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... on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue brings a you a lighthearted Cubs-centric look at baseball’s past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along as we review select scenes from the rich tapestry of Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball history.
Today in baseball history:
- 1941 - Replacing Roger Peckinpaugh, who is moved up to the front office, Lou Boudreau, with only three years of major league experience, is named as the Indians’ new manager. The 24-year-old shortstop is the youngest skipper of this century but is a year older than Jim McCormick, a right-handed pitcher who managed the Cleveland Blues in 1879 at the age of 23. (1,3)
- 1944 - Baseball’s only commissioner, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, dies at the age of 74. The former federal judge served in baseball’s top post for 24 years. He will be named to the Hall of Fame on December 9 by a special committee that he formed on August 4. (1,2)
- 1958 - The Baseball Writers Association of America names Chicago Cubs slugger Ernie Banks as the National League Most Valuable Player. Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants is the runner-up. (3)
- 2002 - The Red Sox hire the youngest general manager in major league history. Twenty-eight-year-old Theo Epstein, a lifetime Red Sox fan who grew up about a mile from Fenway Park, becomes the team’s 11th GM since the club first established the position in 1933. (1)
- 2003 - The Cubs trade first baseman Hee Seop Choi (.210, 10, 32) and a minor league player to be named later (Mike Nannini) to the World Champion Marlins in exchange for Gold Glove first baseman Derrek Lee (.271, 31, 92). (1,3)
- Cubs birthdays: Jakie May, Jim Weaver, Ben Wade, John Pyecha, Chico Walker, Randy Veres. Also notable: Joe DiMaggio (HoF).
Sources:
- (1) — The National Pastime.
- (2) — Today in Baseball History.
- (3) — Baseball Reference.
- (4) — Society for American Baseball Research.
- (5) — Baseball Hall of Fame.
- (6) — This Day in Chicago Cubs history.
Thanks for reading.