Today In Baseball History: May

May 21st:

1901: Giants owner Andrew Freedman accuser umpire Billy Nash of incompetence and bans fim from the Polo Grounds. A player from both the Giants and Pirates are forced to be umpires.

1941: Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox is born in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

1943: In the quickest game in A.L. history, The White Sox defeat the Senators 1-0. The game took one hour and 29 minutes to play.

1962: The Indians, which three homers, set an A.L. record by hitting 26 home runs over and eight game span.

1968: The Cubs Billy Williams plays in his 695th straight game, setting a record for outfielders.

1996: The Mariners Ken Griffey Jr. becomes the seventh quickest in M.L. history to reach 200 home runs.

1997: In a 4-1 victory over the Yankees, the Blue Jays Roger Clemens becomes the 94th pitcher in M.L. history to record 200 wins.
 
May 22nd:

1963: In an 8-7 win over the A's, Mickey Mantle hits a home run off the right field facade at Yankee Stadium.

1975: Hall of Fame pitcher Lefty Grove dies at age 75.

1977: The Red Sox and Brewers tie a M.L. record by combing for 11 home runs. The Red Sox won 14-10.

1983: The Blue Jays Cliff Johnson hits his 18th career pinch-home run, tying Jerry Lynch for most all time.

1998: In the NCAA Atlantic II Regional, Florida State's Brian Cox went 6-6, including a grand slam in a 10-run third inning, and freshman Matt Diaz homered three times. Florida State defeated Delaware 27-6.
 
May 23rd:

1926: In a 14-8 win over the Braves, the Cubs Hack Wilson hits a home run in the fifth inning off the Wrigley Field scoreboard, becoming the first to do so (the scoreboard at that time was at ground level before being moved atop the bleachers in 1937). Later that night, Wilson and some friends are arrested for drinking beer at a friend's apartment, violating the Prohibition Act.

1978: The A.L. approves the transfer of the Red Sox to the group led by Jean Yawkey, Buddy LeRoux, and Haywood Sullivan. The price was for $15 million.

1980: Players and owners, five hours after the midnight deadline, avert a strike by announcing a new four-year agreement. The deal raises minimum salary from $21,000 to $30,000 and also increased the teams contributions to the players pension fund. However, the major issue of free agent compensation remained unsolved.

1989: After a 7-2 loss to the Tigers, the Indians drop to 21-22, but still in first place of the A.L. East by percentage points. It marked the latest a team under .500 was in first.

1991: The Phillies Tommy Greene pitches a no-hitter in a 2-0 win over the Expos.

1995: The Cubs Kevin Foster and the Rockies Marvin Freeman each homer off each other, becoming the tenth pitcher duo in the century to hit and throw home runs against each other. The Cubs won the game 7-6.
 
May 24th:

1902: Cleveland's Bill Bradley becomes the first player in A.L. history to homer in in four straight games. It is not done again until Babe Ruth on June 25, 1918.

1928: The first game of a doubleheader between the A's and Yankees (won by the Yankees 9-7) features a record 12 future Hall of Famers playing in the game. That does not include non-playing future Hall members Herb Pennock and Stan Coveleski, managers Connie Mack and Miller Huggins, and umpire Tom Connally.

1930: Babe Ruth homers in both games of a doubleheader, giving him nine home runs in a week.

1935: The Reds defeat the Phillies 2-1 in the first night game in M.L. history.

1940: In the first night game at Sportsman Park, the Browns lose to the Indians 3-2. Bob Feller got the win and also hit a home run.

1946: Joe McCarthy resigns as Yankees manager and is replaced by Bill Dickey.

1979: Billy Martin issues a public apology for a fight he had with Reno sportswriter Ray Hagar the prior November. Hagar filed suit for assault, which was settled out of court.

1984: The Tigers defeat the Angels for their 17th straight road win, breaking the A.L. record and tying the M.L. mark held by the 1912 Senators. The Tiger would lose the next day in Seattle.

1989: The Yankees Lee Guetterman gives up five runs in the ninth inning of an 11-4 loss to the Angels. It ended his consecutive scoreless streak of 30 2/3 innings. It was the longest such streak to start a season since Harry Brecheen in 1948 and also the longest streak to open a season by a reliever.
 
May 25th:

1922: Babe Ruth is fined $200 and suspended for a day after throwing dirt on an umpire and then going into the stands after a heckler. The Yankees strip his title of team captain.

