Baseball history unpacked, May 19

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:

• 1906 - Rube Waddell’s no-hitter is broken up by Ty Cobb’s bunt single. (2)This is reportedly the reason why it is considered below-the-belt to bunt for a hit to break up a no-no.
• 1910 - Cy Young wins the 500th game of his career as the Cleveland Naps beat the Washington Senators, 5-4, in 11 innings. He is the only pitcher in major league history to ever reach this milestone. (1,2)
• 1933 - For the first time in major league history, brothers on opposite teams hit home runs in the same game. Boston Red Sox catcher Rick Ferrell homers off his brother Wes Ferrell in the second inning, but the Cleveland pitcher returns the favor as he homers in the third on a pitch called by his sibling. It is the only time that the Ferrell brothers homer in the same game. (2)
• 1956 - At Forbes Field, Dale Long of the Pittsburgh Pirates hits a ninth-inning home run in a 7-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Long will hit home runs in each of his next seven games, establishing a major league record for home runs in consecutive games. (2)
• 1959 - At Memorial Stadium, Baltimore Orioles pitcher Billy O’Dell hits a weird 120-foot home run against the Chicago White Sox. His shot hits the foul line and bounces over the head of right fielder Al Smith, allowing O’Dell to circle the bases. Thanks to O’Dell’s two-run, inside-the-park home run, the Orioles win the game, 2-1. Billy Pierce is the loser. (2)
• 1970 - The lawsuit filed by former St. Louis Cardinals All-Star Curt Flood against Major League Baseball begins its hearing in federal court. Judge Irving Ben Cooper presides over the case, which will reach the Supreme Court and result in the upholding of baseball’s reserve clause. (2)
• 1979 - After a bitter six-week strike, the major league umpires return to work. During the work stoppage, the men in blue were replaced by amateur and minor league arbiters. (2)
• 2001 - Reversing its original decision, MLB’s official statistician, the Elias Sports Bureau, will now list Randy Johnson’s 20 strikeouts as tying a record. Although the game went into extra innings, Johnson’s nine-inning performance will be noted along with the Roger Clemens and Kerry Wood’s 20 strikeouts outings in the 2002 record book. (2)
• 2002 - Chicago Cubs first baseman Fred McGriff* hits a two-run home run at Miller Park to tie Ellis Burks’ record of homering in 40 different major league ballparks. The Cubs defeat the Brewers, 5-4, in 11 innings. (2)
• 2008 - Jason Varitek catches his fourth no-hitter, tying Ray Schalk for the major league record; one of Schalk’s no-hitters was later removed from the official records, making Varitek the first backstop to have four official no-hitters to his name. The hurler is Jon Lester, only two years after he was sidelined with lymphoma. The Red Sox top the Royals, 7-0, as Lester fans nine. (2)

Cubs birthdays: Ed Hutchinson, Curt Simmons, Luis Salazar, Fritzie Connally, Turk Wendell, Scott McClain, Josh Paul, Erich Uelmen. Also notable: Ed Walsh HOF.

Today in history:

• 1536 - Anne Boleyn, second wife of English King Henry VIII, is beheaded at the Tower of London on charges of adultery, incest and treason.
• 1571 - Miguel Lopez de Lagazpi founds Manilla in the Philippines.
• 1802 - French Order of Legion d’Honneur forms.
• 1935 - NFL adopts an annual college draft to begin in 1936.
• 2161 - Syzygy: 8 of 9 planets aligned on same side of sun.

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 (this also includes the history bullets). Thanks for reading, and thanks also for your cooperation.