A M-W-F digest, replete with #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB content, gathered from reputable sources. Happy birthday to Starlin Castro! Leo Durocher puts his cards on the table, and other stories for the discerning reader.
On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a light-hearted, Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past, with plenty of the lore and various narratives to follow as they unfold over the course of time. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along.
“Maybe I called it wrong, but it’s official.” — Tom Connolly.
Today in baseball history:
- 1911 – Matthew Stanley Robison, president of the St. Louis Cardinals, dies unexpectedly. He leaves the club and the bulk of his estate to his niece, Mrs. Helene Hathaway Britton, who becomes the first female owner of a major league club. (1,2)
- 1947 – In a meeting at the Sarasota Terrace Hotel, in Florida, former Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher admits to Commissioner Happy Chandler that he sometimes bets on card games with the team’s pitcher, Kirby Higbe. (2)
- 1959 – In Havana, Cuba, the Cincinnati Redlegs and Los Angeles Dodgers play an exhibition game. For a pre-game photo, Reds outfielder Pete Whisenant swaps his glove for a Fidel Castro rebel’s machine gun. (2)
- 1960 – Commissioner Ford Frick says he will not allow the planned Continental League to pool players in the Western Carolinas League, as it would violate existing major-minor league agreements. (2)
- 1961 – In Mesa, Arizona, left fielder Orlando Cepeda gives the Cubs two runs with an error, then hits a three-run home run as the Giants defeat the Cubs, 13-12. (2)
- 1970 – Commissioner Bowie Kuhn orders a halt to the use of X-5 balls, which are much too lively for major league play. (2)
Cubs birthdays: Jim McCauley, Jamie Arnold, Chad Gaudin, Starlin Castro*.
Today in History:
- 1401 – Timur attacks city of Damascus, second city of the Mamluk Empire. Though scholar and negotiator Ibn Khaldūn’s life is spared, the city is sacked and the Umayyad Mosque destroyed.
- 1603 – Tokugawa Ieyasu is granted the title of shogun, officially establishing the Tokugawa Shogunate which would rule Japan until 1867.
- 1882 – German scientist Robert Koch discovers and describes the tubercle bacillus which causes tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis), and establishes germ theory.
- 1958 – Elvis Presley joins the U.S. Army (serial number 53310761).
Common sources:
- (1) — Today in Baseball History.
- (2) — Baseball Reference.
- (3) — Society for American Baseball Research.
- (4) — Baseball Hall of Fame.
- (5) — This Day in Chicago Cubs history.
- (6) — Wikipedia.
- (7) — The British Museum.
- For world history.
*pictured.
Some of these items spread from site to site without being verified. That is exactly why we ask for reputable sources if you have differences with a posted factoid. We are trying to set the record as straight as possible, but it isn’t brain surgery. We take it seriously, but there are limits.