March 1
From BR Bullpen
| Stats of players who were born this day | |
| Stats of players who died on this day | |
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Events, births and deaths that occurred on March 1.
Events[edit]
- 1888 - The Washington Nationals National League club leaves on its southern tour a day earlier than scheduled, due to a superstition against starting a trip on a Friday.
- 1889 - The Philadelphia Quakers head for Jacksonville, Florida, for spring training. No other major league clubs will train in the Deep South this season.
- 1891 - The Pittsburgh Alleghenys and Cleveland Spiders are the two National League clubs making the heaviest raids against American Association player contracts, following the latter's denunciation of the National Agreement two weeks ago. Pittsburgh further earns its new nickname of "Pirates" by signing good-hitting outfielder Pete Browning and pitcher Scott Stratton away from the Louisville Colonels.
- 1892 - The first meeting of the united National League and American Association takes place in New York. Only four teams who played in the circuit last season are invited to join the NL, which will expand to 12 teams with a 154-game schedule split into two championship series under a split season format.
- 1893 - John Pickett wins $1,285.72 in a lawsuit against the Baltimore Orioles, his most recent team. Baltimore had claimed that they did not owe him this sum - Picket's entire 1892 salary - because he "was slow in his movement, and had a sore arm which incapacitated him from being of service to the club."
- 1903 - Baseball Rules Committee chairman Tom Loftus of the Washington Senators proclaims that the pitcher's mound must not be more than 15 inches higher than the baselines or home plate.
- 1909 - The Pittsburgh Pirates begin construction of their new stadium near Schenley Park near the Oakland section of Pittsburgh. The state-of-the-art stadium will be named Forbes Field in honor of John Forbes, a pre-Revolutionary British general.
- 1910 - The National Commission prohibits giving mementos to players on winning World Series teams. This will later be reversed, making way for the traditional winners' watches, rings, and stickpins.
- 1919 - Philadelphia Athletics owner Connie Mack makes one of his biggest player mistakes, trading third baseman Larry Gardner, outfielder Charlie Jamieson, and pitcher Elmer Myers to the Cleveland Indians for OF Braggo Roth. Veteran writer Ernest Lanigan predicts that Roth will lead the circuit in home runs at Shibe Park, but Roth will be shipped to the Boston Red Sox by midseason. Gardner will put in six more .300 years, and Jamieson will be a top leadoff man and .303 hitter for the next 14 years.
- 1936 - After spring training, the Yomiuri Giants beat the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League managed by Lefty O'Doul, 5 - 0. On March 5th, the Giants will win again, 11 - 7.
- 1938 - Future Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame members Shigeru Chiba (2B), Tetsuharu Kawakami (1B) and Masayoshi Yoshiwara (C) all join the Yomiuri Giants. The Japanese Professional Baseball League switches from two seasons per year to one in 1938.
- 1942 - Major league owners decide not to allow furloughed players in the military to play for their clubs if based near a game site.
- 1944 - Future Hall of Fame catcher Rick Ferrell is traded by the St. Louis Browns to the Washington Senators for Tony Giuliani and cash. When Giuliani refuses to report to his new team, Washington will send Gene Moore to the Browns to complete the trade.
- 1947:
- In anticipation of the signing of the team's first black players, Bill Veeck, a resident of Phoenix, Arizona, sets up a spring training camp there for the Cleveland Indians. Arizona is chosen because of its relatively tolerant racial climate. During the season, Veeck will sign the American League's first black player, Larry Doby, who will train at the camp. The New York Giants also set up camp in Arizona, while the Brooklyn Dodgers move their training camp from Florida to Havana, Cuba.
- New managers in spring training camps are Billy Herman with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Muddy Ruel with the St. Louis Browns, Bucky Harris with the New York Yankees, and Johnny Neun with the Cincinnati Reds. Neun ended 1946 as manager of the Yankees after both Joe McCarthy and Bill Dickey quit.
- 1949 - The St. Louis Browns, owners of Sportsman's Park, move to evict the St. Louis Cardinals in order to gain a rent increase.
- 1954 - Boston Red Sox star Ted Williams fractures his collarbone on the first day of spring training. The injury occurs as Williams dives for a ball hit by teammate Hoot Evers. As a result, the injury will force Williams to miss Opening Day and will keep him out of Boston lineup until May 15th.