1935: As a member of the Braves, Babe Ruth has one last hurrah of his career, hitting the final three of his 714 career home runs. The last of the three becomes the first to clear the right field grandstands at Forbes Field, measuring more than 600 feet.

1937: The Tigers Mickey Cochrane suffers a skull fracture after being hit by a pitch from the Yankees Bump Hadley. He would never play again.

1941: Ted Williams raises his average above .400 for the first time in the season.

1951: Willie Mays makes his M.L. debut with the Giants, going 0-5 against the Phillies.

1953: The Braves Max Surkont sets a M.L. record by striking out eight batters in a row against the Reds.

1960: The Cardinals George Crow sets a M.L. record with his 11th career pinch-hit home run.

1964: Ground-breaking takes place for a new stadium in St. Louis.

1975: The Indians Dennis Eckersley pitches a three hit shutout in his first M.L. start, beating the A's 6-0.

1981: The Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski joins Ty Cobb, Stan Musial, and Hank Aaron as the only players in M.L. history to appear in 3,000 games. He scores the winning run in an 8-7 win over the Indians.

1982: The Cubs Fergie Jenkins becomes the seventh pitcher in M.L. history to record 3,000 strikeouts.

1984: The Red Sox trade Dennis Eckersley and minor-leaguer Mike Brumley to the Cubs for Bill Buckner.

1989: The Mariners trade Mark Langston to the Expos for Randy Johnson, Brian Holman, and Gene Harris.
 
May 26th:

1925: Ty Cobb becomes the first player in M.L. history to record 1,000 extra base hits.

1930: Indians 3rd baseman Joe Sewell strikes out twice against the White Sox. It would be the last times he would strike out the rest of the season. He struck out only three times in 353 at bats.

1946: With just two hits in 42 at bats, Mel Ott ends his playing career and only manages the Giants.

1993: The Indians Carlos Martinez hits a long fly ball that bounces off the head of the Rangers Jose Canseco, going over the wall for a home run.

1997: On Memorial Day, two inside-the-park home runs are hit in a span of five minutes in Pittsburgh. The Cubs Sammy Sosa hits his in the top of the sixth, then the Pirates Tony Womack hits his in the bottom half.
 
May 27th:

1948: Hank Greenberg, who had just retired, buys an interest in the Indians, making him their second largest stock-holder.

1968: Hall of Fame slugger Frank Thomas is born in Columbus, Georgia. Also, Jeff Bagwell is born in Boston.

1968: Montreal and San Diego are awarded N.L. franchises.

1993: As a member of the Rockies, Dale Murphy retires. He had hit just .143 with seven RBIs in a backup role. He finished his career with 398 career home runs, mostly with the Atlanta Braves.

1997: In the fifth inning of a 9-2 win over the Padres, the Braves Kenny Lofton hits a line drive into the San Diego bullpen. The ball bounced off a Padres pitcher who was trying to get out of the way, and ended up into a small ledge between the outfield fence and the bullpen seating area. Padres outfielder Greg Vaughn expected a ground-rule double to be called. However, the umpires never called the ground-rule double and Lofton had an inside-the-park home run.
 
May 28th:

1946: In front of 49,917 fans, the Senators defeat the Yankees 2-1 in the first night game at Yankee Stadium.

1951: In a 4-1 loss to the Braves, the Giants Willie Mays gets his first M.L. hit off Warren Spahn.

1952: Willie Mays enters the Army. The Giants, who were two and a half games up in first place, would lose eight of their next ten.

1957: The N.L. approves the move of the Dodgers and the Giants to the West Coast, provided both teams make their request by October 1st and move at the same time.

1968: A.L. owners reach an agreement on divisional alignment. In the East, Red Sox, Yankees, Indians, Orioles, Tigers, and Senators. In the West, White Sox, A's, Royals, Twins, Angels, and Pilots.

1986: The White Sox Joe Cowley sets a M.L. record by striking out the first seven Rangers he faces. However, he gives up six runs in 4 1/3 innings in a 6-3 loss.

1994: The Twins Dave Winfield connects for his 3,054th hit, passing Rod Carew for 15th on the all time list.

1995: The White Sox and Tigers combine for a M.L. record 12 homers at Tiger Stadium. The Tigers hit seven of them, but still lost 14-12.
 
