March 1

Events, births and deaths that occurred on March 1.

[edit] Events

• 1887 - In preparation for the upcoming National Colored Base Ball League season, the Louisville Falls City sign Al Prater from Detroit and W.S. Purnsley from the Cuban Giants. In addition, they have recently started construction of a 2,000-seat park.
• 1888 - The Washington Nationals National League club leaves on its southern tour a day earlier than scheduled, due to a superstition against starting a trip on a Friday.
• 1889 - The Philadelphia Quakers head for Jacksonville, Florida, for spring training. No other major league clubs will train in the Deep South this season.
• 1891 - The Pittsburgh Alleghenys and Cleveland Spiders are the two National League clubs making the heaviest raids against American Association player contracts, following the latter's denunciation of the National Agreement two weeks ago. Pittsburgh further earns its new nickname of "Pirates" by signing good-hitting outfielder Pete Browning and pitcher Scott Stratton away from the Louisville Colonels.
• 1892 - The first meeting of the united National League and American Association takes place in New York. Only four teams from the collapsed 1891 AA are invited to join the NL, which will expand to 12 teams with a 154-game schedule split into two championship series.
• 1893 - John Pickett wins $1,285.72 in a lawsuit against the Baltimore Orioles, his most recent team. Baltimore had claimed that they did not owe him this sum - Picket's entire 1892 salary - because he "was slow in his movement, and had a sore arm which incapacitated him from being of service to the club."
• 1903 - Baseball Rules Committee chairman Tom Loftus of the Washington Senators proclaims that the pitcher's mound must not be more than 15 inches higher than the baselines or home plate.
• 1909 - The Pittsburgh Pirates begin construction of their new stadium near Schenley Park near the Oakland section of Pittsburgh. The state-of-the-art stadium will be named Forbes Field in honor of John Forbes, a pre-Revolutionary British general.
• 1910 - The National Commission prohibits giving mementos to players on winning World Series teams. This will later be reversed, making way for the traditional winners' watches, rings, and stickpins.
• 1919 - Philadelphia Athletics owner Connie Mack makes one of his biggest player mistakes, trading third baseman Larry Gardner, outfielder Charlie Jamieson, and pitcher Elmer Myers to the Cleveland Indians for OF Braggo Roth. Veteran writer Ernest Lanigan predicts that Roth will lead the circuit in home runs at Shibe Park, but Roth will be shipped to the Boston Red Sox by midseason. Gardner will put in six more .300 years, and Jamieson will be a top leadoff man and .303 hitter for the next 14 years.
• 1936 - After spring training, the Yomiuri Giants beat the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League) managed by Lefty O'Doul, 5 - 0. On March 5th, the Giants will win again, 11 - 7.
• 1942 - Major league owners decide not to allow furloughed players in the military to play for their clubs if based near a game site.
• 1944 - Future Hall of Fame catcher Rick Ferrell is traded by the St. Louis Browns to the Washington Senators for Tony Giuliani and cash. When Giuliani refuses to report to his new team, Washington will send Gene Moore to the Browns to complete the trade.
• 1947:
  • In anticipation of the signing of the team's first black players, Bill Veeck, a resident of Phoenix, Arizona, sets up a spring training camp there for the Cleveland Indians. Arizona is chosen because of its relatively tolerant racial climate. During the season, Veeck will sign the American League's first black player, Larry Doby, who will train at the camp. The New York Giants also set up camp in Arizona, while the Brooklyn Dodgers move their training camp from Florida to Havana, Cuba.
  • New managers in spring training camps are Billy Herman with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Muddy Ruel with the St. Louis Browns, Bucky Harris with the New York Yankees, and Johnny Neun with the Cincinnati Reds. Neun ended 1946 as manager of the Yankees after both Joe McCarthy and Bill Dickey quit.
• 1949 - The St. Louis Browns, owners of Sportsman's Park, move to evict the St. Louis Cardinals in order to gain a rent increase.
• 1954 - Boston Red Sox star Ted Williams fractures his collarbone on the first day of spring training. The injury occurs as Williams dives for a ball hit by teammate Hoot Evers. As a result, the injury will force Williams to miss Opening Day and will keep him out of Boston lineup until May 15th.
• 1965 - Future Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente misses the first day of spring training because of a bout with malaria. The Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder will sit out a full month of training camp with the disease, which he contracted during the off-season. Clemente will recover to bat .329, but will hit only 10 home runs with 65 RBI, his worst totals since 1959.
• 1967 - Commissioner William Eckert approves the Baseball Writers Association of America's plan to select a Cy Young Award recipient from both the National and American Leagues. The honor, which was initiated in 1956, had been given to just one pitcher in the major leagues each season, a position strongly supported by former commissioner Ford Frick.
