July 20

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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 July 20.

Events

• 1859 - At a racetrack on Long Island, about 1,500 fans become the first ever to pay to see a baseball game. The spectators spend fifty cents to watch New York defeat Brooklyn, 22 - 18.
• 1904 - The Highlanders trade pitchers Long Tom Hughes (7-11) and Barney Wolfe (0-3) to the Senators for Al Orth (3-4). Orth will regain his form in New York, going 11-6 this year and will win 27 games in 1906.
• 1905 - SS Phil Lewis has a busy afternoon at Washington Park in Brooklyn's 2 - 1 win over the Cincinnati Reds. Lewis has 18 chances and comes up with seven assists, six putouts and five errors, the latter tying the National League record.
• 1906 - Brooklyn righthander Mal Eason, the victim of Johnny Lush's no-hitter in May, no-hits the Cardinals, 2 - 0, at St. Louis. Eason walks 3 and strikes out 5. This will be Eason's last season as an active player: he will become a National League umpire.
• 1907 - Chicago's Carl Lundgren and New York's Christy Mathewson are stingy today with the Cubs twirler allowing just four hits while the Cubs scratch three off Matty. The Giants score in the 4th when Cy Seymour parks a drive in the bleachers with two on. Prevailing rules make the hit a single, with just one run scoring: it is enough as Matty wins, 1 - 0. Joe Tinker is hitless against Matty, the only time this year that Mathewson shuts down his nemesis.
• 1909 - New York suffers two losses against the Cards. The first is a line drive in the 7th off the bat of Joe Delahanty that breaks a finger on the left hand of Christy Mathewson. Matty leaves the game and the Cards win, 4 - 3, in 11 innings. The Giants load the bases in the 11th with no outs but fail to score. Matty's broken finger turns out to be "mashed."
• 1911 - Frank Schulte hits for the cycle to help the Cubs tip the Phils, 4 - 3. "Wildfire" will end the year as the first player ever to top the 20 mark in doubles, triples, homers, and stolen bases. Only Willie Mays in 1957 will match him this century; the feat will be matched twice in 2007, by Curtis Granderson and Jimmy Rollins.
• 1912:
  • P Ray Caldwell of the Highlanders, inserted as a pinch runner, steals home for the tying run in an eventual 4 - 3 win over Cleveland. He then pitches a 4 - 0 victory in the second game.
  • In Chicago, the Phils pound the Cubs, 14 - 2. Sherry Magee leads the way with two steals of home, tying a major league record. On August 1st, Joe Jackson will swipe home twice to set a American League record.
• 1913 - The Tigers ship 38-year-old George Mullin (1-6), five times a 20-game winner, to Washington. Mullin pitched a no-hitter a year ago on his birthday.
• 1914 - Lefty Tyler and Bill James combine to hold the Pirates to four hits and the Braves score a run in the 9th to win, 1 - 0. Boston (37-43) now moves into sixth place past the Robins.
• 1916:
  • The Reds acquire three future Hall of Famers when Christy Mathewson is traded to Cincinnati with Giants CF Edd Roush and 3B Bill McKechnie for former Giants Buck Herzog and Red Killefer. McKechnie will make it to Cooperstown as a manager, not as a player, but the 23-year-old Roush is a steal for the Reds. A longtime nemesis of the Reds, Mathewson will pitch one game and then manage, and a new team nickname will be coined: "Matties." The Reds lose today, managing just two hits off Pete Alexander, who contributes two doubles himself to the Phils offense.
  • The Tigers beat the second-place Red Sox, 3 - 2, in 13 innings when Ty Cobb scores on a Ralph Young single. Cobb reaches on an infield chop and a throwing error by Babe Ruth, who takes over for Rube Foster in the 9th with the score tied, 2 - 2.
• 1922 - At Sportsman's Park, Rogers Hornsby belts a two-out 9th inning home run with two men on the give the Cards a 7 - 6 win over Boston. It is the Rajah's 25th home run of the year, breaking Gavvy Cravath's National League home run mark (post-1900). In two weeks, Hornsby will break the record of 27 homers set in 1884 by Chicago's Ned Williamson.
• 1925:
  • Washington veteran Stan Coveleski wins his 12th straight to keep the Senators near the top. He will have his finest year at 20-5 and the American League's best ERA, 2.84.
  • Dazzy Vance fans 17 in a 10-inning, 4 - 3, Robins win over the Cubs.
