January 26
From BR Bullpen
| Stats of players who were born this day | |
| Stats of players who died on this day | |
| Standings on this day | |
| Permanent link to Today's Entry | |
| Sources | |
| Baseball Library Chronology | |
| Today in Baseball History | |
Events, births and deaths that occurred on January 26.
Events[edit]
- 1895 - Baseball officials discuss the possibility of reinstating the old pitcher's distance. They are dismayed by the explosion of offense, which resulted in "long drawn out and uninteresting contests. Besides the brainy pitcher of former days would be given another chance to display his ability in the science of the game." The rule will remain unchanged, however, with the pitching rubber remaining at a distance of 60' 6" from home plate, where it is still today.
- 1919 - The St. Louis Cardinals name team president Branch Rickey as manager, replacing Jack Hendricks. Under Rickey's leadership, the last-place Cardinals will improve only slightly in the standings, finishing seventh this season.
- 1930 - Pitcher Carl Mays signs a contract with Portland of the Pacific Coast League, thus bringing to an end his major league career. In 1920, a Mays fastball struck Ray Chapman in the head. The impact of the blow killed the Cleveland Indians' shortstop.
- 1931:
- The Boston Braves release veteran pitcher Johnny Cooney. He had held out in 1930, insisting he could bat well enough to stay. After several years in the minors, Cooney will return to the National League as a Braves outfielder and be runner-up to batting champ Pete Reiser in 1940.
- The International League accepts the open draft imposed by the major leagues. Until this time, the top minor leagues could control their players and refuse to sell them.
- Another Oakland Oaks star, Buzz Arlett, long coveted by Major League teams and long withheld by Oakland, is sold to the Philadelphia Phillies.
- 1932 - Chicago Cubs owner William Wrigley dies at the age of 70 in Phoenix, Arizona. Wrigley had owned the team since 1919. Wrigley's son Philip inherits controlling interest in both the Cubs and the minor league Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League, but will leave most of the daily operations to Cubs president William Veeck.
- 1951 - The Baseball Writers Association of America votes sluggers Mel Ott and Jimmie Foxx into the Hall of Fame. Ott hit .304 with 511 home runs and 1,860 RBI; he managed the New York Giants from 1942 to 1948. Foxx was a .325 hitter with 534 home runs and 1,922 RBI.
- 1952 - Because of poor attendance, the Canadian-American League suspends operations for this season. This is one of seven minor leagues that will not operate this year, dropping the total from 50 to 43. The Korean War military obligation is the primary reason stated.
- 1960 - Boston Red Sox outfielder Jackie Jensen announces his retirement, only months after enjoying one of his best seasons hitting 28 home runs, 112 RBI, and a .277 batting average. Jensen's fear of flying plays a part in his decision to leave the game. In 1961, Jensen will return to the Red Sox before retiring once again, this time for good.
- 1961 - The Cincinnati Reds send Joe Nuxhall to the Kansas City Athletics for pitchers John Tsitouris and John Briggs. Nuxhall first pitched for the Reds in 1944, when he was 15 years old.
- 1962 - New York Yankees outfielders Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle sign contracts with Columbia Pictures to appear in Safe at Home!, a movie that is to be shot during spring training. The movie will star Maris and Mantle as themselves and feature cameos by Whitey Ford and Ralph Houk.
- 1963 - Major League Baseball's Rules Committee increases the size of the strike zone. The zone will stretch from the top of the batter's shoulders to the bottom of the knees. The committee hopes the return to the 1950s strike zone will result in a decrease in runs scored. The results will exceed the committee's expectations, and after the "Year of the Pitcher" in 1968, the strike zone will be tweaked again to give the hitters a break.
- 1965 - In the highest rated television program of the year in Japan, Shigeo Nagashima marries Akiko Nishimura.
- 1983 - The Chicago White Sox trade pitchers Steve Trout and Warren Brusstar to their cross-town rivals Cubs for pitchers Dick Tidrow and Randy Martz, and infielders Pat Tabler and Scott Fletcher.
- 1989 - The tougher balk rules initiated last season are rescinded and are replaced by the pre-1988 rules.
- 1990 - The Boston Red Sox hire Elaine Weddington as their assistant general manager making her the highest-ranking black female executive in Major League Baseball.
- 1994 - The Houston Astros sign free agent first baseman Sid Bream.