• 1969 - New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle announces his retirement. Mantle, who slumped to a .237 batting average in 1968, finishes his 18-season career with 536 home runs and a .298 average, numbers that would have certainly been higher if not for persistent knee injuries. The Yankees offer Mantle a coaching position on manager Ralph Houk's staff.
• 1971 - Willie Mays signs a two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants for $165,000 per season.
• 1976 - Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck opens training camp in Sarasota, Florida, but participation is limited to non-roster players because of the ongoing lockout.
• 1988 - For the first time since 1956, the Special Veterans Committee does not elect anyone to the Hall of Fame. Phil Rizzuto, Leo Durocher, Joe Gordon and Gil Hodges, are among the candidates passed over.
• 1993 - New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner is reinstated as general partner of the team. Commissioner Fay Vincent had banned Steinbrenner from day-to-day activities with the Yankees because of his relationship with convicted gambler Howie Spira.
• 1994 - Former banker Leonard Coleman is elected National League president, replacing Bill White. Coleman had been executive director for Major League Baseball market development.
• 1995 - Anaheim Angels replacement players play against Arizona State University in an exhibition game in Tempe, Arizona. It is the first time since 1912 that replacement players have appeared in a game in major league uniforms.
• 1996 - The Yankees christen Legends Field, their new $30 million, 31-acre complex in Tampa. The field has the exact dimensions of Yankee Stadium. On hand to see Phil Rizzuto toss out the first ball are former Yankees Whitey Ford, Catfish Hunter, Ron Guidry and Chris Chambliss, who then watch the new Yankees beat the American League Champions Cleveland Indians, 5 - 2.
• 2000 - Independent arbitrator Shyam Das cuts Atlanta Braves pitcher John Rocker's suspension for uttering a number of insensitive remarks in a Sports Illustrated interview this offseason from 28 days to 14 days. Rocker, who is allowed to report to spring training with the team, also has his fine cut.
• 2002:
  • The Boston Red Sox fire general manager Dan Duquette and replace him with Mike Port on an interim basis.
  • San Francisco Giants second baseman Jeff Kent breaks his thumb at home and is expected to be out for the next 4 to 6 weeks. He claims he was "washing his truck" when the incident occurred, although a number of journalists are skeptical.
• 2005:
  • Pitcher Tim Hudson, deciding not to file for free agency at the end of the season, agrees to a four-year, $47-million contract extension with his new team, the Atlanta Braves. Hudson, who was acquired in a trade with the Oakland Athletics in the off-season, grew up near Atlanta and rooted for the local team as a youngster. In 2004 he posted a 12-6 record with a 3.53 ERA.
  • Construction for an additional 1,790 bleacher seats at Wrigley Field will begin after the season and will be completed in time for Opening Day 2006. An deal is reached for expansion as the Chicago Cubs agree to pay the city $3.1 million prior to the start of work and by contributing funds for a local school park and a $400,000 traffic signal system near the ballpark.
• 2009 - Washington Nationals GM Jim Bowden resigns following allegations of skimming bonuses to Latin American players and the identity fraud scandal surrounding Esmailyn Gonzalez.
• 2010 - SABR announces the first nine winners of the Henry Chadwick Award, created to honor baseball researchers, historians, analysts, and statisticians.
• 2011:
  • The Cardinals get another scare on the heels of losing ace starter Adam Wainwright to Tommy John surgery: their other ace, Chris Carpenter, is taken out of today's Grapefruit League game against Florida after feeling a twinge in his hamstring. Fortunately, he is diagnosed with only a strain and will not miss significant time.
  • Major League Baseball appoints John Thorn as its official historian. He succeeds Jerome Holtzman, who occupied the office from 1999 until his death in 2008.
• 2012:
  • Jason Varitek, captain of the Boston Red Sox and a key member of its championship squads in 2004 and 2007, announces his retirement at a press conference in Fort Myers, FL. The durable catcher played his entire 15-year major league career with Boston.
  • In an important step in his recovery from shoulder surgery in 2010, Mets pitcher Johan Santana faces hitters for the first time in spring training. The team is hopeful he will be ready for Opening Day.
  • The first walk-off grand slam in a game involving the Schiller Rule takes place. With a 4 - 2 deficit and one out in the bottom of the 10th, Granma right fielder Urmanis Guerra goes deep off the Metropolitanos' Maikel Hidalgo with the bases loaded.
• 2013 - SABR announces its 2013 class of Chadwick Award winners, headed by historians Fred Lieb, Francis Richter and John Thorn, the Hall of Fame's official historian.

