December 23
From BR Bullpen
| Stats of players who were born this day | |
| Stats of players who died on this day | |
| Standings on this day | |
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| Today in Baseball History | |
Events, births and deaths that occurred on December 23.
[edit] Events
- 1881 - The Western Inter-collegiate Base Ball Association is formed by Northwestern University, University of Michigan, and Racine College.
- 1886 - The Cleveland Blues hires outfielder Pete Hotaling and Jimmy Williams as manager of the new American Association team. The club has already secured a large park site on East 39th street, well removed from downtown.
- 1905 - The Philadelphia Athletics sell veteran third baseman Lave Cross to the Washington Senators. Cross had spent the last five seasons with the Athletics.
- 1913 - The Sporting News reports that 15 men died from baseball injuries during the 1913 season, according to a list compiled by J.R. Vickery of Chicago (as noted by R.J. Lesch). The only name given is that of J. Whetstone of New Orleans, who suffered "a broken spine sustained in sliding to a base"; all other fatalities were the result of foul tips or pitched balls. The list "does not include a major league player or even a minor league athlete of sufficient experience to be widely known."
- 1953 - Junior Gilliam of the Brooklyn Dodgers is named National League Rookie of the Year. Gilliam, who led the National League with 17 triples, beats out Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Harvey Haddix.
- 1958 - The Philadelphia Phillies acquire infielder Sparky Anderson from the Los Angeles Dodgers for outfielder Rip Repulski and two other players. Anderson won't do much as a player, but will win three World Championships as a manager.
- 1975 - Arbitrator Peter Seitz declares Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally free agents. Both pitchers sat out the option years of their contracts in the hopes they would become free to sign with any team. Messersmith will sign with the Dodgers, while McNally opted for retirement. Seitz's decision will lead to an agreement with the owners, whereby all players will become eligible for free agency after six seasons.
- 1980 - The Baltimore Orioles sign free agent outfielder Jim Dwyer.
- 1981 - The New York Yankees sign free agent OF/1B Dave Collins for a reported $750,000 a year for at least three seasons. Collins, who stole 79 bases for the Cincinnati Reds in 1979, will end up a bust in New York and will be traded after one season to the Toronto Blue Jays.
- 1992 - The Seattle Mariners sign free agent catcher Mackey Sasser to a two-year contract.
- 1994 - With negotiations at a standstill, MLB owners unilaterally implement a salary cap and revenue sharing on striking players.
- 1995 - The St. Louis Cardinals sign a pair of free agents: outfielder Ron Gant and pitcher Andy Benes. Gant hit 29 home runs and stole 23 bases for Cincinnati, and Benes won 11 games while splitting his season between San Diego and Seattle. Benes will join younger brother Alan in the Cardinals rotation.
- 1999 - The New York Mets obtain pitcher Mike Hampton and outfielder Derek Bell from the Houston Astros in exchange for outfielder Roger Cedeño and pitchers Octavio Dotel and Kyle Kessel.
- 1997 - The Boston Red Sox sign free agent outfielder Darren Lewis and the Chicago Cubs trade outfielder Doug Glanville to the Philadelphia Phillies for second baseman Mickey Morandini.
- 2000 - The San Francisco Giants sign Eric Davis as a free agent. The veteran outfielder, who played for the Cardinals the past two seasons, will end his 17-year career with San Francisco in 2001. Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Brewers sign free agent OF Jeffrey Hammonds to a three-year contract, and the Minnesota Twins sign free agent OF Quinton McCracken to a one-year contract.
- 2004 Free agent outfielder J. D. Drew, who hit .305 with 31 home runs and 118 RBI for the Atlanta Braves, signs a five-year, $55 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. After being traded by the Cardinals to Atlanta last season, Drew, well known to be injury prone, played in a career-high 145 games.
- 2004 - The St. Louis Cardinals sign former Anaheim Angels shortstop David Eckstein to a three-year contract. Eckstein will replace Edgar Renteria, who sign with the Boston Red Sox, making the Boston shortstop, Orlando Cabrera, available to Anaheim, the team Eckstein is leaving.
- 2005 - Several free agents agreed to contracts terms: OF Johnny Damon with the New York Yankees (four-year); OF Juan Encarnación (three-year) and 2B Junior Spivey (one-year) with the St. Louis Cardinals; OF Reggie Sanders (two-years) and P Joe Mays (one-year) with the Kansas City Royals; C John Flaherty with the Boston Red Sox (one-year); OF Endy Chavez with the New York Mets (one-year), and IF Jose Vizcaino with the San Francisco Giants (one-year).
