June 1

Events, births and deaths that occurred on June 1.

[edit] Events

• 1906 - Women appear at the Polo Grounds ticket windows for the first time. Coincidentally, new ticket-selling machines are also introduced.
• 1910 - The St. Louis Cardinals defeat the Philadelphia Phillies, 10 - 5, before a chilly crowd of 800 fans at the Baker Bowl. It is the 14th loss for the Phillies in their last 15 games. The Cardinals are paced by leadoff hitter Miller Huggins, who has no official at bats in six plate appearances, the first time this has ever happened in major league history. Huggins walks in his first three at-bats, hits a sacrifice fly and a sacrifice bunt in the next two, and walks with the bases loaded in the eighth inning to drive in the lead run. At the end of the season, Huggins will lead the National League with 116 walks.
• 1917 - Hank Gowdy of the Boston Braves became the first major leaguer to enlist in World War I. Gowdy will also serve in World War II.
• 1918 - Losing 5 - 4 against the Yankees, the Chicago White Sox load the bases in the 9th inning with no outs. Chick Gandil lines a shot to third baseman Frank Baker, who turns it into a game-ending triple play.
• 1923 - Scoring in every inning, the New York Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies at the Baker Bowl, 22 - 8. It is the first time in 20th century a team has scored in every inning.
• 1925 - Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees pinch-hits for Pee Wee Wanninger, beginning his streak of playing in 2,130 consecutive games. The next day, first baseman Wally Pipp shows up with the after-effects of a concussion, and Gehrig takes over.
• 1937 - Bill Dietrich of the Chicago White Sox pitches a no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns in an 8 - 0 win.
• 1941 - Mel Ott hits a two-run home run, the 400th of his major league career and his 1,499th and 1,500th RBI, helping the New York Giants to a 3 - 2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
• 1943 - Rip Sewell of the Pittsburgh Pirates patents his "eephus" or "blooper ball" pitch, which travels as high as 25 feet above the ground before dropping into the strike zone. Sewell will use the pitch on his way to a 20-win campaign.
• 1944 - Washington Senators outfielder Stan Spence goes 6 for 6 in an 11 - 5 win over the St. Louis Browns. Spence, who collects five singles and a home run, will finish the season with a .316 batting average and career highs in home runs (18) and runs batted in (100).
• 1951 - The Pittsburgh Pirates waive first baseman Dale Long to the St. Louis Browns, who send him to the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League. Long will be back in Pittsburgh for the 1955 season.
• 1954 - Montreal Royals outfielder Roberto Clemente is discovered by Pirates scout Clyde Sukeforth. Clemente is the Brooklyn Dodgers' five-tool farmhand. Sukeforth is not primarily a scout but rather the Pirates' pitching coach on special assignment in Richmond to scout newly-demoted Dodger hurler Joe Black. Unfortunately for the Dodgers, the first thing Sukeforth sees is Clemente. From this moment forward, despite Dodger GM Buzzie Bavasi's desperate manoeuvering, his prize prospect is lost. As Sukeforth himself will later tell Les Biederman of The Sporting News: "I saw Clemente and forgot all about Black. I arrived at the Richmond ball park just in time to see the pre-game workout. I saw Clemente throwing from the outfield and I couldn't take my eyes off him. Later in the game he was used as a pinch-hitter and I liked his swing. I started asking questions and learned he was a bonus player and would be eligible for the draft. Since the Pirates had first choice, I knew this would be our man. In fact, I told manager Max Macon to take good care of 'our boy' and see that he didn't get hurt."
• 1955 - Duke Snider hits three home runs at Ebbets Field, helping the Brooklyn Dodgers to an 11 - 8 victory over the Milwaukee Braves. The Dodgers also set a franchise record with six home runs.