• 1936 - In an exhibition game in Pittsburgh, former Yankee Waite Hoyt stops his old teammates, 7 - 2. Lou Gehrig's 6th-inning homer is the first score for New York. Ted Kleinhans is cuffed in his eight innings. While Hoyt wins, another old pitcher loses as the Pirates hand Guy Bush his release. The Bees will sign him.
• 1938:
  • Johnny Mize of the Cardinals has three home runs in a game for the second time this season, in a game against the Giants.
  • Catcher Gabby Hartnett replaces Charlie Grimm as manager of the third-place Cubs.
• 1944 - The Browns' Nels Potter becomes the first pitcher suspended for throwing spitballs. He is banished for 10 days for allegedly "putting an illegal substance on the ball." Potter will return and win 19 games for St. Louis.
• 1947:
  • Hank Thompson plays 2B and Willard Brown CF for the St. Louis Browns against the Red Sox. It marks the first time that two black players appear in the same major league lineup.
  • The choice rhubarb of the year occurs when umpire Beans Reardon signals that Ron Northey's long fly has gone into the stands. Northey jogs around the bases only to discover C Bruce Edwards awaiting him with the ball. The Cardinals' protest is upheld, but the Dodgers will win the replay.
• 1948 - An unprecedented ten-game suspension and $500 fine of an umpire, the veteran Bill McGowan, is announced by American League President Will Harridge following a confrontation in the Washington-Cleveland game. Tired of Senator pitcher Ray Scarborough continually complaining about strike calls, McGowan threw a ball-and-strike indicator at him. After that, he ejected Nats manager Joe Kuhel and several coaches. Kuhel also lodged a protest after yesterday's 11th-inning loss when Ed Stewart was thrown out at home in the 10th. When Stewart argued the call with plate ump Joe Paparella, McGowan threw a ball at Stewart.
• 1950 - The Giants beat St. Louis, 13 - 3, with an eight-run 3rd inning. Roy "Stormy" Weatherly has a double and triple in the inning.
• 1951 - In a move that will aid their pennant drive, the Giants put OF Bobby Thomson at 3B to replace the slumping Hank Thompson, out with a spike injury. Thomson, who's been riding the bench since losing his starting job to the rookie Willie Mays, will hit .357 for the rest of the season.
• 1952 - League Presidents Will Harridge and Warren Giles become directors of the Hall of Fame.
• 1958 - Jim Bunning of the Tigers pitches a 3 - 0 no-hitter over the Red Sox and fans 12. Only two walks and a hit batsman mar Bunning's performance as he wins his sixth game in seven decisions (8-6). In the second game, Ike Delock wins his tenth straight for Boston, 5 - 2.
• 1960 - At Municipal Stadium, with Cleveland in the lead, 8 - 2, Mickey Mantle golfs a Gary Bell pitch over the auxiliary scoreboard into the distant upper deck in RF, matching Luke Easter as the only players to reach that spot. Cleveland holds on for an 8 - 6 win.
• 1962 - Willie Mays, Willie McCovey and Co. overpower Roberto Clemente's Pirates with a devastating aerial assault and an assist from the Pirates' very own fifth column, "Dr. Strangeglove", Dick Stuart. "Vern Law was not around long," writes Bob Stevens of the San Francisco Chronicle. "Chuck Hiller led off with a single and Jim Davenport forced him. Mays then hit a line drive, 420-foot home run for 2 - 0. With two down in the 3rd, McCovey belted a memorable shot over the left-field scoreboard. It was one of the few ever ripped into that area by a lefthander in the more than half a century existence of ivy-cloaked Forbes Field. The McCovey smash stood up for the victory, as Jack Lamabe, Tom Sturdivant and Earl Francis shut out the Giants on four hits until Stuart goofed in the 8th. The Bucs started to move in the 4th, when Bill Mazeroski singled home Clemente, who also contributed a dazzling throw from right field to cut down the sliding McCovey at the plate in the 6th."
• 1965:
  • Mel Stottlemyre of the Yankees becomes the first pitcher to hit an inside-the-park grand slam since Deacon Phillippe did it for the Pirates in 1910. Stottlemyre's bases-loaded drive in the 5th off Bill Monbouquette assures him a 6 - 3 victory over the Red Sox.
  • Seven is a lucky number for the Braves as they score seven runs in the 7th to beat the Mets, 7 - 1. Hank Aaron's two-run homer, off Larry Miller, is the capper on the scoring.
• 1968 - At San Francisco, aging speedster Willie Mays scores from first base on a Jim Ray Hart single. It's the only tally as the Giants beat Houston, 1 - 0.
