TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

August 11 1979 Phillies’s reliever Tug McGraw surrenders an 8th inning grand slam to the Pirates’ Ed Ott as the Bucs win 14 – 11. This would be the 4th grand slam McGraw gave up that season setting a new National League mark and tying with Detroit’s Ray Narleski who did it in 1959.

Tug McGraw.

Tug McGraw was one of the most interesting players of all-time. He pitched 22 years, one in the Western Canada League (semipro), 19 in the Major Leagues and parts of four in the minors. A left-hander who threw a screwball, McGraw was a bit of screwball himself - a fan favorite in New York, Philadelphia and throughout the majors. He is the only Mets pitcher to record a win against Sandy Koufax; it came in one of his few career starts.

McGraw was given the nickname Tug by his mother, because he used to tug when she breast-fed him.

A member of the '69 Miracle Met world champion squad, Tug is perhaps most closely associated with "Ya Gotta Believe", his mantra during the Mets' 1973 National League Championship season that may or may not have been the result of him mocking a speech delivered to the players by Mets executive M. Donald Grant. While McGraw was one of the main reasons the Mets were able to capture the National League flag, he was also one of the reasons they had to catch up. He was going through a horrible slump, in July his ERA topped out at 6.20, and on August 21 it was still at 5.45, he was 0-6 with 13 saves. From August 22 until the end of the season the Mets went 17-2 in games McGraw pitched in, he tossed 41 innings with an ERA of 0.88 allowing just 4 earned runs. Picking up 12 saves and 5 wins. During this run he charged off the mound slapping his glove on his right thigh, screaming at no one in particular. The Mets, ultimately the only team to finish over .500 for the season in the National League East, began their climb from last place, 12 1/2 games out.

A turnaround by McGraw also contributed heavily to the Mets' miraculous run of 1969, when they won 38 of their last 49 regular-season games to win the division by eight games over the Chicago Cubs. During those 49 games, McGraw pitched 29 2/3 innings and was charged with only two runs. He is the only Mets pitcher to record a win against Sandy Koufax; it came in one of his few career starts.

And yet, McGraw's best year was actually 1972, when he posted an 11-4 record with 27 saves and a 1.70 ERA. He also was credited with the victory in the 1972 All-Star Game, giving up only one hit and striking out four in working the final two innings.

His shining moment as a Phillie came in the 1980 World Series. In the fifth game, McGraw struck out the Royals' Amos Otis with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth to preserve a 4-3 victory. In the sixth and final game, in Philadelphia, McGraw squeezed out of bases-loaded jams in the final two innings and got the save to give the Phillies their first World Championship. It was his third WS save lifetime, and his five LCS saves is a record. He retired with 180 saves.

The most famous image of Tug McGraw is of him leaping in the air after striking out Willie Wilson of the Royals to win the 1980 World Series for Philadelphia. After his retirement, he made frequent appearances as a baseball reporter for WPVI-TV in Philadelphia. Prior to his death, McGraw was able to take part in ceremonies commemorating the closing of Veterans Stadium.

McGraw was a 1993 inductee into the New York Mets Hall of Fame and a 1999 honoree into (or is it onto?) the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame. Following his passing, the Philadelphia chapter of the BBWAA renamed their annual Good Guy Award the Tug McGraw Good Guy Award.

He contracted brain cancer and battled the disease for ten months when he underwent surgery for a malignant tumor. Sadly, McGraw died from it at age 59 on January 5, 2004 at the home of his son, country singer Tim McGraw. "Live Like You Were Dying", Tim's tribute song to his dad, spent seven weeks at #1 on the Billboard Country Music chart and was ultimately determined the #1 country song for the year 2004.

The story on his nickname is he was being fed as an infant, his mother looked down and said "What a little tugger" and the name stuck. He occasionally pitched batting practice in his uniform, right-handed. His brother Hank McGraw played 12 years in the minor leagues.

Todays Podcast

August 11 1914 After missing 6 weeks‚ first with broken ribs‚ then a thumb broken in a fight with a butcher’s clerk‚ Ty Cobb signs a new 3-year contract and returns to the Tiger’s lineup on August 11th, 1914. Cobb would play in only 97 games that season‚ but would still go on win another batting crown hitting .368. Under existing rules his 345 at bats were enough to qualify.

August 11, 1935 — Wally Berger hits a home run‚ 2 doubles‚ and a triple‚ to tie the modern major league record for extra-base hits in a game‚ but his Braves lose to the Dodgers‚ 7 – 5. Berger drives in all of Boston’s runs and his homer‚ his 25th of the year‚ puts him one ahead of Mel Ott in the home run race.

August 11, 1937 at Fenway park Lou Gehrig hits his final homerun. Gehrig blasted a 1st inning 3 run homer off Red Sox pitcher Tommy Thomas.

August 11 1950 Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio? August 11th, 1950. Hitting just .279 and languishing in a 4 for 38 slump, Yankee great Joe DiMaggio is benched for the first time in his career. His replacement‚ Cliff Mapes‚ gives the Yankees a 7 – 6 win over the A’s with a mammoth 7th inning homer.

