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On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue brings a you a light-hearted, Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past, with plenty of the lore and deep dives into various narratives that expand over the course of time. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along. Don’t be afraid to click the links for ‘inside baseball’ on the entries, which change from year to year as we re-examine the subjects.
Today in baseball history:
- 1871 - A great fire rips through Chicago, IL, destroying the home ballpark of the White Stockings, as well as its uniforms, record books, equipment and cash, and clothing and personal property belonging to its players. The team is forced to release a number of its players and to finish its season on the road, and will only return to the National Association in 1874. (2)
- 1908 - The Chicago Cubs win the National League pennant when Mordecai Brown, relieving Jack Pfiester in the first, beats Christy Mathewson 4-2, in the replay of the disputed game of September 23rd when Fred Merkle failed to touch second base. Mathewson later admits he had nothing on the ball. (1,2)
- 1919 - Ed Cicotte pitches Game 7 of the World Series, and the Chicago White Sox play like they mean it. Joe Jackson and Happy Felsch drive in two runs each for a 4-1 win to cut the Cincinnati Reds’ lead to four games to three in the best-of-nine Series. (1,2)
- 1929 - Howard Ehmke, a surprise starter for the Philadelphia Athletics, strikes out 13 Chicago Cubs to win the opening game of the World Series, 3-1. (1,2)
- 1945 - Stan Hack’s double makes a tricky bounce over left fielder Hank Greenberg’s shoulder with two outs in the 12th inning to score runner Bill Schuster and give the Chicago Cubs an 8-7 win in Game 6 to even the World Series with Detroit. (2)
- 1956 - Don Larsen of the New York Yankees pitches the only perfect game in World Series history for a 2-0 triumph over the Brooklyn Dodgers. Sal Maglie, the opposing pitcher, gives up five hits. (1,2)
- 2016 - The Cubs win Game 2 of the NLDS, 5-2, over the Giants at Wrigley Field by jumping on starter Jeff Samardzija for four runs over the first two innings. Starter Kyle Hendricks has to leave in the fourth after being hit on the forearm by a batted ball, but his successor, Travis Wood, becomes only the second relief pitcher in postseason history to hit a home run (after Rosy Ryan in the 1924 World Series), going deep off George Kontos in the bottom of the 4th. (2)
- 2020 - Hall of Famer and New York Yankees great Whitey Ford dies a few days short of his 92nd birthday. His .690 winning percentage remains one of the best all time while he holds the record for most wins (10), starts (22) and strikeouts (94) in World Series history. (2)
Cubs birthdays: George Metkovich, Rick Stelmaszek, Mike Morgan, Sandy Martinez.
Common sources:
- (1) — Today in Baseball History.
- (2) — Baseball Reference.
- (3) — Society for American Baseball Research.
- (4) — Baseball Hall of Fame.
- (5) — This Day in Chicago Cubs history.
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