Baseball history unpacked, May 8

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:

• 1878 - Providence Grays centerfielder Paul Hines catches a fly ball by Jack Burdock and starts a triple play, racing in to touch third base before Jack Manning can return, then throwing to second to nab Ezra Sutton. Some eyewitnesses contend that Sutton had passed third and was out when Hines touched the base, making it the only unassisted triple play by an outfielder. This contradicts the version by Manning, Jim O’Rourke and others present, which has been accepted generally as the correct account. (2)
• 1907 - Boston’s Big Jeff Pfeffer threw a no-hitter to give the Boston Doves a 6-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds in Boston. Frank Pfeffer will be known as “Big Jeff” until his younger, and bigger, brother Ed “Jeff” Pfeffer becomes a star hurler for Brooklyn in 1913. (1,2)
• 1929 - At Pittsburgh’s Schenley Park, the Giants’ Carl Hubbell pitches an 11 - 0 no-hitter against the Pirates, allowing just one walk. In the 9th, the first two batters reach on errors before Hubbell records a strikeout and starts the game-ending double play. It’s the first no-hitter by a lefthander since Dutch Leonard in 1918. (1,2)
• 1939 - In a 4 - 2 Cubs win at the Polo Grounds, Cubs first sacker Phil Cavarretta breaks his leg sliding into a base. He’ll be out of action until July 25th, and will appear in just seven more games this year, all as a pinch hitter. (2)
• 1963 -Pirates LF Willie Stargell’s first major league homer and Cubs P Bob Buhl’s first major league hit in 88 at-bats highlight a 9-5 Chicago win over Pittsburgh. (2)
• 1968 - Oakland’s Catfish Hunter pitches a perfect game against the Twins, winning 4-0. The 22-year old righthander hurls the first American League regular-season perfecto in 46 years. He strikes out 11, including Harmon Killebrew three times, and drives in three of the A’s four runs, the other coming on a two-out, bases-loaded walk to 1B Danny Cater in the 8th inning. Only 6,298 fans are in attendance. (1,2)
• 1970 - A record 30 home runs are hit by National League players in seven games, including two apiece by each of five players. The 20 MPH wind at Wrigley Field produces nine homers as the Cubs defeat the Reds, 10 - 7, snapping the Reds’ win streak at eight games. Hal McRae and Tony Perez have a pair for the Reds, while Billy Williams has two for Chicago. (2)
• 1973 - Cubs manager Whitey Lockman is ejected during a 12-inning, 3-2 win over the Padres. Coach Ernie Banks fills in for the last few innings, technically becoming the major leagues’ first black manager. Cub Bob Locker pitches in his 500th game: all have been in relief, a major league record. (1,2)
• 1985 - Ryne Sandberg’s homer off Mike Krukow is the only score as Rick Sutcliffe and the Cubs beat the Giants, 1-0. (2)
• 2001 - Diamondbacks flamethrower Randy Johnson strikes out 20 Reds in Arizona’s 4-3 win over Cincinnati in 11 innings. Johnson gets all 20 in his nine innings of work, but does not officially tie Roger Clemens and Kerry Wood’s record since the contest goes into extra frames. (1,2)
• 2016 - The Cubs decide they are not going to let Bryce Harper beat them and their pitchers walk him a record-tying six times, with his other at-bat resulting in a hit-by-pitch as he does not take even one swing of the bat in the Nationals’ 13-inning, 4-3 loss in Wrigley Field on a walk-off homer by Javier Baez. The strategy works all series, as Harper draws 13 walks, but Chicago sweeps all four games to improve to 24-6 after 30 games. (2)

Cubs birthdays: Sam Shaw, Mickey Doolin, Eddie Pick, Al Epperly, John Flavin. Also notable: Dick Williams HOF.

Today in history:

• 1541 - Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto and his expedition discover the Mississippi River.
• 1902 - Mount Pelée on the French overseas island of Martinique erupts, wiping out the city of Saint-Pierre, killing 30,000 and leaving only two survivors.
• 1973 - Native Americans holding South Dakota hamlet of Wounded Knee for 10 weeks surrender.

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.