June 12
From BR Bullpen
| Stats of players who were born this day | |
| Stats of players who died on this day | |
| Standings on this day | |
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| Today in Baseball History | |
Events, births and deaths that occurred on June 12.
Events[edit]
- 1884 - Dissatisfied with umpire Jack Brennan's calls, hundreds of fans storm the field at Oriole Park in an American Association game between the Orioles and Louisville Eclipse. One man wielding a large revolver threatens to shoot Brennan if he makes any more bad calls. Police have to be called in to clear the mob, and after the game, which ends in a 4 - 4 tie, Brennan is slugged to the ground by a fan and has to be taken to the Orioles clubhouse, then to OF Jim Clinton's home for his own protection, before being whisked out of town on the first train.
- 1922 - Hub Pruett of the St. Louis Browns strikes out Babe Ruth three consecutive times as St. Louis beat the New York Yankees, 7 - 1.
- 1928 - Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees collects 14 total bases with two triples and two home runs in a 15 - 7 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
- 1939 - The Hall of Fame is officially dedicated at Cooperstown, New York. The greatest-ever gathering of members and future inductees of the Hall of Fame accept their plaques: Grover Alexander, Ty Cobb, Eddie Collins, Walter Johnson, Nap Lajoie, Connie Mack, Babe Ruth, George Sisler, Tris Speaker, Honus Wagner and Cy Young.
- 1950 - Major League Baseball names Connie Mack as the Honorary American League manager of the All-Star Game.
- 1954 - Jim Wilson of the Milwaukee Braves pitches the year's only no-hitter, blanking the Philadelphia Phillies, 2 - 0.
- 1956 - Roberto Clemente's 5th-inning, two-out, two-run rope into Crosley Field's right-centerfield bleachers vaults Pittsburgh past Cincinnati both in the game and in the standings, transforming a 3 - 2 deficit into a 4 - 3 lead and pushing Pittsburgh to the head of the class, atop the National League by half a game over the newly-demoted Redlegs.
- 1957 - Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals plays in his 823rd game for a new National League record consecutive game streak. The mark beats Gus Suhr's old record. Cardinals hurler Larry Jackson beats the Philadelphia Phillies, 4 - 0, to improve his record to 8-2. He has now beaten every National League team this season.
- 1959 - Mike McCormick of the San Francisco Giants tosses a 3 - 0, five-inning no-hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies. Richie Ashburn singles in the top of the sixth for the Phillies, but the hit doesn't count because the game is stopped by rain.
- 1969 - Roberto Clemente's tape-measure two-run blast ties the game at 3-all after six, en route to a come-from-behind 4 - 3 Pirate win over Houston. "Clemente's homer – his second in two nights – was a prodigious wallop of some 430 feet that landed about 12 rows up in the steps to the right of the service ramp in center field. In addition to loosening a few boards and frightening small children, it also tied the score at 3-all. Matty Alou was aboard with a walk when Jim Ray tried to fling one pitch too many past the dangerous Clemente. Clemente saw the ball good and he sped up his swing and timed the connection perfectly. Jim Wynn, in center, gave token pursuit of the eighth blast this year off the 34-year-old Puerto Rican hero's bat. But he'd have needed a ladder to reach the blast which soared far over Wynn's head." The Astros wisely do not afford Clemente the opportunity to beat them; his 8th-inning at-bat with 2 outs, the go-ahead run in scoring position and first base open yields the predictable free pass. Ironically, in the 9th, the game's goat thus far, shortstop Freddie Patek comes up with 2 outs, the go-ahead run in scoring position and first base open; his two-run error had put Pitt in in an early 3 - 1 hole. But manager Larry Shepard, apparently no devotee of the "Hollywood ending", bats Carl Taylor in his stead. Taylor singles for the 4 - 3 lead and Jim Bunning retires the Astros in order in the bottom of the frame, when Wynn hits a fly ball that sends left fielder Jose Pagan to the fence for the final out.
- 1970 - Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Dock Ellis no-hits the San Diego Padres, 2 - 0. Ellis receives all his support on two home runs by Willie Stargell. Ellis will later claim that he was suffering from the after-effects of his previous night's LSD trip while pitching this gem.
- 1975 - Oakland Athletics outfielder Billy Williams hits his 400th career home run.
- 1981 - Thirteen games are canceled in the major leagues due to the players' strike.
- 1983 - Hall of Famers Charlie Gehringer and Hank Greenberg have their uniform numbers retired by the Detroit Tigers in a ballpark ceremony. The digits 2 and 5, respectively, will join Al Kaline's #6, retired in 1980, as the only numbers retired by the Tigers thus far.
