On April 29, 1981, Steve Carlton of the Philadelphia Phillies becomes the first left-handed pitcher in major league history to notch 3,000 strikeouts. Carlton fans three Montreal Expos in the first inning to reach the milestone.
On April 25, 1981, Seattle Mariners manager Maury Wills is suspended for two games as punishment for ordering the grounds crew to enlarge the batter’s boxes at the Kingdome. Wills had decided to tamper with the chalk lines after the Oakland A’s complained that Seattle’s Tom Paciorek repeatedly stepped out of the batter’s box while hitting.
Los Angeles Dodgers rookie Fernando Valenzuela pitches his third shutout in four starts, strikes out 11, and has the game’s only RBI with a single in a 1 – 0 win against the Houston Astros.
4/19/1981: Pitcher Frank Pastore of the Reds homered in the bottom of the third inning off the Cardinals’ Silvio Martinez. There was no one on base and one out. The game was rained out.
On April 19, 1981, the Oakland Athletics set a modern day record for the most consecutive wins to start a season. Billy Martin’s A’s defeat the Seattle Mariners, 6-1, giving them their 11th straight victory. The Atlanta Braves will surpass the mark a year later by opening the season with 13 consecutive wins.
On April 18, 1981, Tom Seaver of the Cincinnati Reds notches the 3,000th strikeout of his Hall of Fame career. Seaver fans Keith Hernandez of the St. Louis Cardinals, joining Bob Gibson, Walter Johnson, Gaylord Perry, and Nolan Ryan as members of the exclusive pitching club.
On April 18, 1981, the Pawtucket Red Sox and Rochester Red Wings start the longest game in professional baseball history. The game is suspended at 4:07 AM the next day, and will be resumed in June. The 33-inning contest will last a total of eight hours and 25 minutes.
On April 13,1981, Phillies 3B Mike Schmidt (along with Kansas City Royals 3B George Brett) appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Both players are the reigning MVPs in (1980) and together represent arguably the top 2 best third basemen in MLB history (of course, Michael Jack rates as the all-time best).
April 12, 1981, Boston Red Sox left fielder Jim Rice is mobbed at home plate by teammates Perez, Stapleton, Evans, and Remy after hitting a grand slam in the 8th inning vs White Sox. @ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@ Play by Play, Box Scores, News Paper Reports and other links Other Resources & Links
1981 – Don Sutton, signed as a free agent from Los Angeles over the winter, makes his Astro debut against the Dodgers, and surrenders six runs in a 7-4 loss.
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