August 11, 1955 — Ted Williams collects his 2000th career hit with a first-inning bloop single off Bob Turley in the team’s 5-3 loss at Yankee Stadium. The Red Sox outfielder will finish his 19-year Hall of Fame career with 2654 hits.

August 11, 1961, 1n front of 40,000+ fans at County Stadium in Milwaukee, Braves lefty Warren Spahn scatters six hits to beat the Cubs, 2-1, for his 300th victory. Spahn becomes the 13th major leaguer to win 300 games. The 40 year-old southpaw, will finish his career with 363 wins, the most of any left-hander in the history of the game, is the thirteenth major league hurler to reach the milestone.

Spahn a great hitting pitcher, had driven in the only run for Milwaukee through 7 innings as the game was tied 1-1, until Gino Cimoli took Jack Curtis deep in the bottom of the 8th. Spahn will survie an error in the top of 9th to seal the 2-1 win over the Cubs,

August 11, 1968 — the Atlanta Braves signed Satchel Paige to a contract. At the time, Paige was in his 60’s, but the Braves took the action so Paige could qualify for a Major League Baseball pension.

In 1968, Paige was 158 days shy of the five years’ playing time needed to qualify for the major league pension. He would reach out to 20 teams and 19 teams would turn him down. The problem was, he was 62. Atlanta signed Paige, becoming an assistant trainer and pitching coach

Nearly three years earlier, he became the oldest pitcher every to play a game when he threw three innings for the Kansas City A’s at 59 years, 2 months and 18 days, against the Red Sox. He only gave up one and he needed just 28 pitches. The hit was by Carl Yastrzemski, the Hall of Famer, then 26 years old.

August 11, 1970 — With a 6-5 victory over the Astros, Phillies’ right-hander Jim Bunning becomes the first pitcher since Cy Young to win 100 games in both leagues. During his nine years with the Tigers, the future U.S. Senator compiled a 118-87 record in the American League.

August 11, 1974, New York Yankee greats Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford are inducted into the Hall of Fame, along with Cool Papa Bell, Jim Bottomley, Jocko Conlan, and Sam Thompson.

August 11 1979 Phillies’s reliever Tug McGraw surrenders an 8th inning grand slam to the Pirates’ Ed Ott as the Bucs win 14 – 11. This would be the 4th grand slam McGraw gave up that season setting a new National League mark and tying with Detroit’s Ray Narleski who did it in 1959.

August 11 1985 The Cubs paraded out 10 pitchers in a 17 inning, 10 to 8 loss to the Pirates on August 11th, 1985. This game is the continuation of a contest that started on April 20 but was suspended because of darkness. Barry Jones‚ the winning pitcher who struck out the side‚ and Barry Bonds‚ who drove in the game-winning run‚ were both in the minors when the game started. The losing Frank DiPino started the season with Houston.

August 11, 1987 — Oakland A’s first baseman Mark McGwire breaks Al Rosen’s American League rookie record, established in 1950, and ties the major league mark shared by Frank Robinson (1956) and Wally Berger (1930) when he hits his 38th homer of the season. The unanimous choice for Rookie of the Year will finish the season with 49 homers, smashing the existing major league record.

August 11, 2001 — At Wrigley Field, Joe Borowski serves up home run No. 50 to Barry Bonds and the Giants roll to a 9 – 4 win over the Cubs. Winning pitcher Livan Hernandez is 4 for 4‚ including his first major league homer. He now has 8 straight hits and is 12 for 13. Hernandez, had a 3-for-3 performance against the Phillies on August 5 and going 2-for-3 against the Pirates on the last day in July.

It is the first time in his 16-year career, Bonds hits 50 homeruns in a single season. He also using the fewest number of games anyone has ever needed to hit 50 homers in a season, using just 117 contests. In 1999, Sammy Sosa reached the mark in 121 contests.The 36 year-old Giants outfielder will go yard 23 more times to establish a new big league single-season record with 73 home runs.

August 11, 2009 Boston’s 7 – 5 win over Detroit at Fenway Park is marred by a brawl in the 2nd inning. When Kevin Youkilis is hit by a Rick Porcello pitch, he charges the mound and both benches empty. Both players are ejected, and Youk’s replacement, Mike Lowell, hits two home runs to power the Red Sox to victory.

 ANSWER TO TODAY’S TRIVIA

TRIVIA ANSWER:       JOHN STEARNS

- Played exactly one (1) game for PHI before being traded to NYM for Tug McGraw, among others. AS for NYM in 1977, 79, 80 & 82.

- Stole 25 bases in 1978. 91 in his career.

- Minton HR 02-May-1982. Minton later said, “I thought about tackling him as he rounded third, but then I remembered that he's strong and once played football.” Minton still holds the record.

- Managing the Harrisburg Senators in 2006, he had both Tim Raines, Jr. and Tony Armas, Jr. on his roster.

Thank you Horsehide Trivia

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