• 1969:
  • San Francisco's Gaylord Perry connects for his first hit of the year, and his first major league homer, to beat the Dodgers, 7 - 3. The victim of Perry's dinger is Claude Osteen. Last year, Alvin Dark had remarked to sports writer Harry Jupiter about Perry's hitting, "They'll put a man on the moon before he hits a home run." Perry's homer comes about 20 minutes after the club house receives word that Neil Armstrong has set foot on the moon.
  • Jim Perry does his brother one better by winning two games today in Minnesota's sweep of the Pilots. Playing two more innings to complete yesterday's suspended game, the Twins score four runs in the 18th to win, 11 - 7, then follow with a 4 - 0 win. Perry tosses 11 innings of shutout ball to win the pair. The loser in both games is John Gelnar. In the extra-inning game, the two teams strand a major-league record 44 runners, with the Twins contributing 23. The Mets and Cards will leave 45 runners on during a September 11, 1974 marathon. The two wins means the Twins go into the All-Star break with a four-game lead over the A's in the American League West.
  • Atlanta blanks San Diego, 10 - 0, to grab a one-game lead over Los Angeles and San Francisco in the National League West.
• 1970:
  • With the score tied 1 - 1 in the 9th, Chicago's Ken Holtzman walks Hank Aaron and Tommie Aaron homers for a 3 - 1 Braves victory.
  • In St. Louis, the Reds' Lee May breaks a scoreless tie with a 10th-inning grand slam to account for all the scoring as the Reds win, 4 - 0, in the second game. The Reds also take the opener, 4 - 3.
  • The Dodgers' Bill Singer, who a month earlier lost a no-hitter to Atlanta with two outs in the 9th, no-hits the Phillies, 5 - 0, giving up no walks. He strikes out 10 and makes two miscues, one a controversial throwing error that pulls 1B Wes Parker off the base. The Phillies' players argue, contending the soft chopper by Don Money should be a hit. Singer had spent three weeks in the hospital in June for hepatitis.
• 1973 - Chicago's Wilbur Wood starts and loses both games of a doubleheader with the Yankees, 12 - 2 and 7 - 0.
• 1976 - Hank Aaron hits the 755th, and last, home run of his career, connecting off Dick Drago of the California Angels. Jerry Augustine wins for the Brewers, 6 - 2.
• 1978 - Chris Speier hits for the cycle and drives in six runs to lead Montreal to a 7 - 3 win over Atlanta.
• 1979:
  • Rusty Staub, a spring holdout who got off to a slow start, is traded by Detroit to his former team Montreal for a minor league player to be named later.
  • At Los Angeles, Steve Garvey saves the Dodgers from a defeat by belting a two-run homer in the 10th to tie, and another two-run homer in the 11th by Bill Russell wins it, 6 - 5, over the Expos. Montreal takes the lead in the 11th when Rodney Scott drives in a run with his fifth straight hit. Dave Patterson wins his first major league game, while Manny Mota has a single for the 139th pinch hit of his career.
• 1982 - In the 3rd inning of a 3 - 1 loss to the Pirates at Riverfront Stadium, a 21-year-old woman jumps from the red seats landing 35 feet below. Her death is ruled a suicide.
• 1983:
  • Two outs away from a no-hitter against the Astros, Phillies P Charles Hudson gives up a bloop single to Craig Reynolds and back-to-back home runs to Denny Walling and Dickie Thon before settling down for a 10 - 3 victory.
  • Steve Sax's errant throw on a double play ball helps the Pirates' cause, as they beat the Dodgers, 7 - 3. For Sax, it his 26th error of the season. He'll reach 30, then go the last 57 games without a miscue.
• 1984 - Trailing 3 - 1 entering the 9th inning, Toronto scores 11 times and hangs on to beat Seattle, 12 - 7.
• 1985:
  • LaMarr Hoyt gives up five hits in eight innings to record his 11th straight win as the Padres beat the Pirates, 4 - 2.
  • Driving in seven runs on two homers, Darryl Strawberry leads the Mets to a 16 - 4 drubbing of the visiting Braves. Straw's first home run is a grand slam in the 1st inning and his next is a three-run home run in the 4th. The Mets also get homers from Howard Johnson, Danny Heep and Clint Hurdle.
  • Scattering seven hits, Ron Guidry wins his 12th straight, beating the Twins, 8 - 3. Don Mattingly has a two-run homer and a two-run double for the Yanks.
• 1987 - Yankees first baseman Don Mattingly ties a major league mark as he is credited with 22 putouts in one game. The feat was last accomplished in the American League by Hal Chase in 1906.
