Baseball history unpacked, November 4

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.

“Maybe I called it wrong, but it’s official.” — Tom Connolly.

Today in baseball history:

1884 – Pitcher Tony Mullane violates an oral agreement to sign with the St. Louis Browns by signing a $5,000 contract with the Cincinnati Red Stockings. The American Association suspends Mullane for the 1885 season and fines him $1,000, but allows him to remain with Cincinnati. Over the next eight years Mullane will win 163 games with the Reds on his way to a career total of 285 victories. (2)
1957 – With a new balk rule, the batter now has an option after the call is made. If a player gets a hit, he can accept the outcome of the pitch, instead of being only limited to the advance of the baserunner(s). (2)
1959 – Ernie Banks wins his second National League MVP Award in a row on the strength of his 45 home runs and 143 RBI for the Chicago Cubs. Eddie Mathews finishes second. (1,2)
1976 – The first mass-market free agent re-entry draft is held at the New York Plaza Hotel. Among those available are Reggie Jackson, Willie McCovey, Joe Rudi, Don Gullett, Gene Tenace, Nate Colbert, Rollie Fingers, Don Baylor and Bobby Grich. McCovey and Colbert are the only two players not selected, but McCovey will catch on with the Giants in spring training and have a banner year at his old first base position. (1,2)
1980 – Japan’s all-time home run hitter, Sadaharu Oh, retires from professional baseball. The Tokyo Yomiuri Giants’ first baseman hit a record 868 home runs in his 22-year playing career. (2)
2001 – In Game 7 of a classic World Series, the Arizona Diamondbacks rally for two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to defeat the New York Yankees and their usually unbeatable closer, Mariano Rivera, 3-2. Tony Womack doubles in Midre Cummings to tie it and Luis Gonzalez singles in Jay Bell with the winner. The four-year-old Diamondbacks, the youngest franchise to win a Fall Classic, end New York’s string of three consecutive World Championships. Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling share the Series MVP honors. The Arizona pitchers are the first multiple winners since the Los Angeles Dodgers trio of Ron Cey, Pedro Guerrero and Steve Yeager shared the award in the 1981 World Series. Following the 2010 season, a panel of experts at the MLB Network will vote this game the ninth greatest game of the past fifty years. (2)
2010 – Hall of Fame manager Sparky Anderson dies in Thousand Oaks, California at 76. Nicknamed “Captain Hook” for his tendency to remove his starting pitchers early in the game – now standard practice – he was the first manager to win over 100 games in a season in both leagues, and the first to lead teams from both leagues to World Championships, doing so with Cincinnati in 1975 and 1976, and with Detroit in 1984. (2)
2016 – Five million fans turn out for the Cubs’ World Series victory parade in downtown Chicago, IL, 108 years in the making. The Chicago River is dyed in blue to celebrate the long-awaited title.

Cubs Birthdays: Tom Hernon, Tommy Leach, Emil Kush, Carl Sawatski, Dick Selma, Angel Salazar, Eric Karros, John Grabow, Gavin Hollowell. Also notable: Bobby Wallace HOF.

Today in History:

1429 – Joan of Arc and Charles d’Albret liberate the heavily fortified town of Saint-Pierre-le-Moûtier after a siege.
1619 – Frederick V crowned king of Bohemia.
1841 – First wagon train arrives in California after a five and a half month and 1,730 mile journey over the Sierra Nevada from Missouri.
1845 – First nationally observed uniform election day in the United States, the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.
1973 – Chicago centre Stan Mikita registers his 1,000 NHL career point in the Black Hawks 5-3 loss to the Minnesota North Stars at the Met Center, Bloomington, Minnesota.

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. We are trying to set the record as straight as possible. But it isn’t brain surgery.

Also, the ‘history’ segment is highly edited for space and interest. Of course a great many other things happened on those days. We try to follow up on the interesting or unfamiliar ones.

Thanks for reading.