Baseball history unpacked, September 1

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:

• 1886 - Ed “Cannonball” Crane walks 14 and adds five wild pitches and an error in a 15-2 loss to Chicago. Formerly an OF‚ Crane has just been pressed into service as a pitcher for the last-place Nationals. He’ll emerge as a regular starter for the New York Giants next year. (2)
• 1902 - In today’s split of a doubleheader with the Phillies‚ Joe Tinker‚ Johnny Evers‚ and Frank Chance appear together in the Chicago Orphans lineup for the first time‚ but not in the positions that will earn them immortality. Evers‚ a New York State League rookie‚ starts at SS‚ with Tinker at 3B‚ Chance at 1B‚ and veteran Bobby Lowe at 2B. Philadelphia takes the opener‚ 11-3, behind Doc White‚ while Chicago is victorious in the nightcap‚ 6-1‚ behind Jack Taylor’s pitching.
• 1907 - Cubs P Ed Reulbach‚ who will be 17-4 with a 1.69 ERA‚ goes into the ninth with a 2-0 lead over the Cardinals at Chicago. He gives up eight straight hits‚ seven runs‚ and loses the game. The nightcap is stopped after seven innings. (2)
• 1918 - The Browns and Tigers finish the season with a doubleheader split in St. Louis as the Cleveland Indians refuse to make the trip for the Labor Day doubleheader. In the second game‚ Ty Cobb pitches two innings against the Browns while the Browns’ George Sisler pitches one scoreless inning. The Browns win‚ 6-2‚ and Sisler hits a double off Cobb. Detroit wins the opener‚ 7-2. (1,2)
• 1939 - The Dodgers and Cubs use an open date to play a doubleheader of two rained-out games. The visiting Cubs take the opener‚ 6-2, behind Larry French‚ and the Dodgers take the nightcap‚ 3-1. In the second game‚ Gabby Hartnett sets a major league record for games caught of 1‚722. The old mark was held by Ray Schalk. (2)
• 1962 - Cubs 30-year-old rookie Cuno Barragan‚ sidelined since spring training when he broke his ankle‚ finally gets his first at bat and hits his only major league home run. His clout comes off Giants P Dick LeMay‚ but the Cubs lose, 4-3, in 14 innings. (2)
• 1964 - Southpaw relief P Masanori Murakami becomes the first major league player from Japan. He debuts in a 4-1 San Francisco loss at New York. His first 11 innings will be scoreless ones. (1,2)
• 1967 - The Cubs start a streak of four straight doubleheaders by beating the Mets‚ 8-2‚ behind Fergie Jenkins’ 17th win. Former Cub Don Cardwell wins the nightcap‚ 3-0‚ striking out 11. (2)
• 1971 - At Wrigley Field‚ pitcher Fergie Jenkins leads the Cubs to a 5-2 win over Montreal by clouting two home runs and driving in three runs. Bill Stoneman takes the loss. (2)
• 1974 - The Major League Scouting Bureau is instituted as a way to cut costs by centralizing scouting. Membership is not mandatory until 1984‚ and only 17 of 24 teams initially agree to the $118‚000 fee for joining. All American League clubs except the Chicago White Sox and (eventually) the Toronto Blue Jays join; in the National League‚ the Chicago Cubs‚ Montreal Expos‚ Pittsburgh Pirates‚ Atlanta Braves‚ Houston Astros and the Cincinnati Reds join. Milwaukee Brewers GM Jim Wilson is put in charge. (2)
• 1987 - In a 3-2 loss to the Cubs‚ Houston’s Billy Hatcher becomes the first player this season to be ejected for using an illegal corked bat‚ and will eventually be suspended for ten games by National League president Bart Giamatti. Hatcher claims he borrowed the bat from P Dave Smith and only used it in batting practice. Baseball has seen a rash of protests regarding allegedly doctored bats this season‚ partly in response to the record number of home runs being hit. (2)
• 1987 - Williamsport (Eastern League) Bills catcher Dave Bresnahan introduces a new wrinkle to baseball, the hidden potato. With a Reading runner, Rick Rundblade, on third base, Bresnahan returns from a time out with a shaved potato hidden in his mitt. On the next pitch he throws the potato wildly on a pickoff attempt. When the runner trots home, Bresnahan tags him out with the real ball. The umpire, unamused, rules the runner safe, gives the catcher an error, and fines him $50. He is released the following day. But that night, their last game of the season, the Bills admit any fan for $1 and a potato. On each potato, Bresnahan autographs, “This spud’s for you.”
• 1989 - Eight days after banning Pete Rose from baseball for life, Commissioner Bart Giamatti dies suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 51. (1,2)
• 1999 - Sammy Sosa hits his 56th homer‚ off Sterling Hitchcock‚ to give the Cubs a 1-0 win over San Diego. Steve Trachsel is the winner with seven shutout innings. Glenallen Hill’s single is the only other Cub hit. (2)

Cubs birthdays: Joe Marty, Rico Carty, Kevin Orie, Jordan Wicks*.

Also notable: Jim O’Rourke HOF.

Today in history:

• 1535 - French navigator Jacques Cartier reaches Hochelaga (Montreal).
• 1715 - King Louis XIV of France dies after a reign of 72 years—the longest of any major European monarch.
• 1807 - Aaron Burr acquitted of charges of plotting to set up an empire.
• 1897 - The Boston subway opens, becoming the first underground rapid transit system in North America.
• 1939 - Scientific journal “Physical Review” publishes 1st paper to deal with “black holes”.

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.