• 1990 - Kevin Appier fires a shutout for the last-place Royals, beating Roger Clemens and the Red Sox, 5 - 0. The Sox take the nitecap, 3 - 1, scoring a pair on Mike Greenwell's two-run homer off starter Luis Aquino.
• 1993 - Baltimore P Ben McDonald hurls a one-hit shutout to beat the Royals, 7 - 0. Gary Gaetti's single is the only hit.
• 1995 - Mets OF Brett Butler strokes four hits, but it is not enough to prevent an 8 - 6 New York loss to the Cardinals. The hits give Butler 15 for his last four games, one shy of the record of 16 set by Brooklyn's Milt Stock in 1925.
• 1996:
  • The Indians defeat the Twins, 6 - 5, on Alvaro Espinoza's 11th-inning homer. OF Kenny Lofton leads the way for the Tribe with five hits. Albert Belle rings his 226th homer as an Indian to tie Earl Averill's club mark.
  • In the first day of action at the Olympics, the U.S. team tops Nicaragua, 4 - 1, behind pitcher Kris Benson. The Cuban national team routs the Australian national team, 19 - 8; Jose Contreras gets the win and Micheal Nakamura the loss. Antonio Pacheco scores four and drives in seven and Orestes Kindelan scores four and drives in six.
• 1997 - OF Luis Gonzalez bashes a double and two home runs, and drives in 6, as he leads Houston to a 9 - 0 white-washing of the Expos. The victory moves Houston two games ahead of Pittsburgh in the National League Central.
• 1998:
  • Mark McGwire hits his 43rd homer in the Cards' 13 - 1 drubbing of the Padres. His homer ties the club record set by Johnny Mize in 1940.
  • The Tigers take the first game of a doubleheader against the Yankees by a 4 - 3 score in 17 innings. The New Yorkers bounce back to take the nightcap by the identical score. The 26 innings take nearly nine hours to play.
  • The Dodgers shut out the Reds, 2 - 0, on a combined one-hitter by Darren Dreifort (8 innings) and Jeff Shaw (1 inning). A Willie Greene double is the only hit for Cincinnati.
• 2000:
  • The Astros defeat the Reds, 6 - 2. Cincinnati pinch-hitter Mike Bell strikes out in his major league debut, making history by becoming part of the first third-generation family to play for the same major league team. His grandfather, Gus Bell, and father, Buddy Bell, also played for the Reds.
  • Red Sox OF Carl Everett receives a ten-game suspension for twice bumping an umpire in a game with the Mets last week. A defiant Everett places most of the blame for the suspension on the media.
  • Major League Baseball offers to rehire 10 of the 22 umpires let go last September. The offer stands only as part of a new labor contract, and only if the umpires' old union agrees to settle its grievance with baseball.
• 2001:
  • The Cincinnati Reds send OF Michael Tucker to the Cubs. In return, they get minor league pitchers Chris Booker and Ben Shaffar. The Reds also recall 1B D.T. Cromer.
  • The train fire of two days ago forces another postponement of Anaheim's game at Baltimore.
• 2002:
  • Leading 4 - 1, the Blue Jays score seven runs in the 5th inning to take an 11 - 1 lead over the Devil Rays. Tampa Bay, however, comes back with seven runs of their own in the next inning. Toronto holds on for a 12 - 10 win.
  • Pittsburgh defeats St. Louis, 15 - 6. Pirates outfielder Adam Hyzdu drives home seven runs with four hits, including a pair of home runs.
• 2004 - At Wrigley Field, Albert Pujols goes 5 for 5, including three home runs and five RBIs, as the Cardinals beat Central Division rivals the Cubs, 11 - 8. The Redbird first baseman's first career three-homer game helps St. Louis to erase a six-run deficit.
• 2007:
  • The first Nippon Pro Baseball All-Star Game of 2007 ends with a 4 - 0 Central League win. Tyrone Woods doubles in the 7th of a scoreless game and is pinch-run for by Kosuke Fukudome. Alex Ramirez and Tomonori Maeda then both hit homers to put the game away. Ramirez is named MVP. Koji Uehara, Shingo Takatsu, Masanori Hayashi, Atsushi Kizuka, Hitoki Iwase, Hiroki Kuroda, Tomoyuki Kubota, Marc Kroon and Kyuji Fujikawa combine on a one-hitter against the Pacific League; Kubota gets the win.
