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Here’s a history lesson. On April 14, 1969, an American laid claim to Canadian territory for the first time since the War of 1812. The American was Montreal Expos left fielder Mack Jones. The territory was the left-field bleachers at Jarry Park, which was renamed Jonesville after his three-run homer and two-run triple helped the […]

In their first visit to newly opened Three Rivers Stadium, the Chicago Cubs trounced the Pittsburgh Pirates, 9-2, in the second game of a Labor Day 1970 doubleheader to secure the split. Leading a quartet of stars was Fergie Jenkins, who spanked a home run and held the Pirates to five hits for his major-league-most […]

With the Atlanta Braves’ unprecedented playoff run one defeat from expiration, 21-year-old left-hander Steve Avery’s second dominant start of the 1991 National League Championship Series kept the Pittsburgh Pirates scoreless through eight innings of Game Six on October 16 at Three Rivers Stadium. Clutch play by Ron Gant, Greg Olson, and Alejandro Peña then secured […]

The 1961 major-league season was barely three weeks old the day 29-year-old Willie Mays produced perhaps the greatest offensive performance of his legendary career. Led by Mays, the San Francisco Giants came to Milwaukee for a three-game series with the hometown Braves. Just a year away from the World Series, the Giants were a team […]

If Cleveland Indians fans were champing at the bit, one could hardly blame them. The Indians had held a commanding 3-games-to-1 World Series lead over Boston, and Game Five would be at Cleveland Stadium. Cleveland was sending Bob Feller to the hill. Feller had lost Game One, 1-0, after umpire Bill Stewart made a controversial […]

After a whirlwind six days that saw Mike Piazza traded from the Los Angeles Dodgers and join the Florida Marlins in St. Louis for his first three games with the Marlins, the slugging catcher finally found himself with a true offday after the team flew home. The Miami area was where Piazza made his offseason […]

Oh, those New York Mets! In the first three seasons since the National League returned to New York in 1962, the Mets finished in last place. Would the 1965 season be their time to abandon last place for higher ground? To answer the question, manager Casey Stengel could be direct without resorting to some form […]

The 1976 Cincinnati Reds were on the cusp of accomplishing a first in franchise history. The Big Red Machine, as they had come to be known, were one win away from sweeping the New York Yankees and for the first time win back-to-back World Series. The Reds had won a thrilling seven-game Series over Boston […]

Frigid cold, a small crowd, and a career-ending injury are three things no one wants to see at an exhibition game. Unfortunately, all three marred the Boston Red Sox’ game against their Triple-A affiliate in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, on May 6, 1974. Temperatures in the 40s limited attendance to fewer than 2,500 people, and those […]

Brock Holt admits he was swinging to hit a home run. And why not? It was the top of the ninth inning and the Red Sox already had a 14-1 lead in Game Three of the American League Division Series. Yankees manager Aaron Boone had conceded the game, inserting a position player – backup catcher […]

The “first-place Washington Senators” may seem like an oxymoron, but that was exactly the scenario when the undefeated Senators visited Yankee Stadium for a two-game series in April 1955. In Washington’s Griffith Stadium the day before, the Senators had defeated the Baltimore Orioles 12-5. The New York weather hovered around the 80-degree mark in mid-April, […]

The Philadelphia Phillies were a year away from their infamous 1964 season when they arrived at Dodger Stadium in mid-May for a two-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Gene Mauch’s team had a mediocre 15-16 National League record, four games behind the first-place San Francisco Giants. However, the Phillies had reason for optimism. They […]

What makes a memorable night at the ballpark? How about a game featuring some of the major leagues’ biggest stars, an exciting come-from-behind win by the home team, five home runs, and a heartfelt tribute to a local baseball legend? Oh, yeah, and let’s not forget the announcement over the public-address system that the president […]

The Pittsburgh Pirates traveled to Milwaukee in 1960 for their July 4 doubleheader with the Braves with both good and bad news on their minds. With 43 wins and 27 losses, they were in first place in the National League by 3½ games over the 39-30 Braves. It was the first time the Pirates had […]

A new baseball season was beginning in Baltimore. It brought lots of promise as the Orioles opened their new ballpark at Camden Yards. The ballpark was located in the heart of downtown with the historic B&O warehouse beyond right field and the Baltimore skyline behind that. It provided a link between the old and new […]

In 1955 the Kansas City Athletics coaching staff “observed [rookie right-hander Art] Ditmar during spring training and prophesied that he was destined for distinction on the mound.”1 This bright assessment was echoed three years later by New York Yankees manager Casey Stengel, who said, “I believe … Ditmar could grow into one of the big […]

Rubén Gómez was the second pitcher from Puerto Rico to reach the majors — and the first to start and win a World Series Game. He led the New York Giants to a 6-2 win in Game Three at Cleveland on October 1, 1954. A limber 6 feet even and 170-175 pounds, Gómez was amazingly […]

As is the case with so many Negro League ballplayers who were born before the twentieth century or just after it began, details of William Hoskins’ birth and early years are wanting. His draft registration card, issued in 1940, offers as much clarity as is available about his origins, including his reported birth on March […]

If you page through the annals of Black baseball, you will come across watershed moments – the “First Colored World Series,” Yankee Stadium’s first game between Black ball clubs, Satchel Paige’s first professional no-hitter – and you will find a single face peering across the ages. Historic moments seemed to cling to Clint “The Hawk” […]

In the 1970s, three decades after his four-year major-league playing career had come to an end Johnny Welaj (pronounced “WELL-eye”) wrote to author Harrington E. Crissey Jr. to reminisce. “It was great to be associated with [Philadelphia Athletics manager] Connie Mack,” he said. “There are not enough good things that baseball can say of him. […]

Gene Kelly heard of Joe McCarthy’s death during a 1957 Phillies game at Connie Mack Stadium. On the air, he praised the man who never played in the big leagues, but played them like a cello. Some called McCarthy a pushbutton skipper, Kelly said over flagship WIP Radio. Others hailed perhaps the best manager of […]

On a warm September evening in 1995 at Baltimore’s Camden Yards, Oriole shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. helped restore America’s faith in baseball. The contentious nature of the previous year’s strike had left many of the sport’s dedicated fans wondering what the future held for their beloved national pastime. Following the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, the […]

War was raging in Europe as the 1941 baseball season came to a close. News of the fighting kept fans justifiably preoccupied, while the pennant races served as a badly needed diversion. The New York Yankees captured the American League flag, and then defeated the National League champion Brooklyn Dodgers in the World Series. A […]

“I remember these summer days when it was hot and that cool air coming out of the mountains just felt so good.”1 — Danny Godby For the better part of the 20th century, baseballs disappeared against the lush foliage of the mountainside, and the crack of the bat competed with the drone of passing trains. […]