[edit] Births
- 1867 - Jack Fee, pitcher (d. 1913)
- 1867 - Jack Leiper, pitcher (d. 1960)
- 1869 - Mike Grady, catcher (d. 1943)
- 1869 - Mike Roach, catcher (d. 1916)
- 1871 - Sam Leever, pitcher (d. 1953)
- 1878 - Rick Adams, pitcher (d. 1955)
- 1879 - Frank Owen, pitcher (d. 1942)
- 1880 - Doc Gessler, outfielder, manager (d. 1924)
- 1882 - Sam Frock, pitcher (d. 1925)
- 1882 - Al Schweitzer, outfielder (d. 1969)
- 1882 - George Whiteman, outfielder (d. 1947)
- 1884 - Palmer Hildebrand, catcher (d. 1960)
- 1887 - Bunny Fabrique, infielder (d. 1960)
- 1888 - Tom Cantwell, pitcher (d. 1968)
- 1889 - Cozy Dolan, outfielder (d. 1958)
- 1889 - Fritz Maisel, infielder (d. 1967)
- 1897 - Nemo Gaines, pitcher (d. 1979)
- 1898 - Hinkey Haines, outfielder (d. 1979)
- 1899 - Waddy Macphee, infielder (d. 1980)
- 1899 - Tommy Thomas, pitcher (d. 1988)
- 1900 - Danny Taylor, outfielder (d. 1972)
- 1901 - Ox Eckhardt, outfielder (d. 1951)
- 1902 - Max Rosenfeld, outfielder (d. 1969)
- 1904 - Howie Williamson, pinch hitter (d. 1969)
- 1908 - Sol Carter, pitcher (d. 2006)
- 1912 - Pat Ankenman, infielder (d. 1989)
- 1924 - Bob Marquis, outfielder (d. 2007)
- 1925 - Ed Blake, pitcher
- 1927 - Tony Roig, infielder
- 1929 - Al Cicotte, pitcher (d. 1982)
- 1934 - Elder White, infielder
- 1937 - Tim Harkness, infielder
- 1937 - Wilbur Huckle, minor league infielder
- 1941 - Ken Hubbs, infielder (d. 1964)
- 1942 - Jerry Koosman, pitcher; All-Star
- 1943 - Ron Allen, infielder
- 1943 - Dave May, outfielder; All-Star
- 1944 - Vic Larose, infielder
- 1948 - Alec Distaso, pitcher
- 1952 - Santo Alcala, pitcher
- 1953 - Jerry Manuel, infielder, manager
- 1955 - Keith Comstock, pitcher
- 1956 - Bert Bradley, pitcher
- 1958 - Tim Leary, pitcher
- 1959 - Frank Eufemia, pitcher
- 1968 - Rick White, pitcher
- 1970 - Kevin Logsdon, minor league player
- 1974 - Pascual Matos, catcher
- 1976 - Brad Lidge, pitcher; All-Star
- 1977 - Shawn Chacon, pitcher; All-Star
- 1977 - Jesus Colome, pitcher
- 1978 - Victor Martinez, catcher; All-Star
- 1979 - Steve Stanley, minor league outfielder
- 1980 - Cody Ross, outfielder
- 1982 - Brad Nelson, infielder
- 1983 - Hanley Ramirez, infielder; All-Star
- 1987 - Travis Adair, minor league player
[edit] Deaths
- 1909 - Harry Gilbert, infielder (b. 1868)
- 1916 - Erve Beck, infielder (b. 1878)
- 1937 - Walt Preston, outfielder (b. 1868)
- 1941 - Roy Witherup, pitcher (b. 1886)
- 1955 - Joe McManus, pitcher (b. 1887)
- 1969 - Ted Menze, outfielder (b. 1897)
- 1972 - Dutch Jordan, infielder (b. 1880)
- 1975 - Rae Blaemire, catcher (b. 1911)
- 1975 - Jim McGlothlin, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1943)
- 1978 - Mike Sime, minor league outfielder (b. 1909)
- 1981 - George Scharein, infielder (b. 1914)
- 2002 - George Bullard, infielder (b. 1928)
- 2003 - Charlie Bowles, pitcher (b. 1917)
- 2006 - Sol Carter, pitcher (b. 1908)
