A M-W-F digest, replete with #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB content, gathered from reputable sources. The second-best Playoff game for the Cubs, ever, and other stories.
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:
- 1908 – Addie Joss of the Cleveland Naps tosses a perfect game against the Chicago White Sox. The future Hall of Famer wins a 1-0 decision over Ed Walsh in one of the greatest pitching duels in major league history. Joss strikes out only three batters, while Walsh fans 15. (1,2)
- 1919 – The Chicago White Sox lose the second game of the World Series, 4-2, to the Cincinnati Reds. Lefty Williams, one of eight Sox players involved in a Series-fixing scandal, walks three men in the fourth inning. After the game, he is confronted and attacked by Sox catcher Ray Schalk. (1,2)
- 1920 – With the last two games rained out, fans get their money’s worth in Pittsburgh as the Pirates and Reds, battling to determine third place, play the century’s only tripleheader. Starting at noon, the Reds win the first game, 13-4, to clinch third place. The Reds win the second game as well, 7-3, with a number of players at odd positions: the Reds put catcher Ivey Wingo at 2B, with pitchers Rube Bressler, Dutch Ruether, Fritz Coumbe, and Hod Eller at field positions. The Pirates take the finale, 6-0, called after six innings because of darkness. The only “tribill” played this century is played in five hours. Clyde Barnhart, who made his major league debut 10 days earlier, doubles in the first two games, and singles in the third, the only player to hit in all three games. (1,2)
- 1932 – The Yankees sweep the Cubs in the World Series. Tony Lazzeri hits two homers and Earle Combs adds another in the 13-6 laugher. (1,2)
- 1966 – Cardinals rookie Jim Cosman, making his major league debut on the last day of the season, hurls a two-hit complete-game shutout, blanking Chicago at Busch Stadium, 2-0. The 23-year-old right-hander, who didn’t know of his assignment until twenty minutes before game time, makes his only start of the season, having pitched only in relief in 54 minor league appearances before today’s contest. (2)
- 1972 – In the first game of a doubleheader, Montreal’s Bill Stoneman no-hits the New York Mets for a 7-0 Expos win at Parc Jarry, the first major league no-hitter ever pitched in Canada and the second of Stoneman’s career. The Mets win the second game, 2-1. The temperature is 53 degrees as 7,184 watch the doubleheader split. (1,2)
- 1984 – In a game played with replacement umpires, the Cubs clobber the Padres, 13-0 in Game 1 of the NLCS. Chicago hits five home runs at Wrigley Field, including one by winning pitcher Rick Sutcliffe*. (1,2)
- 2001 – Slugging Sammy Sosa becomes the first player in baseball history to slug 60 home runs in three seasons. The Cubs outfielder connects off Lance Davis in the 1st inning of the team’s 5-4 loss to Cincinnati at Wrigley Field to reach the milestone. (2)
- 2006 – Chicago’s Vice-President and GM Jim Hendry announces that the Cubs have declined to renew Dusty Baker’s contract to return as the team’s manager next season. During his four-year reign in the northside dugout, the 57-year-old skipper compiled a 322-326 record, including a 66-96 campaign last season. (2)
- 2012 – The Astros top the Cubs in the first match-up of 100-loss teams since 1962. Bud Norris and four relievers hold Chicago to four hits (two by Starlin Castro) in the contest of sad-sack clubs. (2)
- 2018 – The Rockies defeat the Cubs, 2-1, in 13 innings in the Wild Card Game. After scoring off Jon Lester in the 1st, the Rockies’ bats go quiet, while the Cubs tie it with two outs in the 8th when Javier Baez doubles off Adam Ottavino, scoring pinch-runner Terrance Gore. However, the Cubs, whose bats have gone stone cold of late, waste a number of other chances. Tony Wolters, the Rockies’ third catcher of the game, drives in Trevor Story with a two-out single off Kyle Hendricks in the 13th for the go-ahead run, and Scott Oberg preserves the win as Colorado will continue its travels, moving to Milwaukee, WI for Game 1 of the NLDS, its fourth city in four games. (2)
- 2020 – The National League Wild Card Series are complete as the Marlins eliminate the Cubs with a 2-0 win in Game 2 of the Third Series thanks to a homer by Garrett Cooper off Yu Darvish in the 7th that breaks a scoreless tie. (2)
Cubs Birthdays: Scott Stratton, Tom Angley, Bill Serena, Dave Beard, Héctor Villanueva, Matt Walbeck, Rafael Lopez.
Today in History:
- 1187 – Sultan of Egypt Saladin captures Jerusalem from the Crusaders.
- 1535 – French explorer Jacques Cartier first visits the Iroquois settlement of Hochelaga (later Montreal).
- 1959 – Rod Serling’s anthology series “The Twilight Zone” premieres on CBS-TV.
- 1967 – Thurgood Marshall sworn in as 1st black Supreme Court Justice.
‘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.
I’m in another book. This one is a charity tribute to Black Sabbath.