What is the story about?
Free
of charge for the discerning reader. RIP to The Bird. Jon Lester* attempts a pickoff.
Today in baseball history:
- 1926 – In one of the greatest Opening Day pitchers’ duels ever, Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators defeats Eddie Rommel and the Philadelphia Athletics, 1-0, in a 15-inning battle. The game will set the record for longest opening day contest until 2012 , when the Blue Jays and Indians play 16 innings on April 5th.
- 1954 – Hank Aaron makes his major league debut in left field for the Milwaukee Braves and goes 0 for 5 in a 9-8 loss to the Cincinnati Redlegs. Jim Greengrass of Cincinnati hits four doubles in his debut to tie an Opening Day record.
- 1962 – At the Polo Grounds, just 12,447 Mets fans welcome the return of National League baseball to New York. The Pirates defeat the Mets, 4-3, behind seven solid innings of two-run pitching from Tom Sturdivant. Sherman Jones is the loser.
- 1969 – When the Cubs rally, scoring three runs in the bottom of the ninth, to beat the Expos, 7-6, twenty-seven thousand fans spontaneously swarm Wrigley Field in an early season frenzy. The enthusiastic display of affection for the team had not been witnessed in the ballpark since 1960, when Don Cardwell threw his no-hitter on the North Side of Chicago.
- 1970 – The Oakland Athletics use gold-colored bases during the club’s home opener. The Rules Committee subsequently bans this innovation.
- 1972 – The first player strike in Major League Baseball history ends, with an abbreviated schedule to start two days later.
- 1980 – The first Q battery in major league history occurs, when Dan Quisenberry (pitcher) and Jamie Quirk (catcher) of the Kansas City Royals face the Detroit Tigers. Detroit wins, 3-2.
- 1993 – Lee Smith becomes the all-time saves leader in the major leagues as the Cardinals beat the Dodgers, 9-7. Smith picks up his 358th save, surpassing Jeff Reardon.
- 2009 – 1976 American League Rookie of the Year Mark “The Bird” Fidrych dies at 54 from an accident while fixing a truck on his farm in Northborough, MA.
- 2012 – The Cubs spoil the Cardinals’ home opener and P Adam Wainwright’s return to St. Louis after missing a year with Tommy John surgery, with a 9-5 win. After the Cards receive their World Series rings before the game, Ian Stewart hits a three-run homer in the first, and Bryan LaHair adds his first career grand slam in the third. Jeff Samardzija is the winner.
- 2015 – Jon Lester* finally attempts a pickoff at first base, ending a streak that covered a span of 66 appearances. The Cubs southpaw, who signed a six-year free-agent deal worth $155 million to start for Chicago this season, last threw over to first base on April 30, 2013 while pitching for the Red Sox.
Cubs birthdays: Claude Hendrix, Roy Walker, Jake Mooty, John Stephenson, Doug Strange.
Today in History:
- 837 – Best view of Halley’s Comet in 2,000 years.
- 1517 – Ottoman army occupies Cairo.
- 1860 – First Pony Express reaches Sacramento, California.
* pictured
