Baseball history unpacked, July 28

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:

• 1875 - Philadelphia’s Joe Borden, also known by the name Josephs, pitches the first no-hitter in Major League history, beating the Chicago White Stockings 4-0. The game takes one hour and 35 minutes to play. (1)
• 1968 - Ken Holtzman and the Cubs beat the Dodgers’ Don Sutton, 1-0. It is Sutton’s second straight 1 - 0 loss to Chicago; he is now 0-10 against the Cubs, and Holtzman will top him the next three times they face each other. (2)
• 1976 - White Sox pitchers Blue Moon Odom (5 innings) and Francisco Barrios (4 innings) combine to no-hit the A’s, 2-1. It is Odom’s last major league victory. (2)
• 1977 - In a wild one at Wrigley Field, the first-place Cubs (6) and Reds (5) combine for 11 home runs to tie the major league record. The Cubs come back four times to win, 16-15, in 13 innings in a contest that goes four hours and 50 minutes. The Reds lead 6 - 0 to start, beginning with Pete Rose’s leadoff home run, and lead, 15-14, near the finish, but Dave Rosello’s RBI single off Jack Billingham wins the game. Rick Reuschel wins his 15th game, and second in two days, pitching just two-thirds of an inning. Going deep are Bill Buckner (2), Bobby Murcer, George Mitterwald (two, including one in the 12th inning) and Jerry Morales for Chicago; Rose, Johnny Bench, Ken Griffey, Mike Lum and Cesar Geronimo homer for the Reds. (2)
• 1979 - Dave Kingman of the Chicago Cubs hit three home runs in a game for the second time in the season and became the sixth player in Major League history to accomplish the feat. Kingman’s homers weren’t enough as the Cubs lost to the New York Mets 6-4.
• 1983 - American League president Lee MacPhail decides George Brett’s ”Pine Tar” home run should count. The remainder of the game will played on August 18th with the Royals beating the Yankees, 5-4. (1,2)
• 1985 - Lou Brock, Enos Slaughter, Arky Vaughan and Hoyt Wilhelm are inducted into the Hall of Fame in a ceremony in Cooperstown, New York. Wilhelm is the first pitcher to be inducted because of his role as a reliever.
• 1990 - Cubs SS Shawon Dunston ties a major-league record with three triples in a 10-7 win over the Expos. Shawon also drives in five runs. (1,2)
• 1991 - Dennis Martinez of the Expos tosses the 13th perfect game in major league history (excluding those of Harvey Haddix and Ernie Shore), setting down all 27 Dodgers to face him in a 2 - 0 win. Martinez strikes out five in the contest. C Ron Hassey becomes the first receiver to catch two perfectos, having been behind the plate for the Indians’ Len Barker’s masterpiece in 1981. Dodger infielder Alfredo Griffin goes 0 for 3 against Martinez, to go along with his 0 for 3 performance in Tom Browning’s perfect game in 1988, and 0 for 2 in Barker’s perfecto in 1981. (1,2)
• 1994 - Texas P Kenny Rogers hurls a perfect game, defeating the Angels, 4-0. Rogers fans eight in the 11th regular season perfect game of the 20th Century. He becomes the first left-hander in American League history to toss a perfecto and the 14th pitcher in history. (1,2)
• 1994 - The Players Association executive board approves of August 12th as the date for a strike. (2)
• 1995 - With baseball’s new speed-up rules in place, the Cubs dispose of the Phillies, 4-0, in a brisk 2:29. Cubs’ P Frank Castillo says, “It wasn’t the rule about throwing a pitch in 12 seconds since I usually throw in five seconds.” (2)
• 1998 - I like it so much, I’ll do it again. After setting the record yesterday for hitting the most home runs before getting a grand slam, Sammy Sosa hits his second in four at bats in the Cubs’ 7-5 loss to the Diamondbacks. Sosa is the first Cub to hit grand slams in consecutive games, and just the 18th player in history. (2)
• 2011 - The Indians acquire Japanese OF Kosuke Fukudome from the Cubs for two minor leaguers, P Carlton Smith and OF Abner Abreu. (2)
• 2013 - The Cubs beat the Giants, 2-1. The only players with more than one hit are opposing starters Travis Wood (2 for 3, HR) and Tim Lincecum (2 for 2). That feat last happened on June 21, 1963. (2)

Cubs birthdays: Carmelo Martinez*. Also notable: Bullet Rogan HOF.

Today in history:

• 1148 - Crusaders abandon their siege of Damascus after only four days leading to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.
• 1586 - Sir Thomas Harriot introduces potatoes to Europe on return to England.
• 1717 - Prussian King Frederik Willhelm I orders compulsory education for 5-12 year olds.
• 1794 - French Revolutionary figure Maximilien Robespierre and 22 other leaders of “the Terror” guillotined to thunderous cheers in Paris.
• 1929 - Chicago Cardinals become 1st NFL team to train out of state (Michigan).

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.