- 1965 - Future Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente misses the first day of spring training because of a bout with malaria. The Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder will sit out a full month of training camp with the disease, which he contracted during the off-season. Clemente will recover to bat .329, but will hit only 10 home runs with 65 RBI, his worst totals since 1959.
- 1967 - Commissioner William Eckert approves the Baseball Writers Association of America's plan to select a Cy Young Award recipient from both the National and American Leagues. The honor, which was initiated in 1956, had been given to just one pitcher in the major leagues each season, a position strongly supported by former commissioner Ford Frick.
- 1969 - New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle announces his retirement. Mantle, who slumped to a .237 batting average in 1968, finishes his 18-season career with 536 home runs and a .298 average, numbers that would have certainly been higher if not for persistent knee injuries. The Yankees offer Mantle a coaching position on manager Ralph Houk's staff.
- 1971 - Willie Mays signs a two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants for $165,000 per season.
- 1976 - Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck opens training camp in Sarasota, Florida, but participation is limited to non-roster players because of the ongoing lockout.
- 1988 - For the first time since 1956, the Special Veterans Committee does not elect anyone to the Hall of Fame. Phil Rizzuto, Leo Durocher, Joe Gordon and Gil Hodges, are among the candidates passed over.
- 1993 - New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner is reinstated as general partner of the team. Commissioner Fay Vincent had banned Steinbrenner from day-to-day activities with the Yankees because of his relationship with convicted gambler Howie Spira.
- 1994 - Former banker Leonard Coleman is elected National League president, replacing Bill White. Coleman had been executive director for Major League Baseball market development.
- 1995 - Anaheim Angels replacement players play against Arizona State University in an exhibition game in Tempe, Arizona. It is the first time since 1912 that replacement players have appeared in a game in major league uniforms.
- 1996 - The Yankees christen Legends Field, their new $30 million, 31-acre complex in Tampa. The field has the exact dimensions of Yankee Stadium. On hand to see Phil Rizzuto toss out the first ball are former Yankees Whitey Ford, Catfish Hunter, Ron Guidry and Chris Chambliss, who then watch the new Yankees beat the American League Champions Cleveland Indians, 5 - 2.
- 2000 - Independent arbitrator Shyam Das cuts Atlanta Braves pitcher John Rocker's suspension for uttering a number of insensitive remarks in a Sports Illustrated interview this offseason from 28 days to 14 days. Rocker, who is allowed to report to spring training with the team, also has his fine cut.
- 2002:
- The Boston Red Sox fire general manager Dan Duquette and replace him with Mike Port on an interim basis.
- San Francisco Giants second baseman Jeff Kent breaks his thumb at home and is expected to be out for the next four to sux weeks. He claims he was "washing his truck" when the incident occurred, although a number of journalists are skeptical. The truth will later come out that he was pulling off stunts on a motorbike.
- 2005:
- Pitcher Tim Hudson, deciding not to file for free agency at the end of the season, agrees to a four-year, $47-million contract extension with his new team, the Atlanta Braves. Hudson, who was acquired in a trade with the Oakland Athletics in the off-season, grew up near Atlanta and rooted for the local team as a youngster. In 2004 he posted a 12-6 record with a 3.53 ERA.
- Construction for an additional 1,790 bleacher seats at Wrigley Field will begin after the season and will be completed in time for Opening Day 2006. An deal is reached for expansion as the Chicago Cubs agree to pay the city $3.1 million prior to the start of work and by contributing funds for a local school park and a $400,000 traffic signal system near the ballpark.
- 2009 - Washington Nationals GM Jim Bowden resigns following allegations of skimming bonuses to Latin American players and the identity fraud scandal surrounding Esmailyn Gonzalez.
- 2010 - SABR announces the first nine winners of the Henry Chadwick Award, created to honor baseball researchers, historians, analysts, and statisticians.
- 2011:
- The Cardinals get another scare on the heels of losing ace starter Adam Wainwright to Tommy John surgery: their other ace, Chris Carpenter, is taken out of today's Grapefruit League game against Florida after feeling a twinge in his hamstring. Fortunately, he is diagnosed with only a strain and will not miss significant time.
- Major League Baseball appoints John Thorn as its official historian. He succeeds Jerome Holtzman, who occupied the office from 1999 until his death in 2008.
- 2012:
- Jason Varitek, captain of the Boston Red Sox and a key member of its championship squads in 2004 and 2007, announces his retirement at a press conference in Fort Myers, FL. The durable catcher played his entire 15-year major league career with Boston.
