TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

Hey Folks!

March 29 is a date that starts with a birth certificate and ends with a legend. On this day in 1867 a boy named Denton True Young came into the world in a tiny Ohio village — and eventually gave his name to the most prestigious individual award in pitching. Today we celebrate Cy Young's birthday alongside two other remarkable baseball birthdays — Tommy Holmes, whose 37-game hitting streak stood as an NL record for over three decades, for the record he was my Dad's favorite player growing up and Denny McLain, the last man to win 31 games in a single season and one of the most fascinating and troubled figures the game has ever produced. Charlie Finley's orange baseball makes its one and only appearance on this date in 1973 — George Hendrick hits three home runs in the game and then said he had a hard time picking up the seams of the ball, I wish I had those type of problems hitting. Rickey Henderson joins yet another team in 2002 because Rickey Henderson was simply not done yet, the Red Sox are his 8th club in his 24th year. I still cab't believe he passed away so young. And in 1983 the Dodgers become the first team in history to stop selling season tickets before the season even begins, after they passed 27,000 they were concerned about group sales. March 29 gave us icons, oddballs, and one very orange baseball

March 29, 1867 — Denton True “Cy” Young is born in Gilmore, a tiny village near Newcomerstown, Ohio.

While with Canton in the Tri-State League in 1889, Denton True Young earned his famous nickname "Cy", short for “cyclone”. The next season the hard throwing right-hander debuted with Cleveland after starting the season with Canton (and throwing a no-hitter with 18 strikeouts). In his first big league start he defeated Cap Anson and the Cubs, allowing just three singles. It was the first of his 511 major league wins.

In 1891 he settled in as the Cleveland Spiders ace, winning 27 games, the first of his fifteen seasons over the 20-win level. In the 1890s the Spiders were a decent team, but never won a pennant. But this wasn’t Young’s fault, as he posted records of 36-12, 34-16, 35-10, 28-15, and 25-13. His greatest rival for pitching honors was Kid Nichols, the Boston Braves star. In 1899 the Spiders folded and Young was signed by St. Louis. In 1901 he joined the new American League, quickly becoming the circuit’s most effective and best-known pitcher. He won 93 games in his first three seasons in the new league.

Young had perhaps his best year in 1903, going 28-9, with a 2.08 ERA in 341 innings. He pitched seven shutouts, completed 34 games, and allowed less than one walk per nine innings. He was equally effective with a bat in his hands, hitting .321 with a home run and 14 RBI. At the end of the season the NL and AL agreed to meet for a series to determine supremacy. Cy’s Boston team squared off against the Pittsburgh Pirates. After pitching and losing in Game One (delivering the first World Series pitch – to Ginger Beaumont), Young rebounded with two victories, helping to lead the upstart AL over the older NL.

In 1904 Young produced one of the greatest stretches of pitching in history. In his last April start he blanked Chicago 2-0, allowing two hits. On May 5 he threw a 3-0 perfect game, defeating Rube Waddell and the A’s. In his next start he went 15 innings against the Tigers, finally winning 1-0. During that three-game, 33-inning stretch, Young allowed no runs, nine hits, and struck out 23. At one point he hurled 24 consecutive hitless innings.

Young battled nearly every great pitcher from the 1890s to his retirement in 1911. From Nichols to Rube Waddell, to Jack Chesbro, Addie Joss, and Walter Johnson. In 1910, with Cleveland, he won his 500th game. The next July he was released and signed with the Braves, returning to Boston. He won his final game in September, winning 1-0 over the Pirates. Though his arm was still major league quality, his physique was not. Opposing teams were bunting on the overweight veteran, taking advantage of his lack of mobility. Young retired with a 511-316 (.618) record and a 2.63 ERA. Had there been a Cy Young award in his day, he would have carted off many of the trophies. He lead the league in WAR 6 times and tallied a 13.9 in 1892, which is tied ironically with Kid Nichols for 23rd all time.

In 1937, Young was one of the first men elected to the Hall of Fame. His official induction happened on June 12, 1939 when the HOF was opened. His records are even more amazing considering he never pitched for powerhouse teams. In his 23 seasons his teams posted a .473 win percentage when he didn’t record a decision. His mark for those same teams was .618! The Hall of Fame has Young's Ohio license plate from well after his career ended. The plate is inscribed with "511" for his career wins, and "CY."

Born: March 29, 1917 in Brooklyn, NY . . . Braves right fielder Tommy Holmes hit safely in a 20th-century NL record 37 straight games, from June 6 through July 8 of his 1945 TSN MVP season. That year, he hit .352 with 117 RBI, 125 runs, and 15 stolen bases, and had league highs of 47 doubles, 224 hits, a .577 slugging average, and 28 HR; he is the only player ever to lead a league in home runs and fewest strikeouts (9) in the same season. But these totals were all career highs, and though he batted over .300 in his next three seasons, he never again managed more than nine homers or 79 RBI. Appointed the Braves' manager in mid-1951, Holmes was fired early in 1952, finishing up as a Dodger pinch hitter. When Pete Rose broke his hitting-streak record in 1978, a tearful Holmes thanked him "for making people remember me."

March 29, 1935 -- The St. Louis Cardinals release Dazzy Vance. The future Hall of Fame pitcher will spend his last season with the Brooklyn Dodgers, the team where he blossomed in 1922.

Born: March 29, 1944 in Chicago, IL Although he had won 20 games in 1966 and 17 more in 1967, few could have imagined what Denny McLain would accomplish in 1968. Pitching with a magical team behind him, the bespectacled righty won 31 games, becoming the first thirty-game winner since Dizzy Dean in 1934.

March 29, 1973, The "Alert Orange Baseball" is used for the first time in major league history. The unique baseball, an invention of Oakland Athletics owner Charlie Finley, is used in an exhibition game between Oakland and the Cleveland Indians. The A's lost 11-5 exhibition game. After Cleveland outfielder George Hendrick, who hit three home runs in the contest, claims he had difficulty picking up the ball due to the lack of red seams on a white sphere.

March 29, 1983 - While some clubs are concerned about low attendance at the start of the season, the Los Angeles Dodgers become the first team in major league history to cut off season ticket sales before the start of the season. The Dodgers, with 27,000 season tickets already sold, implement the cutoff so that group sales won't be impeded and fans will be able to buy tickets for individual games.

March 29, 1984, The Oakland A’s signed Dave Kingman as a free agent, he received a two-year deal worth $1.8M. After hitting .198 with 13 home runs for the Mets in 1983, Kingman bounces back to hit .268 with 35 bombs with Oakland. He held a record for a player in his final season broken in 2016. He also held the record for the lowest batting average among players with at least 300 home runs (.236) at the time of his retirement.

Hey what did Tommy Lasorda think of Kingman?

March 29, 2002 -- Rickey Henderson is added to the Boston Red Sox Opening Day roster as his contract is purchased from Triple-A Pawtucket. Henderson, who joined the exclusive 3000 hit club on the final day of last season, will begin his 24th year in the majors appearing with his eighth different club.

TRIVIA

TRIVIA: What pitcher has the most consecutive hitless innings?

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: Who was the fastest player to get to 1000 hits?

Answer: Chuck Kline, he hit his 100th home run in his 390th career game, which at the time was the record for the fastest 100 home runs. He continues to hold the record for the fastest 1,000 hits in history. He reached the mark in 683 games.

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