- 1990 - Cal Ripken, Jr. plays in his 1,308th consecutive game, moving into second-place on the all-time list ahead of former Yankees and Red Sox shortstop Everett Scott (1918-1925).
- 1997 - After 126 years of major league play tradition, the first interleague game is played as the San Francisco Giants beat the host Texas Rangers, 4 - 3. Glenallen Hill becomes the National League's first regular season designated hitter.
- 2001 - Gary Sheffield of the Los Angeles Dodgers becomes the first player in major league history to win three 1 - 0 games in a season with a home run, when he hits a solo shot to beat Atlanta, 1 - 0. Previously, Sheffield also supplied the only scoring by homering against Milwaukee on April 2nd and Florida on May 7th.
- 2004 - In an Orioles-Giants interleague game, Barry Bonds hits a home run, the 675th of his career, and Rafael Palmeiro hits his 536th and 537th to move past Mickey Mantle into 11th place on the career list. It is only the third time in major league history that two players with 500 homers connect in the same game. Willie Mays and Ernie Banks did it in 1970, and Mays and Hank Aaron both homered in 1971.
- 2005:
- Tony Armas, Jr. pitches five scoreless innings and Junior Spivey hits a two-run home run as the Washington Nationals tie a franchise record with their 10th consecutive win, a 3 - 2 victory over the Seattle Mariners. Before relocating to the nation's capital this season, the Nationals were known as the Montreal Expos, who won 10 straight games three previous times in 1979, 1980 and 1997.
- Hee-Seop Choi hits three home runs in his first three at-bats, including a go-ahead solo shot in the 6th inning, to lead the Dodgers past Minnesota, 4 - 3.
- 2007:
- Justin Verlander throws the sixth no-hitter in Detroit Tigers history. Hitting 100 mph on the radar gun in the 9th inning, he shuts down the Brewers with 12 strikeouts, walking four. Magglio Ordonez makes a sliding catch on a shot by Corey Hart in the 7th to keep hope alive and later catches the final out of the contest. It is Detroit's first no-hitter in 23 years, the second no-hitter of the season and the first ever at Comerica Park. Bill Hall is never retired despite batting three times against Verlander, drawing walks every time up.
- The Dodgers homer on three straight pitches off the Mets' John Maine in the 2nd inning, as Wilson Betemit, Matt Kemp and Hong-Chih Kuo go yard. Kuo's home run is the first ever in the major leagues by a native of Taiwan.
- 2010:
- Daniel Nava of the Red Sox hits the first pitch he sees as a major leaguer for a grand slam as Boston beats Philadelphia, 10 - 2. Kevin Kouzmanoff had been the only previous player to accomplish this feat, in 2006. Nava bails out emergency starter Scott Atchison, filling in for Daisuke Matsuzaka, who is placed on the disabled list before the game with a right forearm strain; Manny Delcarmen is the winner over Joe Blanton. The Phillies now fall to 3rd in the NL East.
- Derek Jeter homers twice and Jorge Posada hits a grand slam in New York's 9 - 3 win over Houston. Wandy Rodriguez (3-9) is the victim of the offensive surge, accomplished in the absence of Alex Rodriguez, still bothered by a groin injury.
- 2011:
- Francisco Liriano of the Twins flirts with his second no-hitter of the year, keeping Texas off the hit sheet until the 8th inning, when Adrian Beltre singles up the middle. The Twins win, 6 - 1, as Liriano gives up no walks but strikes out 9 over 8 innings; he had walked 6 in his no-no against the White Sox on May 3rd.
- The Red Sox spank the Blue Jays, 14 - 1, one day after handing them a 16 - 4 pasting, to extend their winning streak to 9 games. David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis both homer and drive in 4 runs, and Adrian Gonzalez and Dustin Pedroia also go long in support of Jon Lester, who gives up only two hits in 8 innings to go 9-2 on the year. Jose Bautista hits homer number 21 in the lone highlight for Toronto.
- Realignment is on the table again as Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association are in discussions to renew the collective bargaining agreement, which expires on December 11th. One of the options being discussed would see one team moving from the National League to the American League to create two 15-team leagues, with the Houston Astros the likeliest candidate for a move.
- The Kinston Indians defeat the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, 3 - 2, in a 23-inning marathon, the longest game in the history of the Carolina League. 15 players log 8 or more at bats and both catchers, Zach Zaneski of Myrtle Beach and Roberto Pérez of Kinston, catch every inning before Kinston 2B Casey Frawley's game-ending single. The contest at Kinston's historic Grainger Stadium takes 6 hours and 27 minutes to complete.