• 1961 - Joe Torre's "most embarrassing moment" comes today. The Braves' rookie is victim No. 7 out of 27 on the season for Pirates right fielder Roberto Clemente, a somewhat sick total of outfield assists for a man seven years in the league. While nothing out of the ordinary for Roberto, this moment will be impossible to forget for Joe Torre, no matter how much he may want to: "I got a hit to right field and rounded first base as most runners do. Clemente picked up the ball, faked a throw to second and threw it so fast behind me to first base I was caught and tagged out. It was my most embarrassing moment on the field." The sixth-inning, rally-killing baserunning gaffe is somewhat differently portrayed in Pirates beat writer Les Biederman's contemporary account: "The only time the Braves had a chance to score on Harvey Haddix after the 1st inning came in the 6th inning when Torre singled to right with Frank Thomas on second. Torre rounded first and Dick Stuart cut off Clemente's throw home and politely tagged out Torre. Then Clemente completed the inning by going to the 375-foot mark and spearing Joe Adcock's long shot." Whether Biederman or Torre's account is most accurate, this remains a truly cringe-worthy moment and a valuable lesson for the young rookie, learned the hard way.
• 1965 - Bob Veale of the Pittsburgh Pirates sets a franchise record by striking out 16 batters in the 4 - 0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. It is the 12th consecutive victory for Pittsburgh.
• 1968 - Joe Hoerner of the St. Louis Cardinals ties the National League record for most consecutive strikeouts by a relief pitcher. Horner strikes out the final six batters he faces and earns the win in a 6 - 5 victory over the New York Mets.
• 1975 - The California Angels' Nolan Ryan's 100th career victory is a memorable one as he beats the Baltimore Orioles, 1 - 0, and ties Sandy Koufax's big league mark by pitching his fourth no-hitter.
• 1977 - Ruppert Jones of the Seattle Mariners hits a home run off Dennis Eckersley in the fifth inning to snap Eckersley's no-hit string of 22 1/3 innings, just two outs short of the major league record set by Cy Young. The Indians beat Seattle, 7 - 1.
• 1987 - Phil Niekro pitches the Cleveland Indians to a 9 - 6 victory, his 314th, over the Detroit Tigers. The win gives him and his brother, Joe, a major league record 530 combined victories, surpassing the mark set by the Perry brothers, Gaylord and Jim.
• 1992 - Devon White of the Toronto Blue Jays becomes just the sixth player in major league history to hit both a leadoff home run and an extra-inning homer in the same game. He also became the 56th switch-hitter in the majors to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game. Toronto defeats the Minnesota Twins, 5 - 3.
• 1995 - In the amateur draft, the California Angels select Darin Erstad with the first overall pick. He will sign for a $1.6 million bonus, the highest to date. Picking next, the San Diego Padres select Ben Davis, the Seattle Mariners pick Jose Cruz, Jr., and the Chicago Cubs follow with Kerry Wood.
• 1997 - At Dolphin Stadium, Colorado Rockies rookie pitcher John Thomson bats his first four major league hits, collects three RBI, and earns his first win, 9 - 2, over the Florida Marlins.
• 2000:
  • Tomo Ohka of the Pawtucket Red Sox becomes the third pitcher in the 117-year history of the International League to throw a nine-inning perfect game when he beats the Charlotte Knights, 2 - 0.
  • As owners struggle over the question of realignment, the Players Association suggests a simpler plan which only moves the Houston Astros from the NL Central to the AL West, thus creating two 15-team leagues. The owners' ideas would have the newest franchises, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks, switch leagues, the elimination of the National League wild card, and the AL Central consisting of six teams to go along with five divisions with only four teams. In the end, the status quo will prevail.
• 2001 - At Yankee Stadium, Cleveland defeats New York, in just five and a half innings, when the game is called because of rain with Cleveland ahead, 7 - 2. In a rarity, Cleveland starter C.C. Sabathia earns a win despite pitching only four innings. Relief pitcher Ricardo Rincón gets the save for retiring the side in the fifth inning. The rules state that in a five-inning game, a starter need not go the full five innings to earn a victory. There have just been five other cases since 1978 to match Sabathia's feat.
• 2005 - Miguel Tejada hits a home run, three doubles and scores three runs to lead the Baltimore Orioles to a 9 - 3 victory over the Boston Red Sox.
• 2007 - Phillip Wellman, manager of the Mississippi Braves, becomes the focus of national press coverage and internet discussion when he throws an epic tirade against an umpire.
• 2009 - The Yankees play their 18th straight game without an error, breaking the record held by the 2006 Boston Red Sox.
• 2010:
