Baseball History
This Day in Baseball History
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On August 5th, 1907, Philadelphia Athletic Sam Hope pitched in his first. Major League game. In one third of an inning, he gave up 3 hits and one unearned run. He never pitched in another Major League game. Sometimes for Major League prospects, a “cup of coffee” only lost a few minutes. For Sam Hope… Read more
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On August 2nd, 1990, Yankees rookie Kevin Maas hit his tenth home run in just 77 at bats, the fastest any player had ever reached that mark. But the Yanks lost to Detroit 6-5 in 11 innings. In Mid-Summer of 1990, Kevin Maas was the talk of New York and of Fantasy and Rotisserie Baseball owners everywhere.… Read more
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On July 30th, 1959, future Hall-of-Famer Willie McCovey had four hits in four at-bats in his Major League debut with the San Francisco Giants. He had two triples in a 7-2 win over Philadelphia. When I think of Willie McCovey, I always think of my father. When I was a kid and I would say something… Read more
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On July 29th, 1955, Smoky Burgess of the Cincinnati Reds hit three home runs and drove in nine runs in a 16-5 rout of the Pittsburgh Pirates at Crosley Field. “Smoky Burgess did not possess the physique of a Greek god, nor even that of the average major leaguer. Standing in at a pudgy 5’8”, Burgess… Read more
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Yesterday I “reviewed” my recent trip to the South Side to see a Chicago White Sox game. Today I will “review” my Wrigleyville experience. I put “review” in quotes because I am uncertain that in either case I am truly providing a review so much as a few thoughts and feelings about the experiences. As… Read more
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On July 19th, future Hall-of-Famer Tony Gwynn played in his first Major League game. In his debut, he went 2 for 4, of course. How good was Tony Gwynn? He was a Hitter’s Hitter, a Pro’s Pro. He was the kind of hitting machine we do not see much in today’s game. The closest player… Read more
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On July 16th, 1969, Rod Carew stole home off Chicago’s Jerry Nyman in the Minnesota Twins’ 6-2 victory. It was Carew’s seventh steal of home for the year and last, one shy of the Major League & American League record set by Ty Cobb in 1912. I have only seen one steal of home in person in my Major League… Read more
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On July 15th, 1990, Chicago’s Bobby Thigpen became quickest to reach thirty saves in a season as the White Sox beat New York 8-5. Thigpen is one of those names that just sticks with you. Like: When I played fantasy baseball in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Thigpen was a highly coveted player. In the early… Read more
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On July 12th, 1987, Shortstop Walt Weiss played in his first Major League Game. I have said it here before, the most fun I have writing about baseball history on ClimbingSky is when I get to write about below-the-radar players that I think deserve to be more “remembered.” Walt Weiss is one of those kind… Read more
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On July 5th, 1987, Mark McGwire became the first rookie to hit 30 homers before the All-Star break and Jose Canseco homered twice, leading Oakland to a 6-3 victory over Boston The 1987 OAKLAND Athletics finished the season with a .500 record (81-81). But a year later they began a dynasty. In 1988, OAKLAND won 104 games and… Read more
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