December 26
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 26.
- 1906 - NL umpire Hank O'Day suggested that the batter's box be outlined with white rubber strips rather than chalk, making it impossible for hitters to erase the lines. But the rule will never be implemented.
- 1914 - The Philadelphia Phillies trade star outfielder and team captain Sherry Magee to the Boston Braves for cash and two players to be named later. The two turn out to be Possum Whitted and Oscar Dugey. Magee led the NL in hits (171), doubles (39), RBI (103), and slugging average (.509), while hitting .314 with 15 home runs and 92 runs. On the first day of 1915 spring training at Macon, Georgia, Magee will step in a hole while shagging fly balls and break his collarbone. He wil hit just .280 with two home runs and 87 RBI in 156 games.
- 1919 - Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee makes a secret agreement to sell Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees for $100,000 (one-fourth cash, plus $25,000 a year at 6 percent) plus guaranteeing a $300,000 loan with Fenway Park as collateral. The transaction will be announced publicly one week later.
- 1934:
- Commissioner Judge Landis denies the Brooklyn Dodgers' claim to the services of teenager pitcher Johnny Vander Meer.
- Matsutaro Shoriki, head of Yomiuri Newspapers, announces the official formation of Japan's first professional team, the Tokyo-based Yomiuri Giants. The team is made up of players signed to compete against the American All-Star team. Professional league play, with six teams, does not begin until 1936.
- 1950 - With a large portion going to the players' pension fund, outgoing commissioner Happy Chandler announces the Gillette Razor Company has purchased the television rights to the All-Star Game for six years for six million dollars.
- 1964 - The Seattle Angels of the Pacific Coast League select Bob Lemon as manager for the upcoming season. Lemon, who last pitched in the majors in 1958, will eventually become the manager of the Kansas City Royals in 1970.
- 1974 - The Little League is officially open to girls as U.S. President Gerald Ford signs legislation amending the charter of the organization. Little League had sought changes in their charter after a series of lawsuits challenged its boys-only rule.
- 1990 - The Senior Professional Baseball Association folds in the middle of its second season when the Fort Myers Sun Sox franchise collapses due to a financial dispute among club owners. The other five teams will quickly follow Fort Myers' lead. The league, which starred retired major leaguer players like Amos Otis, Dave Kingman, and Vida Blue, was plagued by poor attendance, among many financial problems.
- 1993 - Free agent pitcher Dave Righetti signs a contract with the Oakland Athletics.
- 1995:
- The Associated Press selects Cal Ripken, Jr. as the top sports story of the year, followed by the death of Mickey Mantle.
- The Baltimore Orioles acquire P David Wells from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for outfielder Curtis Goodwin and a minor leaguer.
- The Chicago Cubs sign free agent utility Dave Magadan.
- 2001:
- The Angels sign free agent P Aaron Sele to a three-year contract.
- The Seattle Mariners sign free agent OF Ruben Sierra to a one-year contract.
- 2002 - The Texas Rangers sign free agent P Esteban Yan to a contract.
- 2005:
- The Associated Press reports that baseball took a lot of shots in 2005 from politicians, commentators and players themselves as the sport struggled with steroids. MLB went from no drug policy in 2002 to anonymous testing in 2003, to counseling for positive tests in 2004, to a dozen 10-day suspensions this year. Starting next year, an initial positive test will result in a 50-game suspension, and players will be tested for amphetamines for the first time, with penalties for a second positive result.
- Free agent P Jason Johnson signed a one-year contract with the Cleveland Indians. Johnson, who in 2005 for the Detroit Tigers went 8-13 with a 4.55 ERA and a career-high 210 innings, join C.C. Sabathia, Cliff Lee and Jake Westbrook in one of the AL's deepest rotations.