- 1995 - Major League Baseball players and owners are told by President Clinton to resume bargaining and reach an agreement to resolve the strike by February 6th.
- 2001:
- The June 8-10 (Arlington) and June 15-17 (Houston) interleague games between the Astros and Rangers will be known as the Lone Star Series. It will be first time the two Texan teams have ever played one another during the regular season.
- Free agent infielder Luis Alicea is signed by the Kansas City Royals.
- 2002 - The Seattle Mariners trade third baseman David Bell to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for infielder Desi Relaford. Bell became expendable when Seattle acquired Jeff Cirillo from the Colorado Rockies earlier in the off-season.
- 2005 - The New York Mets, who failed to sign free agent Carlos Delgado who was snatched up by the Marlins yesterday, quickly fill the void at first base by trading three prospects to the Boston Red Sox for Gold Glove Award winner Doug Mientkiewicz. The Red Sox, who acquired Mientkiewicz from Minnesota to solidify their defense, will use heavy-hitting, light-fielding Kevin Millar at first.
- 2006:
- Fidel Castro confirms that his country will play in the 2006 World Baseball Classic in Cuba's first official reaction to the U.S. government's decision allowing the communist country to participate.
- Two-time American League MVP Frank Thomas agrees a one-year deal with the Oakland Athletics, and first baseman Ben Broussard avoids salary arbitration by signing a one-year contract with the Cleveland Indians.
- 2010 - Three veteran free agents sign deals with new teams today. P Ben Sheets, who missed all of last season recovering from elbow surgery, signs with the Athletics where he will be the leader of their young starting rotation; the Twins sign DH Jim Thome for one year; and the Padres add P Jon Garland for a year as well.
- 2011:
- The Tigres de Aragua cut Anzoategui's lead in the Venezuelan League finals to two games to one with an 8 - 4 win. Wilson Ramos gets the key hit, a tie-breaking three-run homer in the 7th inning; Ramos goes 3 for 5 with two runs scored and four RBI in the game.
- Desperate for pitching, the Yankees sign veteran Bartolo Colon, who did not pitch in the majors last year, to a minor league contract. He will be given a chance to make the team out of spring training after playing well in the Dominican League this winter, and will prove a godsend when Phil Hughes goes down with an injury early in the season.
- 2012 - The Red Sox sign OF Cody Ross to a one-year contract and designate P Scott Atchison for assignment, while the Nationals sign former Philadelphia Phillies closer Brad Lidge, also for one year.
- 2013:
- The Yaquis de Obregón win their third straight Mexican Pacific League championship with a 16 - 3 drubbing of Mexicali to complete a sweep of the finals. Obregón has now won nine straight playoff games. It gives its opponents no chance, scoring five times in the 1st and again in the 3rd. Jesse Gutierrez scores three times and drives in four.
- Caguas is crowned Puerto Rican League champion with a 13 - 3 win over Mayagüez, the 16th title in team history. The issue is in little doubt after Caguas scores six times in the 1st against Aaron Miller.
- Magallanes knots up the Venezuelan League finals at two games apiece with a 6 - 5 win over Lara. Hector Gimenez and Eliezer Alfonzo both homer for the winners.
- 2014:
- The Indios de Mayagüez top the Criollos de Caguas for the Puerto Rican League title in a reversal of 2013. In the finale today, Jorge Martinez (4 H, 10 K, 1 R in 8 IP) and Tyler Herron (1 IP) dazzle for the Indios. Michael Nix, Luis Atilano and Andres Santiago match Martinez through seven innings, but in the 8th, Kennys Vargas hits a grand slam off Jose de la Torre to break the game open.
- The Caribes de Anzoátegui trail 3 - 0 in the bottom of the 10th against the Navegantes del Magallanes, facing elimination in the Venezuelan League finals, but they load the bases to set up a two-run double by Hector Gimenez, then Eduardo Escobar hits a walk-off three-run homer for a dramatic 5 - 3 win.
- The Brewers make their signing of P Matt Garza to a four-year contract official, four days after taking the unusual step of denying a deal had been reached. Garza will get $50 million over the four years, with an option for a fifth season at $13 million.
- 2015 - The Tomateros de Culiacán win their first Mexican Pacific League title in 11 years, topping the Charros de Jalisco, four games to one, in the finals. In Game 5, a 4 - 3 win, Eric Farris singles in two runs in the 3rd and Issmael Salas adds a solo homer in the 4th for the big hits off losing pitcher Marco Tovar. Anthony Vasquez gets the win and is named finals MVP, while Oscar Villarreal notches a save.
