A M-W-F digest, replete with #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB content.
Ernie Banks has his number retired, Sammy Sosa hits three, and other stories.
On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a light-hearted, Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past, with plenty of the lore
and various narratives to follow as they unfold over the course of time. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along.“Maybe I called it wrong, but it’s official.” — Tom Connolly.
Today in baseball
history:
- 1886 – 1886 – Louisville’s Jimmy ‘Chicken’ Wolf hits a game-winning home run thanks to a stray dog tearing at Red Stockings’ Abner Powell‘s pant leg, causing the center fielder to miss the ball. (1,2)
- 1933 – William Veeck, president of the Chicago Cubs, urges a midsummer series of inter-league games. He also proposes a split season. While some owners are in agreement on interleague play, Washington owner Clark Griffith opposes it. (1,2)
- 1942 – Cubs catcher Clyde McCullough, SS Lennie Merullo, and 1B Phil Cavarretta combine on a triple play in the top of the 11th, and Bill Nicholson homers in the bottom half of the inning, as the Chicago Cubs stun the Cincinnati Reds, 5-4. (2)
- 1962 – At Wrigley Field, the Reds trail the Cubs, 5-1, after six innings, but score four in the seventh to tie. They win it in the 10th, 9-5, when Eddie Kasko hits a grand slam. (2)
- 1980 – Admitting that he can no longer compete financially in today’s inflated economy, colorful owner Bill Veeck agrees to sell the Chicago White Sox to Youngstown, OH shopping-mall magnate Eddie DeBartolo, Sr. for a reported $20 million. The sale will fall through, however, when American League owners twice fail to give Veeck the ten votes needed for approval, seemingly because they are wary of DeBartolo’s extensive links to thoroughbred racing and legalized gambling. (1,2)
- 1982 – Ernie Banks* becomes the first Cub to have his uniform number (14) retired. (2)
- 2001 – Cubs OF Sammy Sosa hits three home runs in a game for the second time in two weeks as he leads Chicago to a 16-3 win over the Brewers. Sosa is removed from the game following his home run in the 6th inning, missing a chance to tie the major league single-game mark of four. (2)
- 2009 – Knuckleballer Charlie Haeger gives up only three hits in seven innings to lead the Dodgers to a 2-0 blanking of the Cubs. Helped by homers by Matt Kemp and Casey Blake against Ted Lilly, Haeger picks up his first win in a Dodger uniform, while George Sherrill has his first save for the Dodgers. (2)
- 2010 – Lou Piniella retires after 23 seasons as a manager. In his last game at the helm, his Cubs lose, 16-5, at home to the Atlanta Braves. Piniella missed some time earlier this year to be with his ailing mother, and had announced that this season would be his last. Coach Mike Quade will take over as interim manager for the remainder of the season. Piniella retires with a lifetime record of 1,835-1,712. (2)
Cubs Birthdays: Al Carson, Oscar Fuhr, Bob Speake, Frank Ernaga, José Arcia, Ray Burris, Darrin Jackson, Gary Scott. Also notable: Ned Hanlon HOF, Carl Yastrzemski HOF, Paul Molitor HOF.
Today in History:
- 565 – St. Columba reports seeing a monster in Loch Ness.
- 1485 – Battle of Bosworth Field: Henry Tudor’s forces defeat English King Richard III during the last battle in the Wars of the Roses. Richard is killed, becoming the last English monarch to die in battle.
- 1770 – British explorer James Cook’s claims the east coast of Australia for the British Crown and names it New South Wales
Common sources:
- (1) — Today in Baseball History.
- (2) — Baseball Reference.
- (3) — Society for American Baseball Research.
- (4) — Baseball Hall of Fame.
- (5) — This Day in Chicago Cubs history.
- (6) — Wikipedia.
- (7) — The British Museum.
- For world history.
*pictured.
Things are as near to the truth as we can get them. Some of these items spread from site to site without being fact-checked, and that is why we ask for verifiable sources, so that we can correct the record, if need be, and have some record of why we did so.
