Baseball history unpacked, February 2

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:

• 1876 - The National League is formed in New York City at the instigation of William Hulbert, owner of the Chicago White Stockings, in reaction to the lack of central direction in the fledgling National Association. The new circuit will field eight teams in its inaugural season and will become the blueprint for professional team sports in North America.
• 1936 - The Baseball Writers Association of America announces the results of the first Hall of Fame vote. Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson and Honus Wagner comprise the inaugural class of Hall of Fame members. Several other stars like Cy Young fail to make the grade, but will enter the Hall in later elections.
• 1989 - Former All-Star first baseman Bill White is elected president of the National League. White succeeds Chub Feeney, becoming the first African-American to be named president of either league and the highest-ranking black executive in the four major sports.
• 2005 - SkyDome is renamed the “Rogers Centre” several days after Rogers Communications completed its purchase of the Toronto Blue Jays’ stadium. Fans react to the naming with derision, but the name will stick.

Cubs birthdays: Pat Tabler, Warren Brusstar, Paul Kilgus, Ronny Cedeno, Scott Maine. Also notable: Red Schoendienst HoF

Today in world history:

• 1653 - New Amsterdam becomes a city (later renamed New York)
• 1848 - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends the Mexican–American War: US acquires Texas, California, New Mexico and Arizona for $15 million
• 1901 - Queen Victoria’s funeral takes place in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, England
• 1922 - James Joyce’s “Ulysses” published in Paris (1,000 copies)
• 1971 - Idi Amin ousts Milton Obote and appoints himself President (dictator) of Uganda

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!