March 25
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Events, births and deaths that occurred on March 25.
[edit] Events
- 1882 - A fence has been erected on the Recreation Ground in San Francisco which forces the left fielder "to play over the fence, causing the players much inconvenience."
- 1885 - A new rule is adopted stating that the pitcher must "do all his throwing to bases before he has taken his stride as if to pitch ball."
- 1888 - The St. Louis Browns of the National League open the training season with an exhibition game versus the St. Louis Whites, a new Western Association team. The WA will have clubs in four cities that also have NL clubs.
- 1891 - Albert Spalding retires from active participation in the affairs of the Chicago Colts club and the National League. James A. Hart will assume the club presidency.
- 1893 - The Louisville Colonels National League club is forced to transfer its only three Sunday games because the suburb of Parkland, in which the Colonels' new ballpark is located, does not permit Sunday play.
- 1910 - The Chalmers Auto Company of Detroit agrees to award a new car to the player who owns the highest batting average at season's end. Nap Lajoie will win a disputed batting title over Ty Cobb in a controversial finish, but Chalmers will award cars to both players in an effort to save face.
- 1916 - An unsigned Tris Speaker arrives at the Boston Red Sox training camp in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in time for an exhibition game. Speaker goes 4-for-4 with a home run and a triple.
- 1917:
- Manager John McGraw is signed by the New York Giants to a five-year contract for $40,000 a year plus bonuses. The contract makes him the highest paid figure in major league baseball.
- Babe Ruth pitches four innings against the Brooklyn Dodgers, allowing just one hit, before giving way to a group of inept Boston Red Sox relievers. Brooklyn wins, 11 - 2, and reigns as "Hot Springs Champs."
- 1920 - In a spring training match between the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers, a sweeping inside curve ball throw by Dodgers pitcher Jeff Pfeffer hit Chick Fewster striking the Yankees shortstop behind the ear and flattening him. Fewster revives 10 minutes later but soon loses the ability to speak. Taken to the hospital with a skull fracture and a blood clot on his brain, Fewster will recover slowly and return to play in mid-season.
- 1934 - In New Orleans, Louisiana Mildred Didrickson (Babe Zaharias) pitches again, this time for the New Orleans Pelicans against a split squad of the Cleveland Indians. She throws two scoreless innings and lines out in her only at-bat appearance. In nearby Lafayette, manager Walter Johnson pitches for the other Cleveland squad against the Kansas City Blues.
- 1935 - The New York Yankees purchase starting pitcher Pat Malone from the Chicago Cubs. Malone had led the National League in wins in 1929, with 22, and in 1930 with 21 (115 in a seven-year span). But Malone will only post a 19-13 record with the Yankees for the next three seasons.
- 1945 - Tryouts are granted to pitcher Terris McDuffie and first baseman Dave Thomas when a group of black players appear at the Brooklyn Dodgers offices. The two players will work out at Ebbets Field in front of general manager Branch Rickey on April 7.
- 1951 - Hall of Fame player/manager Eddie Collins dies in Boston, Massachusetts, at the age of 63. Collins batted .333 and stole 744 bases over a 25-year career, and batted .328 in six World Series with the Chicago White Sox and Philadelphia Athletics.
- 1953 - The St. Louis Browns sign free agent Bob Elliott. The veteran third baseman will play just 48 games before being dealt to the Chicago White Sox.
- 1959 - The St. Louis Cardinals trade pitcher Sad Sam Jones and minor leaguer Don Choate to the San Francisco Giants for first baseman/outfielder Bill White and third baseman Ray Jablonski.
- 1962 - Elvin Tappe is named as the Chicago Cubs first head coach of the season in team's college of coaches plan. Chicago hasn't had a manager since 1960.
- 1963 - The Cincinnati Reds sell veteran pitcher Johnny Klippstein to the Philadelphia Phillies. After going 7-7 over two seasons with Philadelphia, Klippstein will help the Minnesota Twins win the American League pennant in 1965 posting a 9-3 record.
- 1965 - In spring training, Bill Mazeroski of the Pittsburgh Pirates suffers a broken bone in his right foot. The injury will sideline the Gold Glove second baseman until May, allowing him to play in only 130 games during the regular season.
- 1981 - The defending World Champion Philadelphia Phillies acquire veteran outfielder Gary Matthews Sr. from the Atlanta Braves for pitcher Bob Walk. Matthews will hit .301 and compile a .398 on-base percentage in 101 games in his first season with the Phillies.
