three months by Commissioner Kuhn for his alleged connection with bookmakers.
 
1983 - Fernando Valenzuela becomes the first player to be awarded $1,000,000 via the arbitration process. The 22-year old Mexican southpaw has compiled a career record of 34-20 during his three years with the Dodgers.
 
1987 - After signing a contract as a free agent with the A's less than a month ago, Vida Blue unexpectedly retires from baseball.
 
2002 - The 37-year-old Jose Canseco (.258, 16, 49) signs a minor league contract with the lame duck Expos. The 17-year veteran, who was the 1985 American League Rookie of the Year in 1985 and its 1986 MVP, is 38 homers shy of the coveted 500 mark.
 
2012 - At the Bell Centre, Canadiens mascot Youppi! wears his jersey with the Expos colors in place of his usual leu-blanc-rouge (blue, white, and red) to honor the memory of former major league catcher Gary Carter, who died this week as the result of a brain tumor. The 57 year-old Hall of Famer, the only player enshrined as an Expo, and Youppi! played key roles for the National League team before the franchise left Montreal to move to Washington, D.C. in 1995.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 20th
 
1929 - The Red Sox announce the team will play its newly allowed Sunday games at Braves Field. Fenway Park is considered too close to a church.
 
1953 - Pledging not to move the team from St. Louis, beer baron August A. Busch convinces the Board of Directors of Anheuser-Busch to purchase the Cardinals for $3.75 million.
 
1963 - After leading the Giants to the pennant the previous season, Willie Mays becomes the highest paid player signing a $100,000 contract.
 
1963 - The Cubs officially put an end to their radical approach in using multiple field bosses during the course of the season when they hire Bob Kennedy as their only manager. With the "College of Coaches" system disbanded, the club will post an 82-80 record under their lone skipper.
 
1980 - The era of 'Billy Ball' begins in Oakland when Billy Martin is hired as the manager of the A's for $125,000. During his three-year tenure in the dugout, the fiery skipper will compile a 215-218 record and will win a division title as the first half leader in the AL West of the 1981 strike-shortened season.
 
2008 - "My, oh my”, Mariners broadcaster Dave Niehaus is going into the Baseball Hall of Fame on his 73rd birthday.
 
2009 - Baltimore inks Brian Roberts to a four-year contract extension reported to be worth $40 million. Along with Nick Markakis, who recently signed a six-year, $66 million deal, the 31-year-old talented second basemen becomes the second home-grown Oriole player within a month to agree to a long term deal to stay with the last-place club.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 21st
 
1945 - Due to wartime travel restrictions, baseball decides to cancel the All-Star game. It is the only time the Midsummer Classic will not be played since the game's inception in 1933.
 
1966 - Emmett Ashford becomes the first black to be a major league umpire when he is hired by the American League. 'Ash', known for his flashy style in the PCL, will spend five years in the bigs, working the 1967 All-Star game and the 1970 World Series, before reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.
 
1968 - The first-ever collective basic agreement is signed by the players and owners. The CBA increases the minimum salary to $10,000 and introduces a formal grievance procedure.
 
1974 - Tom Seaver becomes the highest-paid pitcher in baseball history when he signs a contract for $172,000 per season to hurl for the Mets. 'Tom Terrrific' has posted a 135-76 record during his seven years in New York.
 
1986 - In defiance of the Reds' policy, Rollie Fingers refuses to cut off his trademark handlebar mustache and retires from baseball. The future Hall of Fame reliever, who leaves the game with 341 saves, had been offered a contract by Cincinnati's skipper Pete Rose after being released by the Brewers at the end of last season
 
1989 - Reds manager Pete Rose meets with Commissioner Peter Ueberroth and Commissioner-elect Bart Giamatti to explain the allegations concerning his gambling habits. Major League Major League Baseball will launch a full investigation into the matter next month which will lead to “Charlie Hustle’s” permanent ban from the game in August.
 
2000 - Denying the acquisition of Ken Griffey, Jr. as the reason, the Reds announce the team has dropped its ban on earrings. Players have worn them in the clubhouse, but weren't allowed on the field with them.
 

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 22nd
 
1880 - George Wright signs a contract with the Boston Red Caps which he states allows him not to travel with the team on western road trips, but just participate in games played in New England and Troy. The arrangement will allow the shortstop to devote more time to his sporting goods business.
 
1889 - Italy's King Humbert is among the fans who witness the Chicagos beat the All-Americans, 3-2, outside of Rome at the Villia Borghesi. Originally billed as the Spalding’s Australian Baseball Tour is expanded to include contests in Europe much to the surprise of the captive players aboard ship en route to the Land Down Under.
 
1936 - As part of the Washington, D.C. Sesquicentennial celebration, Senator legend Walter Johnson throws a baseball to the far side of the Rapahannock River. The event is designed to duplicate George Washington's alleged toss of a silver dollar across the Potomac River.
 
