Baseball history unpacked, November 25

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a light-hearted, Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past, with plenty of the lore and various narratives to follow as they unfold over the course of time. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along.

Today in baseball history:

• 1889 -Sporting Life reports that New York Giants owner Andrew Freedman wants to reduce the National League to eight clubs and purify the game by eliminating “certain parties who have been unduly prominent in the sport for cheap notoriety and the money there is in it.” (2)
• 1941 - With only three years of major league experience, shortstop Lou Boudreau is named as the Cleveland Indians’ manager. He takes over for Roger Peckinpaugh, who moves up to the front office as the Indians’ general manager. At the age of 24 years, four months, and eight days, Boudreau becomes the youngest skipper to pilot a team in the 20th century. Scotland-born Jim McCormick managed Cleveland in 1879 at age 23. (1,2)
• 1944 - Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, the first Major League Baseball Commissioner, dies of a heart attack at age 78 in Chicago. Landis had ruled over baseball since November 1920 in the wake of the Black Sox scandal, and wielded authority perhaps unparalleled in any other industry. Landis had entered the hospital on October 2nd. He will elected to the Hall of Fame on December 9th in a special ballot. (1,2)
• 1958 - The Baseball Writers Association of America names Chicago Cubs slugger Ernie Banks as the National League Most Valuable Player. Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants is the runner-up. (2)
• 2003 - The Chicago Cubs trade first baseman Hee Seop Choi (who hit .210 with 10 home runs and 32 RBI) and Mike Nannini to the World Champion Florida Marlins in exchange for Gold Glove first baseman Derrek Lee* (.271, 31, 92). (2)

Cubs birthdays: Bert Cunningham, Frank Corridon, Joe Vernon, Jakie May, Jim Weaver, Ben Wade, John Pyecha, Randy Veres. Also notable: Joe DiMaggio HOF.

Today in history:

• 1120 - ’The White Ship’ capsizes near the Normandy coast while crossing the English Channel transporting many nobles, including the heir to the English throne, from France to England; about 300 die, only one survivor.
• 1659 - Michiel de Ruyter conquers Danish city Nyborg.
• 1792 - Benjamin Banneker first publishes his Farmer’s Almanac.
• 1920 - First Thanksgiving parade (Philadelphia).
• 1952 - Only win ever for NFL’s Dallas Texans (1-11), beating the Chicago Bears, 27-23 at the Cotton Bowl.

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.

*pictured.

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.

Also please remember that this is supposed to be fun.