The first of many for the lefty hurler

Braves Franchise History

1928: Voters in Massachusetts approve Sunday baseball in Boston, provided that Braves Field is more than 1,000 feet from a church. This leaves Pennsylvania as the only state with no Sunday baseball in the major leagues.

1960: Warren Spahn finishes second in Cy Young voting to Vern Law, who finished 20-9 with 18 complete games for the National League champion Pittsburgh Pirates.

2020: Atlanta Braves pitcher Max Fried wins the first of three consecutive Gold Glove awards.

MLB History

1926: Ty Cobb resigns as Detroit Tigers manager after leading his team to a record of 79-75 and a sixth-place finish. Umpire and former Tigers infielder George Moriarty replaces him. Moriarty is the first man to hold baseball’s four principal jobs: player, umpire, scout and manager. Cobb will sign a playing contract with the Philadelphia Athletics and will bat .357 during the 1927 season.

1934: Athletics catcher Mickey Cochrane is named MVP of the American League over Lou Gehrig who won the Triple Crown with a .363 average, 49 home runs and 165 RBI.

1942: Joe Gordon is named MVP of the American League over Ted Williams who won the triple crown by hitting .356 with 36 home runs and 137 RBI.

1953: The baseball rules committee restores the 1939 sacrifice fly rule, which says a sac fly is not charged as a time at bat.

1964: Philadelphia voters approve a $25 million bond issue to build a new stadium. The project will need another $13 million in 1967. Veterans Stadium is one of the most expensive ballparks to this point with a final cost of $50 million.

1968: St. Louis Cardinals broadcaster Harry Caray is struck by a car while crossing a street in St. Louis, and he suffers two broken legs, a broken shoulder, and a broken nose.

1987: Mark McGwire is named Rookie of the Year in the American League after hitting 49 home runs.

1989: Lou Piniella is named manager of the Cincinnati Reds, replacing the banned Pete Rose.

1991: Houston Astros first baseman Jeff Bagwell is named the National League Rookie of the Year, becoming the first Houston player to win the award. Bagwell hit .294 with a team-leading 15 home runs and 82 RBI. His 82 walks also led the Astros. Bagwell was picked in the fourth round of the 1989 amateur draft by the Boston Red Sox, then traded in the 1990 stretch drive for relief pitcher Larry Andersen.

1992: The New York Yankees acquire outfielder Paul O’Neill from the Reds in exchange for outfielder Roberto Kelly.

2014: The Cubs introduce new manager Joe Maddon at a press conference. The former Rays skipper is in an optimistic mood, saying he thinks the last-place club can make a playoff run next season.

2015: The Nationals hire Dusty Baker as their manager, less than a week after telling Bud Black that he had the job but failing to make him a competitive salary offer.