- 1985 - A judge in Illinois rules that state laws prohibiting night baseball at Wrigley Field are constitutional. The Chicago Cubs had previously sued to have the laws overturned after major league baseball took away one of the Cubs' home games during the 1984 NLCS.
- 1989 - The Pittsburgh Pirates make one of their better trades in recent memory, acquiring shortstop Jay Bell from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for fellow shortstop Felix Fermin. Bell will serve as the Pirates starting shortstop for the next eight seasons, twice leading the National League in fielding percentage.
- 1997:
- In a trade reflecting current baseball economics, the Atlanta Braves send right fielder David Justice and center fielder Marquis Grissom to the Cleveland Indians for center fielder Kenny Lofton and relief pitcher Alan Embree. Atlanta and Cleveland faced each other in the 1995 World Series. The swap of the two Gold Glove center fielders and the three-time All-Star Justice reduces the Braves' payroll by an estimated 6.8 million dollars. Both players have several years left on their contracts, while Lofton, considered the best leadoff hitter in major league baseball, is in the last year of his.
- The Kansas City Royals release Bob Hamelin, the 1994 American League Rookie of the Year. The 29-year-old Hamelin never lived up to his first year, when he smacked 24 home runs in strike-shortened season. The Detroit Tigers will sign Hamelin to a minor-league contract.
- 1999:
- Anaheim Angels pitcher Jason Dickson undergoes surgery to repair torn tissue in his right shoulder. He is expected to miss at least four months of the season.
- The New York Mets sign free agent pitcher Orel Hershiser to a contract.
- 2001 - Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Randy Johnson kills a dove with a pitch during the Diamondbacks 10 - 6 exhibition win over the San Francisco Giants. The dove makes the mistake of darting in front of a 95-MPH fastball.
- 2008 - Opening Day in Major League Baseball is held in the Tokyo Dome. The game was questionable earlier in the month when the Red Sox planned to "strike" due to disagreements with MLB over payment for coaches who went on the trip. Daisuke Matsuzaka battles control problems (walking five) and allows two runs in five innings in a homecoming of sorts. In the 6th inning, Manny Ramirez hit a 2-run double off of Joe Blanton to tie the score and Brandon Moss singled him in for the lead. Oakland retook the lead, 4-3, entering the 9th. Moss then delivered more heroics with one out in the 9th inning, homering off of A's closer Huston Street to tie it. Hideki Okajima tosses a scoreless bottom of the 9th for the win. In the 10th, Ramirez hit a 2-run, 2-out double off of Street for a 6-4 lead. Oakland scores once off of Jonathan Papelbon in the 10th but he hangs on for the save.
[edit] Births
- 1856 - Martin Powell, infielder (d. 1888)
- 1861 - Patrick Scanlan, outfielder (d. 1913)
- 1862 - Charlie Geggus, pitcher (d. 1917)
- 1863 - Fred Smith, pitcher (d. 1941)
- 1866 - Harry Lyons, outfielder (d. 1912)
- 1866 - Larry McKeon, pitcher (d. 1915)
- 1868 - Frank Dwyer, pitcher, manager (d. 1943)
- 1874 - Bill Carney, outfielder (d. 1938)
- 1875 - Dorsey Riddlemoser, pitcher (d. 1954)
- 1879 - John Walsh, infielder (d. 1947)
- 1881 - Chappy Charles, infielder (d. 1959)
- 1886 - Jimmy Walsh, infielder (d. 1947)
- 1887 - Clyde Milan, outfielder, manager (d. 1953)
- 1891 - Polly McLarry, infielder (d. 1971)
