TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

March 23, 1959, the San Francisco Giants clear space for future Hall of Famers Orlando Cepeda and Willie McCovey by trading first baseman Bill White to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Giants were proven right in trading White, Cepeda won the National League’s Rookie of the Year Award in 1958 after batting .312 with 25 home runs and 96 RBIs. Orlando Cepeda was teammate to no less than thirteen future Hall of Famers, and he played for another.

In 1959, he became the first Puerto Rican player to start an All-Star Game, and in 1961 he was runner-up in voting for the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) after leading the league with 46 home runs and 142 RBIs, which remains the club record for right-handed hitters. In the ensuing years, the Giants struggled to fit both Cepeda and teammate Willie McCovey who made his debut in 1959, also a first basemen, into their lineup, unsuccessfully trying to shift each of them to left field at different points. His time in Sab Francisco was also made difficult despite his on field success with manager Alvin Dark who would ban players from speaking Spanish in the dugout and clubhouse.

He after he was hurt the most of 1965 he won the comeback player of year in 1966, and MVP, in 1967 he lead the league in RBI's and his Cardinals won the World Series. Cepeda was the second NL player, after Carl Hubbell, to win the award unanimously. He, Albert Pujols, Frank Robinson, and Mike Trout are also the only players in major league history to win both the Rookie of the Year and MVP awards unanimously. Cepeda was the first Latin player to win the home run and RBI titles.

Another trade brought him to the Atlanta Braves, and he helped that team win the inaugural NL West division title in 1969. With his play increasingly limited by knee problems, he was traded to the American League shortly before its adoption of the designated hitter, and won the first Outstanding Designated Hitter Award with the Boston Red Sox in 1973 before his career came to an end the following year. Cepeda's 20th home run established a major league record, making him the first player to hit 20 or more home runs with four different teams.

How it ended:
Kansas City Royals in 1974 after briefly playing in Mexico, he was offered a contract by the Royals. In his last season, Cepeda batted .215 with one home run and 18 RBIs.[52] The following year, Cepeda abandoned a comeback in the Puerto Rican Baseball League, upon realizing that he could not perform as before, and retired.

After a 1975 arrest for transporting marijuana from Colombia to Puerto Rico,
he was arrested for drug possessions, and in 1978 he was sentenced to 5 years, but he only served ten months in prison. He saw his reputation ruined on his home island. Following changes in his personal life, however, he repaired his image after being contracted by the Giants in 1987 to work as a scout and goodwill ambassador, beginning decades of humanitarian work.

In his last year of eligibility he came up just 9 votes short from election into the Hall of Fame. He will be was elected to the Hall of Fame by the veterans committee in 1999.

Best Season:

1961 Cepeda led the NL in homers (46), and RBI (142), and finished in the top ten in batting (.311), slugging (.609), OPS, games, at-bats, runs, hits, total bases, doubles, and steals. He finished second in MVP voting to Cincinnati's Frank Robinson.

Family Tree

He was both "Cha-Cha" and "Baby Bull," the latter a nickname he inherited from his father known as "Bull." Cepeda's father, Perucho, was one of the greatest players in Puerto Rican baseball history.

Home Run Facts
182 at home, 197 on the road; 220 solo-shots, 102 two-run Hr, 48 three-run HR, and nine grand slams; hiot two HR in one game 22 times, three in a game once; blasted five homers in extra-innings, two inside-the-park, and two as a pinch-hitter; hit 258 off RHP and 121 off LHP. In all, Cepeda homered in 26 different parks.

Cepeda belongs to 14 halls of fame, the most by any Puerto Rican athlete: the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame (1990), Puerto Rico Baseball Hall of Fame (1991), Laredo Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame (1995), Santurce Hall of Fame (1997), Puerto Rico Sports Hall of Fame (1993), Baseball Hall of Fame, Cooperstown (1999), Missouri Sports Hall of Fame (2000), Guayama Hall of Fame (2000), Ponce Hall of Fame (2001), Cataño Hall of Fame (2002), Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame (2002), African American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame (2007), San Francisco Giants Hall of Fame (2008) and Latino american Baseball Hall of Fame (2010).