1938 - After college, Texas Christian football All-American Sammy Baugh signs a contract with the Cardinals. 'Slingin' Sammy', who will experience little playing time as a backup to starting shortstop Marty Marion, will leave the minor leagues to become the quarterback for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League.
 
2005 - Tom Umberg, a California state assemblyman, introduces legislation which would require pro franchises to use disclaimers if they do not play the majority of home games in the location used in their name. With his`Truth in Sports Advertising Act', the Anaheim Democrat is trying prevent the local team from changing its name to Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
 
2006 - The Dodgers announce the team has extended the contract of Vin Scully through 2008. The Hall of Fame broadcaster, considered by many to be the best announcer in baseball history, is beginning his 57th year, believed to be the longest tenure of any on-air individual in sports history, in the Dodger organization.
 
2010 - Johnny Damon and the Tigers agree to an $8 million, one-year deal. The 36-year-old left-swinging outfielder, who hit .282 with 24 homers for the World Champion Yankees last season, will bat lead off for Detroit, who missed their chance for the postseason by losing a one-game tiebreaker to Minnesota.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 23rd
 
1960 - Twenty-eight months after the Dodgers play their last game in Brooklyn, the demolition of Ebbets Field finally begins. The National Anthem is sung by pop singer Lucy Monroe, and a wheel-chair bound Roy Campanella, the team's former catcher, is given an urn of dirt from behind home plate.
 
1986 - Although he loses his arbitration case, Boston third baseman Wade Boggs receives the largest amount ($1.35 million) ever awarded by this process. Last season's AL batting champ had sought $1.85 million, but arbitrator Thomas Roberts rules in favor of the Red Sox, resulting in a drop of a half-million dollars for the infielder.
 
1987 - Three days into spring training, Dick Howser's attempted comeback after undergoing brain tumor surgery comes to an end when the frail-looking Royals manager finds he is physically too weak to continue. Third base coach Billy Gardner replaces the ill skipper, who will die three months later at St. Luke's Hospital in Kansas City.
 
1988 - A committee of Chicago aldermen, facing the loss of the 1990 All-Star game and possible postseason games, allow the Cubs to play 18 night games at Wrigley Field, the last major league ballpark to be illuminated. In 1942, team owner P.K. Wrigley had planned to be among the first to install lights, but the idea was abandoned when the materials were needed for the war effort.
 
1990 - Although the owners drop their arbitration and minimum salary proposals, spring training camps remain closed. Baseball's seventh work stoppage in baseball will last 32 days resulting in Opening Day being moved back a week and the over-all season extended by three days in order to accommodate the 162-game schedule.
 
1997 - Ira Berkow’s front page story about Larry Doby appears in the Sunday New York Times. The article spurs much interest about the first black to play in the American League and many believe leads to the outfielder’s election to the Hall of Fame the following year.
 
2006 - Complaining about the lack of support from local baseball officials, Roberto Kelly resigns as manager of Panama's team in the World Baseball Classic. The Giants spring training instructor believes some players were held back from participating in the WBC so they would play in the Panamanian championships.
 
2012 - Avoiding a 50-game suspension, Ryan Braun becomes the first major league player to successfully challenge the results of a positive test. The panel that heard the appeal voted 2-1 in favor of the 28 year-old Brewer outfielder because the test collector kept the urine sample at home and stored it in his refrigerator for two days before sending the specimen to a Montreal laboratory for analysis.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 24th
 
1966 - University of Southern California pitcher Tom Seaver is signed by the Braves. The deal will later be voided, and the USC stand-out will be selected by the Mets in a special draft.
 
1977 - The Oakland A’s trade Ron Fairly to the Toronto Blue Jays for minor leaguer Mike Weathers and cash. The Macon, Georgia native, who played with the Montreal Expos from 1969 to 1974, becomes the first major leaguer to appear with both Canadian teams.
 
1990 - At the age of 45, former Red Sox fan favorite Tony Conigliaro dies of pneumonia and kidney failure. Hitting 32 home runs in 1965 at the age of 20, the Revere, MA native becomes the youngest player ever to lead the American League in home runs.
 
2003 - In the wake of Steve Belcher's death, Commissioner Bud Selig bans the use of ephedra in the minor leagues. Players on the current 40-man major league rosters, which would have included the 23-year old Oriole pitcher who died last week, are not prohibited to use the substance because as union members they are already covered by the drug-testing rules of the new collective bargaining agreement, which bans only drugs of abuse and certain illegal steroids.
 
