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:
- 1906 - Cubs right-hander Jack Taylor, who will amass a lifetime record of 152-139 and an ERA of 2.66, goes the distance, beating Brooklyn at Washington Park, 5-3. The victory will be the last of his 187 consecutive complete games, an amazing streak which began on June 20, 1901, with a 2-0 loss in Boston. (1,3)
- 1942 - The Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds, 10-8, in 18 innings at Cincinnati. The Reds tie the score in the ninth, 10th, and 12th innings before the Cubs hang on. Stan Hack collects five hits and three runs for Chicago. Both teams combine to notch 25 bases on balls for the match, and the Cubs strand 23 runners, while the Reds leave 21, a major-league record until 1974. Each team uses six pitchers, also a record. The Reds take game two by a 2-1 score. (3)
- 1963 - One loss shy of tying the major league record of 19 consecutive defeats, Roger Craig switches his uniform number to 13 to change his luck. The change of works when Jim Hickman lofts a fly ball in the ninth inning with two outs and the bases-full in a tie game, that barely ticks the upper-deck overhang in left field at the Polo Grounds for a walk-off grand slam, giving the Mets an improbable 7-3 victory over the Cubs. (1,3)
- 1988 - After 5,687 consecutive contests occur during the day at the Chicago Northside ballpark dating back to 1914, the first official major league night game takes place at Wrigley Field, with the hometown Cubs taking a 6-4 decision from the Mets. Originally, last night’s contest against the Phillies would have been the ballpark’s first evening tilt, but rain washed out the scheduled historic event after the third inning. (1,4)
- 2008 - Micah Hoffpauir ties a modern Pacific Coast League record by homering in his first four at-bats in the Iowa Cubs’ 15-3 rout over the Round Rock Express. The 28-year-old slugging first baseman becomes the third player in the history of the storied PCL to go deep in four consecutive at-bats and the fifth to accomplish the feat in one game. (1)
Cubs birthdays: Bill Campbell, Junior Kennedy, Steve Swisher, Bob Scanlan, Pat Mahomes, Ben Van Ryn, Jason Heyward. Also notable: Ted Simmons HOF, Fred Sanford.
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.
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.
Thanks for reading!