Cepeda died on June 28, 2024, at the age of 86. He was buried next to his mother at Juncos Old Municipal Cemetery in Juncos, Puerto Rico. His death occurred 10 days after that of his former teammate Willie Mays

Todays highlights and Historic Days!

Born March 23, 1926 in Endicott, NY . . . Johnny Logan was a shortstop for 18 years (1947-1964) - 13 in the Majors (1951-1963); six in the minors (1947-1952); and one in Japan (1964). After graduating from High School in 1945, he served in the U.S. Armed Forces (GB) and attended Harpur College one year. The scrappy Logan never backed down from a fight and never lost one. His quick hands compensated for an average arm at shortstop and were an asset when, outraged by beanballs, he took on opponents as big as Don Drysdale. In Milwaukee, he was a minor league star for four years and a major league standout when he moved there with the Braves in 1953. He was the shortstop for the 1957 and 1958 NL pennant winners; in '57, he led the league with 37 doubles and reached career highs with 83 RBI and a .297 batting average. Traded to Pittsburgh for Gino Cimoli in 1961, he served the Pirates as a backup infielder and pinch hitter through 1963.

Born: March 23, 1928 in Covington, VA Combining power, speed, and an exceptional arm, Jim Lemon joined the Indians in 1950 but lost 1951 and 1952 to the Korean War. Sold to the Senators in May 1954, in 1956 he hit 27 home runs and led the AL in triples and in double plays by an outfielder. That August 31 he became the first Senator to hit three consecutive home runs. Lemon led the AL in strikeouts three years in a row (1956-58); his 138 strikeouts in 1956 (in a 154-game season) set a record. On September 5, 1959 he tied two ML records by hitting two homers and driving in six runs in one inning. He had 100 RBI in both 1959 and 1960. In 1960 he chased Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris for the AL home run crown, losing to Mantle 40 to 38. Slowed by injuries in 1961 and 1962, he attempted a comeback as a first baseman with the Phillies in 1963. He coached for the Twins from 1965 to 1967 and managed the Senators to their usual last-place finish in 1968. Replaced by Ted Williams for 1969, he remained in baseball as a batting coach, mainly with the Twins

March 23, 1936, Dizzy Dean ends his well-publicized holdout and signs a contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. Dean agrees to a one-year deal that will pay him $24,000 for the upcoming season.

Born: March 23, 1944 in Greenville, MS Likable and colorful George Scott, with his well-spaced gold teeth and sometimes bulging waistline, was a fan favorite in Boston. A flashy fielder, he collected eight Gold Gloves, a record for first basemen. He was the Eastern League Triple Crown winner and MVP in 1965, then tied a rookie record by playing 162 games with the Red Sox in 1966.

March 23 1962 - William DeWitt buys the Cincinnati Reds from the Crosley Foundation for $4.625 million.

March 23, 1978 - The New York Mets trade popular shortstop Bud Harrelson to the Philadelphia Phillies for minor leaguer Fred Andrews.

March 23, 1990 -- Gambler Howard Spira is arrested for extorting money from New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who paid Spira $40,000 in January, to dig up dirt on Future Hall of Fame outfielder Dave Winfield. Winfield was dubbed "Mr. May" by the Boss after he failed to carry the team to a championship.

TRIVIA

TRIVIA: Who hit the first homerun in a west coast game?

IF you think you know the answer and bonus points for how many respond with details and if you are right I will give you a shut out! No Googling!

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 ANSWER TO YESTERDAY’S TRIVIA

YESTERDAY'S TRIVIA: In todays game every closer has an entrance song, Trevor Hoffman came in to Hells Bell and Mo came in to Enter the Sandman. It was not as popular when Lyle pitched. But he did have a song they played. What was it?

Answer: When Lyle would enter games for the Yankees, the sound system in Yankee Stadium would blare "Pomp and Circumstance."

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