Baseball history unpacked, January 27

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:

• 1909 - Catcher Lou Criger sends a telegram to Boston Red Sox fans expressing his regrets on being traded to the St. Louis Browns. (2)
• 1927 - Citing accuser Dutch Leonard’s refusal to appear at the hearings of January 5th, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis issues a lengthy decision clearing Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker of any game-fixing charges. Landis orders the Philadelphia Athletics to reinstate Cobb and the Washington Senators to restore Speaker. Both are then made free agents. Philadelphia owner Connie Mack will sign Cobb on February 8th, and Speaker will sign with Washington on January 31st for a reported $35,000. (2)
• 1943 - The Chicago Cubs acquire veteran pitcher Paul Derringer from the Cincinnati Reds for cash considerations. A four-time 20-game winner, Derringer will win 10 games as a starter and reliever this season. (2)
• 1982 - The Chicago Cubs make one of the best trades in franchise history, acquiring infielders Ryne Sandberg and Larry Bowa from the Philadelphia Phillies for shortstop Ivan DeJesús. Bowa and DeJesús will have a few more productive seasons in the major leagues, but Sandberg, after starting out his career at third base, will become one of the best-hitting second basemen of all time. The winner of nine consecutive Gold Glove Awards from 1983 to 1991, in 1984 Sandberg will lead the Cubs to their first appearance in the postseason since 1945. (1,2)

Cubs birthdays: Otis Clymer, Bob Barrett, Bob Borkowski, Jessie Hollins.

Today in history:

• 661 - The Fourth Caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, Ali ibn Abu Talib is struck on the head while praying at the Great Mosque of Kufa, Mesopotamia by a poison-coated sword wielded by Ibn Muljam a Kharijite, dies two days later.
• 1671 - Welsh pirate Henry Morgan lands at the gates of Panama City.
• 1820 - Russian Antarctic expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev discover the continent of Antarctica.
• 1825 - US Congress approves Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma), clearing the way for the forced relocation of the Eastern Indian tribes via the “Trail of Tears.”
• 1926 - Physicist Erwin Schrödinger publishes his theory of wave mechanics and presents what becomes known as the Schrödinger equation in quantum mechanics.
• 1967 - A fire in the Apollo 1 Command Module kills astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger B. Chaffee during a launch rehearsal.

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.

Some of these items spread from site to site without being verified. That is exactly why we ask for reputable sources if you have differences with a posted factoid, so that we can address that to the originators and provide clarity if not ‘truth’. Nothing is posted here without at least one instance of corroboration. Thanks for reading.