[edit] Births
- 1837 - Morgan Bulkeley Hall of Famer (d. 1922)
- 1861 - George Tebeau, outfielder (d. 1923)
- 1863 - Dick Burns, outfielder (d. 1937)
- 1866 - Bob Murphy, pitcher (d. 1904)
- 1879 - Jerry Freeman, infielder (d. 1952)
- 1883 - Queenie O'Rourke, infielder (d. 1955)
- 1887 - Jim Clark, outfielder (d. 1969)
- 1889 - Pug Cavet, pitcher (d. 1966)
- 1889 - John Henry, catcher (d. 1941)
- 1889 - Andy Rush, pitcher (d. 1969)
- 1892 - Lee King, outfielder (d. 1967)
- 1895 - Bonnie Hollingsworth, pitcher (d. 1990)
- 1895 - Herman Pillette, pitcher (d. 1960)
- 1899 - Art Gardiner, pitcher (d. 1954)
- 1900 - Logan Drake, pitcher (d. 1940)
- 1901 - Doc Farrell, infielder (d. 1966)
- 1902 - Bill Cronin, catcher (d. 1966)
- 1907 - Harry Taylor, infielder (d. 1969)
- 1913 - Al Milnar, pitcher; All-Star (d. 2005)
- 1919 - Gene Markland, infielder (d. 1999)
- 1927 - Stu Miller, pitcher; All-Star
- 1927 - Danny Schell, outfielder (d. 1972)
- 1936 - Wayne Causey, infielder
- 1939 - John Braun, pitcher
- 1940 - Ray Sadecki, pitcher
- 1947 - Carlton Fisk, catcher; All-Star, Hall of Famer
- 1948 - Chris Chambliss, infielder; All-Star
- 1948 - Dave Rader, catcher
- 1950 - Mario Mendoza, infielder
- 1950 - Mike Willis, pitcher
- 1954 - Ozzie Smith, infielder; All-Star, Hall of Famer
- 1960 - Jeff Stone, outfielder
- 1961 - Storm Davis, pitcher
- 1961 - Jim Traber, infielder
- 1964 - Jeff King, infielder
- 1967 - Esteban Beltre, infielder
- 1969 - Jason Fronio, minor league player
- 1971 - Jay Tessmer, pitcher
- 1971 - Carlos Valdez, pitcher
- 1974 - Brian Fitzgerald, pitcher
- 1974 - Corey Lee, pitcher
- 1978 - Charles Thomas, outfielder
- 1981 - Omar Infante, infielder
[edit] Deaths
- 1908 - Charlie Householder, infielder (b. 1856)
- 1908 - Shadow Pyle, pitcher (b. 1861)
- 1913 - Frank O'Connor, pitcher (b. 1868)
- 1915 - Art Ball, infielder (b. 1876)
- 1934 - George Kopshaw, catcher (b. 1895)
- 1934 - Jule Mallonee, outfielder (b. 1900)
- 1936 - Bill Clymer, infielder (b. 1873)
- 1939 - Clyde Engle, infielder (b. 1884)
- 1945 - Frank Lange, pitcher (b. 1883)
- 1947 - Roxey Roach, infielder (b. 1882)
- 1947 - Phil Stremmel, pitcher (b. 1880)
- 1948 - Joe Pate, pitcher (b. 1892)
- 1957 - Tom Fleming, outfielder (b. 1873)
- 1970 - Jack Stansbury, infielder (b. 1885)
- 1971 - Cliff Daringer, infielder (b. 1885)
- 1977 - Al Mahon, pitcher (b. 1909)
- 1980 - Bill Crouch, pitcher (b. 1910)
- 1980 - Johnny Oulliber, outfielder (b. 1911)
- 1983 - Josh Billings, pitcher (b. 1907)
- 1983 - Sid Graves, outfielder (b. 1901)
- 1984 - Johnny Gill, outfielder (b. 1905)
- 1985 - Les Bell, infielder (b. 1901)
- 1985 - Jim Bilbrey, pitcher (b. 1924)
- 1989 - Roy Joiner, pitcher (b. 1906)
- 1992 - Tom Gorman, pitcher (b. 1925)
- 1994 - Allie Reynolds, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1917)
- 1995 - Bob Veselic, pitcher (b. 1955)
- 1998 - Dewey Adkins, pitcher (b. 1918)
- 2000 - Roy Partee, catcher (b. 1917)
- 2001 - Tom McBride, outfielder (b. 1914)
- 2002 - Frank Reiber, catcher (b. 1909)
- 2003 - Paul Owens, manager (b. 1924)
- 2006 - Chris Brown, infielder; All-Star (b. 1961)
- 2007 - Jim Castiglia, catcher (b. 1918)
