On This Date in Baseball: June 4

1940 - The St. Louis Cardinals played their first night game at Sportsman's Park, against the Brooklyn Dodgers.

1964 - Sandy Koufax of the Los Angeles Dodgers becomes the fourth major league pitcher to hurl three no-hitters by blanking the Philadelphia Phillies 3 - 0 at home.

On This Date in Baseball: March 17

1886 - The Sporting News, the weekly that will become "The Baseball Paper of the World," publishes its first issue.

1936 -Much-heralded rookie Joe DiMaggio makes his debut with the New York Yankees, collecting four hits including a triple. The day is marred when the St. Louis Cardinals win 8 - 7.

1966 - Pitchers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale play hardball when negotiating with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The duo signs movie contracts showing they are serious about retiring from baseball if their salary demands are not met.
2005 - During more than 11 hours of the Committee on Government Reform hearing concerning major league player use of steroids, Mark McGwire refuses to talk about the past and does not deny taking performance enhancing drugs. Other players testifying included Curt Schilling, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, and former big leaguer Jose Canseco, whose recent book prompted the congressional hearing. Palmeiro is later found guilty of steroid usage.

Quote of the Day

“People who write about spring training not being necessary have never tried to throw a baseball.”

-Sandy Koufax

On This Date in Baseball: October 14

1908 - Before the smallest crowd in World Series history (6,210), the Cubs win the World Series in five games over the Tigers. It's fitting that the smallest crowd saw the Cubs' last World Series win. I dislike Cubs fans more than a paper cut under a finger nail, but I do like to watch them cry. I also like to drink their tears.

1965 - Sandy Koufax tossed his second shutout to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a 2-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins and the World Series in seven games. (Thus solidifying his status as left-handed god.)

1984 - Kirk Gibson hit two home runs to lead Detroit to an 8-4 victory and the World Series in five games over the San Diego Padres. (For Larry Graham.)

On This Date in Baseball: June 8

1921 - Babe Ruth is arrested for speeding in New York, fined $100, and held in jail until 4 p.m.. Game time is 3:15, so a uniform is brought to him. He changes in jail and follows a police escort to the ballpark where he enters with the Yankees trailing 3-2. They rally for a 4-3 win.

1955 - The Dodgers send pitcher Tommy Lasorda down to Montreal to make room on the roster for Sandy Koufax.

1969 - Mickey Mantle Day in New York. With 60,096 fans on hand, Mantle's number 7 is retired. The Yankees then sweep a double header from the White Sox 3-1 and 11-2.

Mission Accomplished!

Life long goal #6: Obtain Sandy Koufax's autograph

This morning, Brother Simpson went to breakfast at Salt 'n Pepper on Clark in Chicago. Afterwards, I went to Cubs World and got the 1955 Cubs hat seen here.

On my way back to Chateau Simpson, I stopped at Classic Ticket, a ticket broker store on Addison within spitting distance of Wrigley Field. Their primary function is selling hard-to-get tickets, but they do have a few random items in their storefront, like baseball cards, jerseys, etc.

As I was perusing the glass case, I noticed an autographed photo of Sandy Koufax from a magazine. I've been a fan of Koufax since I read a book about him in seventh grade and made getting his autograph a life long goal.

Two problems with this particular life long goal: 1) Koufax is basically a hermit that normal people rarely see and 2) due to his recluse status, his autograph is one of the most difficult to obtain. I saw a ball at a store on Main Street in Cooperstown last summer for $500 and a jersey in Chicago this week for $1,500. Like my friend, the Christian Woman, I wanted a bargain. Since I didn't give a rat's arse on what item his signature appeared, I cared not that this was a magazine photo. I scored both the Koufax auto and a Keith Hernandez autographed card for a song!

Here's a scan of the Koufax photo. I heart it.

Quote of the Day

"Pitching is the art of instilling fear."

-Sandy Koufax

Quote of the Day

"We need just two players to be a contender. Just Babe Ruth and Sandy Koufax."

-Whitey Herzog

(about managing the 1973 Texas Rangers)