
April 17, 1981: A’s dominate Mariners in home opener for ninth straight win
The Oakland Athletics started the 1981 season with an 11-game…

April 18, 1981: A first pitch for writer Eugenia Price
When inspirational writer Eugenia Price discovered St. Simons…

April 19, 1981: Walk-off homer spares PawSox, Rochester another extra-inning battle
On Easter Sunday afternoon, April 19, 1981, an otherwise uncelebrated…

April 22, 1981: Cardinals’ Lary Sorensen shuts out Cubs
The revamped St. Louis Cardinals were off to a rousing start…

May 10, 1981: Expos’ Charlie Lea pitches a ‘Giant’ no-hitter
Montreal’s 24-year-old right-hander Charlie Lea was an unlikely…

May 12, 1981: Clutch homers by Hatcher and Smalley lead Twins to win over Red Sox
Roy Smalley was off to a solid start to the 1981 season for the…

May 15, 1981: Cleveland’s Len Barker makes history with perfect game against Blue Jays
Who could have foreseen that the Friday evening matchup between…

May 19, 1981: Jim Bibby’s near no-hitter
On the evening of Tuesday, May 19, 1981, a scant crowd of 5,514…

May 25, 1981: Mark Belanger hits rare home run as Palmer, Orioles beat Guidry, Yankees
Doug DeCinces clubbed two home runs and drove in five runs as…

June 3, 1981: Jerry Grote’s grand slam and 7 RBIs lead Royals to victory
Jerry Grote had been out of baseball for two years when a former…

June 10, 1981: Nolan Ryan gets best of Pete Rose, but Phillies win marquee matchup
A marquee matchup was scheduled on June 10, 1981, with the Houston…

July 3, 1981: During major leaguers’ strike, Class A teams play at the Big A in Anaheim
As the baseball players’ strike got under way in June 1981,…

August 3, 1981: Yankees, Red Sox minor-league affiliates meet in unique Hall of Fame Game
In 1981 the Baseball Hall of Fame’s annual induction ceremony…

August 9, 1981: Gary Carter’s two homers power NL to All-Star victory
For nearly two months in the summer of 1981, major-league stadiums…

August 10, 1981: Cal Ripken Jr. makes his major-league debut
Monday, August 10, may well have been the most important day…

August 10, 1981: Dodgers’ Reuss, Howe blank Reds in first game after strike ends
After the 50-day players strike in 1981, in which about a third…

August 10, 1981: Twins down A’s to take second-half ‘reopener’
“If you think what goes on between the white lines has anything…

August 11, 1981: Reds’ Scott Brown records his only major-league win as Fernando Valenzuela’s struggles continue
Despite widespread fan anger over the just-ended strike, almost…

August 15, 1981: Twins overshadowed by the past
A forgettable year for the Minnesota Twins, 1981, stands out…

September 15, 1981: Luis Tiant baffles Cubs in only appearance at Wrigley Field
The idea of Luis Tiant pitching at Chicago’s Wrigley Field…

September 20, 1981: Twins’ Gary Gaetti hits first of 360 home runs in his first at-bat
On September 20, 1981, rookie Minnesota Twins third baseman Gary…

September 21, 1981: Expos win 17-inning thriller over Phillies
This game had everything that makes baseball great — nail-biting…

September 26, 1981: Nolan Ryan breaks Koufax’s mark with fifth no-hitter
When Nolan Ryan signed on November 19, 1979, what at the time…

September 30, 1981: Twins close Metropolitan Stadium with a loss
It was a bad day.
The weather was drab, home plate was missing,…