  • The Cuban national team wins the finale of the 2007 Pan American Games, 3 - 1, over the USA. DH Osmani Urrutia goes 4 for 4 and Adiel Palma and Pedro Luis Lazo shine on the mound. It is the tenth straight Gold for the Cubans and third straight Silver for the USA. Rain forces the cancellation of the Bronze Medal game, meaning Mexico and Nicaragua both win the Bronze. It is the first time in the history of the Pan American Games that the Bronze is split between two teams.
• 2008 - The Giants send veteran 2B Ray Durham (.293/.385/.414, 2,024 career hits) to the Brewers for two non-prospects, Steve Hammond (0-4 in his first 4 AAA games) and OF Darren Ford (.230/.322/.303, 48 SB in 49 tries in A ball).
• 2009:
  • Matt Holliday drives in 6 runs to propel the A's to a 14 - 13 comeback win over Minnesota, the biggest in team history. Oakland trails by 10 runs at one point, but Holliday's grand slam in the 7th ties the score; Jack Cust follows with a solo blast that provides the winning margin. Justin Morneau drives in 7 runs for the losers, including a grand slam of his own, in a wild game that features 8 homers and ends when Michael Cuddyer is thrown out at home trying to score on Michael Wuertz's wild pitch. The A's become the first team in 55 years to win after their starter (in this case Gio Gonzalez) gives up 11 earned runs.
  • Jason Schmidt makes his first start since 2007 for Los Angeles, only his seventh since signing a three-year, $47 million contract in December 2006. Back from two shoulder surgeries, Schmidt allows three 1st-inning runs but nothing else over the next four frames to take credit for a 7 - 5 win over the Reds.
• 2010 - Today's game between the Dodgers and Giants is decided through unusual events. Dodger Coach Don Mattingly is acting for manager Joe Torre, ejected earlier in the game along with P Clayton Kershaw and bench coach Bob Schaefer, when he calls a conference on the mound with the bases loaded and closer Jonathan Broxton trying to protect a 5 - 4 lead. As he walks away from the mound, Mattingly hears a question from 1B James Loney and walks back to the mound to answer him. Opposing manager Bruce Bochy contends successfully that this constitutes a second visit to the mound, and that Mattingly should be forced to remove Broxton from the game. He replaces him with the struggling (and unprepared) George Sherrill, who promptly gives up a bases-clearing double to Andres Torres. However, the umpires, led by Adrian Johnson, are wrong on the play, as Mattingly should have been ejected and Broxton forced to complete the at-bat before being removed, during which time Sherrill could have warmed up more properly. In any case, the play is allowed to stand, with San Francisco getting a 7 - 5 win.
• 2011:
  • Milwaukee's 5 - 2 win over the Diamondbacks is marred by serious injuries suffered by a player on each team in the 4th inning. First, D-Backs SS Stephen Drew breaks his ankle when he is tagged out sliding at home plate and will be out for the remainder of the season. On the next play, Brewers CF Carlos Gomez makes a terrific diving catch on Ryan Roberts' short fly ball to end the inning, but breaks his collarbone and will also be out a long stretch. Ryan Braun hits a 1st-inning homer for the Brewers, but an apparent second long ball in the 8th is taken away when instant replay shows it was a foul ball. The game then goes into extra innings and Milwaukee scores three runs in the top of the 10th to break the 2 - 2 tie. Arizona reliever Ryan Cook, making his debut, receives a rough welcome to the majors, allowing all four batters he faces to reach base and ending up with the loss.
  • After 12 straight wins, the Rangers take an early 8 - 3 lead, but the Angels rally for 6 runs in the 6th to win, 9 - 8. Howie Kendrick drives in 4 runs for the Halos.
  • The Tigers send a couple of Class A players to Kansas City in return for 3B Wilson Betemit, who has become redundant since top prospect Mike Moustakas was called up last month. Brandon Inge, Detroit's starter at 3B, is hitting only .177.
• 2012:
  • The United States Postal Service issues a set of four commemorative stamps depicting Hall of Famers Ted Williams, Larry Doby, Joe DiMaggio and Willie Stargell. The issuance ceremonies are held in Cooperstown, NY as part of the Hall's annual induction week-end.
  • The Blue Jays and Astros swing a big trade, with ten players changing teams. Looking for pitching after a rash of injuries, the Jays receive hurlers J.A. Happ, Brandon Lyon and David Carpenter, while the Astros add veterans Francisco Cordero and Ben Francisco, in addition to prospects Asher Wojciechowski, Joe Musgrove, David Rollins and Carlos Perez, and a player to be named.
