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Baseball history unpacked, March 28

A thrice-weekly compendium of #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB historical factoids, just for you. Met a man who wasn’t there.

Set Number: X31256 TK2

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. We also add a bit of world history, for perspective’s sake.

Today was a rather somber day in baseball history, with a passel of famous people passing away on this date. But no day would be complete without some laughter... see below for details.

Today in baseball history:

(Plimpton ended up writing a whole novel: The Curious Case of Sidd Finch based on his original 13-page article. I’ve read it — it’s great. Plimpton also wrote Paper Lion, Open Net, The Bogey Man, and Out of My League, which are chronicles of his attempts to play pro sports. They were probably better at the time but are still readable. Plimpton was an excellent journalist with an ear for dialogue. Sadly he passed in 2003.

I was twice rejected from the Paris Review, the literary magazine he edited. Yet I bear him no ill will. Well, not much.)

Cubs birthdays: Lon Warneke, Shawn Boskie, Julio Zuleta, Ryan Kalish, Robel Garcia.

Today in world history:

  • 37 - Roman Emperor Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, better known as Caligula (which means “little soldier’s boots”), accepts the titles of the Principate, entitled to him by the Senate.
  • 364 - Roman Emperor Valentinian I appoints his brother Flavius Valens co-emperor.
  • 1794 - Louvre opens to the public.
  • 1866 - 1st ambulance goes into service.
  • 1881 - ”Greatest Show On Earth” formed by P. T. Barnum and James Anthony Bailey.
  • 1924 - WGN-AM in Chicago IL begins radio transmissions.
  • 1935 - Robert Goddard uses gyroscopes to control a rocket.
  • 1971 - Last original edition of “The Ed Sullivan Show” broadcasts on CBS-TV.
  • 1979 - A partial meltdown at Three Mile Island nuclear plant in the US results in the release of radioactive gas and iodine into the atmosphere but no deaths.

Common sources:

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!