January 19

Daily Rewind - January 19 - Banks joins immortals

January 19, 2025

January 19 Cooperstown Calls:

January 19, 1937, in their second annual Hall of Fame election, the Baseball Writers Association of America elects second baseman Napoleon Lajoie, outfielder Tris Speaker and pitcher Cy Young to the Cooperstown shrine.

January 19, 1972, the Baseball Writers elect three players to the Hall of Fame: Yogi Berra, (339 votes) Sandy Koufax (344 votes) and Early Wynn (301 votes): Koufax, at the age of 36, becomes the youngest man to gain election to the shrine.

1977, former Chicago Cub standout Ernie Banks is elected to the Hall of Fame;

1978 -- Eddie Mathews is elected to the Hall of Fame. The former third baseman is named on 301 of 379 ballots. He became the seventh player in Major League history to hit 500 home runs, finishing his career with 512. He walloped more than 30 round-trippers nine years in a row. In 1953, his 47 homers for the Milwaukee Braves led the National League and established a single-season record for third basemen that lasted 27 years. A member of two world championship teams, Mathews was the first athlete featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

As a boy, Ernie Banks' father had to pay his son a nickel to play catch with him. Later that would seem ridiculous, as Banks became a symbol of baseball enthusiasm. He often expressed his great joy at getting paid to play the game he loved so much. He was the most popular player in Chicago Cubs history. The National League Most Valuable Player in 1958 and 1959 while playing shortstop, Banks was known for his jovial manner off the field. A Hall of Famer, Banks was switched to first base in mid-career. He retired with virtually all of the slugging records for Cubs batters, and finished with 512 home runs.

Slugging facts:Banks set a record in 1955 when he slugged five grand slams, the last one off Lindy McDaniel on September 19. The record setting slam came in McDaniel’s first major league start. Banks five base-clearing blasts broke the record previously shared by Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ralph Kiner, Frank Schulte, Rudy York, Tommy Henrich, Vince DiMaggio, Sid Gordon, Al Rosen and Ray Boone... Banks also broke Vern Stephen’s record for most home runs by a shortstop in a single season. His slugging vaulted him to the top of baseball – from 1955 to 1960 his 248 home runs were more than anyone else in the majors, including Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays and Hank Aaron... Banks hit 210 homers as a first baseman, and 277 as a shortstop.

Check out the Daily Highlight Page. You can CLICK HERE to jump on in.

Best,

Tom

TODAY ON THE DAILY HIGHLIGHT

Go to the Daily Highlight Page

CLICK HERE to go today’s Daily Highlight Page where you can see all of today’s happenings in Baseball History and listen to the original audio

Listen to todays Podcast! (Free)!

Today’s Highlighted Reel:

Jackie Robinson Radio Show Episode 130 Satchel Paige
Bob Elson Interviews Ernie Banks on January 15, 1978
Stan Musial on Tops on Sports
Ozzie Smith on his trade to St Louis
The Hall of Fame Opens - June 12 1939
Home run Derby Episode Ten: Hank Aaron vs Bob Allison

Interested in listening? Join our membership.

What’s inside?

Over 1,500 Audio Games, highlights and interviews

2000+ player pages with audio libraries

Daily Highlights

Ball Parks, Team Libraries and much more!

Join for FREE today!

Trivia:

How was Thinking of Paul Skenes here, how was the first Pittsburgh Pirate to win the NL Rookie of the year award?

Willie Stargell

Dick Groat

Roberto Clemente

Jason Bay

Dave Parker

Barry Bonds

Hint: The answer is below

January 19 1931 — Acting under a new draft agreement with the Pacific Coast League, the Brooklyn Robins purchase the contract of catcher Ernie Lombardi from the Oakland Oaks for $50,000.

January 19, 1934, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis turns down “Shoeless” Joe Jackson’s bid for reinstatement. Jackson was one of eight Chicago White Sox players banned for life for his alleged involvement in fixing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. Jackson, will continue to proclaim his innocence for the remainder of his life.

January 19, 1945, media reports say that Stan “The Man” Musial will enlist in the U.S. military for duty in World War II. Musial will miss the entire 1945 season before returning to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1946. Listen to todays podcast on Musial.

Passed away . . .Greatly admired and respected by everyone in and around baseball, Stan Musial was one of the most popular players to ever don a major league uniform. Since big league ball wasn’t played any further west than the city of St. Louis until the Dodgers and Giants moved to California in 1958, Musial was a hero to virtually every young boy who lived beyond the banks of the Mississippi River during the 1940s and 1950s. The Cardinal outfielder’s warm, unpretentious, and easy-going manner also made him a favorite of teammates and opponents alike. Musial’s popularity was further enhanced by the greatness he displayed on the ballfield – a greatness that enabled him to win seven batting championships and three National League Most Valuable Player Awards during his 22-year career with the Cardinals.

January 19, 1983 — Ozzie Smith becomes the game’s first $1 million shortstop when the infielder inks a three-year pact with the World Champion Cardinals. The 'Wizard of OZ', best known for his outstanding defense, had won his third consecutive Gold Glove. Smith will win 3 more Golden Gloves and All Star appearances. He will hit .435 in the 1985 NLCS and win the MVP award.

January 19, 2009 -- Bill Werber, the oldest ex-major leaguer and last living teammate of Babe Ruth, dies at the age of 100. The former infielder, who played for the Yankees, Red Sox, A's, Reds, and Giants, became the first player to appear in a televised game when he batted leadoff for Cincinnati in a contest played against the Dodgers at Ebbets Field on August 26, 1939.

Go to the Daily Highlight Page

HIGHLIGHTED GAME OF THE DAY:

As a player, Yogi Berra played on 10 World Series winning teams. He was the heart soul of that dynasty. In 1972 he was elected into the Hall of Fame, for fun here are some Berra-isms: Yogi once explained teammate Mickey Mantle's ability to hit with power from both sides of the plate this way: "He was naturally amphibious."

Quotes About Berra"He'd fall in a sewer and come up with a gold watch."— Casey Stengel"They say he's funny. Well, he has a lovely wife and family, a beautiful home, money in the bank, and he plays golf with millionaires. What's funny about that?"— Casey Stengel"Why has our pitching been so great? Our catcher - that's why. He looks cumbersome but he's quick as a cat." — Casey Stengel

Todays game is game seven of the 1956 World Series Featuring the defending Champion Brooklyn Dodgers vs New York Yankees. Yogi has a day.

Listen to the Game!