January 6

Events, births and deaths that occurred on January 6.

[edit] Events

• 1885 - Millionaire Henry Lucas purchases the Cleveland Blues and plans to fill the vacancy in the National League with his own St. Louis Maroons.
• 1914 - The National Commission grants some demands of the Players' union: players are to be notified in writing of their transfer or release and to receive a copy of their contract; players with 10 years in the Major Leagues are eligible to become free agents; clubs will pay traveling expenses to spring training and furnish all uniforms, and outfield fences in major league ballparks should be painted green to provide a better hitting background for batters.
• 1916 - King Cole, the pitcher who gave up Babe Ruth's first hit in 1914, dies in Bay City, MI at age 29. Cole was a stellar pitcher while playing for the Chicago Cubs, helping his team to the 1910 World Series.
• 1917 - With Bill Carrigan reaffirming his decision to leave the Boston Red Sox, shortstop Jack Barry is named the team's new manager.
• 1920 - Future Hall of Fame pitcher Early Wynn is born in Hartford, AL. Wynn will make his major league debut in 1939 and will go on to win 300 games during a career with the Washington Senators, Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox.
• 1926 - Future All-Star pitcher Ralph Branca is born in Mount Vernon, NY. Although Branca will win 21 games in 1947, he will become best known for giving up Bobby Thomson's pennant-winning home run in 1951.
• 1936 - New York Giants President Charles Stoneham dies of Bright's disease. He was the last surviving member of the trio that purchased the team in 1919.
• 1937 - The New York Giants buy shortstop Tommy Thevenow from Cincinnati Reds.
• 1942 - Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller reports to Norfolk, Virginia for duty in the United States Navy. Feller, who led the American League in victories in three previous seasons, will miss this season, as well as the 1943 and 1944 seasons before returning for nine games in 1945. Despite missing the time due to the World War II effort, Feller will lead the league in winss 1946, 1947, and 1951, amassing 266 victories during an 18-year major league career.
• 1946 - The Boston Red Sox announce that they have signed a working agreement with the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pelicans are managed by Johnny Peacock, a former Boston catcher.
• 1950 - Charlie Grimm resigns as vice president of the Chicago Cubs to sign a three-year contract to manage the Dallas franchise in the Texas League for a record salary of $90,000. Grimm comments, "these hands were never intended to carry a brief case."
• 1956:
  • A Federal Court bars former Little League Commissioner Carl Stotz from forming a rival group. Stotz initiated the suit because he felt the league had grown too big, and that increasing team rosters to 15 players was preventing less able players from getting any real playing time.
  • The Boston Red Sox sell their Louisville farm club, the Louisville Colonels, to a Cuban cartel led by Havana businessman Edward F. Wheeler.
• 1958 - Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants signs a contract worth $65,000. It's the largest deal ever signed by a member of the Giants.
• 1964:
  • Charlie Finley signs a two-year pact to move the Athletics from Kansas City to Louisville, pending American League approval. He is later denied and the Athletics will stay put in Kansas City until after the 1967 season.
  • The Chicago White Sox introduce powder-blue road uniforms, starting a fashion trend that will last into the early 1980s.
• 1967 - Former major league manager Johnny Keane dies in Chicago, IL from a heart attack at the age of 55. Keane guided the St. Louis Cardinals to the 1964 World Series, but left to become the manager of the New York Yankees, whom the Cardinals had beaten in the World Series. After an unsuccessful stint with the Yankees, Keane became a scout with the California Angels.
• 1969 - Umpires Al Salerno and Bill Valentine file a grievance against the American League and its president, Joe Cronin, over their dismissal last year. The grievance is filed by the new umpires union with the National Labor Relations Board.
• 1977 - California Angels reserve shortstop Mike Miley is killed in an auto crash in Baton Rouge, LA, at age 23. Miley had been a star football player for the LSU Tigers and was chosen twice in the first round of the June free agent draft.
• 1988 - Free agent slugger Jack Clark signs with the New York Yankees, while Paul Molitor re-signs with the Milwaukee Brewers.