  • Illinois Wesleyan University wins its first national title, topping SUNY Cortland, 17 - 5, in the finale of the 2010 Division III College World Series. They finished the regular season only 19-19 and dropped 21 games overall during the campaign, a record for any college national titlist.
  • Bob Watson, Major League Baseball vice-president in charge of discipline, issues a rare blame directed at an umpire regarding an ejection. Watson states that pitcher Roy Oswalt will face no further action following his ejection from a game on May 31, but that umpire Bill Hohn "would be addressed in a stern way". Oswalt had yelled at himself in disgust after throwing a ball in the 3rd inning and was immediately tossed by Hohn.
  • Victor Martinez goes 5 for 5 with four doubles in Boston's 9 - 4 win over Oakland. He ties the major league record for doubles in a game by a catcher, set by Sandy Alomar in 1997.
  • Tampa Bay scores four runs in the 9th inning on only one hit - a bases-loaded double by Sean Rodriguez - to beat Toronto, 7 - 6. Jays closer Kevin Gregg issues five walks and throws a wild pitch in the inning, then is ejected by umpire Angel Hernandez for complaining about his calls. His ouster follows shortly after that of Rays manager Joe Maddon, thrown out for disputing a third strike call on Carlos Pena earlier in the inning. The Jays come within an inch of tying the game in the bottom of the 9th, when a drive by Vernon Wells hits the top of the outfield fence but bounces back on the field.
  • Scott Rolen hits two homers and a double and drives in four runs against his former team as Cincinnati defeats St. Louis, 9 - 8, in a wild game that leaves the Reds in sole possession of first place in the NL Central. Also swinging a hot bat is Joey Votto, who collects four hits including a homer, but Johnny Cueto blows leads of 3 - 0 and 7 - 3. It takes a sacrifice fly by Drew Stubbs against Blake Hawksworth in the 7th to decide the game in Cincinnati's favor.
  • DOOR Neptunus's record winning streak ends at 23 games as Kinheim beats them, 10 - 9. Rafaël Jozefa hits a grand slam for the winners and Michiel van Kampen gets the victory while Kevin Heijstek takes the loss.
• 2011:
  • After earning 15 wins before the All-Star break last year, the Rockies' Ubaldo Jimenez finally notches win number 1 this season with a 3 - 0 shutout of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Todd Helton homers in support of his four-hitter.
  • Major League Baseball announces changes to the format of the World Baseball Classic for its 2013 edition. The tournament will be preceded by a 16-team qualifying tournament, to be held in the Fall of 2012. Taking part will be the four teams that failed to win a game in 2009 - Canada, Panama, Taiwan and South Africa - and 12 teams that have recently played in the Baseball World Cup, including Colombia and Nicaragua, who had been excluded from the first two editions of the WBC in spite of a solid tradition of international play. The four winners from the qualifying tournament will advance to the main event the following spring.
  • The Blue Jays hit three triples in a row courtesy of Eric Thames, Rajai Davis and Jayson Nix in the 5th inning against Cleveland. No team had done that in the majors since the 1981 Expos.
• 2012:
  • Johan Santana throws the first no-hitter in the 50-year history of the New York Mets when he defeats the Cardinals, 8 - 0. He walks 5 and needs 134 pitches to complete the game; he is helped by a great catch by Mike Baxter, who crashes into the fence at full speed and hurts himself in snagging Yadier Molina's line drive in the 7th. The Mets had played 8,120 games before their first no-hitter, while there had been 131 MLB no-hitters since they debuted.
  • Alfredo Despaigne wins the Serie Nacional MVP for the third time in four years. He had set a new home run record (36) in 2011-2012 and had also led the league in both walks (91) and RBI (105). Vladimir García is named postseason MVP while Carlos Juan Viera takes home the Rookie of the Year. Despaigne joins Wilfredo Sánchez and Omar Linares as the only 3-time Cuban MVPs of the Castro era; Martin Dihigo had won four back in the Cuban Winter League era.
  • Tennessee Wesleyan College wins the 2012 NAIA College World Series for the school's first national title in any sport. They top Rogers State University, 10-6, in the finale. Trailing 6-2 after 3 innings, Tennessee Wesleyan hurlers allowed no further runs. They went ahead for good in the bottom of the 8th on a 2-run single by Jake Stone and Taylor Oldham follows with a 3-run homer.