2010 - A Kansas man, who sat six rows behind the third-base dugout, files a lawsuit against the Royals as a result being hit in the eye by a hot dog thrown by Sluggerrr, the team’s mascot. The suit is seeking $25,000 in damages for injuries caused by the flying frank which includes a detached retina and the development of cataracts in the left eye.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 25th
 
1933 - Four days after turning thirty years old and acquiring a very generous inheritance from his stepfather, Tom Yawkey purchases the Red Sox from Robert Quinn for $1.2 million. The acquisition of the Boston American League franchise, which lasts for 44 years, the longest by a sole owner in baseball history, is prompted by former school classmate and Hall of Fame infielder Eddie Collins, who will serve as the team's general manager until 1947.
 
1934 - At the age of 60, John McGraw dies at New Rochelle Hospital, two weeks after entering the facility with optimistic reports about his recovery. The renowned Giants skipper, known as 'Little Napoleon' due to his style and stature, won ten pennants and three world championships during his 30 years as the team's manager.
 
1972 - Due to a salary impasse, the Cardinals trade 20-game winner Steve Carlton (20-9) to the last place Phillies for Rick Wise (17-14), who learns of the trade when Eddie Ferenz, the team's traveling secretary, knocks on the all-star hurler's condo door in Clearwater Beach early in the morning to inform the stunned pitcher of the spring training transaction. 'Lefty' will post a 27-10 record for Philadelphia and will win the National League Cy Young Award.
 
1973 - The spring training lockout ends when the players' union and the owners reach a three-year agreement. The new collective bargaining agreement establishes salary arbitration for players with two or more years of major league service, raises the minimum salary to $15‚000 and includes the new “10 and 5” trade rule‚ that allows a player with ten years in the major leagues‚ in which the last five are with his current team‚ to block any trade involving him.
 
1987 - Commissioner Ueberroth bans former Cy Young Award winner LaMarr Hoyt from major league baseball for the 1987 season due to multiple drug-related incidents during the past year. The penalty will be reduced to sixty days, and the Padres will be ordered to reinstate the right-hander by an arbitrator.
 
2002 - The 84-year-old Hall of Fame broadcaster, Ernie Harwell, announces this season will be his last as the Tigers' radio play-by-play announcer. During his 62-year career behind the mike, the winner of the 1981 Ford Frick Award for baseball broadcasting excellence had worked for the Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Giants and Baltimore Orioles before moving to Detroit.
 
2003 - Blue Jays' World Series hero Joe Carter is selected for a June induction into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. Pete Rose, who played 95 games for the Expos and collected his 4000th hit with Montreal, was one of the 46 nominees considered, but was not chosen by 75 per cent of the voters.
 
2008 - Terry Francona signs a three-year contract extension that runs through 2011, and includes team options for 2012 and 2013, to continue as manager of the Red Sox. After an eighty-six year drought, the BoSox skipper has led the club to a pair of World Series titles in four seasons at the helm.

 

[ShepCock]

This Day in Baseball History - February 26th
 
1935 - Babe Ruth is granted his release by the Yankees giving the aging superstar an opportunity to play for the Braves. The 39-year old outfielder hit 659 home runs and batted .349 during his 15-year tenure with New York.
 
1955 - Don Newcombe, who posted a 56-28 record his first three years with the Dodgers, will miss the next two seasons when he is sworn into the Army to serve in the Korean War. The 26-year old right-hander struggles upon his return in 1954, but returns to form the following season with a 20-5 record helping the team to capture their only world championship while playing in Brooklyn.
 
1989 - The $12 million breach-of-contract suit brought against Wade Boggs by Margo Adams is thrown out by a California court. The former Miss Anaheim claimed the Red Sox third baseman had promised her a salary and expenses during their four-year association.
 
1991 - Bill Veeck, considered the PT. Barnum of baseball due the imaginative innovations he put in place as the owner of the Indians (1946-50), Browns (1951-53), and White Sox (1959-61, 1975-80), is elected by the veterans committee into the Hall of Fame. In addition to the many promotions he employed to bring fans into the ballpark, 'Sport Shirt Bill' is best remembered for integrating the American League by signing Larry Doby to play for the Tribe, and the 1948 World Champion Indians, a team that drew more than 2.6 million fans, setting an attendance record that lasted for more than three decades.
 
1992 - Red Sox owner Jean Yawkey dies at the age of 83 after suffering a stroke. Her interest in the team will passed into the JRY Trust, headed by the club's CEO John Harrington, who will sell the team to John Henry and a group of investors in 2002.
 
2004 - With hundreds of on-lookers, including a man covered in ivy, singing Take Me Out to the Ball Game, the foul ball made famous by Steve Bartman in the 2003 NLCS playoffs is blown up at Harry Caray's restaurant in Chicago. The infamous ball's demise is executed by Cubs' die-hard fan Michael Lantieri, an Oscar Award winner who has worked on similar special effects in the movies Jurassic Park and Back to the Future.