• 1992 - The Yankees sign free agent outfielder Danny Tartabull to a five-year contract.
• 1994 - Free agent signings include pitchers Jay Howell by the Texas Rangers, Jeff Brantley by the Cincinnati Reds, and shortstop Walt Weiss by the Colorado Rockies.
• 1997:
  • Former Atlanta Braves knuckleballer Phil Niekro is elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America, becoming the 227th member of the Hall. He receives 80.34% of the vote, as former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Don Sutton falls nine votes short of election. Niekro is only the 87th player to be elected by the BBWAA.
  • Los Angeles Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley announces plans to sell the team, which has been controlled by his family since 1950. The club is expected to command a record price.
• 1999:
  • Surgery makes the news as the New York Mets prize rookie outfielder Jay Payton undergoes arthroscopic surgery on his left shoulder. Also, Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Paul Quantrill has surgery to repair a fractured right thigh and a metal rod is inserted in his leg. He was injured in a snowmobile accident at his home in Port Hope, ON.
  • Nolan Ryan is the first passenger to board the Nolan Ryan Express, a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737. Ryan autographs both sides of the aircraft's nose on two specially designed decals each featuring a baseball with airplane wings and a Southwest colored tail. In July, Ryan will again board the NLE to fly to the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in Cooperstown, New York.
• 2000:
  • Major League Baseball officials order Atlanta Braves reliever John Rocker is to undergo psychological testing following derogatory remarks he made in an interview with Sports Illustrated magazine. Commissioner Bud Selig says he will listen to what the doctors say before deciding what punishment - if any - will be handed down to the pitcher.
  • Gene Budig resigns as American League president and is appointed a senior adviser to Commissioner Bud Selig. The American and National Leagues will be disbanded as legal entities later this month, with their functions consolidated in the commissioner's office.
• 2006 - Bob Watson, the general manager of the United States team for the World Baseball Classic, expects to find out by next week whether Alex Rodriguez will play for the Americans at the tournament. Rodriguez is eligible to play for both the US and the Dominican Republic.
• 2008 - Roger Clemens files a defamation lawsuit against trainer Brian McNamee for statements McNamee made in the Mitchell Report. McNamee had said he injected Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs.
• 2009:
  • The Baltimore Orioles sign former Yomiuri Giants right-hander Koji Uehara to a 2-year, $10 million deal with incentives reaching $16 million. The deal, pending a physical, brings the two-time Olympic hurler to the USA. Uehara struggled in 2008 and had the highest ERA of his 10-year career.
  • The New York Yankees finalize their deal with Mark Teixeira for $180 million over 8 years, joining Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia, Derek Jeter and A.J. Burnett on the payroll-heavy Yanks.
  • The Colorado Rockies and Chicago Cubs exchange pitchers, with Jason Marquis going to Chicago in return for Luis Vizcaino.
• 2010:
  • Andre Dawson, "The Hawk", is elected to the Hall of Fame getting 77.9% of the votes cast by the BBWAA. P Bert Blyleven and 2B Roberto Alomar fall agonizingly short of election, missing the honor by 5 and 8 votes respectively. Dawson, the 1987 National League MVP, played 21 seasons in the majors, principally with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs, hitting .279 with 438 home runs, 1591 RBI and 314 stolen bases.
  • The Twins sign P Clay Condrey to a one-year contract and release P Bobby Keppel to allow him to sign with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of the Japanese Pacific League.
• 2011 - P Brian Bannister, who played for the Royals last season, signs a one-year deal with an option for 2012 to play for the Yomiuri Giants of the Japanese Central League.
• 2012:
  • The Padres trade 1B prospect Anthony Rizzo and minor league P Zach Cates to the Cubs for P Andrew Cashner and OF Kyung-Min Na. The move seems to confirm that the Cubs have no interest in signing free agent 1B Prince Fielder.
  • Two free agents find new homes today: the Angels sign IF Jorge Cantu while the Mets ink SS Ronny Cedeno.