[edit] Births

• 1852 - Paul Hines, outfielder (d. 1935)
• 1853 - Ed Somerville, infielder (d. 1877)
• 1860 - Tom Sullivan, pitcher (d. 1947)
• 1864 - Farmer Vaughn, catcher (d. 1914)
• 1864 - Henry Yaik, catcher/outfielder (d. 1935)
• 1871 - George Boone, pitcher (d. 1910)
• 1881 - Al Shaw, outfielder (d. 1974)
• 1883 - Charlie Pickett, pitcher (d. 1969)
• 1885 - Lefty Webb, pitcher (d. 1958)
• 1888 - Howard Baker, infielder (d. 1964)
• 1889 - Hick Munsell, minor league pitcher (d. 1974)
• 1892 - Roy Elsh, outfielder (d. 1978)
• 1897 - Howie Jones, outfielder (d. 1972)
• 1899 - Ernie Padgett, infielder (d. 1957)
• 1905 - Jim Beckman, pitcher (d. 1974)
• 1908 - Tadashi Wakabayashi, NPB pitcher and manager; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (d. 1965)
• 1914 - Harry Caray, announcer (d. 1998)
• 1915 - Dwight Aden, minor league center fielder (d. 2008)
• 1915 - Nick Strincevich, pitcher (d. 2011)
• 1916 - Bing Devine, general manager (d. 2007)
• 1917 - Rankin Johnson, pitcher (d. 2006)
• 1917 - Ike Pearson, pitcher (d. 1985)
• 1918 - Hank Wyse, pitcher; All-Star (d. 2000)
• 1921 - Red Benton, minor league pitcher (d. 2013)
• 1921 - Howie Fox, pitcher (d. 1955)
• 1921 - Art Frantz, umpire (d. 2008)
• 1921 - Frank Rosso, pitcher (d. 1980)
• 1923 - Othello Renfroe, Negro League infielder (d. 1991)
• 1924 - Wilmer Harris, Negro League pitcher (d. 2004)
• 1924 - Tim Thompson, catcher
• 1925 - Bob Usher, outfielder
• 1928 - Bert Hamric, pinch hitter (d. 1984)
• 1928 - Fred McAlister, scout (d. 2008)
• 1928 - Toshihide Yamane, NPB pitcher/coach; CPBL manager (d. 2009)
• 1932 - Dom Zanni, pitcher
• 1937 - Arturo León Lerma, Mexican executive; Salon de la Fama
• 1940 - Larry Brown, infielder
• 1944 - Vern Fuller, infielder
• 1944 - Ron Klimkowski, pitcher (d. 2009)
• 1945 - Jim Panther, pitcher
• 1951 - Takuji Ota, NPB outfielder
• 1952 - Bob Davis, catcher
• 1953 - Jeff Holly, pitcher
• 1955 - Dan Schmitz, minor league infielder and manager
• 1957 - Johnny Ray, infielder; All-Star
• 1962 - Mark Gardner, pitcher
• 1962 - Brian Migliore, minor league pitcher
• 1963 - Tony Castillo, pitcher
• 1963 - Rich Rodriguez, pitcher
• 1966 - Takeshi Hirabayashi, NPB and minor league umpire
• 1966 - Ron Ortegon, minor league infielder
• 1969 - Neil Adonis, South African national team designated hitter
• 1969 - Doug Creek, pitcher
• 1970 - Min-tae Chung, KBO and NPB pitcher
• 1970 - Stuart Thompson, Australian national team outfielder
• 1972 - Omar Daal, pitcher
• 1972 - Jimmy Hurst, outfielder
• 1976 - Aaron Braund, minor league infielder
• 1976 - Ramon Castro, catcher
• 1977 - Shin-young Song, KBO pitcher
• 1978 - Ken Harvey, infielder; All-Star
• 1978 - Kris Keller, pitcher
• 1978 - Jorge Nunez, minor league infielder
• 1979 - Chris Barnwell, infielder
• 1980 - Micah Hoffpauir, outfielder
• 1980 - Ricardo Shimanoe, Brazilian national team catcher
• 1980 - Greg Wiltshire, minor league pitcher
• 1981 - Alex Smith, Hoofdklasse pitcher
• 1983 - Blake Hawksworth, pitcher
• 1985 - Gavin Ray, South African national team outfielder
• 1985 - Jonathan Baksh, minor league outfielder
• 1986 - Hui Guo, China Baseball League infielder
• 1986 - Eduardo Morlan, minor league pitcher
• 1988 - Trevor Cahill, pitcher; All-Star
• 1988 - Hyeon-jong Yang, KBO pitcher
• 1988 - Zhenwang Zhang, China Baseball League catcher
• 1989 - Taylor Swift, minor league pitcher
• 1990 - Dashenko Ricardo, minor league catcher
• 1990 - Kyle Skipworth, catcher
• 1991 - Dongchao Dai, China Baseball League infielder