- 2016 - The Venados de Mazatlán win the Mexican Pacific League championship; just like last year's finals, this one goes five games, with the Venados beating the Águilas de Mexicali in four straight after dropping the opener. Today, as with last year's finale, it is 4 - 3 in Game 5. In the bottom of the 10th, Justin Greene reaches on an error, steals second then comes home on Cyle Hankerd's hit off Esmailin Caridad. Hankerd also homers today. Steven Hensley gets the win, Manuel Chavez the loss. Light-hitting SS Paul León is named finals MVP after hitting .344 with a couple of triples.
- 2020 - The Reds sign free agent Nicholas Castellanos for four years and $64 million.
- 2021:
- For the first time since 1960, there will be no new Hall of Famer this year as the BBWAA fails to elect anyone, after the Veterans Committee decided to postpone its vote by one year. This year's leading candidate, Curt Schilling, falls 16 votes short, in large part because of his continuous insensitive and extremist statements on all sorts of social matters. Enraged by the writers' decision, he asks that his name be removed from next year's ballot. The next two highest vote-getters, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, also fail to gain additional support due to their past association with steroids.
- After a slow off-season, players are starting to find homes for the upcoming season as the Blue Jays sign free agent SS Marcus Semien for one year at $18 million, the Phillies re-sign C J.T. Realmuto for five years in a deal worth $115.5 million, while the Tigers add C Wilson Ramos on a one-year deal.
- The Caribes de Anzoátegui pull off a sweep in the Venezuelan League finals, defeating the Cardenales de Lara. Niuman Romero's single off Vicente Campos scores Cristhian Pedroza in the bottom of the 10th to break a 7 - 7 tie. Romero and Oswaldo Arcia each have three RBI for the Caribes, while Willians Astudillo and Romero each have three hits. Jake Sanchez, Anzoátegui's tenth hurler, gets the win.
- 2023 - The Astros hire Dana Brown as their new General Manager, replacing James Click who was fired shortly after winning the 2022 World Series. Brown, a former minor league outfielder and Director of Scouting for the Atlanta Braves, becomes the only African-American GM in the majors at this time.
- 2024:
- 1B Rhys Hoskins, who missed all of last season with a knee injury sustained in spring training, signs a two-year deal with the Brewers as a free agent for $34 million.
- Lachlan Wells of the Adelaide Giants wins the Helms Award for the 2023-2024 Australian Baseball League; returning to the hill after a couple seasons off, he goes 6-0 with a 0.94 ERA, falling five strikeouts shy of a pitching Triple Crown.
Births[edit]
- 1844 - Tom Pratt, infielder; umpire (d. 1908)
- 1851 - Billy Barnie, catcher, manager (d. 1900)
- 1854 - Francis Richter, writer (d. 1926)
- 1859 - Bob Casey, infielder (d. 1936)
- 1870 - Scott Hardesty, infielder (d. 1944)
- 1877 - Eli Cates, pitcher (d. 1964)
- 1877 - Ben Koehler, outfielder (d. 1961)
- 1877 - E.J. Stewart, college coach (d. 1929)
- 1877 - Kaiser Wilhelm, pitcher, manager, umpire (d. 1936)
- 1877 - Dave Wills, infielder (d. 1959)
- 1884 - Arthur Berndt, college coach (d. ~1951)
- 1884 - Tubby Spencer, catcher (d. 1945)
- 1885 - Art LaVigne, catcher (d. 1950)
- 1886 - Hick Cady, catcher (d. 1946)
