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.
Today in baseball history:
- 1888 - In Chicago, IL, 350 fans brave the weather to watch a baseball game on ice at Lincoln Park. Second baseman Fred Pfeffer of the Chicago White Stockings plays wearing a top hat. After two hours and five innings of play, the game is called. The “Spaldings” defeat the “North-Siders”, 7-6.
- 1890 - In the first of many lawsuits filed against Players League members by their former teams, a judge refuses to grant an injunction against John Ward, president of the Brotherhood. His decision, echoed frequently by other judges, states that the “want of fairness and mutuality” in the standard National League contract, specifically the clauses relating to the reserve rule, “[is] apparent.”
- 1907 - In an effort to reduce playing-date conflicts between their leagues, presidents Harry Pulliam of the National League and Ban Johnson of the American League meet to plan schedules. Conflicting dates are reduced to 27.
- 1980 - Hank Aaron refuses an award from Commissioner Bowie Kuhn honoring him for hitting his 715th home run. Aaron charges that baseball’s treatment of retired black ballplayers falls far short of what is needed.
- 2013 - The Los Angeles Dodgers announce the launch of SportsNet LA, their own regional sports network on Time Warner Cable. The deal is a prelude to a long-rumored $7 billion deal that will award Time Warner broadcast rights for Dodger games for the next 25 years. However, the Commissioner’s office is concerned about the proposed deal, as its annual value is well above that used for revenue sharing purposes, which will result in the Dodgers pocketing a huge financial windfall if no adjustments are made.
Cubs birthdays: Bob Muncrief, Wesley Wright. Also notable: George Wright HoF.
Today in world history:
1521 - Emperor Charles V opens the Diet of Worms in Worms, Germany which lasts until May 25th; Produced the “Edict of Worms” which denounced Martin Luther
1807 - London’s Pall Mall is the first street lit by gaslight
1813 - Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” is published by Thomas Egerton in the United Kingdom
1985 - The charity single “We Are the World” is recorded by supergroup USA for Africa (Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Quincy Jones, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, and other pop stars)
2017 - Australian Open Women’s Tennis: Serena Williams defeats older sister Venus Williams 6–4, 6–4 for her 7th Australian title and record 23rd Grand Slam event singles victory.
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.
- For world history.
There is a very active baseball history community and there are many facets to their views. We strive for clarity. Please be aware that we are trying to make the historical record as represented by our main sources coherent and as accurate as is possible. No item is posted here without corroboration. Some of these items spread from site to site without being verified. That is exactly why we ask for reputable sources, so that we can address them to the originators. BBRef is very cooperative in this regard, as are SABR and the Baseball Almanac. We have removed thenationalpastime from our sourcing list, as there have been multiple complaints about their content and they do not respond to attempts to communicate.
Also please remember that this is supposed to be fun.
Thank you for your cooperation. And thanks for reading!