  • The Braves, trailing 9 - 0 against the Nationals and ace Stephen Strasburg after 5 innings, mount a tremendous comeback to take a 10 - 9 lead with 2 runs in the top of the 9th. Washington manages to tie the game when Danny Espinosa homers against closer Craig Kimbrel in the bottom of the inning. Atlanta completes its improbable comeback with a run in the 11th for an 11 - 10 win. In the game, Chipper Jones becomes the all-time leader for RBIs by a player who was primarily a third baseman with a two-run single in the 8th inning; he was tied with George Brett at 1,598; Mike Schmidt continues to hold the record for RBI collected when actually playing at the hot corner.
• 2013 - The Mariners manage only one hit against the Astros but still win, 4 - 2. The lone hit is a two-run double by Michael Saunders off Jose Cisnero in the 7th. Starter Erik Bedard gives up no hits and strikes out 10, but allows 5 walks. Things unravel for him with a 2 - 0 lead in the 6th, when he issues back-to-back walks to Saunders and Brad Miller after one out, then a pair of passed balls and a sacrifice fly allow the M's to tie the game without a hit. Bedard then allows another two walks in the 7th before leaving with two outs, having reached his pitch count limit, setting the table for Saunders' double. Travis Blackley and Jose Veras toss a hitless inning each to complete the one-hitter, but it's little consolation for the Astros.
• 2014 - In his fifth major league start, Odrisamer Despaigne comes within four outs of throwing the first no-hitter in the history of the San Diego Padres. The Mets' Daniel Murphy breaks his bid with a two-out double in the 8th, and David Wright follows with a single that ties the score at 1 - 1, ending Despaigne's day. Joaquin Benoit is the winner after the Padres score in the bottom of the 9th for a 2- 1 win.
• 2015:
  • Women's baseball is played in the Pan American Games for the first time. In the first women's game at the 2015 Pan American Games, the USA beats Venezuela, 10 - 6. Malaika Underwood drives in Jade Gortarez with the first run, off Kerlys Pérez. Sarah Hudek gets the win over Pérez. Michelle Snyder drives in three for the US, Astrid Rodríguez three for Venezuela. In the second game, host Canada routs Cuba, 13 - 1, behind the pitching of Vanessa Riopel and Heidi Northcott while Bradi Wall drives in four.
  • The Angels host their first doubleheader since 2003, caused by a rare rainout the day before, and sweep the Red Sox, 11 - 1 and 7 - 3. Albert Pujols hits three homers to lead the offensive barrage.
• 2016 - All eyes are on P Drew Pomeranz, the All-Star who is making his first start for the Red Sox against the Giants, but it is 1B Hanley Ramirez who steals the show, hitting 3 homers and driving in 6 runs to lead Boston to an 11 - 7 win. Pomeranz pitches three scoreless innings, but loses it completely in the 4th as he allows the first seven Giants batters to reach base, including a three-run homer by Mac Williamson; his opponent, Matt Cain, in his return from the disabled list, does even worse, giving up three homers in 2 1/3 innings. Matt Barnes is awarded the win on a rare occasion where the final decision is left up to the official scorer.
• 2017 - The Pirates defeat the Brewers, 4 - 2, to complete a four-game sweep at PNC Park. Gregory Polanco homers and Chris Stewart has three hits to back Jameson Taillon's strong pitching. Milwaukee's seemingly comfortable 5 1/2 games lead atop the NL Central at the All-Star break has suddenly shrunk to only one game over Chicago and the Pirates are also back in the thick of the race after winning 11 of 13 to move within three games of the Brew Crew.
• 2018 - Matt Carpenter hits three homers and two doubles to lead the Cardinals to a 17 - 5 win over the Cubs. He is just the second hitter to achieve that particular combination of extra-base hits, after Kris Bryant, and ties the club record for total bases in a game, with 16.
• 2021:
  • The Oakland, CA City Council votes to approve a non-binding term sheet for the Oakland Athletics' ballpark project at Howard Terminal. A negative vote would have almost certainly meant the departure in short order of the team from what has been its home city for over half a century, but even with the positive vote, relocation could still happen. Team President Dave Kaval having stated earlier that the A's were not satisfied with the terms proposed for the vote. At issue is the A's wish to see the city invest up to $855 million in public funds for land development around the project, something that may prove impossible in the current pandemic environment. Indeed, the proposal will fall through in short oreder.
  • For the first time ever, a broadcast team composed entirely of women works today's game between the Rays and Orioles at Tropicana Field on YouTube. Play-by-play is provided by Melanie Newman, with Sarah Langs as the analyst, Alanna Rizzo as the on-field reporter, and Heidi Watney and Lauren Gardner as hosts of the pre-game and post-game shows. All five are veteran broadcasters and journalists, and women have filled all of these roles in the past, but the big breakthrough today is that they all work together on the same program.