[edit] Births

• 1846 - Andy Leonard, outfielder (d. 1903)
• 1863 - John Ewing, pitcher (d. 1895)
• 1866 - George Decker, infielder (d. 1909)
• 1869 - Ted Breitenstein, pitcher (d. 1935)
• 1869 - Bill Eagan, infielder (d. 1905)
• 1869 - Les German, pitcher (d. 1934)
• 1870 - Floyd Ritter, catcher (d. 1943)
• 1876 - Joe Kostal, pitcher (d. 1933)
• 1880 - Harry McChesney, outfielder (d. 1960)
• 1883 - John Castle, outfielder (d. 1929)
• 1885 - Jim Duggan, infielder (d. 1951)
• 1885 - Herm Malloy, pitcher (d. 1942)
• 1887 - Harry Gardner, pitcher (d. 1961)
• 1888 - Dixie Walker, pitcher (d. 1965)
• 1889 - Otto Miller, catcher (d. 1962)
• 1890 - Tom Long, outfielder (d. 1972)
• 1891 - Hank Severeid, catcher (d. 1968)
• 1891 - Homer Thompson, catcher (d. 1957)
• 1892 - Ty Tyson, outfielder (d. 1953)
• 1893 - Guy Morton, pitcher (d. 1934)
• 1893 - Eddie Palmer, infielder (d. 1983)
• 1896 - Johnny Mostil, outfielder (d. 1970)
• 1898 - Duke Sedgwick, pitcher (d. 1982)
• 1899 - Al Niehaus, infielder (d. 1931)
• 1900 - Dutch Schesler, pitcher (d. 1953)
• 1901 - Lou Legett, catcher (d. 1988)
• 1901 - Fred Stiely, pitcher (d. 1981)
• 1909 - Jo-Jo White, outfielder, manager (d. 1986)
• 1911 - Lou Tost, pitcher (d. 1967)
• 1913 - Edward Jabb, minor league outfielder (d. 2008)
• 1915 - Bud Metheny, outfielder (d. 2003)
• 1917 - Ted Bonda, owber (d. 2005)
• 1926 - John Jackson, Negro League pitcher (d. 2007)
• 1926 - Ray Moore, pitcher (d. 1995)
• 1931 - Hal Smith, catcher; All-Star
• 1932 - Chuck Templeton, pitcher (d. 1997)
• 1935 - Hal Kolstad, pitcher
• 1935 - Jack Kralick, pitcher; All-Star (d. 2012)
• 1936 - Jim McKnight, infielder (d. 1994)
• 1941 - Dean Chance, pitcher; All-Star
• 1942 - Randy Hundley, catcher; All-Star
• 1942 - Ken McMullen, infielder
• 1945 - Kevin Greatrex, Australian national team infielder
• 1953 - Rick Baldwin, pitcher
• 1954 - Tom Sohns, minor league infielder
• 1955 - Sandy Wihtol, pitcher
• 1956 - Seung-an Yoo, KBO catcher
• 1962 - Jessie Reid, outfielder
• 1963 - Phil Wilson, minor league outfielder
• 1965 - Jeff Nelson, umpire
• 1967 - James Hurst, pitcher
• 1971 - Carlos Morales, Virgin Islands national team infielder
• 1973 - Jose Guillen, minor league infielder and manager
• 1973 - Takaya Hayashi, NPB infielder
• 1973 - Derek Lowe, pitcher; All-Star
• 1974 - Chin-Wei Lee, CPBL catcher
• 1976 - Saburo Omura, NPB outfielder
• 1976 - Jim Rickon, minor league catcher
• 1977 - Brad Wilkerson, outfielder
• 1981 - Marvin Bleij, Hoofdklasse infielder
• 1981 - Carlos Zambrano, pitcher; All-Star
• 1982 - Tadashi Settsu, NPB pitcher
• 1983 - Mark Rodriguez, minor league pitcher
• 1984 - Wilkin Castillo, catcher
• 1984 - Clemens Cichocki, Bundesliga pitcher-infielder-outfielder
• 1985 - Henrique Imai, Brazilian national team pitcher
• 1985 - Woo-ram Jung, KBO pitcher
• 1985 - Alessandro Maestri, minor league and NPB pitcher
• 1987 - Ana Maldonado, Puerto Rican womens' national team infielder
• 1987 - Ching-Hao Tsai, CPBL pitcher
• 1988 - Francisco Peguero, outfielder
• 1990 - Gabriel Colina Au, Hong Kong national team infielder
• 1990 - Alexey Kobrinets, Russian national team infielder
• 1990 - Benjamin Pearson, British national team pitcher
• 1994 - Alex Lukashevich, minor league pitcher

[edit] Deaths

• 1900 - Charlie Gray, pitcher (b. 1864)
• 1905 - Harry East, infielder (b. 1862)
• 1928 - Charlie Jordan, pitcher (b. 1871)
• 1940 - Logan Drake, pitcher (b. 1900)
• 1942 - Ed Burns, catcher (b. 1888)
• 1942 - Danny Friend, pitcher (b. 1873)
• 1954 - George Caithamer, catcher (b. 1910)
• 1954 - Vern Duncan, outfielder (b. 1890)
• 1955 - Dick Burnett, minor league owner (b. ????)
• 1957 - Pete Schneider, pitcher (b. 1895)
• 1960 - Harry Dean, pitcher (b. 1915)
• 1962 - Jim Faulkner, pitcher (b. 1899)
• 1966 - Dick Cox, outfielder (b. 1897)
• 1970 - George Watkins, outfielder (b. 1900)
• 1973 - Bunny Downs, Negro League infielder and manager (b. 1894)
• 1973 - Fred Heimach, pitcher (b. 1901)
• 1980 - Rube Marquard, pitcher; Hall of Famer (b. 1886)
• 1988 - Belve Bean, pitcher (b. 1905)
• 1994 - Bill Webb, pitcher (b. 1913)
• 1997 - Mickey Rocco, infielder (b. 1916)
• 2001 - Nancy Warren, AAGPBL pitcher (b. 1921)
• 2003 - Johnny Hopp, outfielder; All-Star (b. 1916)
• 2003 - Pete Sivess, pitcher (b. 1913)
• 2006 - Eddie Malone, catcher (b. 1920)
• 2009 - Gene Carlson, minor league pitcher (b. 1932)
• 2010 - Freddie Burdette, pitcher (b. 1936)