- In an important step in his recovery from shoulder surgery in 2010, Mets pitcher Johan Santana faces hitters for the first time in spring training. The team is hopeful he will be ready for Opening Day.
- The first walk-off grand slam in a game involving the Schiller Rule takes place. With a 4 - 2 deficit and one out in the bottom of the 10th, Granma right fielder Urmanis Guerra goes deep off the Metropolitanos' Maikel Hidalgo with the bases loaded, one of the baserunners being the "designated runner".
- 2013 - SABR announces its 2013 class of Chadwick Award winners, headed by historians Fred Lieb, Francis Richter and John Thorn, the Hall of Fame's official historian.
- 2015 - Minnie Minoso, one of the first black stars of the American League in the 1950s and one of only two men to play in the major leagues in five different decades, dies in Chicago, IL at either 92 or 89, as there is uncertainty over his true date of birth. He will be posthumously voted into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee as part of the 2022 Hall of Fame Class.
- 2016 - Commissioner Rob Manfred sends a strong message on the issue of domestic violence as he issues a thirty-game suspension to Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman in response to an incident on October 30th. The suspension comes even though police declined to file charges in the case because of inconsistent evidence, however MLB goes ahead based on the severity of the allegations. Chapman announces that he will not appeal.
- 2022 - For the first time since 1995, it appears that regular season major league games will be cancelled as a result of a labor dispute as the two sides negotiating a solution to the 2021-2022 lockout fail to come to an agreement before the 5:00 PM deadline. The issue of the luxury tax, which the Players Association contends acts as a de facto salary cap, is the biggest issue that prevents a deal. However, when the two sides finally come to an agreement in ten days' time, they will agree to make up all of the games missed.
Births[edit]
- 1852 - Paul Hines, outfielder (d. 1935)
- 1853 - Ed Somerville, infielder (d. 1877)
- 1860 - Tom Sullivan, pitcher (d. 1947)
- 1864 - Farmer Vaughn, catcher (d. 1914)
- 1864 - Henry Yaik, catcher/outfielder (d. 1935)
- 1868 - Al Weddige, minor league infielder and manager (d. 1946)
- 1871 - George Boone, pitcher (d. 1910)
- 1881 - Al Shaw, outfielder (d. 1974)
- 1883 - Charlie Pickett, pitcher (d. 1969)
- 1885 - Lefty Webb, pitcher (d. 1958)
- 1888 - Howard Baker, infielder (d. 1964)
- 1889 - Hick Munsell, minor league pitcher (d. 1974)
- 1892 - Roy Elsh, outfielder (d. 1978)
- 1897 - Howie Jones, outfielder (d. 1972)
- 1899 - Ernie Padgett, infielder (d. 1957)
- 1904 - Tenny Edwards, catcher (d. 1977)
- 1905 - Jim Beckman, pitcher (d. 1974)
- 1908 - Tadashi Wakabayashi, NPB pitcher and manager; Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame (d. 1965)
- 1910 - Alabama Pitts, minor league outfielder (d. 1941)
- 1914 - Harry Caray, announcer (d. 1998)
- 1915 - Dwight Aden, minor league center fielder (d. 2008)
- 1915 - Nick Strincevich, pitcher (d. 2011)
- 1916 - Bing Devine, general manager (d. 2007)
- 1917 - Rankin Johnson, pitcher (d. 2006)
- 1917 - Ike Pearson, pitcher (d. 1985)
- 1918 - Hank Wyse, pitcher; All-Star (d. 2000)
- 1921 - Red Benton, minor league pitcher (d. 2013)
- 1921 - Howie Fox, pitcher (d. 1955)
- 1921 - Art Frantz, umpire (d. 2008)
