Category: August

Aug 28: Unlikely source

AUGUST 28, 1990 | HOUSTON, TEXAS • Ryne Sandburg of the Chicago Cubs hit his 30th home run of the season on this date in 1990. It helped the Cubs beat the Houston Astros at the Astrodome. It was the second year in a row the future Hall of Famer hit at least 30 home runs, the first major league second baseman to do that.

Sandburg wasn’t done in 1990 either. He ended up with 40 home runs that year. He hit an even 30 in 1989.

Ryne Sandburg played 16 years in the major leagues, his first with the Philadelphia Phillies, but as a result of a classic ill-advised trade on the part of Philadelphia, was sent to the Cubs in year-2 and played the next 15 seasons on the northside. He was a career .285 hitter, appeared in ten all-star games, was National League Most Valuable Player in 1984, and elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005. Not bad for a kid from Spokane drafted in the 20th round in 1976.

Contributing Sources:
August 28, 1990 box score
Ryne Sandberg Stats

AUG 27: A star is born

AUGUST  27, 1955 | BROOKLYN, NEW YORK • On this date, Sandy Koufax, a young, raw, Brooklyn-born, former basketball star from the University of Cincinnati, 

got his second major league start for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He two-hit the Cincinnati Reds 7-0. The 19-year old struck out 14.

It took a while for Koufax to be polished into a gem. As a kid, Koufax showed more promise in basketball. So much so that he got a scholarship to the University of Cincinnati. In an odd twist of fate, the freshman basketball coach, Ed Jucker, was the varsity baseball coach. When baseball season came along, Koufax pitched a few games for the Bearcat baseball team. He was raw. In 31 innings, he walked 30, but struck out 51. A Dodger scout saw the potential. Koufax was offered a bonus to leave the University of Cincinnati and the basketball team for baseball, which he did.

Once he put it all together, Koufax dominated. He was 129-47 from 1961 to 1966. He won the Cy Young award in 1963, 1965 and 1966 by unanimous votes. All three seasons he led the majors in wins, strikeouts and ERA – the pitching Triple Crown – and was MVP of the World Series in ’63 and ‘65. Koufax threw 4 no-hitters and 1 perfect game.

Unfortunately for him, and baseball fans who marveled at his ability, Koufax’s career ended early. He retired at 31 when arthritis in his throwing elbow threatened permanent disability.

Contributing sources: 
“Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy,” by Jane Leavy, Harper Collins, 2002  
Koufax Reunites with Coach Jucker,” UC Magazine, University of Cincinnati   
Sandy Koufax

August 31- Hodges unloads

AUGUST 31, 1950 • BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS • Gil Hodges of the Brooklyn Dodgers (today’s Los Angeles Dodgers) became the 4th player in major league history to hit 4 home runs in a game* on this date in baseball history (1950). The slugging first baseman’s four round-trippers and a single helped the Dodgers beat the Boston Braves (now in Atlanta) 19-3. Hodges had 17 total bases that day.

Hodges had at least 25 home runs nine times in his career. He had 100 RBI or more seven times. He finished with a .273 lifetime average and 370 home runs – at the time, the most by a right-handed hitter. Gil Hodges was a pillar of the Brooklyn Dodgers of the 1950’s, the decade they finally came through, after 66 years in the National League, and won a World Series in 1955. Hodges had 27 home runs and 102 RBIs that year.

Hodges finished his playing career with the New York Mets in 1963, and then became manager of the Washington Senators (today’s Texas Rangers). The Mets came calling again in 1968 for Hodges to manage them. He helped turn the perennial last place team into the Amaz’in Mets who shocked the sports world in 1969 by winning the World Series.

*Chuck Klein of the Philadelphia Phillies and Pat Seerey of the Chicago White Sox each hit four home runs in one game prior to Hodges, but they needed extra innings to do it.

CONTRIBUTING SOURCE:
The New York Times, Boston, Massachusetts, September 1, 1950

Aug 18: Conigliaro Beaned!

AUGUST 18, 1967 | BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – Tony Conigilaro was living his dream – playing for his hometown Boston Red Sox, and playing well. Only 22-years old, he was the youngest American League player to reach the 100-home run mark.

But the dream, and his cheekbone, was shattered the night of August 18, 1967 when he was hit in the face by a fastball from Jack Hamilton of the California Angels.

Teammate and friend Rico Petrocelli was in the on-deck circle when Tony C got drilled and later wrote in his book, Tales from the Impossible Dream Red Sox:

“I always believed there was a spot where Tony couldn’t see the inside pitch. If you threw it to the right spot, he’d hit that ball nine miles. But then there was this blind spot, a little more inside. Sometimes he moved too late to get out of the way, and sometimes he never moved at all.”

Conigliaro was knocked unconscious. He had to be carried off the field on a stretcher. His cheekbone was broken and his left eye severely damaged. For a time it was feared he might not survive. The cheekbone healed but he had a hole in his retina. He missed the remainder of the ’67 season and the entire 1968 season. 

His vision miraculously cleared up and he played again in 1969. He hit 20 home runs and drove in 82, and was named comeback player of the year. He had the best year of his career in 1970 when he hit 36 home runs and drove in 116. He was traded that off-season to, ironically, the California Angels.

Tony C’s eyesight deteriorated again in 1971. He hit just .222 with 4 home runs and 15 RBI. He was increasingly difficult to deal with. According to the Associated Press (AP) his manager, Lefty Phillips, told reporters after a loss that Conigliaro “was ready for the insane asylum. Conigliaro sadly announced his retirement from baseball July 10, 1971, “I have lost my sight and on the edge-of-losing my mind.”

Conigliaro dabbled in sports broadcasting for several years, but then ran into health problems. He had a heart attack while still in his 30’s. He later suffered a stroke.

Anthony Richard Conigliaro died on February 24, 1990. He was 45.

Contributing Sources:
Associated Press (AP), July 11, 1971, Oakland, California
Seeing it Through, by Tony Conigliaro
Tales from the Impossible Dream Red Sox, by Rico Petrocelli https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Conigliaro

Aug 22: Marichal loses it

AUGUST 22, 1965 | SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – A tight pennant race turned ugly on the afternoon of August 22, 1965. With only a half game separating the San Francisco Giants and arch rival Los Angeles Dodgers, Giant pitcher Juan Marichal attacked Los Angeles Dodgers’ catcher John Roseboro with a bat. Roseboro suffered a gash that required 14 stitches to close. Marichal was suspended eight games and fined $1,750, a big chunk of change in those days.

As the story goes, when Marichal was on the mound for the Giants earlier in the game he knocked down Maury Wills and Ron Fairly with brushback pitches. As Jeff Merron reports on ESPN’s Page 2, Dodger catcher John Roseboro admitted that he intended to retaliate against Marichal when he came to bat, “I tried a knockdown from behind the plate, throwing the ball close to his nose when I returned it to the pitcher.” After coming close a couple times to Marichal, standing in the batter’s box, as he threw back to pitcher Sandy Koufax, Marichal turned on Roseboro. Striking the catcher with the bat.

Roseboro and Marichal patched things up in later years, but on that one afternoon in 1965, it was nasty.

CONTRIBUTING SOURSES:
August 22, 1965 box score/play-by-lay
Baseball brawls
1965 NL pennant race