[edit] Births

• 1858 - Joe Cross, outfielder (d. 1933)
• 1859 - George Shoch, infielder (d. 1937)
• 1863 - Gene Moriarty, outfielder (deceased)
• 1864 - Andy Knox, infielder (d. 1940)
• 1865 - Sun Daly, outfielder (d. 1938)
• 1867 - James Donnelly, infielder (d. 1933)
• 1870 - Joe Sullivan, infielder (d. 1897)
• 1878 - Jack Slattery, catcher, manager (d. 1949)
• 1881 - Joe Lake, pitcher (d. 1950)
• 1882 - Willis Cole, outfielder (d. 1965)
• 1886 - Billy Purtell, infielder (d. 1962)
• 1890 - Vern Duncan, outfielder (d. 1954)
• 1895 - Charlie Blackburn, pitcher (d. 1984)
• 1897 - Buck Crouse, catcher (d. 1983)
• 1897 - By Speece, pitcher (d. 1974)
• 1899 - Eddie Mooers, minor league infielder and owner (d. 1989)
• 1900 - Clyde Beck, infielder (d. 1988)
• 1902 - Bob Barnes, pitcher (d. 1993)
• 1903 - Ike Eichrodt, outfielder (d. 1965)
• 1903 - George Grant, pitcher (d. 1986)
• 1903 - Mul Holland, pitcher (d. 1969)
• 1912 - Hal Warnock, outfielder (d. 1997)
• 1915 - Tom Ferrick, pitcher (d. 1996)
• 1915 - Chuck Workman, outfielder (d. 1953)
• 1916 - Phil Masi, catcher; All-Star (d. 1990)
• 1918 - John Corriden, pinch runner (d. 2001)
• 1918 - Bill Zinser, pitcher (d. 1993)
• 1920 - Jiro Noguchi, NPB pitcher; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (d. 2007)
• 1920 - Early Wynn, pitcher; All-Star, Hall of Famer (d. 1999)
• 1923 - Red Hardy, pitcher (d. 2003)
• 1923 - Zenzo Hasegawa, NPB infielder (d. 1998)
• 1926 - Ralph Branca, pitcher; All-Star
• 1928 - Dan Lewandowski, pitcher (d. 1996)
• 1930 - Walt Yowell, minor league pitcher (d. 2012)
• 1931 - Fern Battaglia, AAGPBL infielder (d. 2001)
• 1931 - Kazuo Fukushima, amateur pitcher; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame
• 1931 - Dick Tomanek, pitcher
• 1933 - Lenny Green, outfielder
• 1933 - Lee Walls, outfielder; All-Star (d. 1993)
• 1935 - Ed Bauta, pitcher
• 1936 - Ruben Amaro, infielder
• 1940 - Elvio Jimenez, outfielder
• 1947 - Juan Ortiz, Dominican national team catcher
• 1950 - Roy Staiger, infielder
• 1951 - Don Gullett, pitcher
• 1951 - Joe Lovitto, outfielder (d. 2001)
• 1952 - Bob Adams, infielder
• 1952 - Greg Schofield, college coach
• 1953 - Jimmie Hacker, minor league infielder
• 1954 - Kiyoshi Nakahata, NPB infielder
• 1955 - Rey Vicente Anglada, Cuban league infielder and manager
• 1955 - Doe Boyland, infielder
• 1962 - Tony Woods, minor league infielder
• 1962 - Fu-Lien Wu, CPBL infielder and manager
• 1963 - Norm Charlton, pitcher; All-Star
• 1963 - Bob Davidson, pitcher
• 1965 - Jose DeJesus, pitcher
• 1965 - Junior Vizcaino, scout
• 1967 - Darin Loe, college coach
• 1969 - Alvin Morman, pitcher
• 1970 - Dan Naulty, pitcher
• 1970 - Kun-Hong Pai, CPBL catcher
• 1971 - Steve Eddie, college coach
• 1971 - Mitsuru Manaka, NPB outfielder
• 1971 - Eric Moody, pitcher
• 1972 - John Gaynor, Australian women's national team manager
• 1973 - Marc Deschenes, minor league pitcher
• 1974 - Marlon Anderson, infielder
• 1975 - Walter Miranda, minor league pitcher
• 1976 - Jeff Pickler, minor league infielder
• 1978 - Jair Fernandez, minor league umpire
• 1978 - Casey Fossum, pitcher
• 1979 - Kevin Knollenburg, First Division catcher
• 1980 - Dennis Malave, minor league catcher
• 1981 - Syed Dur I Hussain, Pakistani national team infielder
• 1982 - Brian Bass, pitcher
• 1982 - John Odom, minor league pitcher (d. 2008)
• 1982 - Júlio Takahashi, Brazilian national team infielder
• 1982 - Scott Thorman, infielder
• 1984 - Jimmy Barthmaier, pitcher
• 1984 - Sammy Lauwers, First Division catcher
• 1984 - Anthony Slama, pitcher
• 1985 - Manuel Rodriguez, minor league player
• 1986 - Karen Costes, USA womens' national team batter
• 1986 - Ayako Imai, Japanese womens' national team pitcher
• 1989 - Ricardo Penalba, minor league pitcher
• 1991 - Kevin Gausman, pitcher
• 1995 - Yat-Sze Cheng, Hong Kong national team outfielder