- 1921 - Frank Rosso, pitcher (d. 1980)
- 1923 - Chico Renfroe, infielder; All-Star (d. 1991)
- 1924 - Wilmer Harris, pitcher (d. 2004)
- 1924 - Tim Thompson, catcher (d. 2021)
- 1925 - Jo Jo Deal, outfielder (d. 1970)
- 1925 - Bob Usher, outfielder (d. 2014)
- 1927 - Jim Pickens, college coach (d. 2000)
- 1928 - Bert Hamric, pinch hitter (d. 1984)
- 1928 - Fred McAlister, scout (d. 2008)
- 1928 - Dwain Mintz, minor league infielder; college coach (d. 2018)
- 1928 - Toshihide Yamane, NPB pitcher/coach; CPBL manager (d. 2009)
- 1932 - Dom Zanni, pitcher (d. 2017)
- 1937 - Arturo León Lerma, Mexican executive; Salon de la Fama
- 1939 - Palmer Muench, college coach (b. 1939)
- 1940 - Larry Brown, infielder
- 1944 - Vern Fuller, infielder
- 1944 - Ron Klimkowski, pitcher (d. 2009)
- 1945 - Jim Panther, pitcher
- 1950 - Mike Roberts, minor league catcher; college coach
- 1951 - Takuji Ota, NPB outfielder
- 1952 - Bob Davis, catcher
- 1952 - David Sloan, minor league pitcher
- 1953 - Jeff Holly, pitcher
- 1955 - Dan Schmitz, minor league infielder and manager
- 1956 - Fay Thompson, minor league infielder; scout
- 1957 - Johnny Ray, infielder; All-Star
- 1957 - Hideki Takayanagi, NPB outfielder
- 1961 - Rodrigo Merón, Panamanian national team infielder and manager
- 1962 - Mark Gardner, pitcher
- 1962 - Brian Migliore, minor league pitcher
- 1963 - Tony Castillo, pitcher
- 1963 - Rich Rodriguez, pitcher
- 1965 - Masaharu Kasahara, NPB umpire
- 1966 - Takeshi Hirabayashi, NPB umpire
- 1966 - Ron Ortegon, minor league infielder
- 1969 - Neil Adonis, South African national team designated hitter and manager
- 1969 - Doug Creek, pitcher
- 1970 - Min-tae Chung, KBO and NPB pitcher
- 1970 - Stuart Thompson, Australian national team outfielder
- 1970 - Alberto Vargas, minor league catcher
- 1971 - Wei-Min Chi, Taiwan national team outfielder
- 1972 - Omar Daal, pitcher
- 1972 - Jimmy Hurst, outfielder
- 1973 - Frank Beer, Bunesliga pitcher
- 1973 - Yueh-Liang Lin, CPBL infielder
- 1974 - Jose Santos, minor league infielder
- 1976 - Aaron Braund, minor league infielder
- 1976 - Ramon Castro, catcher
- 1976 - Jeff Pohl, minor league pitcher and manager
- 1977 - Shin-young Song, KBO pitcher
- 1978 - Ken Harvey, infielder; All-Star
- 1978 - Kris Keller, pitcher
- 1978 - Jorge Nunez, minor league infielder
- 1979 - Chris Barnwell, infielder
- 1979 - Shawn Weaver, drafted pitcher
- 1980 - Micah Hoffpauir, outfielder
- 1980 - Ricardo Shimanoe, Brazilian national team catcher
- 1980 - Greg Wiltshire, minor league pitcher
- 1981 - Alex Smith, Hoofdklasse pitcher
- 1983 - Blake Hawksworth, pitcher
- 1984 - Hyun-seok Jung, KBO outfielder
- 1985 - Jonathan Baksh, minor league outfielder
- 1985 - Akalanka Ranasinghe, Sri Lankan national team outfielder
- 1985 - Gavin Ray, South African national team outfielder
- 1986 - Hui Guo, China Baseball League infielder
- 1986 - Eduardo Morlan, minor league pitcher
- 1988 - Trevor Cahill, pitcher; All-Star
- 1988 - Hyeon-jong Yang, pitcher
- 1988 - Zhenwang Zhang, China Baseball League catcher
- 1989 - Taylor Swift, minor league pitcher
- 1990 - Anthony Haase, minor league pitcher (d. 2014)
- 1990 - Reginald Lampe, minor league outfielder
- 1990 - Dashenko Ricardo, minor league catcher
- 1990 - Kyle Skipworth, catcher
- 1990 - Jose Valdez, pitcher
- 1991 - Dongchao Dai, China Baseball League infielder
- 1991 - Joe Mantiply, pitcher; All-Star
- 1991 - Evgeny Podyapolskiy, Russian national team outfielder
