This date in baseball history: Brock sets mark
On this date in baseball history . . . St. Louis Cardinals’ speedster Lou Brock passes Detroit Tiger legend Ty Cobb for first-place on baseball’s all-time stolen base list. Brock’s 893rd and 894th swipes of his Hall of Fame career come against the San Diego Padres. He would end his career with 938 thefts upon his retirment (1977) . . . Notorious spitballer Gaylord Perry records his record-setting 18th season of at least 100 strikeouts, tying him with Hall of Famer “Big Train” Walter Johnson and the illustrious Cy Young for the most such-seasons in major league baseball history (1982) . . . Detroit Tigers’ Schoolboy Rowe finally loses a game following 16-straight victories. He is chased in the seventh in a 13-5 drubbing by the A’s (1934) . . . New York Yankees catcher Thurman Munson is awarded a controversial single — the only one of the game — as Nolan Ryan tosses a one-hit shutout for the California Angels (1973) . . . Following four seasons and more than 1,300 at-bats, Cleveland’s Duane Kuiper finally hits a homerun — the only one he would ever hit in a 12-year, 3,379 at-bat career (1977) . . . Yankee legend Mickey Mantle returns to the club as a coach following his 1969 retirement. He would serve in that position for only the remainder of the season (1970).
Mantle became a coach today in baseball history, briefly
Don Baylor is plunked for the 190th time in his career, breaking Minnie Monoso’s American League record (1985) . . . The Detroit Tigers pay tribute to Ty Cobb with an honorary dinner. The club gives Cobb a cheque for $10,000 and the city of Detroit presents him with a trophy (1925) . . . Babe Ruth is suspended by manager Miller Huggins for arriving late to the park. Ruth is also fined $5,000 and is ordered not to suit up for that day’s contest. Ruth would unsuccessfully take his case to owner Jacob Ruppert who sides with Huggins (1925) . . . Longtime Toronto Blue Jays announcer Tom Cheek becomes the team’s seventh member of their Level of Excellence (joining George Bell, Joe Carter, Tony Fernandez, Dave Stieb, Cito Gaston and Pat Gillick). The move comes as an emotional surprise to Cheek, who would call 4,306 consecutive games for the Jays (and another 41 straight post-seasons matchups) during the Jays’ first 27-1/2 years of existence. He would pass away from cancer less than a year later at the age of 66 (2004).
- The Heckler
Photo used with permission of Early Era Baseball Photos.com
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