• 2023:
  • The Pacific League sweeps the two 2023 NPB All-Star Games, with a 6 - 1 rout of the Central League following yesterday's 8 - 1 win. Chusei Mannami becomes the first first-year All-Star to homer in consecutive games when he takes Trevor Bauer deep; Mannami is named MVP, while Kotaro Kurebayashi has three hits for the PL.
  • The Orioles move past the Rays into first place in the AL East with a 4 - 3 win at Tropicana Field. The Rays had got off to a historically strong start, but the Orioles, who had the worst record in the majors only two years ago, have chased them down by playing flawless baseball all year. It is the first time they are in first place this late in a season since 2016. Rookie Colton Cowser drives in the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the top of the 10th, after a sacrifice bunt by Adam Frazier, and Félix Bautista, who had pitched a scoreless 9th, keeps the Rays from replying by getting Brandon Lowe to ground into a game-ending double play.

Births

• 1847 - John Hatfield, infielder, manager (d. 1909)
• 1855 - Sam Weaver, pitcher (d. 1914)
• 1872 - Joseph Langden, umpire (d. 1953)
• 1877 - Red Kleinow, catcher (d. 1929)
• 1878 - Oscar Graham, pitcher (d. 1931)
• 1880 - Harry Cassady, outfielder (d. 1969)
• 1880 - Eddie Kolb, pitcher (d. 1949)
• 1885 - Si Pauxtis, catcher (d. 1961)
• 1888 - Dave Callahan, outfielder (d. 1969)
• 1890 - Red McKee, catcher (d. 1972)
• 1896 - Ollie Fuhrman, catcher (d. 1969)
• 1896 - Mutt Wilson, pitcher (d. 1962)
• 1897 - Happy Foreman, pitcher (d. 1953)
• 1900 - Hunter Lane, infielder (d. 1994)
• 1901 - Heinie Manush, outfielder; All-Star, Hall of Famer (d. 1971)
• 1903 - Howard Maple, catcher (d. 1970)
• 1904 - Anthony Cooper, infielder (d. 1979)
• 1908 - Ed Madjeski, catcher (d. 1994)
• 1909 - Otto Bluege, infielder (d. 1977)
• 1912 - Bob Allaire, minor league infielder (d. 2003)
• 1912 - Heinie Mueller, infielder (d. 1986)
• 1914 - Kiyoshi Sugiura, NPB infielder and manager (d. 1987)
• 1915 - Gene Hasson, infielder (d. 2003)
• 1915 - Masaru Kageura, NPB player; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (d. 1945)
• 1916 - Don Black, pitcher (d. 1959)
• 1917 - Bob Short, owner (d. 1982)
• 1918 - Booker Robinson, outfielder (d. 1998)
• 1920 - Maje McDonnell, coach (d. 2010)
• 1922 - Dan Daniels, announcer (d. 2012)
• 1924 - Leonel Aldama, minor league infielder and manager (d. 2019)
• 1924 - Claude Crocker, pitcher (d. 2002)
• 1925 - Manny Cartledge, Negro League pitcher
• 1929 - Mike Ilitch, owner (d. 2017)
• 1933 - Nelson Doubleday, owner (d. 2015)
• 1934 - Dick Stello, umpire (d. 1987)
• 1936 - Jim McManus, infielder
• 1938 - Tony Oliva, outfielder; All-Star, Hall of Fame
• 1942 - Mickey Stanley, outfielder
• 1943 - Frank Ujcich, minor league pitcher (d. 2014)
• 1944 - Akira Tanaka, NPB pitcher
• 1946 - John Lamb, pitcher
• 1952 - Akira Kuramochi, NPB pitcher
• 1953 - Dan Shaughnessy, writer
• 1953 - Gary Woods, outfielder (d. 2015)
• 1960 - Mike Witt, pitcher; All-Star
• 1963 - Kenichi Yamazaki, NPB outfielder
• 1963 - Ryoji Moriyama, NPB pitcher
• 1964 - Mark Lee, pitcher
• 1964 - Jim Lewis, pitcher
• 1965 - Ricky Carriger, minor league pitcher
• 1967 - Nasusel Cabrera, coach
• 1968 - Shigeo Kajita, Japanese national team outfielder
• 1969 - Hidenori Taniguchi, Japanese national team outfielder