- 1898 - Willie Woods, outfielder (d. 1927)
- 1900 - Lefty Jamerson, pitcher (d. 1980)
- 1902 - Johnny Frederick, outfielder (d. 1977)
- 1904 - George Blaeholder, pitcher (d. 1947)
- 1906 - Charlie Gelbert, infielder (d. 1967)
- 1907 - Roy Yamamura, amateur player; Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame (d. 1990)
- 1911 - Rocky Ellis, pitcher (d. 1989)
- 1914 - Flit Holliday, outfielder (d. 1992)
- 1915 - Rip Russell, infielder (d. 1976)
- 1915 - Fay Washington, pitcher (d. 1975)
- 1918 - Jack Clifton, minor league outfielder (d. 2007)
- 1920 - Dick Mauney, pitcher (d. 1970)
- 1921 - Nobukazu Iwamoto, NPB pitcher and umpire (d. 2000)
- 1923 - Ray Gamache, minor league pitcher (d. 2000)
- 1924 - Bud Younger, college coach (d. 2008)
- 1927 - Bob Nieman, outfielder (d. 1985)
- 1927 - Tom Petroff, college coach (d. 2022)
- 1927 - Ron Teasley, outfielder
- 1928 - Ray Knoblauch, minor league pitcher (d. 2002)
- 1928 - Gene Richardson, pitcher (d. 1997)
- 1934 - Joaquín Portobanco, Nicaraguan national team pitcher (d. 2013)
- 1934 - Bob Uecker, catcher
- 1937 - Fumio Kitsugi, NPB infielder (d. 1977)
- 1943 - Cesar Gutierrez, infielder (d. 2005)
- 1943 - Hank McGraw, minor league catcher
- 1950 - Mike Pazik, pitcher
- 1952 - Morris Nettles, outfielder (d. 2017)
- 1953 - Tom Bruno, pitcher
- 1953 - Jeong-soo Kim, KBO infielder and manager (d. 2014)
- 1954 - Blake Doyle, coach
- 1954 - Brian Doyle, infielder
- 1955 - Joe Pettini, infielder
- 1956 - Yu-keun Kim, KBO outfielder
- 1958 - Mike Patterson, outfielder
- 1958 - Masato Tomoyose, NPB umpire
- 1960 - Jim Sherman, college coach
- 1961 - Craig Weissmann, minor league pitcher
- 1962 - Don Collins, minor league pitcher
- 1962 - Rick Schu, infielder
- 1963 - Kevin Blankenship, pitcher
- 1963 - Mauricio Nunez, minor league outfielder
- 1963 - Jose Segura, pitcher
- 1965 - Lou Frazier, outfielder
- 1965 - Dale Plummer, college coach
- 1966 - Kazushige Nagashima, NPB infielder
- 1967 - Jeff Branson, infielder
- 1967 - Tim Pugh, pitcher
- 1967 - Satoshi Takahashi, NPB outfielder
- 1968 - Rouglas Odor, coach
- 1970 - Dan Carlson, pitcher
- 1970 - Jon Mueller, college coach
- 1971 - Pete Janicki, minor league pitcher
- 1972 - Link Jarrett, college coach
- 1975 - Kevin Mobley, minor league pitcher
- 1975 - Ruben Rosario, minor league pitcher
- 1978 - Esteban German, infielder
- 1978 - Steve Green, pitcher
- 1978 - Andres Torres, outfielder
- 1979 - Ryan Bicondoa, pitcher
- 1979 - Kenny Kelly, outfielder
- 1979 - James Shanks, minor league outfielder
- 1979 - Jaime Steward, minor league pitcher
- 1980 - Maxime Gigout, Division Elite catcher
- 1980 - Brandon Medders, pitcher
- 1980 - Antonio Perez, infielder
- 1981 - Il-mok Cha, KBO catcher
- 1981 - Mike Keirstead, minor league pitcher
- 1981 - Juan Lara, pitcher
- 1981 - Josh Sharpless, pitcher
- 1982 - Syaiful Noer, Indonesian national team pitcher
- 1983 - Dominik Hartinger, Bundesliga pitcher
- 1983 - Ryan Rowland-Smith, pitcher
- 1984 - Satoshi Nagaoka, Japanese national team pitcher
- 1984 - Paul Phillips, minor league pitcher
- 1984 - Ryan Rogowski, minor league outfielder
- 1987 - Hector Noesi, pitcher
- 1987 - Jemile Weeks, infielder
- 1988 - Jui-Tse Hsu, CPBL infielder
- 1988 - Josh Prince, outfielder
- 1989 - Johermyn Chavez, minor league outfielder
- 1989 - Branden Pinder, pitcher
- 1990 - Chan-heon Jeong, KBO pitcher
