TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY

September 20, 1985 The Montreal Expos take on the St Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals at the time are up just one game over the New York Mets. Dan Schatzeder starts for the Expos and Danny Cox for the Cardinals. The Expos were no push over they came in at 77-69 and featured Tim Raines and Andre Dawson.

For those of you who were not around yet the 1985 National League East race between the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets was one of the decade’s most thrilling battles. The speed-and-defense Cardinals, powered by MVP Willie McGee, 98 stolen bases from rookie sensation Vince Coleman, and the pitching of John Tudor, went toe-to-toe with the power-heavy Mets led by Dwight Gooden’s historic 24–4 season, Gary Carter, and Keith Hernandez. The two teams traded punches all summer, with the Cards ultimately edging the Mets by just three games, finishing 101–61. St. Louis went on to win the pennant with the final game between the two coming with just one game separating them with four games left in the season, while the Mets were left waiting until 1986 for their World Series.

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Todays Podcast

September 20, 1919 – On Babe Ruth day at Fenway Park, the Bambino ties Ned Williamson’s major league mark of 27 home runs in a season with a game-winner off Lefty Williams of the Chicago White Sox. Ruth also scores the winning run in both ends of the doubleheader. Ironically, it will be the last game he plays for the Boston Red Sox in Fenway as the sale of the century would have the Bambino in pinstripes for the remainder of his career. On the same date eight years later, Ruth would again raise the single season home run mark by hitting his 60th bomb of the season off Senators pitcher Tom Zachary.

September 20, 1924, Future Hall of Famer 37 year-old righty Grover Cleveland Alexander goes the distance to earn his 300th victory when the Chicago Cubs beat the New York Giants in 12 innings, 7-3. To become the fourth pitcher of the modern era to reach the milestone. 'Old Pete' will collect 373 victories during his 20-year career with National League teams, which includes stops in Philadelphia and St. Louis.

September 20, 1934, Yankees vs Tigers at Navin Field (Briggs/Tiger Stadium) in Detroit, Ty Tyson the announcer. Great old time radio. Lou Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, Frank Crosetti in the lineup for the Bombers, and Hank Greenberg, Charlie Gehringer, Mickey Cochrane for the Bengals. Babe Ruth was in the ballpark, but unfortunately did not play due to injury.

September 20, 1955 – New York Giants slugger Willie Mays hits two home runs against the
Pittsburgh Pirates, giving him 50 for the year and making him the seventh player in major league history to accomplish this.

September 20, 1958, At Memorial Stadium Baltimore Orioles right-hander Hoyt Wilhelm, sporting a 2-10 record, no-hits the New York Yankees. Wilhelm’s 1-0 win is his first career complete game. The only run coming on a home run by battery mate Gus Triandos. It will be the last time in the 20th century the Yankees will fail to get a hit in a game. Wilhelm was used almost exclusively as a reliever in the past, Wilhelm joined the Orioles on waivers in August.

September 20, 1961 -- In a 13-inning contest, Sandy Koufax goes the distance, beating the Cubs, 3-2, in the last regular season game played at the LA Memorial Coliseum, a venue originally built for the 1932 Olympics. The Dodgers are leaving the only home they have known since moving from Brooklyn four seasons ago to play in a brand new stadium in Chavez Ravine, located a few miles from downtown Los Angeles. 12,068 fans saw the Dodgers close out their tenancy in the coliseum with a victory just as they won their first game there April 18 1958 The final day’s crowd raised the 1961 attendance to 1,804,250 and the paid attendance for the year.

Manager Walt Alston summed up his feelings about the coliseum after last night’s game by declaring there was no doubt in his mind that the stadium had hurt the Dodgers more than opposing clubs because his teams were left-handed hitting clubs "The players are all happy about leaving the coliseum and pointing to the new stadium in Chavez Ravine next season.

September20, 1968 – Mickey Mantle of the New York Yankees hits the 536th and final home run of his major league career. The parting shot of this storied career came at the expense of Jim Lonborg of the Boston Red Sox in a 4 – 3 loss at Yankee Stadium.

September 20, 1969 -- Bob Moose, giving the Pittsburgh Pirates their third win in two days against the eventual world champs, no-hits the first-place New York Mets at Shea Stadium, 4-0. The 21 year-old right-hander will compile a 14-3 record with a 2.91 ERA for the third-place Bucs this season. He is the 5th NL pitcher to fire a no hitter in 1969.

The others were - Bill Stoneman on April 17, Jim Maloney on April 30, Don Wilson May 1, and Ken Holtzman on August 19.

September 20, 1968 -- Mickey Mantle hits the final home run of his 18-year major league career third on the all-time home run list with 536 round-trippers behind only Babe Ruth and Willie Mays when he retires at the end of the season. The solo shot is given up by Jim Lonborg in a 4-3 loss to the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.

September 20, 1973 -- After sharing the news on the Today Show, Willie Mays officially announces his retirement at a press conference held at Shea Stadium's Diamond Club. In five days, the Mets will honor the aging superstar with pre-game ceremony night at the ballpark.

Willie, 42, but looking 10 years younger his colorful sports outfit and sounding like a kid of 22 again, made his announcement and answered questions for almost an hour. His moods changed from nervousness to humor to mild anger to defiance to annoyance. But he managed to hide his deepest emotions until the very end.

"I thought I would be crying right now," he said at one point. "But I see so many of my friends, I -can't cry. Maybe I'll cry tomorrow . . ..or the next day."

September 20, 1980 -- George Brett of the Kansas City Royals goes 0 for 4 in a 9 - 0 loss to the Oakland Athletics, to drop his average below .400. He is now hitting .396 and will finish the season at .390.

September 20, 1980 – In memory of Thurman Munson, a bronze plaque in Monument Park is dedicated to the deceased New York Yankees catcher and team Captain who died tragically in a plane crash in 1979.

September 20, 1998 -- After nearly 16 years of not missing a game, Cal Ripken, quietly and without fanfare, takes himself out of the lineup after playing in a major-league record 2,632 consecutive games. The Orioles shortstop's consecutive streak ends in Baltimore's 5-4 loss to the Yankees at Camden Yards in a nationally televised ESPN Sunday night game. Ripken says he decided the time was right to end the streak, which began on May 30, 1982.

"Let's end it in the same place it started. In my home state. In front of friends and family. In front of the best fans in the world."- Cal Ripken, Jr., commenting on ending his consecutive streak

 ANSWER TO TODAY’S TRIVIA

TRIVIA ANSWER: WILLIE McGEE  

- Ans. He had 13 3B in 1985 when he was the NL MVP.

- #1 In 1983, McGee was AS & GG, the 1^st of 4 AS appearances & 3 GG.

- #2 McGee hit .353 in 1985 to lead the NL. He captured his 2^nd NL batting title in 1990 with a .335 average even though that year he finished the season with OAK after a late-season trade from STL for Daryl Green, Felix Jose & Stan Royer. He did get to play in his 4^th WS.

Thank you Horsehide Trivia

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