• 1969 - Kip Yaughn, minor league pitcher
• 1970 - Brent Woodall, minor league pitcher (d. 2001)
• 1971 - Ed Henry, author
• 1971 - Charles Johnson, catcher; All-Star
• 1971 - Ray McDavid, outfielder
• 1972 - Ivan Arteaga, minor league pitcher
• 1972 - Matt Bragga, college coach
• 1973 - Mark Hindy, minor league pitcher (d. 2001)
• 1974 - Bengie Molina, catcher
• 1977 - Matt Davis, minor league pitcher (d. 2017)
• 1977 - Lee Evans, minor league catcher
• 1978 - Takashi Saitoh, Japanese national team pitcher
• 1981 - Dustin Glant, minor league pitcher and college coach
• 1982 - Jake Fox, infielder
• 1982 - Jason Miller, pitcher
• 1982 - Jae-sang Park, KBO outfielder
• 1982 - Yuichi Tabata, Japanese national team infielder
• 1983 - Leslie Nacar, minor league pitcher
• 1984 - Alexi Casilla, infielder
• 1984 - Danny Dorn, outfielder
• 1986 - Drew Hedman, coach
• 1986 - Jorge Padrón, Cuban league outfielder
• 1987 - Toshihiro Iwao, NPB pitcher
• 1987 - Dan Merzel, umpire
• 1988 - Ty Kelly, infielder
• 1988 - Stephen Strasburg, pitcher; All-Star
• 1989 - Mike Marjama, catcher
• 1989 - Tyler Saladino, infielder
• 1989 - Steve Selsky, outfielder
• 1989 - Kevin Siegrist, pitcher
• 1989 - Matt Szczur, outfielder
• 1990 - Ivo Vukosav, Croatian national team catcher
• 1990 - Tyler Webb, pitcher
• 1991 - Jorge Ariza, minor league catcher
• 1991 - Luke Foley, Great Britain national team infielder
• 1991 - Blair Johnstone, New Zealand national team pitcher
• 1992 - Jared Gaynor, minor league baseball pitcher and coach
• 1992 - Tyrell Jenkins, pitcher
• 1992 - Yasuaki Ojima, Japan national team pitcher
• 1992 - Arthur Paturel, French Division I infielder
• 1992 - Chi Tseng, Taiwan women's national team outfielder-pitcher
• 1993 - Pedro Severino, catcher
• 1994 - Anthony Alford, outfielder
• 1994 - Taylor Kohlwey, outfielder
• 1994 - Duane Underwood, pitcher
• 1995 - Carlos Martínez, Guatemalan national team pitcher
• 1995 - Jake Walsh, pitcher
• 1997 - Francisco Perez, pitcher
• 1998 - Chris Rodriguez, pitcher
• 1998 - Keibert Ruiz, catcher
• Ethan Smith, minor league pitcher

Deaths

• 1920 - John O'Neill, outfielder (b. 1880)
• 1922 - Dick Pierson, infielder (b. 1857)
• 1929 - Rupert Mills, infielder (b. 1892)
• 1939 - Jack Reis, pitcher (b. 1890)
• 1941 - Ralph Kreitz, catcher (b. 1885)
• 1944 - Rap Dixon, outfielder, manager; All-Star (b. 1902)
• 1955 - Joe Shannon, outfielder (b. 1897)
• 1959 - Morrie Arnovich, outfielder; All-Star (b. 1910)
• 1962 - Donald Barnes, owner (b. 1894)
• 1964 - Bill Schardt, pitcher (b. 1886)
• 1971 - Amanda Clement, amateur umpire (b. 1888)
• 1972 - José María Fernández, catcher, manager (b. 1896)
• 1977 - James Lemon, owner (b. 1903)
• 1977 - Red Longley, utility player (b. 1909)
• 1982 - Grover Froese, umpire (b. 1916)
• 1983 - Chick Sorrells, infielder (b. 1896)
• 1986 - Bill Steinecke, catcher (b. 1907)
• 1987 - Tom Winsett, outfielder (b. 1909)
• 1988 - John Galbreath, owner (b. 1897)
• 1993 - Tsunemi Tsuda, NPB pitcher; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (b. 1960)
• 2000 - Jim Suchecki, pitcher (b. 1927)
• 2003 - Dick McGowen, college coach (b. 1919)
• 2010 - Jimmy McMath, outfielder (b. 1949)
• 2011 - Toshio Ito, NPB outfielder (b. 1922)
• 2015 - Greg LaFever, minor league pitcher (b. 1963)
• 2022 - Bill Burbach, pitcher (b. 1947)