- 1990 - Marlin Mejía, Nicaraguan national team pitcher
- 1991 - Fernando Romero, Chilean national team catcher
- 1992 - Kyle Garlick, outfielder
- 1995 - Chris Kwitzer, minor league infielder
- 1996 - Joel Cesar, minor league pitcher
- 1996 - Mykola Liakhovetskyi, Ukrainian national team pitcher
- 1996 - Nana Sasanuma, Japanese women's national team pitcher
- 1997 - Ako Thomas, minor league coach
- 1999 - Davis Schneider, infielder
- 2000 - Kelvin Cáceres, pitcher
- 2001 - Colby Thomas, minor league outfielder
- 2002 - Bryan Broecker, minor league catcher
- 2002 - Anton Trusov, Russian national team infielder
- 2004 - Jun-young Jeong, KBO outfielder
- 2004 - Pei-Wei Lin, CPBL infielder
- 2004 - Julien Muyldermans, First Division infielder
Deaths[edit]
- 1893 - Abner Doubleday, mythical inventor (b. 1819)
- 1889 - Tom Gillen, catcher (b. 1862)
- 1906 - Fred Underwood, pitcher (b. 1868)
- 1917 - Jim McGuire, infielder (b. 1875)
- 1924 - Frank Curry, umpire (d. 1852)
- 1926 - John Harris, owner (b. 1871)
- 1942 - Bill Francis, infielder (b. 1879)
- 1949 - Hugh Bradley, infielder (b. 1885)
- 1950 - Chick Autry, catcher (b. 1903)
- 1950 - Tom Bannon, outfielder (b. 1869)
- 1951 - Bill Barrett, outfielder (b. 1900)
- 1955 - Austin Walsh, outfielder (b. 1891)
- 1956 - Dave Howard, infielder (b. 1889)
- 1961 - George Hogreiver, outfielder (b. 1869)
- 1962 - Steve O'Neill, catcher, manager (b. 1891)
- 1965 - Bingo DeMoss, infielder, manager (b. 1889)
- 1965 - Chujun Tobita, college coach; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (b. 1886)
- 1967 - Jud Daley, outfielder (b. 1884)
- 1968 - John Kobs, college coach (b. 1898)
- 1968 - Eddie Phillips, catcher (b. 1901)
- 1969 - Elmer Daily, minor league pitcher and executive (b. ~1890)
- 1970 - Jim Haislip, pitcher (b. 1891)
- 1973 - Pat Hardgrove, pinch hitter (b. 1895)
- 1975 - Astyanax Douglass, catcher (b. 1897)
- 1979 - Nemo Gaines, pitcher (b. 1897)
- 1979 - Andy Harrington, pinch hitter (b. 1903)
- 1980 - Napoleon Hairston, infielder (b. 1912)
- 1980 - Frank Rosso, pitcher (b. 1921)
- 1981 - Ray Oyler, infielder (b. 1937)
- 1983 - Chet Laabs, outfielder; All-Star (b. 1912)
- 1983 - Del Rice, catcher, manager; All-Star (b. 1922)
- 1984 - Hoss Walker, infielder, manager (b. 1904)
- 1993 - Art Lilly, scout (b. 1916)
- 1995 - Dick Tettelbach, outfielder (b. 1929)
- 1997 - Neil Caldwell, minor league infielder (b. 1904)
- 1999 - Larry Loughlin, pitcher (b. 1941)
- 2000 - Frankie Pack, pinch hitter (b. 1928)
- 2000 - Bill Strickland, pitcher (b. 1908)
- 2002 - Ray Yochim, pitcher (b. 1922)
- 2007 - Horace Turbeville, college coach (b. 1935)
- 2009 - Jorge Calvo, minor league outfielder (b. 1938)
- 2009 - Yukio Imaizumi, NPB catcher (b. 1938)
- 2009 - Roy Johnson, outfielder (b. 1959)
- 2010 - Ken Walters, outfielder (b. 1933)
- 2012 - Bud Byerly, pitcher (b. 1919)
- 2012 - George Spears, minor league infielder (b. 1918)
- 2013 - Jersey van Doornspeek, Hoofdklasse outfielder (b. 1947)
- 2013 - Fred Russell, writer (b. 1916)
- 2014 - Doris Shero, AAGPBL outfielder (b. 1929)
- 2015 - Jhon Florentino, minor league infielder (b. 1983)
- 2020 - John Altobelli, college coach (b. 1963)
- 2021 - Ron Johnson, infielder (b. 1956)
- 2023 - Gary Peters, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1937)
- 2024 - Jimy Williams, infielder, manager (b. 1943)
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