I am currently doing profiles on major league baseball players that were born in Illinois. I am attempting to highlight them on their birth date. “Junior” Thompson was born Eugene Earl Thompson in Latham, Illinois on June 7, 1917. He was a right…
The Play: With none out, none on, and a two-strike count, the batter attempts to strike a fastball, missing the pitch as it traveled through the strike zone. The catcher, too, misses his catch, as the ball bounces off his glove and into the air, where it strike’s the bat as the batter completes his…
It is heard all across America. Fans of major college basketball teams want their school to get the local kids. In mny cases, that would help success but that is not always the fact. So Travis Ford is now the Head Coach of the SLU Billikens. He mentioned he wanted the kids from St….
The St. Louis University Board of Regents announced on March 30. 2016 that they had hired Travis Ford to be the next basketball coach for the Billikens. The fans in and around the campus were hoping for more but soon realized he may be the best man at the right spot. When Ford went off…
1943 The Texas League, as will most minor leagues, announces it will cease operations for the duration of World War II. The difficulty to travel and the lack of able-bodied men available to fill team rosters make suspending play a necessity. 1948 The White Sox trade Ed Lopat to the Yankees for Aaron Robinson, Bill…
1921 Rabbit Maranville is traded by Brooklyn to the Pirates for Billy Southworth, Fred Nicholson, Walter Barbare, and $15,000 in cash. The future Hall of Fame shortstop will spend four of his 19 major league seasons playing for the Bucs, providing excellent defense for the team while compiling a .283 batting average. 1934 Brooklyn coach…
1931 The White Sox and Giants become the first major league teams to play a night game. The Buffs Stadium (Houston, Texas) exhibition game lasts ten innings with the teams collecting a total of 23 hits. 1931 The Dodgers arrive in Cuba to start a series of five inter-squad games. Brooklyn right-hander Dolf Luque, known…
1923 After buying the club along with two partners for $300,000, Christy Mathewson becomes the president of the Boston Braves. 1929 The Red Sox announce the team will play its newly allowed Sunday games at Braves Field. Fenway Park is considered too close to a church. 1953 Pledging not to move the team from St….
Baseball History 1935 Lou Gehrig signs a one-year deal with the Yankees for $30,000. Last season, the All-Star first baseman hit .363 with 49 homers and led the American League with 165 RBIs. 1942 Twenty-nine year old infielder first baseman Hal Trosky tells the Des Moines Register he is leaving the Tribe, citing his recurring…
Baseball History 1943 New York entrepreneur William D. Cox purchases the bankrupt Phillies from the National League. The 33 year-old new owner will be banned from baseball in November by commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis when he admits to making some “sentimental” bets on his team during the season. 1954 In their first major trade since…