- 2012 - Alex Rodriguez ties Lou Gehrig's record by hitting his 23rd career grand slam off the Braves' Jonny Venters. A-Rod's 8th-inning blast allows the Yankees to tie the score, and Nick Swisher hits a two-run shot later that inning for a 6 - 4 win.
- 2015 - The Blue Jays score 9 runs in the 7th inning to overcome an 8 - 1 deficit and defeat the Red Sox, 13 - 10. Among the inning's highlights are a three-run triple by Russell Martin and a two-run homer by Justin Smoak, as the Jays' first nine hitters of the frame all reach base. It is the Jays' ninth straight win.
- 2016 - The University of California, Santa Barbara qualifies for the College World Series for the first time in school history thanks to a dramatic 4 - 3 win over the University of Louisville in the 2016 CWS Super Regionals. With Louisville ahead 3 - 0 in the 9th, pinch-hitter Sam Cohen hits a grand slam to stun the Cardinals.
- 2017 - Royce Lewis, a high school shortstop from California, is selected first overall by the Twins in the 2017 amateur draft. The Reds follow by picking Hunter Greene, who gained national publicity by hitting 102 mph on the radar gun at age 17. The Padres then choose P MacKenzie Gore, making it three high school players selected at the top of the draft, a first since 1990.
- 2018 - Tigers 1B Miguel Cabrera suffers a season-ending injury when he tears a biceps tendon while swinging at pitch in the 3rd inning of a game against the Twins. He had already missed all but one game of May with a hamstring injury.
Births[edit]
- 1850 - John Stedronsky, infielder (d. 1924)
- 1857 - Joe Hornung, outfielder (d. 1931)
- 1859 - Hi Ebright, catcher (d. 1916)
- 1859 - Michael Hurley, umpire (d. 1941)
- 1860 - Jack O'Brien, catcher (d. 1910)
- 1862 - Edgar Smith, outfielder (d. 1892)
- 1866 - Harry Spies, infielder (d. 1942)
- 1868 - Sol White, manager; Hall of Fame (d. 1955)
- 1873 - Pat Dillard, outfielder (d. 1907)
- 1879 - Red Dooin, catcher, manager (d. 1952)
- 1880 - Matty McIntyre, outfielder (d. 1920)
- 1884 - Elmer Johnson, catcher (d. 1966)
- 1884 - Otto Knabe, infielder, manager (d. 1961)
- 1886 - Lou Schettler, pitcher (d. 1960)
- 1887 - Joe Agler, infielder (d. 1971)
- 1892 - Herman Gordon, pitcher (d. 1979)
- 1897 - Guy Lacy, infielder (d. 1953)
- 1900 - Charlie Barnabe, pitcher (d. 1977)
- 1904 - Bill Foster, pitcher; All-Star, Hall of Fame (d. 1978)
- 1914 - Pete Naktenis, pitcher (d. 2007)
- 1916 - Freddie Shepard, outfielder (d. 1999)
- 1918 - Bitsy Mott, infielder (d. 2001)
- 1920 - Thomas Lloyd, minor league catcher and manager (d. 2000)
- 1920 - Neal Russo, writer (d. 1996)
- 1921 - Richard Ronovsky, minor league outfielder (d. 2007)
- 1921 - Red Whitsett, scout (d. 2011)
- 1922 - Jim Mains, pitcher (d. 1969)
- 1924 - George H. W. Bush, President (d. 2018)
- 1928 - Jack Cusick, infielder (d. 1989)
- 1929 - Evelyn Keppel, AAGPBL catcher (d. 2006)
- 1930 - Billy Bowman, minor league pitcher (d. 2021)
- 1930 - Dutch Rennert, umpire (d. 2018)
- 1937 - Phil Mudrock, pitcher
- 1937 - Piet Tromp, international executive (d. 2019)
- 1940 - Del Bates, catcher (d. 2009)
- 1941 - Gerry Arrigo, pitcher
- 1943 - Sam Parrilla, outfielder (d. 1994)
- 1945 - Gary Jones, pitcher
- 1946 - Jim Strickland, pitcher
- 1948 - James Moyer, minor league pitcher
- 1950 - Richard Ben Cramer, author (d. 2013)
- 1951 - Dave Skaggs, catcher
- 1955 - Takahiro Yanagihara, NPB outfielder
- 1959 - Pat Adams, minor league infielder
- 1959 - Jong-hoon Park, KBO outfielder and manager
- 1962 - Darrel Akerfelds, pitcher (d. 2012)
