January 30

January 30 Sandy Amoros makes the catch

January 30, 2025

January 30, 1930 Sandy Amoros is born in Matanzas, Cuba.

At 20 he made the 1950 Central American and Caribbean Games, Amorós led Cuba to a Gold Medal with 6 home runs in 7 games. He then turned to America to turn pro, first playing for the New York Cubans in the Negro Leagues in 1950 and in the Dominican Republic during the summer of 1951, he will finally debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers August 22, 1952.

He was a good hitter with a keen eye, not quite a regular he did play in over 100 games in both 1955 & 1956 & 1957 and posted a 902 OPS in 1956. He hit a career high in hrs in 1956, 16 and from 1954-1957 in Brooklyn he had some nice spilts including a 369 career OBP. LA wasn’t as kind to Sandy.

The defining moment of Amorós' career with the Brooklyn Dodgers was one of the memorable events in World Series history. It was the sixth inning of the decisive Game 7 of the 1955 World Series. The Dodgers had never won a World Series and were now trying to hold a 2–0 lead against their perennial rivals, the New York Yankees. The left-handed Amorós came into the game that inning as a defensive replacement, as the right-handed throwing Jim Gilliam moved from left field to second base in place of Don Zimmer.

The first two batters in the inning reached base and Yogi Berra came to the plate. Berra, notorious for swinging at pitches outside the strike zone, hit an opposite-field shot toward the left field corner that looked to be a sure double, as the Brooklyn outfield had just shifted to the right. Amorós seemingly came out of nowhere, extended his gloved right hand to catch the ball and immediately skidded to a halt to avoid crashing into the fence near Yankee Stadium's 301 distance marker in the left field corner. He then threw to the relay man, shortstop Pee Wee Reese, who in turn threw to first baseman Gil Hodges, doubling Gil McDougald off first; Hank Bauer grounded out to end the inning.

According to winning pitcher Johnny Podres: “As great a catch as Amoros made, his relay to Pee Wee [Reese] (to double up Gil McDougald) was even better.” When a reporter asked Amoros if he thought he would make the catch, he said, “I dunno. I just run like hell.”

Todays Podcast features Sandy making that catch, listen.

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Todays Podcast - Sandy Makes The Catch

For Members Today’s Highlighted Reels:

Home Run Derby Ernie Banks vs Gil Hodges
Ford Frick on baseball records on Tops on Sports

Trivia:

Which Detroit Tigers pitcher struck out 14 Oakland A’s in Game 3 of ALCS in 1972?

A. Woodie Fryman

B. Mickey Lolich

C. Joe Coleman

D. John Hiller

Hint: The answer is below

COOL FACT . . . If we highlight an event, player milestone there is an audio vault on Classic Baseball Broadcast. Games, interviews and more to take a deeper dive.

January 30, 1923 in Moosup, CT, Walt Dropo the 6'5" 220-lb Moose, from Moosup, CT, was the embodiment of his era. He was the strong, silent type, slow afoot but a deadly power hitter. He hit 152 career home runs, but had only five stolen bases. Dropo turned down an offer from football's Chicago Bears to sign with the Red Sox in 1947. He came up sensationally in 1950, starting on the All-Star team and winning AL Rookie of the Year honors with 34 homers, a .322 average, and a league-leading 144 RBI. Dropo's next best was 29 HR and 97 RBI two years later, but he never again had over 19 HR or hit over .281. In one brilliant stretch in July 1952, after being traded to Detroit, he collected 12 consecutive hits to tie a ML record. Included in the streak was a 7-for-7 performance in a doubleheader against Washington.

At Rickwood Field there is still and X marking a monster HR Dropo hit in 1948

Born: January 30, 1943 in Orlando, FL, Davey Johnson was a three-time Gold Glove winner for the Orioles at second base (1969-71) and a good enough fielder to play 43 games at shortstop, filling in for Mark Belanger. But he is known as a home run hitter and as a manager. In 1973 his 43 HR, one behind the NL leader, set the ML record for second basemen as the Braves became the only team ever to have three 40-HR men: Johnson, Hank Aaron, and Darrell Evans. Johnson hit .270 that year, with career highs of 99 RBI, 84 runs, and 81 walks, and was TSN's NL Comeback Player of the Year

January 30 1958 -- Commissioner Ford Frick announces that players and coaches, rather than the fans, will vote on selections for the All-Star Game. The vote will not return to the fans until 1970, when Commissioner Bowie Kuhn reverses Frick's action. The change was made to avoid the stuffing of the ballot box by hometown fans, as was the case when eight Reds were elected to start last season's Mid-Summer Classic by enthusiastic Cincinnati fans.

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January 30 1978 -- Former pitcher Addie Joss and former executive Larry MacPhail are voted into the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee.

January 30, 1978, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn cancels the recent trade that sent Vida Blue from the Oakland A’s to the Cincinnati Reds for first baseman Dave Revering and $1.75 million in cash. Believing that the A’s did not receive adequate compensation, Kuhn recommends that the trade be restructured. On February 25, the A’s will acquire Revering in a different trade, this time for pitcher Doug Bair. On March 15, the A’s will once again trade Blue, this time to the San Francisco Giants for seven players and $400,000. The seven include catcher Gary Alexander, infielder Mario Guerrero, outfielder Gary Thomasson, and pitchers Dave Heaverlo, Phil Huffman, John Henry Johnson and Alan Wirth. None of the seven will have much impact, while Blue will win 18 games in 1978.

January 30 2003 - Baltimore Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken, Jr. joins his father Cal Sr. by becoming the 40th member of the Orioles Hall of Fame. Ripken Jr. is elected in his first year of eligibility by a unanimous vote of the media covering the team. The formal ceremony will be take place on September 6th, which marks the eighth anniversary of the night he broke the 56-year-old record of 2,130 consecutive games played set by Lou Gehrig.