The Nationals pick up outfielder Josh Willingham and pitcher Scott Olsen from the Marlins for prospect Emilio Bonifacio and minor leaguers Jake Smolinski and P.J. Dean.
Tim Lincecum wins the 2008 National League Cy Young Award in his first full season in the majors. Lincecum led the league in strikeouts and was second in both wins and ERA. Brandon Webb finishes second for the second consecutive season. The NL Western Division has now produced 8 of the last 10 NL Cy Young Award winners.
Cubs’ freshman Geovany Soto (.285, 23, 86), garnering 31 of 32 first-place votes, wins the National League Rookie of the Year award. The 25 year-old catcher becomes the first backstop to be selected since Mike Piazza won the freshman honor while playing for the Dodgers in 1993.
Evan Longoria (.272, 27, 85), the unanimous choice of the BBWAA, wins the American League Rookie of the Year award. The Rays’ slugging third baseman becomes the first player in franchise history to win a major postseason award.
Participants in a team-sponsored high school program aimed at helping Bronx youths pursue careers in architecture, engineering, and construction, along with a few players, remove rain-soaked dirt from the former Yankee Stadium and bring it across the street to the site of the team’s new $1.3 billion field. The soil is mixed with the new stadium’s dirt around home plate and pitcher’s rubber, which were also removed during the ceremony from the ‘House that Ruth Built’.
Former Boston players Bill Lee, Mo Vaughn, Mike Greenwell, Wes Ferrell, Frank Sullivan, and Everett Scott, as well as former scout George Digby and former executive Ed Kenney Sr., are inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame. The team also recognizes Ted Williams’ homer in his last at-bat and Curt Schilling’s performance (bloody sock) in Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS for their special significance in Red Sox history.
The Brewers hire Willie Randolph as bench coach to work with the team’s new manager Ken Macha. The 54 year-old former Mets manager compiled a 302-253 record during his 3+ years tenure in New York before being dismissed in June.
Extending a major league record, Greg Maddux captures his 18th Gold Glove, making it two more than former Baltimore third baseman Brooks Robinson and 26-year big league veteran Jim Kaat. The 42 year-old Dodger right-hander, who is considering retirement, has been selected 18 of the last 19 years as the NL’s slickest fielding pitcher, with the only exception occurring in 2003 when Mike Hampton got the nod from the managers and coaches for the Rawlings award.
Barack Obama, a long-time White Sox fan, is elected as the 44th president of the United States. The junior senator from Illinois, the first African-American to become the nation’s Commander-in-Chief, is friendly with the team’s general manager Kenny Williams, also a prominent member of Chicago’s black community.
Ruben Amaro Jr., the team’s assistant GM for a decade, is named to replace Pat Gillick as the general manager of the recently crowned World Champion Phillies. The former batboy signs a three-year deal to run the club five days after Philadelphia beat Tampa Bay in the Fall Classic to win its second title in franchise history.
Enjoy our free trial and start listening to games, interviews and shows! Ruth, Mantle, Aaron, and Seaver!