May 29th:

1976: In a 4-3 win over the Braves, the Astros Joe Niekro hits the only home run of his 22-year career off of his brother Phil.

1989: The Phillies Mike Schmidt retires, finish his career with seventh on the all time home run list at 548.

1990: The A's Rickey Henderson sets the A.L. record with his 893rd career stolen base, passing Ty Cobb.

1992: The White Sox Tim Raines steals his 700th career base.

1993: Three days after a home run bounced off his head, Jose Canseco pitches in the Rangers 15-1 loss to the Red Sox. Canseco injures his elbow and has to have season-ending surgery.
 
May 30th:

1913: John McGraw wins his 1,000th game as manager, joining Fred Clarke, Cap Anson, and Connie Mack as the only ones to do so.

1921: A memorial to Captain Eddie Grant is revealed at the Polo Grounds. He was killed in action at Argonne Forest on October 20, 1918.

1925: The Cardinals name Rogers Hornsby as player-manager, replacing Branch Rickey, who stays on as general manager. He would become the first player-manager to win the triple crown.

1927: Walter Johnson makes his first appearance of the season in a 3-0 win over the Red Sox. It was the last of his 113 career shutouts.

1932: A plaque at Yankee Stadium in memory of former manager Miller Huggins is dedicated. It's the first monument dedicated at Yankee Stadium.

1935: Babe Ruth plays just the first inning for the Braves against the Phillies. It's his final M.L. appearance.

1938: 83,533 fans, the largest in Yankee Stadium history, watch a doubleheader against the Red Sox. 6,000 fans are turned away and 511 are given refunds because there are no places to sit.

1956: Mickey Mantle hits a home run that comes within 18 inches of leaving Yankee Stadium. The ball was still climbing when it bounced off the facade of the upper stands. It was estimated the ball could have traveled 600 feet.

1967: Nearing 41 years old, an elbow injury forces Whitey Ford to retire. He finishes his career with 236 career wins.

1970: All-Star voting is returned to the fans. Since 1958, managers, coaches, and players had been selecting the teams.

1971: Willie Mays hits his 638th career home run and also scored his 1,950th career run, breaking Stan Musial's N.L. record.

1977: The Indians Dennis Eckersley pitches a no-hitter in a 1-0 win over the Angels. Frank Tanana, who had three shutouts in his prior four games, was the losing pitcher.

1992: The Yankees Scott Sanderson becomes the ninth pitcher to defeat all other 26 teams. The others are Nolan Ryan, Tommy John, Don Sutton, Gaylord Perry, Rick Wise, Doyle Alexander, and Goose Gossage.
 
May 31st:

1937: A Memorial Day crowd of 61,756 at the Polo Grounds (second largest in Polo Grounds history) sees the Dodgers beat the Giants 10-3, ending Carl Hubbell's winning streak that lasted over two seasons at 24 games.

1948: In a Canadian-American League game, Schenectady left-hander Tommy Lasorda strikes out 25 batters in a 15-inning game against Amsterdam.

1964: After Juan Marichal and the Giants beat the Mets 5-3 in the first of a doubleheader, they lead New York in the nightcap 6-1. The Mets score five in the seventh to tie the game. The game would go 23 innings when the Giants score two and win the game 8-6. Gaylord Perry pitched ten innings and got the win. Records for doubleheaders set include innings (32), elapsed time (9:50) and strikeouts (47).

1979: The Tigers Pat Underwood makes his M.L. debut, pitching 8 1/3 innings in a 1-0 win over the Blue Jays. Pat's brother, Tom, is the losing pitcher.

1980: The Twins Ken Landreaux sees his 31-game hitting streak come to an end. It was the longest in the A.L. since Dom DiMaggio in 1949.

1981: The Dodgers, playing in front of a sellout crowd at home for the tenth straight time, beat the Reds 16-4. It raises home attendance to 1,026,725, marking the earliest in the season any team drew one million fans.

1983: Yankees owner George Steinbrenner is suspended one week by A.L. President Lee MacPhail because of "repeated problems" with him criticizing umpires. In Spring Training, he was fined $50,000 by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn after he did the same to some N.L. umps. He will not be able to attend games or be at Yankee Stadium during the suspension.

1996: The Indians Albert Belle breaks up a double play by knocking down the Brewers Fernando Vina with his forearm. He would be suspended two games.
 
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