[edit] Deaths

• 1894 - Marty Sullivan, outfielder (b. 1862)
• 1899 - John Smith, infielder (b. 1858)
• 1913 - Jack Boyle, infielder (b. 1866)
• 1916 - King Cole, pitcher (b. 1886)
• 1919 - Jake Stenzel, outfielder (b. 1867)
• 1932 - George Sharrott, pitcher (b. 1869)
• 1936 - Charles Stoneham, owner (b. 1876)
• 1941 - Charley O'Leary, infielder (b. 1875)
• 1942 - Louis Santop, Negro League catcher; Hall of Famer (b. 1890)
• 1943 - Ted Welch, pitcher (b. 1892)
• 1951 - Harry Camnitz, pitcher (b. 1884)
• 1952 - Frank Oberlin, pitcher (b. 1876)
• 1957 - Ed Abbaticchio, infielder (b. 1877)
• 1957 - Gil Gallagher, infielder (b. 1896)
• 1967 - Joe Haynes, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1917)
• 1967 - Johnny Keane, manager (b. 1911)
• 1967 - Joe Walsh, catcher (b. 1886)
• 1969 - Larry Cheney, pitcher (b. 1886)
• 1969 - Hank Olmsted, pitcher (b. 1879)
• 1969 - Clint Rogge, pitcher (b. 1889)
• 1969 - Jim Viox, infielder (b. 1890)
• 1977 - Mike Miley, infielder (b. 1953)
• 1978 - Tony Rego, catcher (b. 1897)
• 1981 - Fred Stiely, pitcher (b. 1901)
• 1982 - Wally Post, outfielder (b. 1929)
• 1984 - Billy Lee, outfielder (b. 1892)
• 1988 - Ralph Buxton, pitcher (b. 1914)
• 1988 - Johnny Hayes, Negro League catcher (b. 1910)
• 1990 - Walter Anderson, pitcher (b. 1897)
• 1991 - Bobby Estalella, outfielder (b. 1911)
• 1991 - Alan Wiggins, infielder (b. 1958)
• 1997 - Dick Donovan, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1927)
• 1998 - Ronnie Miller, pitcher (b. 1918)
• 1999 - Jim Dunn, pitcher (b. 1931)
• 2001 - Tom Poholsky, pitcher (b. 1929)
• 2001 - Tot Pressnell, pitcher (b. 1906)
• 2002 - Fred Taylor, infielder (b. 1924)
• 2003 - Jarvis Tatum, outfielder (b. 1946)
• 2008 - Keith Little, minor league infielder (b. 1929)
• 2008 - Marjorie Pieper, AAGPBL player (b. 1922)
• 2009 - Nino Bongiovanni, outfielder (b. 1911)
• 2011 - Francisco de la Rosa, pitcher (b. 1966)