A M-W-F digest, replete with #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB content, gathered from reputable sources. Happy birthday, Allen Ripley, and other stories. Believe it or not!
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:
- 1910 – The Philadelphia Athletics pound the Chicago Cubs, 9-3, for a 2-0 lead in the World Series. Eddie Collins collects three hits, including two doubles and two stolen bases. (1,2)
- 1967 – The American League owners grant Charlie Finley permission to move the Kansas City Athletics to Oakland, California, in time for the start of the 1968 season. Kansas City is promised a new team by 1971, but when Senator Stuart Symington and Kansas City Mayor Ilus Davis threaten action against the move, AL President Joe Cronin reopens talks. The expansion deadline is moved forward to 1969, and will award new franchises to Kansas City and Seattle. (2)
- 1977 – Reggie Jackson becomes known as “Mr. October” when he hits three consecutive home runs in Game 6 of the World Series. Jackson leads the Yankees to an 8-4 victory and the World Championship over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jackson’s three shots come on the first pitch off Burt Hooton, Elias Sosa and Charlie Hough. He drives in five runs and earns Series MVP honors. (2)
- 2015 – In Game 2 of the NLCS, the Mets get to Jake Arrieta with three first-inning runs, one on a double by David Wright, and two on a homer by Daniel Murphy, to win, 4-1, over the Cubs. Rookie Noah Syndergaard is the winner. (2)
- 2016 – Rich Hill pitches six scoreless innings to lead Los Angeles to its second consecutive shutout win over the Cubs, 6-0, in Game 3 of the NLCS. Yasmani Grandal and Justin Turner hit homers off Jake Arrieta to lead the offense. (2)
- 2017 – The Cubs avoid elimination by winning Game 4 of the NLCS, 3-2, over the Dodgers. All five runs are the result of solo homers: for Chicago, a monster blast that travels almost 500 feet by Willson Contreras, and two by Javier Baez, all against Alex Wood, and replies by Clay Bellinger and Justin Turner for Los Angeles. Jake Arrieta is the winner and Wade Davis gets credit for the save. (2)
Cubs Birthdays: Cliff Carroll, Walt Wilmot, Hans Lobert, Sumpter Clarke, Don Young, Allen Ripley*. Also notable: Candy Cummings HOF.
Today in History:
- 1564 – John Hawkins begins second trip to America.
- 1767 – Boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania, the Mason–Dixon line is agreed upon.
- 1867 – US takes formal possession of Alaska from Russia, after paying $7.2 million in the Alaska Purchase.
- 1878 – Edison makes electricity available for household use.
- 1892 – First commercial long-distance phone line opens (Chicago-NY).
- 1921 – Charles Strite granted US patent #1,394,450 for his invention, the automatic pop-up toaster.
- 1954 – Texas Instruments Inc. announces the first transistor radio.
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.
- 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.
Also, the ‘history’ segment is highly edited for space and interest. Of course a great many other things happened on those days. We try to follow up on the interesting or unfamiliar ones.
Thanks for reading.