- 1900 - Russ Miller, pitcher (d. 1962)
- 1901 - John Fetzer, owner (d. 1991)
- 1901 - Denver Grigsby, outfielder (d. 1973)
- 1907 - Norm Daniels, college coach (d. 2009)
- 1909 - Dutch Leonard, pitcher; All-Star (d. 1983)
- 1910 - Edward Marleau, minor league pitcher and manager
- 1913 - Buster Maynard, outfielder (d. 1977)
- 1915 - Chris Hartje, catcher (d. 1946)
- 1915 - Rudy Laskowski, minor league infielder and manager
- 1916 - Kozo Naito, NPB pitcher (d. 2002)
- 1919 - Bill Evans, pitcher (d. 1983)
- 1920 - Sam Lowry, pitcher (d. 1992)
- 1922 - Billy Bowers, outfielder (d. 1996)
- 1927 - Nick Adzick, minor league catcher (d. 2006)
- 1930 - Ryohei Hasegawa, NPB pitcher and manager; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (d. 2006)
- 1930 - Rudy Minarcin, pitcher
- 1932 - Walt Craddock, pitcher (d. 1980)
- 1932 - Woodie Held, infielder (d. 2009)
- 1933 - Nelson Chittum, pitcher
- 1938 - Alan Koch, pitcher
- 1944 - Jim Britton, pitcher
- 1945 - Jim Ellis, pitcher
- 1948 - Mike Nagy, pitcher
- 1955 - Lee Mazzilli, outfielder, manager; All-Star
- 1958 - Ray Tanner, college coach
- 1962 - Jeff Kunkel, infielder
- 1965 - Jerry Kutzler, pitcher
- 1966 - Tom Glavine, pitcher; All-Star
- 1966 - Jeff Knox, minor league pitcher
- 1967 - Brian Barnes, pitcher
- 1969 - Travis Fryman, infielder; All-Star
- 1969 - Eric Helfand, catcher
- 1969 - Paul Menhart, pitcher
- 1969 - Scott Sanders, pitcher
- 1969 - Erik Schullstrom, pitcher
- 1969 - Dan Wilson, catcher; All-Star
- 1972 - Howard Battle, infielder
- 1975 - Adrian Hernandez, pitcher
- 1975 - Miguel Mejia, outfielder
- 1975 - Danilo Sotelo, minor league infielder
- 1977 - Brett Jodie, pitcher
- 1977 - Jose Vargas, minor league pitcher
- 1980 - Neal Cotts, pitcher
- 1980 - Raphaël Auriac, Division Elite infielder-outfielder
- 1981 - Joo-chan Kim, KBO outfielder
- 1981 - En-Yu Lin, NPB pitcher
- 1981 - Sen Yang, NPB infielder
- 1983 - Humberto Cardenas, minor league pitcher
- 1983 - Chao Wang, minor league pitcher
- 1986 - Rubi Koko, minor league outfielder
- 1987 - Hyun-jin Ryu, KBO pitcher
[edit] Deaths
- 1897 - Bill Quarles, pitcher (b. 1869)
- 1904 - Harry Arundel, pitcher (b. 1855)
- 1906 - Joe Cassidy, infielder (b. 1883)
- 1911 - Stanley Robison, manager (b. 1854)
- 1921 - Harry Arndt, infielder (b. 1879)
- 1924 - Terry Connell, catcher (b. 1855)
- 1928 - Homer Smoot, outfielder (b. 1878)
- 1929 - Roy Meeker, pitcher (b. 1900)
- 1930 - Bill Krieg, catcher (b. 1859)
- 1933 - Tom Donovan, outfielder (b. 1873)
- 1936 - Art Hagan, pitcher (b. 1863)
- 1937 - Billy Murray, manager (b. 1864)
- 1939 - Tiny Chaplin, pitcher (b. 1905)
- 1941 - Eddie Hickey, infielder (b. 1872)
- 1946 - Hack Schumann, pitcher (b. 1884)
- 1949 - Jim Riley, outfielder (b. 1886)
- 1950 - Pussy Tebeau, outfielder (b. 1870)
- 1951 - Eddie Collins, infielder, manager; Hall of Famer (b. 1887)
- 1951 - Dan Daub, pitcher (b. 1868)
- 1953 - Tim Griesenbeck, catcher (b. 1897)
- 1956 - John Taylor, Negro League pitcher (b. 1880)
- 1958 - Clarence Kraft, infielder (b. 1887)
- 1958 - Al Shaw, catcher (b. 1873)
- 1966 - Bill Morrisette, pitcher (b. 1894)
- 1981 - Red Morgan, infielder (b. 1883)
- 1985 - Curt Barclay, pitcher (b. 1931)
- 1985 - Joe Wood, infielder (b. 1919)
- 1986 - George Grant, pitcher (b. 1903)
- 1994 - Bob Fontaine, scout (b. 1923)
- 1999 - Cal Ripken Sr., manager (b. 1935)
- 2005 - Frank Zupo, catcher (b. 1939)
- 2009 - Johnny Blanchard, outfielder/catcher (b.1933)
- 2009 - Arthur Richman, writer/executive (b. ~1926)