- 1991 - Robert Suárez, pitcher
- 1991 - Ihtisham Ul Haq, Pakistani national team infielder
- 1992 - Scott Cone, New Zealand national team pitcher
- 1993 - Jason Alexander, pitcher
- 1993 - Michael Conforto, outfielder; All-Star
- 1993 - Kenta Ishida, NPB pitcher
- 1993 - Daniel Vítek, Extraliga pitcher
- 1995 - Adbert Alzolay, pitcher
- 1995 - Nelson León, minor league pitcher
- 1995 - Jesus Sanchez, minor league pitcher
- 1995 - Hiroki Tokoda, NPB pitcher
- 1996 - Munkh Ochir Bayarmaa, Mongolian national team outfielder
- 1996 - Fariha Nayyab, Pakistani women's national team outfielder
- 1997 - Salomon Koba, Brazilian national team infielder
- 1998 - Kelsey Lalor, Canadian women's national team outfielder
- 1998 - Assaf Lowengart, Israeli national team infielder
- 1998 - Casey Schmitt, infielder
- 1999 - Oswaldo Cabrera, infielder
- 2000 - Merle Langevoord, Dutch women's national team pitcher
- 2000 - Michal Puškár, Extraliga pitcher
- 2001 - Wander Franco, infielder; All-Star
- 2002 - Alexander Kienberger, Austrian national team pitcher
Deaths[edit]
- 1881 - Hugh Campbell, pitcher (b. 1846)
- 1896 - John Connell, umpire (b. 1860)
- 1913 - Bud Fowler, minor league infielder; Hall of Fame (b. 1847)
- 1919 - Bill Fouser, infielder (b. 1855)
- 1919 - Hal McClure, outfielder (b. 1859)
- 1920 - Harry Jordan, pitcher (b. 1873)
- 1929 - Ed Foster, pitcher (b. 1885)
- 1937 - Charles Fuller, catcher (b. 1878)
- 1937 - Roy Vaughn, pitcher (b. 1911)
- 1941 - Ivey Wingo, catcher, manager (b. 1890)
- 1942 - Bill Delaney, infielder (b. 1863)
- 1952 - Yoyo O'Reilly, Dominican national team pitcher (b. 1922)
- 1954 - Marv Gudat, outfielder (b. 1903)
- 1956 - Ed Heusser, pitcher (b. 1909)
- 1956 - Walt Miller, pitcher (b. 1883)
- 1961 - Alex Malloy, pitcher (b. 1886)
- 1962 - Hal Janvrin, infielder (b. 1892)
- 1962 - Horace Jenkins, outfielder (b. 1891)
- 1963 - Irish Meusel, outfielder (b. 1893)
- 1964 - Ted Corbett, minor league pitcher and manager (b. 1870)
- 1965 - Maurice Van Robays, outfielder (b. 1914)
- 1967 - Red Grier, pitcher (b. 1904)
- 1973 - Ray Battle, infielder (b. 1918)
- 1974 - Larry Doyle, infielder (b. 1886)
- 1974 - Segundo Rodríguez, Cuban national team outfielder (b. ????)
- 1976 - Rube Foster, pitcher (b. 1888)
- 1980 - Emmett Ashford, umpire (b. 1914)
- 1980 - Art Jorgens, catcher (b. 1905)
- 1980 - Johnny Watwood, outfielder (b. 1905)
- 1985 - George Banks, infielder (b. 1938)
- 1987 - Yoshitaka Kosaka, NPB infielder (b. 1935)
- 1988 - Luis Márquez, outfielder; All-Star (b. 1925)
- 1990 - Frank Crespi, infielder (b. 1918)
- 1994 - Carlos Cárdenas, author (b. 1973)
- 1994 - Joe Tipton, catcher (b. 1922)
- 1996 - Les Burge, minor league infielder and manager (b. 1917)
- 1997 - Monte Kennedy, pitcher (b. 1922)
- 1999 - Kazunori Nishimura, NPB pitcher (b. 1935)
- 2002 - Charlie Harville, announcer (b. 1918)
- 2005 - Tamotsu Kimura, NPB pitcher (b. 1934)
- 2005 - Bob Mavis, pinch runner (b. 1918)
- 2006 - Ray Poole, pinch hitter (b. 1920)
- 2009 - Gene Stone, infielder (b. 1944)
- 2010 - Shigeyuki Takahashi, NPB pitcher (b. 1945)
- 2014 - Les Layton, outfielder (b. 1921)
- 2014 - Phil Munroe, college coach (b. ~1923)
- 2015 - Jeff McKnight, infielder (b. 1963)
- 2015 - Minnie Minoso, outfielder; All-Star, Hall of Fame (b. 1923)
- 2019 - Kimio Gomyo, Japanese national team coach (b. 1943)
- 2020 - Steve Kring, scout (b. 1947)
- 2023 - Dan McGinn, pitcher (b. 1943)
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