Chicago Cubs, Wrigley Field and baseball history

Baseball history unpacked, July 31

The strike is over, and other stories

By Duane Pesice@moderan13 Jul 31, 2019, 6:00am CDT

... on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue brings a you a wildly popular 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. The embedded links often point to articles that pertain to the scenes, such as reproductions of period newspapers, images, and/or other such material as is often found in the wild.

Today in baseball history:

1901 - In Cincinnati, the Reds take 14 innings to subdue the Chicago Orphans, 5 - 4. Reds pitcher Noodles Hahn strikes out 11 in the win, while Chicago pitcher Tom Hughes records 15 strikeouts. (3)
1910 - Cubs rookie King Cole pitches a seven-inning no-hitter for a 4-0 win over St. Louis. Cole will top the National League with a 20-4 record, but will have only one more winning season. (3)

Box score.

1968 - Chicago’s Billy Williams, Ernie Banks and Jim Hickman hit 4th-inning home runs as Fergie Jenkins (12-10) beats the Astros, 6 - 1, at Wrigley Field. (3)

Box score.

1981 - The fifty-day-old baseball strike is settled as owners and players agree on a pooling system for free agent compensation. The All-Star Game will mark the end of baseball’s first-ever mid-season work stoppage.(1,3)
2004 - The long-anticipated trade of Nomar Garciaparra is finally accomplished as the Red Sox shortstop is traded to the Cubs in a four-team deal which includes the Twins and Expos. Chicago first acquires shortstop Orlando Cabrera from the Expos for shortstop Alex Gonzalez, relief pitcher Francis Beltran and minor leaguer Brendan Harris. They then pry 1B Doug Mientkiewicz from the Twins for minor league southpaw Justin Jones. Finally, Chicago flips its two new acquisitions to the Bosox for Garciaparra, prospect Matt Murton and cash. (3)
2005 - Among thousands of high-spirited Red Sox and Cubs fans, the Baseball Hall of Fame, with 48 of its members sitting on the dais, enshrines Wade Boggs and Ryne Sandberg. Also inducted are Padres announcer Jerry Coleman, winner of the Ford C. Frick Award, and sportswriter and broadcast analyst Peter Gammons, recipient of the J.G. Taylor Spink Award. (1)
2006 - With the wind blowing out at Wrigley Field, Orlando Hudson hits a home run from both sides of home plate. Batting left-handed, the Diamondbacks’ second baseman goes deep off Mark Prior in the third inning for his first career grand slam, then right-handed nails a Glendon Rusch pitch for a two-run homer in the seventh contributing to Arizona’s 15-4 victory over the Cubs.

Box score.

2006 - The Dodgers trade infielder Cesar Izturis to the Cubs for 300-game winner Greg Maddux. The last-minute deadline deal, in which the future Hall-of-Famer waived his no-trade clause, gives the 40 year-old hurler an opportunity to go to a contender.
2016 - The Cubs’ 7 - 6 win over the Mariners can be credited to a series of brilliant moves by manager Joe Maddon. Trailing 6 - 2 in the 6th, he sends in P Travis Wood in relief of Joe Nathan, and he gets out of a runners on second and third with nobody out situation without allowing a run. Maddon then moves Wood to left field in the 7th as Pedro Strop takes the mound, and Wood robs Franklin Gutierrez by crashing into the ivy at Wrigley Field to snag a line drive. With two outs in the 8th, Wood replaces Strop and picks off Shawn O’Malley at first base to end the inning. The Cubs score three runs off Steve Cishek in the bottom of the 9th to force extra innings, then in the 12th, with the winning run on third with only one out and the teams tied at 6, asks P Jon Lester to pinch-hit with Jason Heyward on third base, and the otherwise awful hitter lays down an excellent squeeze bunt to drive in the winning run against Cody Martin, giving Chicago a dramatic 7-6 walk-off victory at Wrigley Field. (1,3)