[edit] Deaths

• 1881 - Hugh Campbell, pitcher (b. 1846)
• 1913 - Bud Fowler, minor league infielder (b. 1847)
• 1919 - Bill Fouser, infielder (b. 1855)
• 1919 - Hal McClure, outfielder (b. 1859)
• 1920 - Harry Jordan, pitcher (b. 1873)
• 1929 - Ed Foster, pitcher (b. 1885)
• 1937 - Nig Fuller, catcher (b. 1878)
• 1937 - Roy Vaughn, pitcher (b. 1911)
• 1941 - Ivey Wingo, catcher, manager (b. 1890)
• 1942 - Bill Delaney, infielder (b. 1863)
• 1954 - Marv Gudat, outfielder (b. 1903)
• 1956 - Ed Heusser, pitcher (b. 1909)
• 1956 - Walt Miller, pitcher (b. 1883)
• 1961 - Alex Malloy, pitcher (b. 1886)
• 1962 - Hal Janvrin, infielder (b. 1892)
• 1963 - Irish Meusel, outfielder (b. 1893)
• 1965 - Maurice Van Robays, outfielder (b. 1914)
• 1974 - Larry Doyle, infielder (b. 1886)
• 1976 - Rube Foster, pitcher (b. 1888)
• 1978 - Ted Strong, Negro League infielder/outfielder (b. 1914)
• 1980 - Emmett Ashford, umpire (b. 1914)
• 1980 - Art Jorgens, catcher (b. 1905)
• 1980 - Johnny Watwood, outfielder (b. 1905)
• 1985 - George Banks, infielder (b. 1938)
• 1988 - Luis Marquez, outfielder (b. 1925)
• 1990 - Creepy Crespi, infielder (b. 1918)
• 1990 - Ralph Wyatt, Negro League infielder (b. 1920)
• 1994 - Joe Tipton, catcher (b. 1922)
• 1997 - Monte Kennedy, pitcher (b. 1922)
• 2002 - Charlie Harville, announcer (b. ????)
• 2005 - Tamotsu Kimura, NPB pitcher (b. 1934)
• 2005 - Bob Mavis, pinch runner (b. 1918)
• 2006 - Ray Poole, pinch hitter (b. 1920)