- 1963 - Keith Miller, infielder
- 1964 - Mark Gilles, minor league pitcher
- 1965 - Brian Cisarik, minor league outfielder
- 1967 - Jeff Bumgarner, minor league pitcher
- 1968 - Scott Aldred, pitcher
- 1970 - Damon Buford, outfielder
- 1971 - Ryan Klesko, outfielder; All-Star
- 1972 - Scott Dawes, Australian national team catcher
- 1974 - Damon Hollins, outfielder
- 1974 - Hideki Matsui, outfielder; All-Star
- 1975 - Russ Chambliss, minor league outfielder
- 1979 - Luca Bischeri, Serie A1 catcher
- 1979 - Scott Sturkie, minor league pitcher
- 1980 - Nate Gold, minor league outfielder
- 1981 - Ricardo Nanita, minor league and NPB outfielder
- 1982 - Dong Wang, China Baseball League catcher
- 1982 - Andy Zamora, Cuban league outfielder
- 1983 - Leandro Hasegawa, Brazilian national team player
- 1984 - Roger Bernadina, outfielder
- 1984 - Kyle McClellan, pitcher
- 1985 - George Kontos, pitcher
- 1986 - Billy Killian, minor league catcher
- 1986 - Marcos Tabata, minor league pitcher
- 1988 - Mike Walker, minor league infielder
- 1988 - De-Long Yu, CPBL utility man
- 1989 - Dallas Beeler, pitcher
- 1989 - Jonathan Loáisiga, minor league infielder
- 1989 - Misael Siverio, minor league pitcher
- 1990 - Jed Bradley, pitcher
- 1990 - Tharidu Madumal, Sri Lankan national team pitcher
- 1991 - Avisail Garcia, outfielder; All-Star
- 1993 - Sean Newcomb, pitcher
- 1994 - Nellie Rodriguez, minor league infielder
- 1995 - Aaron Civale, pitcher
- 1995 - Jeremy Walker, pitcher
- 1996 - Thomas Szapucki, pitcher
- 1997 - Akiyoshi Katsuno, Japanese national team pitcher
- 1998 - Liam Sabiston, Great Britain national team pitcher
Deaths[edit]
- 1890 - Warren White, infielder, manager
- 1900 - Mox McQuery, infielder (b. 1861)
- 1902 - Tim Donahue, catcher (b. 1870)
- 1906 - Mike O'Connor, minor league infielder and manager (b. ????)
- 1907 - George Bryant, infielder (b. 1857)
- 1915 - Pat Crisham, infielder (b. 1877)
- 1918 - Larry Ressler, outfielder (b. 1848)
- 1923 - Cliff Carroll, outfielder (b. 1859)
- 1937 - Jim St. Vrain, pitcher (b. 1871)
- 1928 - Frank Wilson, umpire (b. 1887)
- 1938 - Buck Thrasher, outfielder (b. 1889)
- 1947 - Eugene Scott, catcher (b. 1889)
- 1948 - Rasty Wright, pitcher (b. 1895)
- 1949 - Oliver Marcelle, infielder (b. 1894)
- 1960 - Art Wilson, catcher (b. 1885)
- 1964 - Bud Connolly, infielder (b. 1901)
- 1964 - Walter Zink, pitcher (b. 1898)
- 1968 - Clarence Orme, infielder (b. 1899)
- 1969 - Joe Engel, pitcher (b. 1893)
- 1972 - Lefty Phillips, manager (b. 1919)
- 1973 - Irv Bartling, infielder (b. 1914)
- 1973 - Clint Blume, pitcher (b. 1898)
- 1979 - Bill Brenzel, catcher (b. 1910)
- 1980 - Dan Thomas, outfielder (b. 1951)
- 1982 - Webster McDonald, pitcher, manager (b. 1900)
- 1987 - Dick Tremblay, umpire (b. 1932)
- 1988 - Merle Settlemire, pitcher (b. 1903)
- 1990 - Glen Gorbous, outfielder (b. 1930)
- 1990 - George McNamara, outfielder (b. 1901)
- 1990 - Jim Walkup, pitcher (b. 1895)
- 1992 - Randy Moore, outfielder (b. 1906)
- 1993 - Warren Tappin, college coach (b. 1918)
- 1994 - Jim Brock, college coach (b. ????)
- 2002 - Hank Boney, pitcher (b. 1903)
- 2004 - Bill Sharp, minor league infielder (b. 1931)
- 2005 - Brandy Davis, outfielder (b. 1927)
- 2010 - Felix Maldonado, minor league outfielder and manager (b. 1938)
- 2013 - Len Boyer, minor league outfielder (b. 1946)
- 2015 - Andres Mora, outfielder; Salon de la Fama (b. 1955)
- 2017 - Bob Zick, pitcher (b. 1927)
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