Baseball history unpacked, April 7

... on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue brings a you a Cubs-centric look at baseball’s past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along as we review select snapshots from the big picture of Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball history.

Today in baseball history:

• 1925 - During spring training play, A’s first baseman Joe Hauser’s kneecap appears to shatter spontaneously. The infielder’s other knee will also break similarly in 1934. (1)
• 1969 - Pitcher Bill Singer of the Los Angeles Dodgers earns the first official save in major league history. Making his only relief appearance of the season, Singer finishes off Don Drysdale’s 3 - 2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Thanks to the efforts of sportswriter Jerome Holtzman, the save became an official statistic this off-season. (1,3)
• 1970 - The team formerly known as the Seattle Pilots plays their first home game in Milwaukee as the Brewers in front of 36,107 enthusiastic fans at County Stadium. The Angels, behind Andy Messersmith’s four-hit complete game, rout the transplanted Brew Crew, 12-0. (1)
• 1971 - The dismissal of Curt Flood’s suit against Major League Baseball is upheld by a three-judge U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The verdict will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. (3)
• 1978 - The U.S. Court of Appeals upholds an earlier court decision in support of Commissioner Bowie Kuhn’s voiding of attempted player sales by Oakland Athletics owner Charlie Finley in June 1976. Finley’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court will be rejected on October 2nd. (2,3)
• 1979 - Ken Forsch, who almost didn’t make the start due to swelling in his right arm caused by an insect bite, holds the Braves hitless, throwing the earliest no-hitter in baseball history. The Astros hurler’s no-no makes the Forsch brothers the first siblings to both accomplish the feat, with Bob, as a member of the Cardinals, throwing a no-hitter against the Phillies last season. (1)
• 1984 - On NBC’s nationally televised Game of the Week, Detroit right-hander Jack Morris throws a no-hitter, blanking the White Sox at Comiskey Park, 4-0. The 29-year-old becomes the first Tiger hurler to accomplish the feat since Jim Bunning held Boston hitless at Fenway Park in 1958. (1)
• 1998 - On the same day that Major League Baseball returned to Wisconsin 28 years earlier, National League baseball returns to Milwaukee for the first time in 32 years. It’s a complicated story with a happy ending: The Milwaukee Braves were a National League team that moved to Atlanta in 1966, and the Seattle Pilots, who were formed as an American League expansion team in 1969, moved to Milwaukee and played their first game as the Brewers on this day in 1970. Five years after their team owner, Bud Selig, became Commissioner of baseball, the Brewers became a National League club, as part of the shuffle created by this year’s expansion. And on this day they are 6-4 winners over the Expos in their home opener. (3)
• 2016 - The Cubs defeat the Diamondbacks, 14-6, but lose OF Kyle Schwarber as he tears his anterior cruciate ligament in an outfield collision with Dexter Fowler resulting in an inside-the-park homer by Jean Segura. He will return just in time to play in the World Series. For Chicago, Anthony Rizzo homers and drives in 6 runs in support of John Lackey. (3)

Cubs birthdays: John Ganzel, Fred Lear, Bobby Del Greco, Tom Phoebus, David Bote. Also notable: John McGraw HOF, Bobby Doerr HOF.

Common 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!

There is a very active baseball history community and there are many facets to their views. We strive for clarity. Please let us know (nicely) if you feel that an item is in error and we will address that issue to the originator(s), if at all possible.